Double Tragedy: The Deaths of JFK & LBJ

November 3, 2001: President Bill Clinton addresses the nation and announces that Osama bin Laden, the man responsible for the 9/11 attack, has been killed at his hideout in a gun battle with Navy Seals and his body buried at sea. "This is not the end of our war on terror," Clinton says. "But it is the end of the immediate threat posed to freedom by al-Qaeda." The world cheers. President Clinton's approval rating reaches 93 percent, which is the highest ever achieved by any President.
:eek: ...D*MN. Less than two months after 9/11, and Bin Laden's dead? ...Clinton gets sh*t done!
 
Let me just assume huge butterflies occur in this TL, but making Hu Jintao a liberal is borderline ASB. Part of the Communist Youth Faction of Hu Yaobang, Hu Jintao had already been a hardliner before the death of Hu Yaobang. Hu Yaobang supported more understanding towards Tibet, more liberal education, free media, while Hu Jintao opposes all. On the other hand, Zhu Rongji is in OTL hawkishly reformist, and was more open to new ideas - unlike Hu Jintao, who is merely a buraeucrat.

This TL began quite well, but your latest updates are ASB. Given a POD in the 1960s, September 11th still happens, and bin Laden got caught within 2 months? OTL figures need not necessarily be butterflied away, but if you kill off both JFK and LBJ, and then things 40 years later happen almost exactly like in OTL, I would have serious doubts.

It's really a pity, because it's a good TL before it reaches the 1990s.
 
EPILOGUE

On October 29, 2005, the comedy show Saturday Night Live began with the Presidential seal and the words: “A message from the President of the United States”

The President, as portrayed by Darrell Hammond, unaware that he is on live television is caught singing:

“BOMB, BOMB, BOMB. BOMB, BOMB, IRAN”

The opening sketch parodied President John McCain as a bumbling, trigger-happy President. But the comic performance did mimic an actual incident that occurred earlier that week during a campaign event in Virginia for Republican gubernatorial candidate Jerry Kilgore. In response to a question at a town hall meeting regarding Iran’s nuclear program, President McCain jokingly replied with a parody of the Beach Boys song “Barbara Ann.”

Only the year before, it was President Bob Kerrey that was the bumbling inarticulate leader while John McCain ran the controlled mistake-free campaign for President. Thanks to the strategy devised by campaign manager Ed Rollins, McCain triumphed over a Republican primary field that included former Virginia Governor George Allen, former Wisconsin Governor Tommy Thompson and Senator Dan Quayle. McCain would benefit from the recession that began during the summer of 2002, rising inflation and criticism of the administration’s foreign policies to win a landslide over President Kerrey. With his appeals to conservative blue collar Democrats, McCain’s coattails resulted in the GOP increasing its majority in the House and wresting control of the Senate from the Democrats.

While President McCain was able to cut spending and capital gains taxes, his attempts at lawsuit reform and partial privatization of Social Security met a dead end thanks to members of his own party, including Senators Lincoln Chafee, James Jeffords (both switched to Independent before Christmas 2005 and caucused with the Democrats), George Voinovich and John McKernan. And in a major headache for the GOP, several members of Congress including Speaker Tom De Lay were tied to corrupt lobbyist Jack Abramoff.

On the international front, McCain decided not to put an end to the Saddam Hussein regime in Iraq which disappointed his Republican allies in Congress. Although he despised Saddam, McCain believed that a secular Iraq was necessary to counter the influence of Iran where a little-known Tehran mayor named Mahmoud Ahmadinejad came out of nowhere to be elected its President.

On October 31, 2005, eager to prove his machismo and to confront America in the aftermath of McCain’s “Bomb Iran” quip, Ahmadinejad ordered his navy to board an American naval carrier in the Indian Ocean on the pretense that the Americans were illegally entering Iranian waters. President McCain ordered the US Navy to shoot to kill any Iranians attempting to board the ship. After a 20 minute firefight, the Iranian navy ship was sunk by the US Navy. After ordering all military assets in the Middle East at DEFCON 1, three missiles fired from Tehran in retaliation but air force jets patrolling from Afghanistan were able to intercept the missiles before they could hit the navy ship. On November 1, President McCain became the first US President in 61 years to seek for a formal declaration of war which the Congress overwhelmingly approved.

The rally behind the flag effect was not enough to help Jerry Kilgore in Virginia. Democrat Mark Warner won the Governor’s race by a 55 to 45 percent margin.

The first couple of weeks of the American-Iranian War were dominated by the United States and its NATO allies. American fighter jets destroyed munitions factories, military bases, and buildings housing the Iranian Defense Ministry and Revolutionary Guards. After all Iranian military jets were destroyed on the ground, American, Canadian and British tanks crossed the border from Afghanistan. Turkish NATO troops were sent to patrol the border with Syria (the highest ranking ayatollahs had already crossed the border secretly and found refuge in Damascus under the protection of the Syrian army).

The first tanks rolled into Tehran by Thanksgiving and surrounded the Presidential Palace. After killing every member of the Revolutionary Guards that was guarding the palace in a three hour firefight, US Marines found the body of Ahmadinejad inside a basement bunker.

The Americans won the war but keeping the peace would prove to be very difficult. The Americans and NATO had to face an insurgency which often resulted in suicide bombing attacks in the streets of Tehran and in the countryside where Jordanian soldiers carried out the UN-supervised peacekeeping mission. A group calling itself Hezbollah in Iran claimed responsibility for the attacks.

Despite enjoying 89 percent job approval ratings by Christmas of 2005, President McCain’s approval ratings would drop to 43 percent by the next summer as the American casualties reached 2,000 after the end of the war. The Democrats called on McCain to bring the troops back home. In response, McCain decided on a troop surge by Labor Day which meant more coffins arriving at Andrews Air Force Base. Meanwhile, revolution was breaking out all over Iraq against the strongman rule of Saddam Hussein. Some Republicans called for military intervention in Iraq.

The Democrats surged ahead in the midterm elections and won back their majorities in the House and Senate. Senator Rick Perry of Texas, appointed to the seat after the death of Ann Richards in September, claimed that Saddam still had weapons of mass destruction hidden in Baghdad (which UN arms control inspectors did not find); he was defeated in the special election by former Congressman Chris Bell. Days later, the sectarian civil war in Iraq began.

By the time that Nancy Pelosi was officially elected Speaker of the House, men and women took to the streets in Cairo, Tunis, Damascus and Benghazi demanding the removal of their corrupt and dictatorial leaders. By the spring, Zine el Abidine Ben Ali resigned as President of Tunisia and went into exile in Saudi Arabia. Hosni Mubarak was forced by the military to resign; in 2008, he was found guilty of issuing shoot to kill orders on peaceful street protests. He is currently serving a life sentence at a prison hospital in Alexandria.

Libya erupted into civil war which ended on December 11, 2007 when rebels entered Sirte, the birthplace of Muammar Gadhafi and the last remaining loyalist stronghold. Gadhafi fulfilled his vow of dying a martyr and was killed in a firefight inside a nearby farmhouse. Under pressure, Algeria turned over Muammar’s wife and surviving children to Libyan custody. His sons, Seif al-Arab, Khamis, Hannibal and Mutassim were convicted of crimes against humanity and executed by firing squad in 2010. His daughter Ayesha was convicted on the lesser charges of grand larceny and is serving a 25 year sentence. His widow Safiya accepted exile in Geneva. Hana, an adopted daughter thought to have been killed in 1986 after American air force jets attacked the family compound, resurfaced in Rome and revealed that she survived. She currently lives in Italy under protective custody.

The civil war in Iraq would be as bloody as the one in Libya. Kurdish militia, marsh Arabs, and soldiers (mostly Shiite Muslims) that deserted from the Iraqi army formed an alliance to overthrow the dictatorship in Baghdad. With the Kurds already controlling most of northern Iraq thanks to the no-fly zone, the Shiites were able to drive out Saddam’s loyalists from the south. Saddam still had effective control over Baghdad and his hometown of Tikrit. With NATO, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia secretly coordinating gun running operations, the rebels were able to match the Iraqi military in weaponry. NATO (mostly British) air fighter jets destroyed most military assets around Baghdad. By February 2008, the rebels entered Baghdad through the Shiite neighborhoods and laid siege to the Presidential Palace. After a fierce gun battle, rebels found the corpses of Saddam’s sons, Uday and Qusay. But Saddam was nowhere to be found.

A month later, the rebels surrounded Tikrit and gave the town a deadline to surrender or face liberation. The deadline came and passed. After gaining control over the town after a three day battle, Saddam was still nowhere to be found.

Finally on April 7, 2008, Saddam was found inside a shack outside of Mosul. With no bodyguards and outnumbered by 40 rebel fighters, Saddam literally fought to the death after he was found inside a basement. Saddam was secretly buried in an unmarked grave.

But none of these events could save McCain’s Presidency as Iraq and to a lesser extent, Afghanistan, became a quagmire. On Election Day 2008, the Democrats would increase their majorities in Congress and win back the White House.

On January 20, 2009 at 12 Noon with Supreme Court Chief Justice Jefferson Sessions conducting the oath, the 45th President of the United States began his term of office with the following words:

“I, Robert Francis Kennedy, Jr. do solemnly swear…”
 
2004 Election Results

genusmap.php


John McCain/Kay Bailey Hutchison (R): 51%, 328 EV
J. Robert Kerrey/Richard Gephardt (D): 48%, 210 EV

House of Representatives
R: 243 (+21)
D: 192 (-21)
I: 1

U.S. Senate
R: 55 (+8)
D: 47 (-8)

Alabama: Judge Roy Moore (R) defeated Ron Sparks (D). Jim Folsom retired. Republican Gain
Arizona: US Rep Jon Kyl (R) defeated Phoenix Mayor Terry Goddard (D). John McCain did not run for reelection.
Columbia: Governor Sharon Pratt Dixon (D) unopposed. Linda Cropp retired.
Florida: Attorney General Charlie Crist (R) defeated US Rep Peter Deutsch (D). Buddy McKay retired. Republican Gain
Georgia: US Rep Johnny Isakson (R) defeated former Governor Roy Barnes (D). Zell Miller retired. Republican Gain
Kentucky: US Rep Anne Northup (R) defeated Senator Scotty Baesler (D). Republican Gain
Louisiana: US Rep David Vitter (R) defeated US Rep Chris John (D). John Breaux retired. Republican Gain
North Carolina: US Rep Richard Burr (R) defeated Secretary of State Elaine Marshall (D). Jim Hunt retired. Republican Gain
Oklahoma: Oklahoma City Mayor Kirk Humphries (R) defeated US Rep Brad Carson (D). James Jones retired. Republican Gain
South Carolina: US Rep Jim DeMint (R) defeated Inez Tenenbaum (D). Ernest Hollings retired. Republican Gain
Washington: US Rep Maria Cantwell (D) defeated former US Rep Jack Metcalf (R). Thomas Foley retired.


2006 Election Results
On September 13, 2006, Senator Ann Richards (D-TX) died from cancer. Governor David Dewhurst appointed State Attorney General Rick Perry to the seat and scheduled a special election to occur on the same day as the November General Election. Perry already won the Republican primary for the Senate seat and faces the Democrat, former US Rep Chris Bell.

House of Representatives
D: 238 (+46)
R: 198 (-45)
I: - (-1)

US Senate
D: 51 (+4)
R: 49 (-6)
I: 2 (+2)*

*Both Independents caucus with the Democrats. Senator Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island left the Republican Party on December 23, 2005.

Arizona: Former State Party Chairman Jim Peterson (D) defeated Senator J.D. Hayworth (R). Democrat Gain
Florida: Former Miami-Dade County Mayor Alex Penelas (D) defeated US Rep John Mica (R). Bob Graham retired.
Indiana: Former Governor Evan Bayh (D) defeated US Rep Mitch Daniels (R). Dan Quayle retired. Democrat Gain
Maine: US Rep Tom Allen (D) defeated former US Rep David Emery (R). John McKernan retired. Democrat Gain
Maryland: US Rep Benjamin Cardin (D) defeated Lt Governor Michael Steele (R). Paul Sarbanes retired.
Minnesota: Hennepin County Attorney Amy Klobuchar (D) defeated US Rep Mark Kennedy (R). Hubert Humphrey III retired.
Montana: State Senator Jon Tester (D) defeated Senator Conrad Burns (R). Democrat Gain
Tennessee: US Rep Harold Ford (D) defeated Knoxville Mayor Bob Corker (R). Albert Gore retired.
Texas: Former US Rep Chris Bell (D) defeated appointed Senator Rick Perry (R) (death of Senator Ann Richards). Democrat Gain
Vermont: US Rep Bernie Sanders (I) defeated Richard Tarrant (R). James Jeffords (I) retired.


2008 Election Results

genusmap.php


Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. /Mark Warner (D): 55%, 390 EV
John McCain/Kay Bailey Hutchison (R): 45%, 148 EV

House of Representatives
D: 260 (+22)
R: 176 (-22)


US Senate
D: 55 (+4)
R: 45 (-4)
I: 2

Alaska: Anchorage Mayor Mark Begich (D) defeats Senator Ted Stevens (R). Democrat Gain
Arkansas: Former FEMA Director James Lee Witt (D) defeats former US Rep Asa Hutchinson (R). Winston Bryant retired.
Colorado: US Rep Mark Udall defeats US Rep Tom Tancredo (R). Tim Wirth retired.
Idaho: Former Governor Jim Risch (R) defeats former US Rep Larry La Rocco (D). Larry Craig retired.
Iowa: Former Governor Tom Vilsack (D) defeats State Senator Bob Vander Platts (R). Terry Branstad retired. Democrat Gain
Louisiana: US Rep Charlie Melancon defeats Senator Suzanne Haik Terrell (R). Democrat Gain
Maine: US Rep Chellie Pingree (D) defeats State Rep James Longley (R). Joseph Brennan retired.
New Hampshire: Former Governor Jeanne Shaheen (D) defeats Manchester Mayor Frank Guinta (R). John Durkin retired.
Virginia: Former State Rep Creigh Deeds (D) defeats Senator William Bennett (R). Democrat Gain


Cabinet of President Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
Secretary of State: John Kerry (D-MA)
Secretary of the Treasury: Jon Corzine (D-NJ)
Secretary of Defense: James Webb (D-VA)
Attorney General: Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-IL)*
Secretary of the Interior: Tom Udall (D-NM)
Secretary of Agriculture: James Folsom, Jr. (D-AL)
Secretary of Commerce: Albert Gore, Jr. (D-TN)
Secretary of Labor: Richard Gephardt (D-MO)
Secretary of Health and Human Services: John Garamendi (D-CA)
Secretary of Housing and Urban Development: Floyd Flake (D-NY)
Secretary of Transportation: James Oberstar (D-MN)
Secretary of Education: Roy Romer (D-CO)
Secretary of Veterans Affairs: Max Cleland (D-GA)
Secretary of Homeland Security: Louis Freeh (I-NY)

White House Chief of Staff: William Daley (D-IL)
Director, Office of Management and Budget: Claire McCaskill (D-MO)
Administrator, EPA: Sherwood Boehlert (R-NY)
Trade Representative: Jim Kolbe (R-AZ)**
Ambassador to the United Nations: Lee Hamilton (D-IN)
Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors: Paul Krugman (D-NJ)

*Widow of the late President Bill Clinton. Hillary moved to Chicago after her husband's death

**Holdover from McCain administration

Congressional Leaders
Speaker of the House: Nancy Pelosi (D-CA)
House Majority Leader: Jeffrey Miller (D-NY)
House Majority Whip: James Clyburn (D-SC)
House Deputy Majority Whips: Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), Rahm Emmanuel (D-IL)
House Minority Leader: John Boehner (R-OH)
House Minority Whip: Kevin McCarthy (R-CA)
House Deputy Minority Whips: Eric Cantor (R-VA), Jeff Flake (R-AZ)

Senate President Pro Tempore: Robert Byrd (D-WV)
Senate Majority Leader: Harry Reid (D-NV)
Senate Majority Whip: Rudolph Giuliani (D-NY)
Senate Minority Leader: Mitch McConnell (R-KY)
Senate Minority Whip: John Cornyn (R-TX)
 

mr noob

Banned
i went through and looked and made a complete list of presidents from ttl

1.George Washington I 1789-1797
2.John Adams F 1797-1801
3.Thomas Jefferson DR 1801-1809
4.James Madison DR 1809-1817
5.James Monroe DR 1817-1825
6.John Quincy Adams DR 1825-1829
7.Andrew Jackson D 1829-1837
8.Martin Van Buren D 1837-1841
9.William Henry Harrison W 1841
10.John Tyler W 1841-1845
11.James K. Polk D 1845-1849
12.Zachary Taylor W 1849-1850
13.Millard Fillmore W1850-1853
14.Franklin Pierce D 1853-1857
15.James Buchanan D 1857-1861
16.Abraham Lincoln R 1861-1865
17.Andrew Johnson D 1865-1869
18.Ulysses S. Grant R 1869-1877
19.Rutherford B. Hayes R 1877-1881
20.James A. Garfield R 1881
21.Chester A. Arthur R 1881-1885
22.Grover Cleveland D 1885-1889
23.Benjamin Harrison R 1889-1893-
24.Grover Cleveland D 1893-1897
25.William McKinley R 1897-1901
26.Theodore Roosevelt R 1901-1909
27.William Howard Taft R 1909-1913
28.Woodrow Wilson D 1913-1921
29.Warren G. Harding R 1921-1923
30.Calvin Coolidge R 1923-1929
31.Herbert Hoover R 1929-1933
32.Franklin D. Roosevelt D 1933-1945
33.Harry S. Truman D 1945-1953
34.Dwight D. Eisenhower R 1953-1961
35.John F. Kennedy D 1961-1963 POD
36.John McCormack D 1963-1964
37.Hubert Humphrey D 1964-1972
38.Terry Sanford D 1972-1976
39.Ronald Reagen R 1976-1980
40.Robert F Kennedy D 1980-1988
41.Jack Kemp R 1988-1996
42.Bill Clinton D 1996-2003
43.Joseph R Kennedy D 2003-2004
44.John McCain R 2004-2008
45.Robert F Kennedy D 2008-Present
 
i went through and looked and made a complete list of presidents from ttl

1.George Washington I 1789-1797
2.John Adams F 1797-1801
3.Thomas Jefferson DR 1801-1809
4.James Madison DR 1809-1817
5.James Monroe DR 1817-1825
6.John Quincy Adams DR 1825-1829
7.Andrew Jackson D 1829-1837
8.Martin Van Buren D 1837-1841
9.William Henry Harrison W 1841
10.John Tyler W 1841-1845
11.James K. Polk D 1845-1849
12.Zachary Taylor W 1849-1850
13.Millard Fillmore W1850-1853
14.Franklin Pierce D 1853-1857
15.James Buchanan D 1857-1861
16.Abraham Lincoln R 1861-1865
17.Andrew Johnson D 1865-1869
18.Ulysses S. Grant R 1869-1877
19.Rutherford B. Hayes R 1877-1881
20.James A. Garfield R 1881
21.Chester A. Arthur R 1881-1885
22.Grover Cleveland D 1885-1889
23.Benjamin Harrison R 1889-1893-
24.Grover Cleveland D 1893-1897
25.William McKinley R 1897-1901
26.Theodore Roosevelt R 1901-1909
27.William Howard Taft R 1909-1913
28.Woodrow Wilson D 1913-1921
29.Warren G. Harding R 1921-1923
30.Calvin Coolidge R 1923-1929
31.Herbert Hoover R 1929-1933
32.Franklin D. Roosevelt D 1933-1945
33.Harry S. Truman D 1945-1953
34.Dwight D. Eisenhower R 1953-1961
35.John F. Kennedy D 1961-1963 POD
36.John McCormack D 1963-1964
37.Hubert Humphrey D 1964-1972
38.Terry Sanford D 1972-1976
39.Ronald Reagen R 1976-1980
40.Robert F Kennedy D 1980-1988
41.Jack Kemp R 1988-1996
42.Bill Clinton D 1996-2003
43.Bob Kerrey D 2003-2004
44.John McCain R 2004-2008
45.Robert F Kennedy D 2008-Present

It was Bob Kerrey that succeeded Clinton in 2003
 
I still can't believe Glen got away with the idea Reagan would have gone on a Shooting Spree of just about every Leading Socialist Politician in the World during his First Term in Office, thus creating his own version of Watergate when he denies he had any part of it.

And that an Invasion of North Vietnam succeeded in earning victory within Two Days, with planning of the Invasion having only begun Days before.

And with Reagan's general uncaring attitude regarding Deaths among the hostages during the Rescue Operation during a Nationally Televised Speech regarding Said Operation, at a time when he would be careful not to make such mistakes giving his polling.

And the only Republicans who seem to have any level of success once they enter office or are trying to reach office are those who are political Moderates.

And I am not even going to mention the 90's as others have.

This is just pure and total Liberal-Wank.​
 
instead of reagan and the masacre

have Nixon become president and Bobby Kennedy defeat ford after N:eek:ixon resigns. I think its out of charector of Reagan in this story
 
I too have problems of the easy Vietnam War win. Beside, way too much OTL events still happen ITTL (not just 9/11), and happen at exact same date as OTL!

...
December 14, 1993: At Major League Baseball’s Winter Meetings, team owners elect George W. Bush to replace Bud Selig as Acting Commissioner. Bush will eventually sell his ownership interest in the Texas Rangers and be formally elected Commissioner of MLB at the end of the 1994 season. In San Diego, Senator Pete Wilson announces he will not run for reelection next year. He is exploring a 1996 run for President.

...

August 12, 1994: Due to the efforts of Acting Commissioner George W. Bush, a players’ strike of Major League Baseball is averted. The highlight of the agreement, grudgingly accepted by both sides, is a salary range of between 60% and 65% of the average previous year’s revenue of each club. This averts calls within Congress to overturn most aspects of baseball’s anti-trust exemption. The Montreal Expos, in particular, are relieved that a work stoppage is prevented; they are on a pace to win over 100 games for the first time in club history.

...

October 2, 1994: The Montreal Expos take the National League East by 11 games with a 108-54 record. They are heavily favored against the 82-80 Los Angeles Dodgers. In the other NLDS, the Atlanta Braves face the Houston Astros. In the American League the New York Yankees face the Cleveland Indians, while the White Sox face Texas, the first sub-.500 team to qualify for postseason play. Purists, already outraged by the idea of a wild card, howl in protest at the prospect of a team with a losing record playing in the Fall Classic, but fans in cities such as Cleveland, Montreal and Houston are excited at the prospect of their teams enjoying postseason play for the first time in many years.

...

October 27, 1994: The Montreal Expos defeat the Cleveland Indians in the World Series, 4 games to 2, as 23-year-old Pedro Martinez wins two games in the Series with an ERA of 1.43 and is selected as Series MVP. All seven series matchups are competitive, prompting Commissioner Bush to declare the new 3-division, 8-team playoff format a rousing success

Why other owners rebelled against "The Great Lakes Gang" ITTL (I'm totally fine with that, but I want to know why, especially they just voted out Fay Vincent 15 months ago by 18–9)?

BTW, what is the batting average of Tony Gwynn's TTL 1994 season?
 
I too have problems of the easy Vietnam War win.

Suffice to say we would have suffered tens of thousands of additional casualties, it would have taken at least a year to properly prepare, and the Chinese would have intervened if we got anywhere near Hanoi. This would not have become the Golden Egg for Humphrey as it is presented in this TL.​
 
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