Everything Changes: A Timeline of a Robert F. Kennedy Presidency

[THE OBSERVER]

Ladies and gentleman. After a long while, I have begun my long-awaited and frequently-mentioned RFK TL:

The various events that have occurred in 1968 left a stain on the American public. Riots, protests, an unpopular war, and the high-profile assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy. The latter assassination, stunned and saddened many people from all walks of life, who supported "Bobby" in his campaign and believed that he would be able to unite the splintered factions of the Democratic Party in a successful quest for the Presidency, pull out of Vietnam, and resolve the numerous crises on the homefront. Sadly, an angry Palestinian, Sirhan Sirhan, destroyed a dream when he allowed his deep hatred toward Israel and RFK's support of the country, to manifest itself in his successful assassination of the Senator on June 4, 1968, right after he won the California Presidential Primary.

The events that occurred after that, such as the riots at the 1968 DNC in Chicago, the election of Richard Nixon to the presidency, the continued presence in Vietnam, and the Watergate scandals, made a huge impact on the United States that continues to resonate with the public many years later. But what if things happened differently in that pantry in the Ambassador Hotel on June 4, 1968. What if Sirhan was successfully subdued without firing the fatal shots at the Senator? What if RFK took a different route out of the Ballroom? Most importantly, what would an RFK Presidency have looked like? The story I am about to write isn't as detailed as "A Disturbance of Fate," nor does is it as brief as Jeff Greenfield's take on an RFK Presidency in "Then Everything Changed." This story also doesn't have any of the ASB scenarios in the two books mentioned above. What this story is, is an attempt to create the most realistic depiction of an RFK Presidency on this forum. I don't plan on making RFK a New Democrat (Or Bill Clinton years before Bill Clinton), nor do I plan on making a TL that everyone enjoys. While I wish that travel to a universe where RFK survived and elected president was possible, I can only try my best.

Sources that I will use ITTL include A Disturbance of Fate, by Mitchell Freedman and Then Everything Changed, by Jeff Greenfield. While their ideas are very interesting, my goal, like hcallega's in Decision Points is to be comprehensive and less dramatic. Lastly, I am grateful for hcallega's assistance in various matters relating to RFK, to the people who gave me advice on a potential RFK Cabinet in my thread WI: Cabinet of RFK Administration: https://www.alternatehistory.com/discussion/showthread.php?t=222309 and to StevenAttewell for his wonderful summarization and posting of RFK's policies in my RFK: A New Democrat Thread: https://www.alternatehistory.com/discussion/showthread.php?t=256332

Now that the introduction's are out of the way, let's begin the thread. The first post will come soon. I hope you will enjoy it.

 

[Emperor Norton I]

RFK was an interesting figure. A Liberal by modern standards, though he disliked them by his own standards (a "Liberal" being, at the time, a stodgy old New Dealer) who supported New Federalism with the national bureaucracy and who took a dim view of the then-current welfare state, capable of so much with such a poetic lucidity and yet so easy to be petty at times and create unnecessary enemies as a result, who managed to create a coalition across America with supporters after his death going to George Wallace just as much as Hubert Humphrey or Richard Nixon.

I have heard Greenfield has a Watergate-like crisis brewing. I would personally disagree with that since, while Bobby was perfectly capable of the old dirty political game, Nixon took it to a far extreme with activities I can't see someone other than Nixon partaking in. Whether you have something similar or not is up to you.

I await your timeline.

 

[historybuff]

I'm looking forward to your take on a RFK presidency.

 

[THE OBSERVER]

Feel free to make suggestions in your responses. You can DM me if you wish. First post, the POD, will be up tonight or tomorrow.

 

[Emperor Norton I]

Feel free to make suggestions in your responses. You can DM me if you wish. First post, the POD, will be up tonight or tomorrow.

You could do something different with NASA (I mention because I'm going through a relapse phase of interest in it lately). I could see an argument not necessarily for a continuation of an Apollo/Saturn V program, since the orders for a second production run were already cancelled under the Johnson administration, but for RFK to have an emphasis on things derived from Apollo/Saturn as things from his brothers dream. On a quick aside, it wasn't his brothers dream since JFK cared about space as a grounds for victory over the Russians or defeat of the Russians, and didn't have a lofty love of space exploration. But there is symbolism there and it does serve as a memorial. Or, he could have a pragmatism and say the US already won, the dream came true, so bring on the space shuttles.

You could probably find out from one of our space fans on the board the alternate paths for NASA that were possible or plausible by 1968/1969. Those could also involve a shuttle program, albeit a different one. I do not believe you'll get something like NERVA by this point, nor a Mars landing. I don't even believe you'll get the Saturn MLV by this point. This is an era of compromises in NASA between their loftier hopes and the realities of what politics will allow them. Anything to come will have to be a result of that vibe of compromise.

 

[historybuff]

What

kind of sueggestions are you loking for? Not sure oif RFK would open relations with China or ot.

 

[Indigo]

Bowles in unlikely. In 1960, John F. Kennedy originally considered making him secreatry of state(at the beginning of the primary camapign) but Bowles refusal to attack Humphrey in the Wisconsin primary put a chill in his relationship with the Kennedys, and as a result he got a lower position. RFK, who was campaign manager at the time, is not going to like Bowles any more than JFK. Bowles might get a high up diplomatic position, but probably not Secretary of State.

 

[THE OBSERVER]

Looking forward to this.



Did you ever decide who you wanted for Secretary of State? I remember reading George Ball, but I also remember some indecision toward the end of the relevant planning threat as to whether Chet Bowles could be a possibility.

Still wondering about it though.

 

[THE OBSERVER]

You could do something different with NASA (I mention because I'm going through a relapse phase of interest in it lately). I could see an argument not necessarily for a continuation of an Apollo/Saturn V program, since the orders for a second production run were already cancelled under the Johnson administration, but for RFK to have an emphasis on things derived from Apollo/Saturn as things from his brothers dream. On a quick aside, it wasn't his brothers dream since JFK cared about space as a grounds for victory over the Russians or defeat of the Russians, and didn't have a lofty love of space exploration. But there is symbolism there and it does serve as a memorial. Or, he could have a pragmatism and say the US already won, the dream came true, so bring on the space shuttles.

You could probably find out from one of our space fans on the board the alternate paths for NASA that were possible or plausible by 1968/1969. Those could also involve a shuttle program, albeit a different one. I do not believe you'll get something like NERVA by this point, nor a Mars landing. I don't even believe you'll get the Saturn MLV by this point. This is an era of compromises in NASA between their loftier hopes and the realities of what politics will allow them. Anything to come will have to be a result of that vibe of compromise.

Please DM me more of your thoughts, and advice for 1968 Elections and campaigns. How RFK Campaigns, how the convention turns out, how the election turns out.

 

[THE OBSERVER]

I have heard Greenfield has a Watergate-like crisis brewing. I would personally disagree with that since, while Bobby was perfectly capable of the old dirty political game, Nixon took it to a far extreme with activities I can't see someone other than Nixon partaking in. Whether you have something similar or not is up to you.

That crisis won't happen here.

 

[THE OBSERVER]

Well I was going to suggest U. Alexis Johnson as some sort of bland compromise nominee if it gets to the wire - I mean he's well qualified and served capably in JFK's administration - but then again I don't know how deeply associated he was with Vietnam, etc. I've also seen him described as 'Dean Rusk's alter ego,' which doesn't make me think he'd be that endearing to RFK.

So I'd stick with George Ball.

Ball it is. First chapter is coming tomorrow. Putting a lot of work into my writing because it's my first big TL. Want to make a good impression.

 

[THE OBSERVER]

Well I think that's good news

While sometimes I might disagree with the conclusions of a timeline, I have the greatest respect for those writers who've done enough research so that when they write, a turning point in the narrative is much more a judgement call based on the evidence available, rather than a bending of history for the benefit of the story.

If you want any further help with research - I have a few notes on Soviet and American foreign policy I've made on my laptop on detente from my module on the era that I can PM you - I'll be glad to be of service.

Please do. Very appreciated.

 

[THE OBSERVER]

First chapter is going well. It will appropriately be called 'Midnight Mayhem.' One more thing, because of my classes at college, I expect to post 1-2 updates a week through April. But when my semester ends in May, the updates will be more frequent. Please have patience. I have great ideas.

 

[Rich Rostrom]

But what if things happened differently in that pantry in the Ambassador Hotel on June 4, 1968. What if Sirhan was successfully subdued without firing the fatal shots at the Senator? What if RFK took a different route out of the Ballroom?

There will be many differences. But one thing will not change. RFK will not be the Democrat nominee for President in 1968.

Humphrey had already locked up almost half the delegates, and most of those remaining to be picked were in caucus states, where Humphrey had outperformed RFK up to that point.

There was also a large block of McCarthy delegates, and the McCarthyites regarded RFK as a mere opportunist who was trying to usurp McCarthy's position.

 

[jkay]

And, wouldn't he probably lose to Nixon if he were nominee?

 

[Emperor Norton I]

And, wouldn't he probably lose to Nixon if he were nominee?

Why would he? Robert Kennedy was a major threat to Richard Nixon, and Nixon could feel it. RFK could unite so many different factions of the American public, from urban blacks to poor whites who would go on to support George Wallace, and, though there were a lot of people fighting RFK with the rallying cry "Bobby isn't Jack", I dare say most of the public viewed Robert Kennedy as a return to those years of Camelot, along with being a transformative figure, and many viewed it as a matter (and certainly this is the Kennedy camp) that there was John Kennedy as the proper president and then he was struck down and this pretender and usurper in Johnson took over and in Robert Kennedy, it was returning the throne to its rightful heir. For his part, Nixon was a return to the stable, ordered 1950s in the public psychology.

 

[THE OBSERVER]

Hey guys. There's been a delay due to computer trouble. So, I'm gonna post the first few paragraphs of the first chapter, than edit the rest in tomorrow.

 

[THE OBSERVER]

Here it is

Midnight Mayhem​

Almost 4 years before, Lyndon Johnson, who ascended to the presidency after John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, won a landslide victory against Barry Goldwater. Evoking the legacy of the fallen President in his speeches, the former Senate Majority Leader, successfully used all the legislative skills at his disposal to move the Civil Rights Act past opposition in the Senate and the House, and into law. Johnson’s landslide also provided him with large Democratic majorities in Congress, granting him a mandate to enact large-scale programs that would fight poverty and eliminate racial injustice. The Great Society, as it was known, was reminiscent of the New Deal enacted by Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and Johnson, along with many Americans, believed that prosperity, equality, and liberty would be granted to everyone as a result of these groundbreaking initiatives. He imagined himself being more beloved than FDR and reelection in 1968 seemed probable. But, good things don’t last forever.

The nightmares of impotence and helplessness that tortured Lyndon Johnson throughout his life now manifested themself in reality. Turmoil and chaos erupted throughout the United States in the forum of race riots and student protests. And then there was Vietnam. The military action that had begun under President Kennedy worried Johnson. He knew it would be a mistake. But he feared that if he stood down, he would be politically disgraced, like Harry Truman and his Secretary of State Dean Acheson when they “lost China,” and Congress would reject his dreams and plans for a Great Society. Driven by his anxieties and fears, Johnson had escalated involvement in Vietnam. Soon, backlash erupted from different parts of American society, from the students in the universities to the blacks in the ghetto to the politicians in the halls of Congress. And, at every point, walking back from the war his brother began, stood Robert F. Kennedy.

The feelings of hatred between RFK and Johnson stretched back to the 1960 Presidential Election, when he tried to force Johnson from the ticket. The assassination of John F. Kennedy further exacerbated the hostility among the two. Lastly, an unsuccessful attempt to be Johnson’s running mate in 1964 ended with RFK resigning from cabinet and successfully running for Senate in New York that year. Throughout his time in Senate, RFK gradually reconsidered his view on Vietnam and eventually became the most important critic of the war. As the primary season heated up, RFK ramped up his attacks Johnson, once asking an audience, “Who was responsible for not just the war, but for the riots, the dropouts, the drugs?” Johnson’s hopes for an easy reelection were challenged in the New Hampshire primary, where Senator Eugene McCarthy of Minnesota, running as an anti-war candidate, garnered 42% of the vote compared to Johnson’s 49%. 4 days after, on March 16, 1968, Robert F. Kennedy made his move and announced his candidacy from the Senate Caucus Room. For Lyndon Johnson, his deepest fear just became true. Two weeks later, in a televised address, he announced a partial bombing halt against North Vietnam and the opening of peace negotiations to end the war. At the end of his speech, Johnson shocked the nation by stating that he “shall not seek—and will not accept—the nomination of my party for another term as your President.”

While his speeches in the heartland of America electrified the large crowds, Robert F. Kennedy knew that it would be an uphill climb to the convention in Chicago. Vice President Hubert Humphrey, who entered at the end of April, stayed out of the primaries and instead relied on allies and supporters in the big cities and in the labor movement to provide him with delegates. Gene McCarthy courted the votes of the students, intellectuals, and upper-middle class whites. And Bobby focused on the Catholics, the Blacks, the Hispanics, and the anti-war groups. Out of the six primary elections he registered to run in, Kennedy defeated McCarthy in Indiana and Nebraska, while McCarthy pulled an upset in Oregon. Now, on June 4, the candidates were in California, competing for its 174 delegates. And McCarthy’s organization in California was well funded and well organized. The results of the primary could either strengthen or dampen Bobby’s prospects of securing the nomination.

The campaign staffers took to the streets, mobilizing citizens and grassroots groups against the party machines. As the momentum grew, supporters of McCarthy and Humphrey began to move toward Robert Kennedy. Meanwhile, the candidate campaigned up and down the state, drawing crowds in the barrios and the farmlands. The day before, Robert F. Kennedy had travelled 1,200 miles through the state, campaigning heavily in the major cities. Exhausted, Kennedy originally preferred to watch the results at John Frankenheimer’s home in Malibu and make a statement from there. However, the networks had set up at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, and so Frankenheimer drove him to the hotel to make his remarks and greet his supporters. But supporters and journalists weren’t the only people waiting for him at the Ambassador Hotel that night.

At 24 years old, Sirhan Bishara Sirhan was a Palestinian immigrant to the United States. He had failed at the numerous jobs he held and was a fanatical anti-Semite and anti-Zionist. In his eyes, the Jews had driven him and his family from their land and they dominated the political and financial institutions of the United States. Days earlier, he witnessed Kennedy at a synagogue, wearing a yarmulke and professing his support for Israel against its enemies. Outraged, Sirhan’s diary filled up with his thoughts and obsession of the Senator, notably writing that, “RFK Must Die, RFK must be assassinated, must be assassinated, assassinated.” Sirhan spent most of the day practicing with his .22 caliber Iver Johnson gun at a gun club in Duarte, where many noticed his talent for shooting targets. In the evening, he drove into Los Angeles, drifting from one political event to another until he wound up in the pantry of the Ambassador Hotel. There, he waited, determined to strike a blow for the Arab world.

Upstairs, in the Royal Suite, campaign staffers, supporters, and journalists bustled about. Kennedy sat chatting with journalists such as Pete Hamill of the Post and Roger Mudd of CBS. Kennedy told Mudd, and other journalists assembled there, that he could only win if he had “the help and assistance of Senator McCarthy and/or those who support him.” Although an attempt the night before by journalist Jack Newfield and speechwriter Jeff Greenfield failed, youth organizer Sam Brown had given off hints about joining forces. Meanwhile, across the hall, Kennedy’s brother-in-law Steve Smith, the campaign manager, was on the phones to the precincts, listening as the results came in throughout the state. When the polls had closed, Kennedy defeated McCarthy 46.3% to 41.8%, winning the 174 delegates and. Smith wanted to remain upstairs and rest, but knowing how exhausted his brother-in-law was and the riotous victory celebration that awaited him, he decided to put on his shoes and join the crowd gathering in the Embassy Ballroom. After that, he would help Kennedy get to his press conference, and then to bed.

On stage, surrounded by his wife, Ethel, his brother-in-law Steve Smith, California Assembly Speaker Jess Unruh, Dolores Huerta of the United Farm Workers, Paul Schrade of the United Auto Workers, and hired bodyguards Bill Barry, Rafer Johnson, and Roosevelt Grier, Kennedy delivered a victory speech. He thanked everyone involved with the campaign and asked supporters of McCarthy to join together with him and mend “the division, the violence, the disenchantment with our society.” Concluding his speech, Kennedy said, “Now it’s on to Chicago and let’s win there!” Leaving the stage, chief of staff Fred Dutton made a snap decision to bring Kennedy through the pantry to a freight elevator that would take him to the press conference, instead of sending him through the ballroom crowds. Steve Smith walked in front of Kennedy, clearing the way through the curtains, while Bill Barry, who had begun clearing a path through the ballroom, raced to catch up.

Mutual Radio Network reporter Andrew West was interviewing Kennedy, inquiring about how he would win the delegates away from Humphrey.

“It just goes back to the struggle for it . . ,” Kennedy started.

Then, Steve Smith saw the fury in Sirhan Sirhan’s eyes as he moved forward from the rear of the kitchen, pulling his gun from his pocket. Smith rushed toward the attacker, throwing himself onto the assailant as he fired from the pistol. Almost immediately, Grier and Johnson rushed over, beating Sirhan into submission, while Barry and other bystanders surrounded Robert and Ethel Kennedy, protecting them from harm. The Kennedys were rushed into the freight elevator, while Sirhan was dragged from the kitchen by police officers, through angry bystanders, and into a waiting police car. Steve Smith was also dragged from the kitchen, but on a stretcher into an ambulance.

No one knew what effects this event would have on the race, but one thing was certain: Robert Francis Kennedy, was spared from the same fate that had befallen his brother and Martin Luther King Jr.

 

[Jim Smitty]

Not a bad run up. But I wonder what will happen with RFK taking over in 68.

 

[historybuff]

Reminds me of the part I read in Then Everything Changed.