Dewey Defeats Truman: A Progressive Proto-Wank

The 1948 Presidential Election
Going into the 1948 Presidential Election, most observers were expecting a 1936 or 1920 style landslide in favor of the Republican Nominee, Governor Thomas Dewey of New York. With Incumbent President Harry Truman unpopular, and his Democratic Party split 3 ways, these expectations were not unfounded. As it turned out, after a lackluster campaign from Governor Dewey and a famously contrasting campaign from Truman, the 1948 Election was anything but a landslide. Indeed, it was one of the closest and most dramatic elections in American history.

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President Harry Truman had rallied from a gigantic deficit in the polls to winning the popular vote on election day. Unfortunately for him, he came up just short in the 3 crucial swing states of California, Ohio, and Illinois, allowing Governor Dewey to win the election with 267 Electoral Votes, only one more then the required 266 needed to win. Despite being understandably disappointed after truly believing he was going to win, President Truman conceded the election the next day, and Thomas Dewey was sworn in as the nation's 34th President on January 20, 1949.
 
The 1948 Congressional Elections
Despite Dewey's Victory, the Republicans suffered major losses in Congress. Even if voters were unwilling to re-elect Harry Truman, his attacks on the Republican Controlled 80th Congress were effective, and on election day, Democrats took back control of both chambers of Congress which they had lost in 1946.

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1948 US House.jpeg

This arrangement presaged the difficulty the Dewey Administration would have in passing it's Agenda. The Democratic Congress would often stall his initiatives, in a way not too dissimilar to the way the preceding congress had stalled President Truman's Liberal agenda, and in a way which annoyed many a Republican.
 
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Hmmm... So which party becomes more left-wing ITTL? Interesting premise.

Interesting. Though for President Truman, it was the Fair Deal, not the New Deal.
 
I was in the middle of another update...

Well, I'm intrigued by this. One note, though. George Romney was not really a credible candidate for Secretary of the Treasury yet. He'd been a trade association guy and was moving up, but at 42, he wasn't in the league where a GOP President would give him Treasury, which usually went to someone with Wall Street ties. Prescott Bush would fit the bill, though...
 
This is a scenario that I have always wondered about. We have to remember that the country went into the election expecting an easy Dewey victory. Instead he barely squeaks by to win the election after blowing a massive lead, while Truman unanimously outperforms expectations, winning the national popular vote by 2.5%. Furthermore, Dewey's victory is matched by disastrous GOP losses in Congress. He would enter office uniquely weak.
 
Well, I'm intrigued by this. One note, though. George Romney was not really a credible candidate for Secretary of the Treasury yet. He'd been a trade association guy and was moving up, but at 42, he wasn't in the league where a GOP President would give him Treasury, which usually went to someone with Wall Street ties. Prescott Bush would fit the bill, though...
Fair enough.
 
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