alternatehistory.com

How would Gary Hart’s Presidential Campaign have turned out in 1988 without the Donna Rice affair and the whole Monkey Business? He was a massive favorite to win the nomination so let’s assume IOTL he does so. Hart ran in a time where extramarital affairs were a career killer, certainly not like our times now or even 4 years later with all the women Bubba bedded. How does a campaign against Bush Sr. fare without the many blunders that the Dukakis campaign committed? I can’t imagine Hart giving as wimpy an answer as Dukakis did about the death penalty in a debate. Also that campaign really came down to strength and toughness which Hart had significantly more of than Dukakis. And the fact that Bush Sr. won in a landslide that year was not pre ordained and there was certainly voter fatigue after 8 years of Reagan, the last 2 1/2 consumed by the Iran Contra Scandal.
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