AHC: President McGovern

On DW someone wrote a TL where in 1971, it is discovered that Jimmy Hoff's pardon was a quid pro quo for the teamster's endorsement in 1968. nNixon resigns facing impeachment for bribery. In October 1972, President Agnew 's bribery and tax evasion become public knowledge and McGovern wins.
 

Japhy

Banned
On DW someone wrote a TL where in 1971, it is discovered that Jimmy Hoff's pardon was a quid pro quo for the teamster's endorsement in 1968. nNixon resigns facing impeachment for bribery. In October 1972, President Agnew 's bribery and tax evasion become public knowledge and McGovern wins.

The problem with that situation is that the odds increase even more that the Democrats would nominate someone competent like Humphrey or Muskie or Scoop.
 
Three chances for McGovern to become POTUS: slim, none, and when hell freezes over. Even after the convention, he knew pretty much that it was a lost cause. The only thing that was in doubt was by how much Nixon would win.
 
Here's how I'd do it:

1) Scuttle the public perception of Nixon's Vietnam policy. Get another major Tet-style PR disaster and Americanization will no longer seem an unqualified success - people might begin clamoring for a faster exit.

2) Thomas Eagleton gets hit by a bus or something in 1971, before he can slander McGovern anonymously to the newspapers. There will be no "acid, amnesty and abortion" rumors, and it will be much easier for working-class Democratic voters to rally behind McGovern. (He favored amnesty, but the other two are twisting the truth - he was pro-life and believed in drug decriminalization, not legalization.)

3) George Wallace dodges a bullet and runs a third-party campaign again.

If McGovern's seen as less of a divisive and radical candidate, he'll be able to convince an establishment Democrat to serve as his VP candidate - maybe Boston Mayor Kevin White, who'd help with the urban working-class Catholic vote. It also means the convention will be wrapped up quickly, and McGovern will be able to make his speech in prime time rather than being delayed until midnight by pissed-off delegates nominating Archie Bunker and Chairman Mao.

So McGovern has everything he didn't in OTL: the conservative vote split by Wallace, working-class Democrats' support, a convention bounce. More support from the Democratic establishment could lead to better campaign managing, which would help fix McGovern's atrocious campaign commercials and could convince him to run on his record as a war hero.

Couple all this with a shakier Vietnam policy from Nixon, and McGovern has a shot.
 

  • Have Nixon slow Vietnamization, keeping hundreds of thousands of troops in South Vietnam, and around (~200,000) by the time November rolls around. Casualties should be higher as a result, and the War the principle issue of the Campaign.
    • McGovern does better in the primaries as a whole given he is the principle Anti-War candidate; comes a close second in New Hampshire, larger margin in Wisconsin, close second in Pennsylvania, wins Ohio, second in Maryland.
  • Humphrey endorses McGovern after a clear win for the former, in return for payment of Humphrey's campaign debt (almost happened in OTL, but the closer returns in California prompted Humphrey to renege on the initiative, and declared he would fight to the convention. This would likely happen though even with close returns ITTL, given McGovern beat him in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Maryland.)
  • Edmund Muskie endorses McGovern in return for payment of Muskie's campaign debts (again, almost happened, though some significant members of the Democratic Party convinced him to pull out of that deal, hoping for his nomination at the convention. Won't happen here.)
  • Given that McGovern is the virtual nominee with Humphrey and Muskie out and behind him, he doesn't need to be worried about a potential revolt from the Massachusetts delegation. Kevin White is nominated as his running-mate.
  • Result: McGovern loses the popular vote by about three percent, but wins the electoral college. This is in large part because normally Democratic voters throughout the South either don't vote or turn to Nixon.
That's how I planned my aborted McGovern TL.

Edit: I will note however his Presidency was going to have serious............difficulties.

 
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