Iron Heel: How Could It Happen?

That is indeed a possibility. But the absence of Progressive reformers in government would drive the Progressive movement right into the camp of the Socialists. Because the Socialists had a political base seperate from the machine politics that dominated American political discourse, it's likely that an expanded socialist movement in the US would last longer than the Progressives did as a separate force, and may even be more effective at ultimately winning the types of reforms the Progressives championed, which may prevent such an Oligarchy from forming as described by Jack London.
 
That is indeed a possibility. But the absence of Progressive reformers in government would drive the Progressive movement right into the camp of the Socialists. Because the Socialists had a political base seperate from the machine politics that dominated American political discourse, it's likely that an expanded socialist movement in the US would last longer than the Progressives did as a separate force, and may even be more effective at ultimately winning the types of reforms the Progressives championed, which may prevent such an Oligarchy from forming as described by Jack London.

But perhaps the Progressives now driven further left into the Socialist camp allows reactionaries to call them radicals and with the Progressives/Socialists supporting more radical policies then OTL, alienate centrists and allow the oligarchs to convince the centrists to vote for them.
 
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