You are on a roll lately. And I'm a sucker for an Askew-as-Carter-substitute list, he'd have been a much better pick. (Sidebar: Askew was such a Presbyterian Boy Scout he didn't swear at least in public or where it would get back to the public. It would be annoying if he wasn't such a decent human being.) I like pulling Cahill and Pell up from obscurity (wonder if Weyrich or Viguerie will go after some of the rumors about Pell being closeted ITTL to undercut Askew's authentically squeaky clean image. And Reubin was charismatic in his way -- he was a *gifted* trial attorney when he was younger, in commercials especially he knew how to sway a "jury". My father's best friend, who was first a reporter and then as a successful businessman a player in Florida Democratic politics, liked Askew as well as anyone he ever met. Chiles and Buddy McKay were more fun, he said, but Reubin you could trust implicitly.) Wonder where the New Right will go from here as they try to martyrize Ronnie despite TTL's "Reagan Shock". I will say Askew stands a better chance of getting re elected because he understood pocketbook issues better than Carter. But who knows. I still think you need to go write the Hatfield-Cronkite timeline.
ETA: I'm just glad we survived that narcissistic wrecker McCarthy without crippling the party.
I always viewed Askew as being a relatively modest and quiet guy both in public life and in private, but I couldn't resist undercutting his wholesome image. Both McCarthy and Tunney are extremely fascinating me, as they were largely fueled by their own ego's when they made their respective runs for public office. McCarthy of course had his dubious support of Reagan, while Tunney was just sort-of an airhead. Pell will definitely be having some troubles with his personal life, but the GOP will search through every single piece of information they have to destroy Reubin's image (SPOILER: They don't find jack).
Footnotes for Spirit will hopefully be up later today, lost my original draft yesterday. And trust me, Cronkite hasn't been forgotten.
1933-1941: Franklin Roosevelt/John N. Garner (Democratic) def. 1932: Herbert Hoover/Charles Curtis (Republican)
def. 1936: Alf Landon/Frank Knox (Republican) 1941-1945: Richard E. Byrd/Arthur Vandenberg (Republican) def. 1940: Robert Maynard Hutchins/Tom Connally (Democratic) 1945-1949: Richard E. Byrd/Harold Stassen (Republican) def. 1944: Franklin Roosevelt/Lyndon B. Johnson (Democratic), George S. Patton/L. Mendel Rivers (Independent "Victory") 1949-1954: George C. Marshall/Eleanor Roosevelt (Democratic) def. 1948: Harold Stassen/John G. Winant (Republican), Fielding Wright/Owen Brewster (Victory)
def. 1952: Thomas E. Dewey/J. Bracken Lee (Republican), Harry F. Byrd/John S. Wood (Victory) 1954-1957: Eleanor Roosevelt/Vacant (Democratic)
1957-1961: Estes C. Kefauver/John Kennedy (Democratic) def. 1956: Richard Nixon/Nathaniel L. Goldstein (Republican), Strom Thurmond/Clifford Davis (Victory) 1961-1963: Clare Boothe Luce/William H. Harrison II (Republican) def. 1960: Estes C. Kefauver/John O. Pastore (Democratic), Herman Talmadge/Thomas B. Stanley (Victory) 1963-1963: William H. Harrison II/Vacant (Republican)
1963-1969: William H. Harrison II/Jacob K. Javits (Republican) def. 1964: Chep Morrison/Edmund G. Brown (Democratic) 1969-1971: Jacob K. Javits/Robert B. Anderson (Republican) def. 1968: John M. Campbell/Edward McCormack, Jr. (Democratic), Howard Jarvis/Thomas Anderson (Independent) 1971-1973: Jacob K. Javits/George Romney (Republican)
1973-0000: Emanuel "Mutt" Evans/Gore Vidal (Democratic) def. 1972: Jacob K. Javits/George Romney (Republican)
1949-1957: Thomas E. Dewey / Earl Warren (Republican) def. 1948: Harry S. Truman / Alben W. Barkley (Democratic), J. Storm Thurmond / Fielding L Wright (Dixiecrat), Henry A. Wallace / Glen H. Taylor (Progressive)
def. 1952: W. Averell Harriman / Lawrence W. Wetherby (Democratic), Virgina F. Durr / Louis Untermeyer (Progressive) 1957-1961: Claude D. Pepper / Richardson K. Dilworth (Democratic) def. 1956: Earl Warren / J. Caleb Boggs (Republican), John L. McClellan / John J. Sparkman (States' Rights) 1961-1967: Kenneth B. Keating / Barry M. Goldwater (Republican) def. 1960: Claude D. Pepper / Richardson K. Dilworth (Democratic), John L. McClellan / Allan J. Ellendee (States' Rights)
def. 1964: Lyndon B. Johnson / Gaylord A. Nelson, John Patric / Richard "Dick" C. Gregory (Progressive), Asa E. Carter / Scattered (Patriot) 1967-1967: Kenneth B. Keating / Vacant (Republican)
1967-1969: Kenneth B. Keating / William W. Scranton (Republican)
1969-???: Edmund "Pat" G. Brown / Ralph W. Yarborough (Democratic) def. 1968: John V. Lindsay / Richard G. Kleindienst (Republican), Thomas S. Power / John B. Williams (Courage), Paul "Pete" N. McCloskey / Eugene Siler (Progressive)
1949-1957: Thomas E. Dewey / Earl Warren (Republican) def. 1948: Harry S. Truman / Alben W. Barkley (Democratic), J. Storm Thurmond / Fielding L Wright (Dixiecrat), Henry A. Wallace / Glen H. Taylor (Progressive)
def. 1952: W. Averell Harriman / Lawrence W. Wetherby (Democratic), Virgina F. Durr / Louis Untermeyer (Progressive) 1957-1961: Claude D. Pepper / Richardson K. Dilworth (Democratic) def. 1956: Earl Warren / J. Caleb Boggs (Republican), John L. McClellan / John J. Sparkman (States' Rights) 1961-1967: Kenneth B. Keating / Barry M. Goldwater (Republican) def. 1960: Claude D. Pepper / Richardson K. Dilworth (Democratic), John L. McClellan / Allan J. Ellendee (States' Rights)
def. 1964: Lyndon B. Johnson / Gaylord A. Nelson, John Patric / Richard "Dick" C. Gregory (Progressive), Asa E. Carter / Scattered (Patriot) 1967-1967: Kenneth B. Keating / Vacant (Republican)
1967-1969: Kenneth B. Keating / John V. Lindsay (Republican)
1969-???: Edmund "Pat" G. Brown / Ralph W. Yarborough (Democratic) def. 1968: John V. Lindsay / Richard G. Kleindienst (Republican), Thomas S. Power / John B. Williams (Courage), Paul "Pete" N. McCloskey / Eugene Siler (Progressive)
Dude you are relentless today! And I'm liking the Florida subtheme running through these lists, President Claude "Red" Pepper goes down smooth. He was my mother's congressman when she was in elementary school and one of the earliest Southern politicians who was 100% behind the Civil Rights movement. (Yes that's an "as you know, Bob" for you but worth mentioning to the larger congregation.) Oh to be a fly on the wall in a West Wing occupied by both Keating and Goldwater, talk about shoving both sides of a fracturing party together. Point of order -- Keating's going to have to change residency to run with Lindsay, which he could certainly choose to do (as an eminent "white shoe" lawyer when he was younger Keating would probably enjoy the loophole of declaring himself "a resident of the District of Columbia" being the incumbent.) I assume the Goldwater thing is irreconcilable differences over Southeast Asia? Although Keating was no fan of Mao and Lin Biao -- he was a redolent Indophile, and a man of honor and decency in standing up to Nixon (while Ambassador to India) over the Bangladeshi genocide in '71. Love the attention to detail with the third/fourth/fifth parties too, you can feel the "party system" of the era fraying around those protest/realignment candidacies. I assume Mr. George Corley Wallace got hisself butterflied? And with luck something worse happened to George Lincoln Rockwell....
Dude you are relentless today! And I'm liking the Florida subtheme running through these lists, President Claude "Red" Pepper goes down smooth. He was my mother's congressman when she was in elementary school and one of the earliest Southern politicians who was 100% behind the Civil Rights movement. (Yes that's an "as you know, Bob" for you but worth mentioning to the larger congregation.) Oh to be a fly on the wall in a West Wing occupied by both Keating and Goldwater, talk about shoving both sides of a fracturing party together. Point of order -- Keating's going to have to change residency to run with Lindsay, which he could certainly choose to do (as an eminent "white shoe" lawyer when he was younger Keating would probably enjoy the loophole of declaring himself "a resident of the District of Columbia" being the incumbent.) I assume the Goldwater thing is irreconcilable differences over Southeast Asia? Although Keating was no fan of Mao and Lin Biao -- he was a redolent Indophile, and a man of honor and decency in standing up to Nixon (while Ambassador to India) over the Bangladeshi genocide in '71. Love the attention to detail with the third/fourth/fifth parties too, you can feel the "party system" of the era fraying around those protest/realignment candidacies. I assume Mr. George Corley Wallace got hisself butterflied? And with luck something worse happened to George Lincoln Rockwell....
I actually didn't notice that about the Lindsay residency, I'll have to correct that. Thanks!
Mr. Goldwater resigned thanks to Laos being butchered at the hands of both Dewey and Pepper, and the situation their ends up spiraling out of anybody's control. Civil Rights was largely ignored under Dewey thanks to a very precarious position in Congress, which led to Pepper just going in an all out blitz during that Presidency. While Wallace isn't the standard bearer of segregation in this TL, the States' Rights party ends up tanking him irregardless. The Democrats' prevent another run in '64 by nominating LBJ (who's now a barely reformed Shivercrat), but that didn't prevent Asa "KKK" Carter from running. I've always enjoyed writing about the slow decay of American Party systems, so with a POD of Wallace and Thurmond overperforming in '48, I couldn't resist.
Actually as far as I'm aware Keating could happily have made Lindsay VP even if he was from the same state, Lindsay would simply not have been able to receive New York's electors, but as he is a mid-term appointment that does not matter.
1933-1933: Huey Long / vacant (Democratic) 1932 def. Herbert Hoover / Charles Curtis (Republican)
1933-1934: Smedley Butler / vacant (Non-Partisan)
1934-1942: Hugh S. Johnson / Charles Lindbergh (National Union) 1936 def. Earl Long / William Borah ('Little Man'), John Nance Garner / Ellison D. Smith (Democratic), Lester J. Dickinson / James W. Wadsworth Jr. (Republican)
1940 def. unopposed
1942-1943:Charles Lindbergh / vacant (National Union)
1943-1947: Charles Lindbergh / Theodore G. Bilbo (National Union) 1944 def. unopposed
1947-1948: Charles Lindbergh / vacant (National Union)
1948-1949: Charles Lindbergh / Hiram Wesley Evans (National Union)
1949-1953: Hiram Wesley Evans / Samuel Roper (National Union) 1948 def. John L. Lewis / Norman Thomas ('Little Man'), Charles Lindbergh / Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ('Real' National Union)
Al Smith's victory at the presidential election in 1932 was virtually guaranteed especially after he won round Huey Long's caucus of populist Southerners. While it was perhaps a little close than expected, he nevertheless attained victory by a broad margin. But America's first Catholic President never made it to his inauguration. Felled by an assassin's bullet mere weeks before he took the highest office in the land, that responsibility now fell to the Louisiana maverick Huey Long.
Long's own, far more radical, plans for reshaping the Depression struck country soon drew the ire of both the traditional establishment and reactionary elements who combined their efforts to overthrow the President and replace him with the popular and non-partisan figure of Smedley Butler. Butler's own radical leftist leanings soon made him intolerable and was removed in turn, replaced by General Johnson's 'National Union' which steered the country onto a distinctly fascist path. When Johnson died in 1932, Lindbergh took his place and coopted Southern White Supremacists to secure the South.
This soon came to kick him in the arse as the Ku Klux Klan which had weakened at the end of the 1920s went from strength to strength, infiltrating and consuming the Administration's internal security forces. When the former Democrat Bilbo died in 1947, he was forced to make the Imperial Wizard his Vice President, and after two uncontested presidential election, Evans' decision to stand for the National Union nomination opened a whole can of worms. The Long organisation's 'Little Man' campaign was resurrected and won strongly industrial states, while Lindbergh 'Real' National Union won traditional Republican heartlands in New England. But the National Union won enough of the rest to have a majority in the Electoral College. And so the Klan's America was born.
Kings of the Kingdom of England (1066-1477) 411 years House Lancaster
Henry IV (1399-1413) 14 years [1]
Henry V (1413-1420) 7 years [2]
Regency for Arthur I (1420-1427) 7 years [3]
Arthur I (1420-1430) 10 years [4]
House Lancaster-Seymour
Edward IV (1430-1439) 9 years [5]
Regency for Prince James (1439-1444) 5 years [6]
House de Trastamara
James I (1445-1472) 27 years [7]
Edward V (1472-1477) 5 years
Emperors of the English Empire (1477-1560) 83 years
House de Trastamara
Edward V (1477-1483) 6 years [8]
Regency for Mary I (1483-1490) 7 years
Mary I (1483-1523) 40 years [9]
Henry VI (1523-1532) 9 years [10]
Regency for Edmund I (1532-1537) 5 years
Edmund I (1532-1560) 28 years
Emperors of Britain and her Isles (1560-)
House de Trastamara
Edmund I (1560-1572) 12 years [11]
George I (1572-1603) 31 years [12]
James II (1603-1620) 17 years [13]
[1] The medium length reign of King Henry IV saw the expansion of the Catholic faith over Kingdom, as churches were built in varying provinces. During this time the English de Trastamaras are born as Henry's daughter, Princess Elizabeth, married the second son of Castilian King Henry III, Prince Paul, who subsequently moved to the British Isles as opposed to moving Elizabeth to the Iberian Peninsula. Henry IV personally led the English forces against the Bretons, overwhelming them and leading to their conquest in the English Conquest of Breton (1405-1411).
[2] Henry V followed his father for a short seven years before succumbing to his own early death. In that time he led a failed war against France that resulted in a status quo, but also his death. What followed was a regency for his heir, Prince Arthur.
[3] The regency over Prince Arthur saw some dark times for the Kingdom. Portugal, former allies, backstabbed the nation while it's leadership was weak, though they failed in securing any sort of foot-hold or gain. Towards the end of the war, Prince Arthur came of age and assumed command.
[4] King Arthur would never live up to the name, reigning for just 10 years, seven of which were disastrously led by his regency council. Arthur saw to it that the war with Portugal came to end, before getting himself killed trying to 'fulfill his destiny uniting the isles' in Connaught. With no children, and no siblings, his cousin, the Count Seymour, would succeed to the throne. At least Connaught was added to the realm, amirite?
[5] Edward IV finished the invasion of Connaught started by his cousin and predecessor, then subsequently spent the rest of his reign fighting off a French invasion of continental holdings. Edward would succeed in his efforts, and even see to it that the province of Normandy was added to the realm. But the Lion died an early death because he couldn't stay out of war. After his escapade with the French, more Irish conquests brought war with Scotland. The Scottish Army routed poor Edward and slowly made it's way down to London, where it captured or killed a large portion of the royal family.
[6] Prince James was never officially crowned, having been taking hostage by the Scottish, and dying purportedly on an accident while in Scottish captivity. Technically the rightful King of England, but his heirs have not placed him on the line on account of never having been crowned.
[7] When news came of Prince James death at the hands of the Scottish, the English turned to the closest relative alive, James, Duke of Essex. A descendant of Princess Elizabeth of England and Prince Paul of Castille, James would be the first monarch of the House de Trastamara. Helping his position as monarch was his leading role in destroying the retreating Scottish army at the border and then countering the invasion. James annexed varying parts of the Scottish Kingdom and made Scotland itself a Duchy under vassalage. James reign would be longer than the last three monarchs combined, bolstering his family's hold over the Kingdom. Multiple wars with the French occurred during his reign, many of which ended in stale-mates, some of which ended in victory. Particularly, the English holdings on the European Continent expanded from Picardy to the Basque province. The Isles de Trastamara* would be settled by English fishermen and soldiers during the later years James reign, beginning English settlement outside of Europe. A major foreign policy achievement of James reign would be the enduring alliance with Castille. James used his familial connections and natural charm to ensure an alliance that survived generations.
[8] Edward V was raised during his fathers long reign, already 33 when he assumes the throne. Cocky as all hell, Edward famously declared that England was a most Holy Catholic Empire on Easter 1477, and petitioned Parliament (though rather enforced) that all formal decree address the government as such, and he as Emperor. While the move was shaky, it passed. Before his death 11 years into his reign, Ake Island** would be discovered across the Atlantic Ocean by the duo Alexander Blake and Stephen Drake. What is believed to be a large sequence of islands is believed to lie there, but most reports indicate a cold, forested region full of odd men.
[9] Mary 40 year long reign began when she was only 9 years old, but would be a defining one for the nation. During her reign Scotland was largely annexed into the Kingdom, Mary placing the Scottish nobility in ducal and ceremonial roles. Mary's reign would also see the expansion of English exploration and settlement of the lands discovered out west. It was soon discovered that while more islands were around Ake Island, there was one in particular far larger than the others. By the end of Mary's reign, Maryland*** was not only a growing English colony in the region, but the growing name for the large continent discovered, albeit internationally the spelling Merilandia**** for the continent gained favor. Mary also oversaw the early years of the Reformation, and stood firmly in support of the Papacy and the Catholic faith. This would begin a strong trend amongst her descendants. Still, despite her long reign, Mary was only 49 when she died.
[10] Henry VI was Mary's first-born son and like her, died rather young. Unlike her, he did not inherit the throne at the tender age of 9, however, and as a result his reign was, like his life, short. His reign saw little action, and his early death left the Kingdom rather quietly, and peacefully, in his son Edmund's hands. Edmund I would be 11.
[11] Edmund would be the first English monarch of that name, and he would set a decent precedent for any Edmund's to follow. Edmund would come to be known as the Old and Holy, and although he died at 51, his 40 year reign was marked by an earnest pursuit to destroy 'reformist' belief within his realms. Edmund took for his grandmother, who herself was an ardently Catholic monarch, and this grew the ire of those that wished for greater religious freedom. Nonetheless, Edmund's campaign for religious homogeneity would be continued by his successors. During those 40 years the English colonies in Merilandia grew exponentially, and the first English settlements in Lopezia were established. During his reign Edmund did not just embrace the Counter-Reformation, he also passed the Act of Uniformity and change the capital to London. Edmund also changed the name of the nation from the English Empire to the Empire of Britain and her Isles in 1560.
[12] George I continued his father's initiatives rather handily, and himself reigned for nearly as long as his father. But George truly did live to be old, dying at 64. During George's reign the British Isles were mostly freed of heretic believers, though George adopted a less strict way of enforcing Catholicism than outright death or banishment. George would allow the Judiciary Act to pass. He'd also begin British involvement in India, taking control of Kathiawar and establishing the Royal India Trade Company.
[13] James II was older than his father was when he assumed the throne, being 42 upon George's passing. Though he'd reach the old age of 59, his 17 year reign would be noticeably shorter than his fathers, and it would see the death of two heirs, Princes James and William respectively. Thankfully, King James II had fathered a third son four years prior to his death in 1620. Augustus would become the heir. During his reign the valley past the Grand Lakes was discovered by British explorers, who quickly followed it to the Missiphine River and down to New Gascony. British presence in India also grew with the acquisition of Calicut.
* Isles de Trastamara = The Azores
** Ake Island = Newfoundland
*** Maryland = Acadia Peninsula
**** Merilandia = North America
***** Gilbertia = Cuba
|_____> Fairfax = Havana
|_____> Moore = Moron
|_____> Guinnemore = Guantanamo
In the late 1970s, Texas Speaker of the House Billy Clayton, a conservative Democrat, proposed reform to Texas's primaries that went beyond what the "Bentsen bill" had brought about. His plan - at least, at first - was to combine both primaries onto a single ballot (and, presumably, have the Democrats allot delegates to the highest-scoring Democrats and vice versa), thus allowing conservatives to vote for Republicans on the Presidential ballot and conservative Democrats further down. The effort never really gained traction, despite the fact that conservative former Democrats voting in Republican primaries likely led to the flameout that was John Hill's gubernatorial effort.
If it had, however, it doesn't seem unlikely that the system could have become a Louisiana-style jungle primary. Here's one version of how that might have proceeded.
Governors of Texas:
1979-1983: Bill Clements (R) [1]
1978 def. John Hill (D)
1983-1991: Bob Bullock (D) [2]
1982: Bill Clements,Bob Bullock, John Bryant, George W. Bush, Grant Jones
1986: Bob Bullock, Bill Clements, Clayton Williams, Frances Farenthold
1991-1992: Ross Perot (I) [3]
1990: Ross Perot, John Sharp, George Strake, Mickey Leland, Ernest Angelo, Tim Von Dohlen, Ron Paul
1992-1995: John Montford (D) [4]
1995-2003: Carole Keeton Rylander (R) [5]
1994: Carole Keeton Rylander, Jim Hightower, Pete Laney, Joe Barton, Ron Paul
1998: Carole Keeton Rylander, Tom Loeffler, Rick Perry, Lloyd Doggett
2003-2008: Rick Perry (D) [6]
2002: Rick Perry, Warren Chisum, Steve Ogden, Charlie Gonzalez
2006: Rick Perry, Wendy Davis, Chris Bell,John Smithee, Richard Friedman
2008-2011: Rodney Ellis (D) [7]
2011-2015: Wendy Davis (R) [8]
2010: Rodney Ellis, Wendy Davis, Four Price, Elton Bomer
2015-????: Blake Farenthold (D) [9]
2014: Wendy Davis, Blake Farenthold, Rand Paul, Nandita Berry
[1] Bill Clements, the first Republican Governor since Reconstruction, was a generally popular oil company executive who cut spending, but a sagging economy, the controversial wiretapping bill, Clements' feuds with other top Republicans (including the Secretary of State, whose gaffe-prone son ran in the race), and an ad blitz masterminded by adman Roy Spence brought about his defeat to a moderate Democrat.
[2] Bob Bullock's governorship is still, more than twenty-five years later, controversial. His "Robin Hood" plan for education funding brought more funding to poorer school districts, but it also hurt urban districts with lots of property and few resources. His full-throated support of affirmative action bought him few allies among Texas's establishment. But by far his most controversial - and, perhaps, most significant - action was the 1988 Constitutional Convention - a plan to replace the massive, incoherent, document with a more modern and concise one. The new Constitution's most controversial passage - allowing the Legislature to pass income tax increases without a statewide vote - was a major sticking point, but the new Constitution ultimately passed by two votes at the Convention and twenty-four thousand in the statewide vote.
[3] Ross Perot was mainly known to the nation as the founder of Electronic Data Systems. To Texas, however, he was just as well known as an adviser to Governor Bullock, one whose relentless campaigning brought about education reform, but whose methods had near-fatally alienated supporters and opponents alike. A longtime Republican with ties to Democrats, Perot - naturally - ran as an independent, triumphing over a divided and squabbling field and then over the "safe but boring" Comptroller. His Governorship was defined by fights - within his team, with the Legislature, and with his Lieutenant Governor - and not accomplishment. He resigned from the post in 1992 for an ultimately-doomed Presidential run - one, albeit, often viewed as ensuring re-election for President Baker.
[4] John Montford, a longtime Senator reluctantly elevated to the Lieutenant Governorship and then the top spot, did as little as possible to rock the boat. There's not really that much to say about his Governorship.
[5] Carole Keeton Rylander was a Railroad Commissioner and a former Mayor of Austin, elected over the radical Agriculture Commissioner on a platform of having all of Ross Perot's outsider style and none of his inexperience. Her Governorship bore that out - she balanced the budget four years running, despite a long-running feud with her own party over social issues. Even President Richards, another powerful Texas woman, fought with her over the federal government's perceived "tax-and-spend" style. Rylander left office in 2002, and promptly ran for the Senate - as an Independent, an act which kicked off the modern era of Texan partisan politics.
[6] Rick Perry's governorship was noted for its hard-right turn on social issues. It was under him that the Second Warren Court struck down Texas's anti-same-sex-marriage statutes - and under him that the State of Texas stopped issuing marriage licenses for three weeks. It was under him that Texas enacted some of the harshest abortion laws in the country. And he was the one who feuded with Attorney General Obama over voting rights for three years running. One of the few old-school conservative Democrats, it was a shock to political observers outside Texas when he ran for the Republican nomination - and to virtually everyone when he won the nomination, and resigned the Governorship. He was the second Governor in as many decades to resign to campaign for the presidency, and was not much more successful than Perot.
[7] Rodney Ellis was, like John Montford, a Senate veteran elected to the Lieutenant Governorship who ascended to the top spot in the wake of the Governor's resignation. But unlike Montford, Ellis was both one of the Senate's staunchest supporters of state contracts for minority-owned businesses and, while in the Senate, the minority owner of a business. While his united base and competent tenure netted him the first spot in the primary, the perception of self-dealing ensured that the general election went to someone else.
[8] If Rick Perry was the last conservative Democrat, Wendy Davis was the last liberal Republican. A Fort Worth State Senator with an inspiring life story, Davis parlayed a filibuster over a Perry-supported anti-abortion bill into uniting anti-Ellis liberals and conservatives behind her. As Governor, she fought the legislature over her attempts to reverse Perry's social legislation. She won, but it was a pyrrhic victory, as out-of-state funds poured in to end the "liberal onslaught". She responded with a campaign ad attacking her main opponent, Blake Farenthold - the conservative step-grandson of liberal Texas politician Frances Farenthold - as "opposing his grandmother's legacy". The response to the ad was not what had been hoped for.
[9] What will Blake Farenthold's legacy be? Only time can tell whether his governorship will be remembered - as he desires that it will - for a massive reduction in government, or whether his absence from the fray will ensure that he is remembered as a do-nothing Governor. Perhaps he will run for the Presidency as a Republican - something that he has openly considered - in 2020, after President Blackwell's second term. Any number of things could happen...
Just a fun little idea I wrote down last night.
Prime Ministers of Canada
20. Jean Chretien (Liberal) 1993-2003 93 (maj.): Lucien Bouchard (Bloc Quebecois), Preston Manning (Reform), Audrey McLaughlin (New Democratic), Kim Campbell (Prog. Conservative)
97 (maj.): Preston Manning (Reform), Gilles Duceppe (Bloc Quebecois), Jean Charest (Prog. Conservative), Alexa McDonough (New Democratic)
00 (maj.): Gilles Duceppe (Bloc Quebecois), Stephen Harper (Prog. Conservative), Stockwell Day (Alliance), Alexa McDonough (New Democratic) 21. Paul Martin (Liberal) 2003-2007 04 (maj.): Stephen Harper (Prog. Conservative), Gilles Duceppe (Bloc Quebecois), Jack Layton (New Democratic), Diane Ablonczy (Alliance) 22. Bob Rae (Liberal) 2007-2009
23. Stephen Harper (Conservative) 2009-2013 09 (maj.): Bob Rae (Liberal), Gilles Duceppe (Bloc Quebecois), Jack Layton (New Democratic) 24. Christy Clark (Liberal) 2013-2017 13 (maj.): Stephen Harper (Conservative), Gilles Duceppe (Bloc Quebecois), Peter Stoffer (New Democratic), Frank de Jong (Green) 25. Chris Alexander (Conservative) 2017-present 17 (min.): Christy Clark (Liberal), Gilles Duceppe (Bloc Quebecois), Peter Stoffer (New Democratic), Frank de Jong (Green)
In the late 1970s, Texas Speaker of the House Billy Clayton, a conservative Democrat, proposed reform to Texas's primaries that went beyond what the "Bentsen bill" had brought about. His plan - at least, at first - was to combine both primaries onto a single ballot (and, presumably, have the Democrats allot delegates to the highest-scoring Democrats and vice versa), thus allowing conservatives to vote for Republicans on the Presidential ballot and conservative Democrats further down. The effort never really gained traction, despite the fact that conservative former Democrats voting in Republican primaries likely led to the flameout that was John Hill's gubernatorial effort.
If it had, however, it doesn't seem unlikely that the system could have become a Louisiana-style jungle primary. Here's one version of how that might have proceeded.
Governors of Texas:
1979-1983: Bill Clements (R) [1]
1978 def. John Hill (D)
1983-1991: Bob Bullock (D) [2]
1982: Bill Clements,Bob Bullock, John Bryant, George W. Bush, Grant Jones
1986: Bob Bullock, Bill Clements, Clayton Williams, Frances Farenthold
1991-1992: Ross Perot (I) [3]
1990: Ross Perot, John Sharp, George Strake, Mickey Leland, Ernest Angelo, Tim Von Dohlen, Ron Paul
1992-1995: John Montford (D) [4]
1995-2003: Carole Keeton Rylander (R) [5]
1994: Carole Keeton Rylander, Jim Hightower, Pete Laney, Joe Barton, Ron Paul
1998: Carole Keeton Rylander, Tom Loeffler, Rick Perry, Lloyd Doggett
2003-2008: Rick Perry (D) [6]
2002: Rick Perry, Warren Chisum, Steve Ogden, Charlie Gonzalez
2006: Rick Perry, Wendy Davis, Chris Bell,John Smithee, Richard Friedman
2008-2011: Rodney Ellis (D) [7]
2011-2015: Wendy Davis (R) [8]
2010: Rodney Ellis, Wendy Davis, Four Price, Elton Bomer
2015-????: Blake Farenthold (D) [9]
2014: Wendy Davis, Blake Farenthold, Rand Paul, Nandita Berry
[1] Bill Clements, the first Republican Governor since Reconstruction, was a generally popular oil company executive who cut spending, but a sagging economy, the controversial wiretapping bill, Clements' feuds with other top Republicans (including the Secretary of State, whose gaffe-prone son ran in the race), and an ad blitz masterminded by adman Roy Spence brought about his defeat to a moderate Democrat.
[2] Bob Bullock's governorship is still, more than twenty-five years later, controversial. His "Robin Hood" plan for education funding brought more funding to poorer school districts, but it also hurt urban districts with lots of property and few resources. His full-throated support of affirmative action bought him few allies among Texas's establishment. But by far his most controversial - and, perhaps, most significant - action was the 1988 Constitutional Convention - a plan to replace the massive, incoherent, document with a more modern and concise one. The new Constitution's most controversial passage - allowing the Legislature to pass income tax increases without a statewide vote - was a major sticking point, but the new Constitution ultimately passed by two votes at the Convention and twenty-four thousand in the statewide vote.
[3] Ross Perot was mainly known to the nation as the founder of Electronic Data Systems. To Texas, however, he was just as well known as an adviser to Governor Bullock, one whose relentless campaigning brought about education reform, but whose methods had near-fatally alienated supporters and opponents alike. A longtime Republican with ties to Democrats, Perot - naturally - ran as an independent, triumphing over a divided and squabbling field and then over the "safe but boring" Comptroller. His Governorship was defined by fights - within his team, with the Legislature, and with his Lieutenant Governor - and not accomplishment. He resigned from the post in 1992 for an ultimately-doomed Presidential run - one, albeit, often viewed as ensuring re-election for President Baker.
[4] John Montford, a longtime Senator reluctantly elevated to the Lieutenant Governorship and then the top spot, did as little as possible to rock the boat. There's not really that much to say about his Governorship.
[5] Carole Keeton Rylander was a Railroad Commissioner and a former Mayor of Austin, elected over the radical Agriculture Commissioner on a platform of having all of Ross Perot's outsider style and none of his inexperience. Her Governorship bore that out - she balanced the budget four years running, despite a long-running feud with her own party over social issues. Even President Richards, another powerful Texas woman, fought with her over the federal government's perceived "tax-and-spend" style. Rylander left office in 2002, and promptly ran for the Senate - as an Independent, an act which kicked off the modern era of Texan partisan politics.
[6] Rick Perry's governorship was noted for its hard-right turn on social issues. It was under him that the Second Warren Court struck down Texas's anti-same-sex-marriage statutes - and under him that the State of Texas stopped issuing marriage licenses for three weeks. It was under him that Texas enacted some of the harshest abortion laws in the country. And he was the one who feuded with Attorney General Obama over voting rights for three years running. One of the few old-school conservative Democrats, it was a shock to political observers outside Texas when he ran for the Republican nomination - and to virtually everyone when he won the nomination, and resigned the Governorship. He was the second Governor in as many decades to resign to campaign for the presidency, and was not much more successful than Perot.
[7] Rodney Ellis was, like John Montford, a Senate veteran elected to the Lieutenant Governorship who ascended to the top spot in the wake of the Governor's resignation. But unlike Montford, Ellis was both one of the Senate's staunchest supporters of state contracts for minority-owned businesses and, while in the Senate, the minority owner of a business. While his united base and competent tenure netted him the first spot in the primary, the perception of self-dealing ensured that the general election went to someone else.
[8] If Rick Perry was the last conservative Democrat, Wendy Davis was the last liberal Republican. A Fort Worth State Senator with an inspiring life story, Davis parlayed a filibuster over a Perry-supported anti-abortion bill into uniting anti-Ellis liberals and conservatives behind her. As Governor, she fought the legislature over her attempts to reverse Perry's social legislation. She won, but it was a pyrrhic victory, as out-of-state funds poured in to end the "liberal onslaught". She responded with a campaign ad attacking her main opponent, Blake Farenthold - the conservative step-grandson of liberal Texas politician Frances Farenthold - as "opposing his grandmother's legacy". The response to the ad was not what had been hoped for.
[9] What will Blake Farenthold's legacy be? Only time can tell whether his governorship will be remembered - as he desires that it will - for a massive reduction in government, or whether his absence from the fray will ensure that he is remembered as a do-nothing Governor. Perhaps he will run for the Presidency as a Republican - something that he has openly considered - in 2020, after President Blackwell's second term. Any number of things could happen...
1961-1964: Richard M. Nixon / Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr. (Republican) def. 1960: John F. Kennedy / Lyndon B. Johnson (Democratic)
1964-1964: Richard M. Nixon / Vacant (Republican)
1964-1965: Richard M. Nixon / Frank Carlson (Republican)
1965-1973: Edmund S. Muskie / John M. Dalton (Democratic)
def. 1964: Richard M. Nixon / Frank Carlson (Republican),Ross R. Barnett / Spessard L. Holland (States' Rights)
def. 1968: George W. Romney / Jacob K. Javits (Republican)
1973 - 1977: Clifford P. Case / John P. Hammerschmidt (Republican) def. 1972: J. Terry Sanford / Robert F. Wagner II (Democratic), Evan Mecham / Scattered (Social Contract)
1977-1981: Henry M. Jackson / R. Vance Hartke (Democratic) def. 1976: Clifford P. Case / John P. Hammerschmidt (Republican)
1981-1989: William V. Roth Jr. / Robert D. Ray (Republican)
def. 1980: Henry M. Jackson / R. Vance Hartke (Democratic)
def. 1984: Lloyd M. Bentsen Jr. / Daniel K. Inouye (Democratic), Richard D. Lamm / Scattered (Independent)
1989-???: Bruce E. Babbitt / Thomas J. Bradley (Democratic)
def. 1988: Paul D. Laxalt / Robert H. Finch (Republican), Patrick J. Buchanan / Evan Mecham (Social Contract)
When the seasoned political commentators went on live during election night 2010, they perhaps weren't expecting such a...spectacular result. The fears of many were realised as Nick Griffin's BNP, long a boogeyman lead by a looney, climbed past the magic 326 number, leaving the three main parties embarrassed at having fallen to a fascist tribute act. Immediately, plans were drawn up to oust Griffin from the prime minister's seat, with many in the BNP not expecting at all to win the election. However, agreements fell apart as remarkably few defections from the ascendant party occurred. Instead, Griffin's destruction would come from inside. Though he had brought the party to power the man's own personality still could not be stomached and even as he pushed plans for deportation anger stewed. Divisions were exposed on the Iraq war when many party MPs criticised Griffin's decision to unilaterally withdraw from Afghanistan and Iraq while meeting with the government of Bashar al-Assad. Mo Chaudry's attempted deportation provoked a wave of anger and resulted in a party coup against Griffin with deputy Simon Darby wielding the knife on Boxing Day 2010. Griffin was by no means done and formed Response!, a splinter party with 30 loyal members. The other parties saw their chance to strike as the government was left without a majority and so turned to the grandee Paddy Ashdown to lead the country. The 2012 election was cast in a shadow of doubt and many wondered if the BNP could make a comeback after a 'coup', but thankfully for most they were destroyed as the split between Darby and Griffin was nearly even, with UKIP hoovering up the rest. Nevertheless, the new government of David Miliband was troubled, having to deal with the aftermath of 2010's London Riots and the reversal of the Griffin-era immigration policy. The 2014 Scottish Referendum, which saw the SNP appeal against "a Westminster, which not too long ago was led by a coalition of fascist jackboots", was Miliband's final nail in the coffin. He resigned, and after words of an election passed, Yvette Cooper lead the country through two years of uncertainty and fear, as UKIP rose in the old BNP heartlands. The promise of an EU referendum came uncomfortably onto Labour's 2017 manifesto, but it was nowhere near enough to stem the ensuing Tory landslide. Yet another split in the BNP arrived as former Defence Minister Paul Golding left to form his London-based group Britain Above All, which only served to humiliate Darby further.
2007-2010: Gordon Brown (Labour)
2010: Nick Griffin (BNP) 2010 (Majority) def. Gordon Brown (Labour), David Cameron (Conservative), Nick Clegg (Liberal Democrats) 2010-2011: Simon Darby (BNP)
2011-2012: Lord Ashdown (Liberal Democrats leading National Government)
2012-2014: David Miliband (Labour) 2012 (Coalition with Liberal Democrats) def. Theresa May (Conservative), Tessa Munt (Liberal Democrats), Alex Salmond (SNP), Gerard Batten (UKIP), Simon Darby (Continuity BNP), Caroline Lucas (Green), Nick Griffin (Response!) 2015-2017: Yvette Cooper (Labour)
2017-: Boris Johnson (Conservative) 2017 (Majority) def. Yvette Cooper (Labour), Ed Davey (Liberal Democrats), Elin Jones (Plaid Cymru), Suzanne Evans (UKIP), Caroline Lucas (Green), Simon Darby (National Unionist), Paul Golding (Britain Above All)
1961-1964: Richard M. Nixon / Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr. (Republican)
def. 1960: John F. Kennedy / Lyndon B. Johnson (Democratic)
1964-1964: Richard M. Nixon / Vacant (Republican)
1964-1965: Richard M. Nixon / Frank Carlson (Republican
1965-1973: Edmund S. Muskie / John M. Dalton (Democratic)
def. 1964: Richard M. Nixon / Frank Carlson (Republican),Ross R. Barnett / Spessard L. Holland (States' Rights)
def. 1968: George W. Romney / Jacob K. Javits (Republican)
1973 - 1977: Clifford P. Case / John P. Hammerschmidt def. 1972: J. Terry Sanford / Robert F. Wagner II (Democratic), Evan Mecham / Scattered (Social Contract)
1977-1981: Henry M. Jackson / R. Vance Hartke (Democratic) def. 1976: Clifford P. Case / John P. Hammerschmidt (Republican)
1981-1989: William V. Roth Jr. / Robert D. Ray (Republican)
def. 1980: Henry M. Jackson / R. Vance Hartke (Democratic)
def. 1984: Lloyd M. Bentsen Jr. / Daniel K. Inouye (Democratic), Richard D. Lamm / Scattered (Independent)
1989-???: Bruce E. Babbitt / Thomas J. Bradley (Democratic)
def. 1988: Paul D. Laxalt / Robert H. Finch (Republican), Patrick J. Buchanan / Evan Mecham (Social Contract)
Oh. Look. Sanity. (Well maybe a war scare under Scoop but that's about it.) You could probably skip Carlson (except of course in the "def. 1964" notes) unless there's been an earlier 25th that will lie vacant through the confirmation of Electors. I suspect had I been alive then I would've had a very big sad over the Sanford/Wagner ticket going down to defeat however.
ETA: Nice to see Robert Finch was clearly a governor or senator from California at some point (money on the latter since Bradley's now veep), you do have a talent for necromancy with the reasonable Republicans.
This was a part of a failed TLIAW that I had trouble getting off the ground, where Reagan managed to beat Ford in the 1976 primaries and win in the general.
I lost my notes, but the general concept for France involved Mitterrand dying of illness as he almost did in 1981 and Chirac being put on trial for embezzlement in the early 90s as an exaplanation for what happened.
List of United States Presidents, 1977-present (circa October 2000)
1974-1977: Gerald Ford/Nelson Rockefeller (Republican)
1977-1981: Ronald Reagan/Howard Baker (Republican) def. 1976: Jimmy Carter/Walter F. Mondale (Democratic) 1981-1989: Walter F. Mondale/Jay Rockefeller (Democratic) def. 1980: Ronald Reagan/Howard Baker (Republican)
def. 1984: Jack Kemp/James G. Martin (Republican) 1989-1997: William Brock/Arlen Specter (Republican) def. 1988: Jay Rockefeller/John Glenn (Democratic)
def. 1992: Bill Bradley/Lee Hamilton (Democratic) 1997-0000: John Garamendi/Bob Graham (Democratic) def. 1996: Arlen Specter/Woody Jenkins (Republican), Paul Tsongas/Peter Ueberroth (Citizens')
List of Prime Ministers of the United Kingdom, 1976-present:
1976-1979: Jim Callaghan (Labour)
1979-1984: Margaret Thatcher (Conservative) def. 1979: Jim Callaghan (Labour), David Steel (Liberal) 1984-1990: Denis Healey (Labour) def. 1984: Margaret Thatcher (Conservative), David Steel (Liberal)
def. 1988: Michael Heseltine (Conservative), David Penhaligon (Liberal) 1990-1993: David Owen (Labour)
1993-1998: Tom King (Conservative) def. 1993: David Owen (Labour), David Penhaligon (Liberal)
def. 1995: John Prescott (Labour), Alan Beith (Liberal) 1998-2000: Malcolm Rifkind (Conservative)
2000-0000: Vince Cable (Labour-Liberalcoalition) def. 2000: Malcolm Rifkind (Conservative), Alan Beith (Liberal), Robert Kilroy-Silk (Alliance)
List of Presidents of France, 1974-present:
1974-1981: Valéry Giscard d'Estaing (UDF) def. 1974: François Mitterrand (PS) 1981-1993: Michel Rocard (PS) def. 1981: Valéry Giscard d'Estaing (UDF)
def. 1988: Raymond Barre (UDF) 1993-1998: Jacques Delors (PS) def. 1993: Phillipe Séguin (RPR) 1998-0000: Michéle Alliot-Marie (UPF) def. 1998: Jacques Delors (PS)
Prime Ministers of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (William IV)
1830-1832: Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey (Whig) [1] 1832-1835: Robert Peel (Undertaker)[2]
1835-1836: Robert Peel (Undertaker) [3]
[1] Earl Grey formed a ministry committed to passing a broad-reaching Reform Act to shore up the British constitutional system by expanding the franchise to incorporate the propertied middle classes. Lukewarm support from King William IV who is personally opposed to risking social agitation leads to defeat in the Lords. The King's refusal to prorogue parliament or create additional peers leads to Grey's resignation.
[2] Entering office only with the strong urging of King William IV Peel agrees to work with the soft-Whigs to 'Undertake' the King's wishes for a mild Reform Act which will help to calm the dangerously enraged social tensions. The 'Tawdry' Reform Act of 1833 does little more than cull the most rotten boroughs leading to the Green Ribbon Rebellion of 1833-34. Government eventually falls over Irish affairs especially the handling of tithe agitation; Tory members unwilling to support any measure threatening the position of the Anglican Church.
[3] Peel's second term as 'undertaker' sees the majority of his support drawn from 'Greyite' Whigs and not his own Tories who are evolving into the Preservative Party. Primary focus on continue to pass watered-down social reform legislation in an attempt to stave off the fledgling Chartist movement which is a reaction to the generally unsatisfactory handling of reform and the unpopularity of active Crown influence. Ministry cut short by the death of William IV and the beginning of the Regency of Queen Adelaide.
