A Time of Choosing

On October 7 1964 President Lyndon B Johnsons top aide Walter Jenkins was arrested for disorderly conduct. Soon the news was spreading like wildfire. Meanwhile in Russia the anti Kruschev plotters decided to wait untill November to make their coup. In Britan Prime Minister Home decided to wait untill November to call an election and the date for the Chinese detonation of an atomic bomb was pushed bach to November. Soon both Johnson and his Republican opponent Barry Goldwater were even in the polls thanks to the Jenkins scandal. On election night 1964 Goldwater won by 1 electoral vote with 270 in total a new age in American politics had began. Shortly after his defeat Johnson attempted to pass the voting rights act of 1965. The bill passed in the Senate 74-22 and in the House 333-85 with President Johnson signing it into law on January 18 1965. Two days later Goldwater was sworn in as President.
 
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President Barry Goldwater: let the games begin.

Obviously you chose the title after Ronald Reagan's famous speech at the 1964 GOP Convention endorsing Goldwater.
 
Shortly after becoming President Goldwater met with his new Defense Secretary Curtis Lemay. General he said do whatever it takes but win this war thats all I ask of you. Lemay then authorized Operation Rolling Thunder the full strategic bombing of North Vietnam. On August 17 Operation Starlite was launched or the invasion of North Vietnam with Battleships in the Gulf of Tonkin supporting infantry landing on the coast. By the 24th a beachead had been established. Soon Us troops were advancing on Hanoi. On November 14 the battle of Hanoi began which would end on the 18th with U.S. victory. The surviving members of the Vietmanese government fled across the border into China. The Vietnam war was over though the Vietcong would continue their insurgency into the 70s the war however for the most part over.
 
Following the fall of Hanoi Goldwaters approval ratings were at an all time at 65%. In Congress Goldwater attempted to reform the Government and deregulate the economy. Relations with the USSR would reach a alltime low with Goldwater telling Secretary of State Richard Nixon that we should lob an atomic bomb into the mens room of the Kremlin. In 1966 the Republicans made gains in the midterms with one of these newcomers being Ronald Reagan the new Governor of California. With 1968 approaching Goldwater was on the path to reelection.
 
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The Democratic nominee was Eugene McCarthy and Ted Kennedy who constantly polled behind in opinion polls. On elction day Goldwater was reelected by 347 electoral votes in a landslide with the Republicans taking control of the House and Senate with Gerald Ford becoming Speaker of the House. As Senator George Bush said we had come a long way since 1964 with people like Bush being called Goldwater babies. Shortly after becoming Senate Majority leader Everett Dirksen died to be replaced with Bush as Majority leader meanwhile more of Goldwaters reforms were being passed the Republicans were entering a new golden age not seen since 1932
 
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Suggestion: Beef up your updates. Give us details, the thick and thin of it. Any update in a TL should be at least a few paragraphs of information.
 
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