Booth Shoots Someone Else

[Mikestone8]

Grant is unlikely to be armed. He rarely carried his sword, except for ceremonial occassions, and did not, as far as I can recall, have a personal side-arm (it was not required by regulation) during the war. And, even as a general, he was not habitually accompanied by a bodyguard or armed escort. So, there may well be no military sentry present.

There was one present anyway, but he popped off for a drink or something. As I understand it, you could get away with taking such liberties with Lincoln, but not with Grant. So he'd presumably stay at his post.

 

[Thomas1195]

Both Chase and Colfax are ambitious men and popular within the Republican Party. In a straight contest between the two, I think Chase would probably come out the winner, with a New Englander like Senators Henry Wilson or William P. Fessenden as his running-mate.

Colfax winning would have created no change IMO.

Chase winning would have dragged the Republicans to a very different path. I mean, unlike Colfax, he was a Civil Service/Good Governance Reformer, so there might be no Liberal Republican/Mugwump Revolts and the GOP retaining a much larger progressive wing ITTL.

For military general, you could see Joshua Chamberlain, but note that politically he seemed to closer to Chase than Grant/Colfax.

 

[Locke01]

There was one present anyway, but he popped off for a drink or something. As I understand it, you could get away with taking such liberties with Lincoln, but not with Grant. So he'd presumably stay at his post.

Grant was never much of a spit and polish disciplinarian, so I don't know about that.

 

[bguy]

For military general, you could see Joshua Chamberlain, but note that politically he seemed to closer to Chase than Grant/Colfax.

Chamberlain would only be 40 in 1868. That's awfully young to be a presidential candidate.

 

[Kevin in Indy]

Why do you think Lincoln was in poor enough health stress could've killed him?

Nothing on which I can hang my hat, but I had read in several sources that he was declining in health during his Presidency. Not that unusual for a fifty-something man in the mid-19th Century. I had figured that staying in Washington and dealing with Reconstruction would wear him the rest of the way down. I remember a theory that he suffered from Marfan Syndrome, but I think that was set aside.

 

[marktaha]

Consider - what if Booth had to overcome the (in-place) guard with his knife, but made enough noise that Grant got up to investigate, with Lincoln getting up thereafter. Booth opens the door and has to use his gun to shoot Grant. Lincoln has the presence of mind to grab his chair and proceeds to beat Booth to death with it. ("Sic semper THIS, buddy!") Epic sacrifice by Grant, Lincoln takes a level in Badass.

I have always had it in my mind that Lincoln could not survive a full second term given the stress of dealing with the Radicals. I think that he may have hammered out some compromises but would die before 1868, leaving Andrew Johnson as a caretaker to finish out until a Republican successor can take office.

Have been books and at least one story on that theme.

 

[Mark E.]

I had figured that staying in Washington and dealing with Reconstruction would wear him the rest of the way down.

Then he would probably delegate as much authority as he could.

 

[Mikestone8]

Nothing on which I can hang my hat, but I had read in several sources that he was declining in health during his Presidency. Not that unusual for a fifty-something man in the mid-19th Century. I had figured that staying in Washington and dealing with Reconstruction would wear him the rest of the way down.

But even another year or so could make a big difference.

Frex, if Lincoln has ordered the army commanders in the South to enrol as voters all males over 21 who can read and write a section of the US Constitution (iirc this was a test often used in those days) and all Union Army veterans who were normally inhabitants of the relevant State, then even if Johnson came in later, he would almost certainly be unable to reverse this. If he tried to, he would be quickly slapped down as he would clearly be reneging on Lincoln's decision, something which *no* Republican would be likely to tolerate.

In this situation Lincoln's views would be *known* rather than a subject for speculation, and Johnson could do little more than keep the seat warm for Grant.