All We Have Done, and We Only Got Instability (aka Marvel '61)
This one assumes an average 3:1 Marvel Time from 1968 and beyond, i.e. for every three years of comics, one year has passed.
Present Day: November 6, 2012
1-33: Same as OTL
History, until November 1961, was largely the same, with minor differences in the existence of several individuals and minor countries. However by Ike's presidency, history began to noticeably diverge from our own.
34. Dwight David Eisenhower (R-NY) 1953-1961
VP: Richard Milhous Nixon (R-CA)
1952 def: Adlai Ewing Stevenson II (D-IL) / John Jackson Sparkman (D-AL)
1956 def: Adlai Ewing Stevenson II (D-IL) / Carey Estes Kefauver (D-TN)
Excuse me, who initiated "Department K"?
The United States government loved misdirection. People are led to believe that former Prime Minister of Canada, John Diefenbaker, started this government agency.
Hell, no. It was the brainchild of Ike. PM Diefenbaker was simply a scapegoat for this. Alberta veteran James "Logan" Howlett was not even a volunteer; he was forced to become part of Weapon X. Ike's actions also led to the rise of anti-Mutant terrorism, most notably the Purifiers, spearheaded by Sgt. William Stryker.
Another brainchild of his, although indirectly, was Laura Kinney (b. March 25, 1963). Born as X-23 in The Facility, Fremont County, Wyoming (near South Pass City), she was the twenty-third attempt at replicating Weapon X, and as the only successful clone, was raised to be the ultimate weapon.
35. John Fitzgerald Kennedy (D-MA) (1961-1963)*
VP: Lyndon Baines Johnson (D-TX)
1960 def: Richard Milhous Nixon (R-CA) / Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. (R-MA)
The Purifiers and the Purified
Yes, JFK was a mutant.
No, he does not bend reality. He could only persuade others telepathically.
But then it gave reason to William Stryker's hate, for JFK's recklessness which caused the Cuban Missile Crisis.
As a result, he ordered Lee Harvey Oswald to assassinate the President. His choice of an assassin was crucial in protecting his identity: Oswald was an outspoken Marxist, and the motive could be scapegoated by Marxism, further fueling the Cold War and the Vietnam War.
Also, the Fantastic Four was established in early 1961, the result of an interstellar travelling attempt.
36. Lyndon Baines Johnson (D-TX) (1963-1973)
VP: Hubert Horatio Humphrey Jr. (D-MN) (1965-1973)
1964 def: Barry Morris Goldwater (R-AZ) / William Edward Miller (R-NY)
1968 def: Richard Milhous Nixon (R-NY) / Spiro Theodore Agnew (R-MD) ; George Corley Wallace Jr. (American Independent-AL) / Curtis Emerson LeMay (American Independent-CA)
Might I know, who the f--- authorized that test?
That was his exact response to The Facility preemptively activating the healing factor of X-23 in 1970. It is safe to say that he was less than impressed and approving.
In 1964, he formed the Avengers, and subsequently retrieved Steve Rogers from a frozen stasis. This was then followed by a series of successful campaigns in the Vietnam War, and causing his popularity to soar.
His next years saw the rise of more superheroes, ranging from Spiderman to the X-Men. It was for this reason that Leonid Brezhnev, the Chairman of the Soviet Union, had to develop super soldiers to counter the United States.
However, by 1971, North Vietnam has already fallen[1], in part due to three key battles in which the Avengers participated: the Defense of Huế, the Đồng Hới Offensive, and the Hanoi Campaign.
In 1972, President Johnson stated that his largest failure was not being able to prevent New Jersey scientist Henry Pym from creating Ultron. In his words, "This robot will be the instigator of World War Three." He also added that the Soviet Union has refused to negotiate a détente not only for this reason, but also because of the Dark Phoenix Genocide, which has shamed Americans.
He passed away on January 22, 1973, only two days after leaving office, casting a huge shadow on his successor.
37. Paul Norton McCloskey Jr. (R-CA) (1973-1977)
VP: John Bowden Connally Jr. (R-TX)
1972 def: Hubert Horatio Humphrey Jr. (D-MN) / George Armistead Smathers (D-FL)
It Never Was and Never Will Be...
When you listen to Everybody's Fool, somehow you could hear President McCloskey, chained by superheroes, screaming from the inside. (Note: OTL and TTL lyrics are almost identical)
Reality is filled with sorrow. And in his case, 1973 was as dark as he could imagine. His presidential career began with outgoing President Johnson's death. This then followed the disappearance of every superhero in June that year, lasting for four months, during which the Soviet Union blockaded West Berlin again.
The next years were relatively peaceful, though a resurgent team of X-Men put President McCloskey into a state of paranoia for the rest of his presidency, hoping for a world without superheroes (or as he would call, vigilantes). He refused to pursue a second term, preferring to go into retirement. It was during his term when technology went into overdrive, reaching OTL 1995 levels by 1976.
At the end of his term, X-23 escaped from The Facility, after thirteen years of imprisonment (since she was born) and torture since she was seven. She would end up under the X-Men four years later.
38. Gary Warren Hart (D-CO) (1977-1981)
VP: Geraldine Anne Ferraro (D-MA)
1976 def: John Bowden Connally Jr. (R-TX) / Ronald Wilson Reagan (R-CA)
Chaos, Chaos Everywhere
Exactly as it was said above, Gary Hart could not catch a break in his presidency.
In 1978, after the Saur Revolution in Afghanistan, Ultron razed the Curonian Soviet Socialist Republic (OTL Courland and western Semigallia, Latvia) to the ground, triggering the Soviet Union to retaliate against the United States, dropping twenty low-yield nuclear weapons upon minor cities in Spain, Portugal and France, plus Ultron's hometown (Cresskill, New Jersey). An ultimatum was issued, demanding the United States to put an end to Ultron, or suffer nuclear devastation if he attacks the Soviet Union again.
In 1979, car bombs in downtown Manhattan destroyed the World Trade Center, killing 5698 people. HYDRA later claimed responsibility, resulting in riots in New York City, Boston and Atlanta. This indirectly caused the Islamic Revolution in Iran to fail, though not without the ousting of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.
His "War On Terror" strategy did not work as he had planned either, due to the large number of domestic terrorists, and the House of M Incident, and the subsequent Decimation in mid-1980.
He ended up being defeated by John B. Anderson, who was on a populist campaign. Coincidentally, Anderson was able to utilize the Attack on Stamford and the subsequent First Superhero Civil War to his benefit, gaining support from the public.
39. John Bayard Anderson (R-IL) (1981- March 14, 1984)**
VP: Robert Joseph Dole (R-KS)
1980 def: Gary Warren Hart (D-CO) / Geraldine Anne Ferraro (D-MA)
Approaching Hell, in 3... 2... 1...
And yet, he did not expect his presidency to be cut short. His first year as president involved the Superhero Registration Act, which forced all superheroes to be registered, or be imprisoned for vigilantism. All supervillains are to be shot on sight.
In 1982, the Second Superhero Civil War (Avengers vs. X-Men, also known as the War of the Phoenix) broke out, devastating many cities across the world, notably Moscow, Budapest, Berlin, and Sofia in the Eastern Bloc, as well as Beijing, Los Angeles, and (as usual) New York.
This led to an attempt to impeach President Anderson over his failure to prevent the devastation. However, the House of Representatives voted 203-232 against his impeachment.
After AvX, Atlantis was embargoed, while an attempt to embargo the United States was shot down at the United Nations Security Council. On the other hand, the Soviet Union (now led by Dmitry Polyansky) began allying with Wakanda to destabilize American domination of East Africa. The X-Men has lost all of its reputation as a result, with Scott Summers, Emma Frost, Piotr Rasputin, and Illyana Rasputina being wanted by the Soviet Union.
In 1983, the United States East Coast was struck by a Terrigen Mist attack, causing President Anderson to drop a nuclear weapon upon Attilan. James "Logan" Howlett, who became Wolverine for two decades, died. Laura Kinney took up his mantle six months later.
However, in 1984, HYDRA, using an alternate universe version of Steve Rogers, overthrew the United States government, killing President Anderson, and forcing Vice President Dole into exile.
Not Recognized. Steven Grant Rogers (HYDRA-NY) (March 14 - September 26, 1984)****
VP: Elisa Sinclair (HYDRA-NJ) (March 14 - September 11, 1984)***
What a Time To Be Alive!
And thus, America is, bluntly saying, fucked. With John B. Anderson dead, Bob Dole in exile, the Senate and the House of Representatives imprisoned, and the East Coast in general paranoia, the Soviet Union has effectively won the Cold War.
In order to restore order to America, and as a revenge against Ultron, the Soviet Union invaded Alaska, nuking the Ultronic Territories near Barrow; while Bob Dole, who was exiled to Brasilia, spearheaded Operation Versailles, retaking Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Pacific Northwest and the Gulf Coast of the USA.
HYDRA, however, is not going down easily, and under President Rogers, attempted to turn NATO into their own empire, in addition to imprisoning all dissenters. In response, Soviet Chairman Polyansky seized West Berlin in an preemptive attempt to force NATO against the HYDRA regime in Washington.
Midway during the War of 1984, the Third Superhero Civil War erupted, leading to a Chinese invasion of California, occupying the port city of San Francisco. The Warsaw Pact invaded and occupied New York Metropolitan Area, while Cuba occupied Miami. Canada occupied southern Alaska and all exclaves of the United States, of which Point Roberts and the Northwest Angle were permanently ceded.
Steve Rogers ended up overthrown by President-in-exile Bob Dole, following a bombing campaign in New York City and Washington D.C., and was executed for treason. Elisa Sinclair died after a car bomb exploded in front of the Capitol Building[2], twelve days before the capitulation of the illegitimate government.
The alternate Steve Rogers was executed for treason, and tarnished Captain America's name to the point where the original Steve Rogers was brutally murdered after his Brooklyn apartment was broken into.
As a result of the coup, the 1984 Presidential Election was suspended.
40. Robert Joseph Dole (R-KS) (September 26, 1984-1993 ; in exile March 14 - September 26, 1984)
VP: George Herbert Walker Bush (R-TX) (December 6, 1984 - January 20, 1985 ; 1989-1993) ; Marie Corinne Morrison Claiborne Boggs (D-LA) (1985-1989)[3]
1984 Presidential Elections suspended due to Reconstruction and the War on HYDRA
1988 def: Edward Moore Kennedy (D-MA) / Anna Marie D'Ancanto LeBeau (D-LA)[4]
America, Wake the F--- Up!
Those were Bob Dole's exact words in 1986, when he was having a meeting with a small group of senators in the White House.
He began his tenure in exile, and was the leader of the internationally recognized government. The irony is that they needed the Soviet Union to stand back on their feet and move on. President Dole had realised that the Soviet Union has effectively won the Cold War without crushing the United States, and thus shifted his focus to four things: economic revival, Puerto Rican statehood, the purging of HYDRA, and the reconstruction of the reputation of the United States.
History, however, considered him to be above average at best. At the beginning of his Washington tenure, the Fourth Superhero Civil War erupted over the Terrigen Mist, and the subsequent M-Pox pandemic. It was only until 1987 when San Francisco, Alaska, Miami and New York were returned to de facto United States control.
While 98 percent of HYDRA was eliminated from the United States, Germany, Austria and the United Kingdom, the Red Skull is still at large. Puerto Rico has been admitted as a state in 1990, but the economy continued to falter, and NATO has deemed the United States to have betrayed their cause.
In 1988, the situation was less impressive: only 37 percent of HYDRA has been removed from the United States, and a disgruntled Strom Thurmond resigned from his post as Secretary of the Interior.
The Democratic Party took the opportunity to nominate Massachusetts Senator Ted Kennedy as the next president. His choice, Congresswoman Anna Marie from the 1st Congressional District of Louisiana, was a veteran in the War of 1984, and her down-to-earth attitude made the Kennedy / LeBeau ticket one of the most successful losing tickets in history: they won the popular vote, as well as in 28 states, including Illinois, New York and Michigan, but lost the Congressional vote by 268-270. They would go on to win the 1992 Presidential Election by a 354-192 margin. (Note: when Puerto Rico was admitted as a state, it had 2 senators and 6 state representatives, bringing the total to 546.)
41. Edward Moore Kennedy (D-MA) (1993-2001)
VP: Anna Marie D'Ancanto LeBeau (D-LA)
1992 def: George Herbert Walker Bush (R-TX) / Jack French Kemp (R-MD) ; Anthony Edward Stark (Independent-CA) / Donald John Trump (Independent-NY)
1996 def: Henry Ross Perot (R-TX) / John Ellis Bush (R-FL) ; William Jefferson Clinton (New Union-AR) / Patsy Matsu Takemoto Mink (New Union-HI)
The Southern Belle Strategy
Good old Ted Kennedy, using Anna Marie's publicity to earn himself two terms. Sure enough, it did pay off, and his terms are rather smooth sailing for a Kennedy. In fact, no more international conflicts took place in his presidency, and détente was finally achieved with the Soviet Union (led by Mikhail Gorbachev since 1988) in 1995.
Upon assuming the presidency, he began to push forth the Equal Rights Act of 1996, guaranteeing equal rights for all citizens in the country, human, inhuman, or mutant. This also requires Mutants and Inhumans to register their powers, as the War of the Phoenix has caused America to fall into a period of paranoia. Unexpectedly, Vice President LeBeau, a mutant herself, and her mutant husband, Louisiana State Senator Remy LeBeau, approved of the bill.
In early 1997, Sergeant William Stryker, Founder of the Purifiers, was found dead in his Las Vegas apartment. Autopsy results showed that he was killed by lethal amounts of ricin in his cup of coffee. His murder was thus far left unsolved.
During President Kennedy's second presidential term, all people who were known to have been Phoenix Force hosts (Jean Grey, Madelyne Pryor, Scott Summers, Emma Frost, Piotr Rasputin, Illyana Rasputina, Namor Mackenzie, Hope Summers, Celeste Cuckoo) disappeared, and with the exception of Jean Grey, later died under suspicious circumstances. This triggered protests from Atlantis. Wade Wilson, better known by his alias Deadpool, also disappeared during this period, and was declared dead in absentia in 2005.
President Kennedy also used his two terms to spread the technological advantages (by this point) across the world, in exchange for economic development, revitalizing the tanking economy of the United States.
He also reignited the War on Terror, pledging to slaughter each and every last HYDRA member.
42. Anna Marie D'Ancanto LeBeau (D-LA) (2001- August 7, 2006)*****
VP: John Forbes Kerry (D-MA)
2000 def: George Walker Bush (R-TX) / Richard Bruce Cheney (R-WY) ; Bernard Sanders (New Union-VT) / Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton (New Union-AR)
2004 def (in Congress): Katherine Anne Pryde (R-IL) / John Sidney McCain (R-AZ)
Bellevue Down
People often take Anna Marie as a liberal. She is not. Instead, she calls herself "liberal only by comparison", a moderate in fact.
At the beginning of her tenure, Ophelia Sarkissian surrendered herself to United States authorities, having sought shelter in the Embassy of the United States in Sofia in fears of being murdered. She requested for a pardon in exchange for the latest information regarding HYDRA and their bases.
President LeBeau agreed to her demands, under the provision that she will be imprisoned in Guantanamo Bay.
Subsequent reports confirmed Sarkissian's claims, and Operation Hercules was commenced, leading to the Soviet Union crushing HYDRA remnants in the German Democratic Republic.
President LeBeau's support for Former President Kennedy's controversial tactics branded her a "traitor to Mutantkind" by Republican candidate Katherine "Kitty" Pryde, leading to a 273-273 split between both presidential candidates. (The total number of delegates was left unchanged at 546 following the 2000 Census, and is not to be changed in further elections.)
The 2004 Presidential Election ended up having to rely on the House of Representatives and the Senate to give Anna Marie and John Kerry their second terms.
By the second term, only Sinthea Shmidt was still at large, with the Red Skull being shot in Regensburg. However, President LeBeau never got to see the fall of HYDRA.
During a state visit to Yalta, Ukrainian SSR, two HYDRA mooks, later identified as Kartvelian Ultranationalist Zurab Kipshidze, and Actress Irma Nioradze respectively[5], shot President LeBeau and Virginia Senator Jim Webb; whilst severely wounding Vice President Kerry, Utah Senator Orrin Hatch, and Soviet Chairman Gorbachev.
43. John Forbes Kerry (D-MA) (August 7, 2006-2009)
VP: Joseph Isadore Lieberman (D-CT) (December 5, 2006-2009)
The Endgame
Despite the grave injuries, John Kerry survived the assassination attempt, and was rushed to a safe house in Simferopol, where he was sworn in as President. He immediately invoked the Doomsday Protocol, sending SHIELD agents to the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic to wipe out HYDRA.
He was wrong in guessing Sinthea Shmidt's location, but did succeed in wiping out all traces of HYDRA in the Soviet Union.
President Kerry spent the rest of his presidency looking for Sin, leading to Operation Sin City. The terrorist leader was then shot in her Marseilles apartment in 2008. The apartment mysteriously caught fire three years later, without causing any injuries.
Owing to complications stemming from the assassination attempt, President Kerry did not seek reelection, instead pushing forth Joe Lieberman to become President.
44. Willard Mitt Romney (R-MA) (2009- Present)
VP: Henry Philip McCoy (R-IL)
2008 def: Joseph Isadore Lieberman (D-CT) / Mariah Carey (D-NY) ; Wayne Allyn Root (Libertarian-NV) / Laura Kinney (Libertarian-WY)
A Mormon, A Beast, A Common Vision
To the eyes of many, the 2008 Presidential Election was a sight on itself. The Democratic Vice Presidential candidate is a singer, the Republican Presidential candidate is a Mormon, the Republican Vice Presidential candidate does not look human, and the Libertarian Vice Presidential candidate used to work in prostitution. Many believed that Mitt Romney could not win the presidency, with an average chance of 14 percent.
And yet, Mitt Romney won.
At this point, HYDRA is part of history, and the Soviet economy is starting to stagnate. President Romney and Vice President McCoy decided to use this to their advantage and undermine the structure of the Soviet Union, such that it would fall someday. However, with Vladimir Putin as its Chairman, it will take a long time.
To these men, Communism is standing in the way of globalization, and someday it will fall...
2012 Presidential Election: Willard Mitt Romney (R-MA) / Henry Philip McCoy (R-IL) ; Elizabeth Ann Warren (D-MA) / Robert Francis O'Rourke (D-TX) ; Ralph Nader (Libertarian-CT) / Gary Earl Johnson (Libertarian-NM)
As of now, in many states, polling is still inconclusive, with statistics suggesting a 49 percent chance for Romney to win reelection, a 49 percent chance for Warren to become elected, and an unlikely 2 percent chance for Nader to become President.
Notes:
1. History completely diverged at this point, following a success in the Vietnam War.
2. And that is where the timeline starts to diverge from the comics.
3. Louisiana Representative Lindy Boggs was chosen such that the United States could go into a national unity after the War of 1984.
4. Yes, I am using Rogue's maiden name from the X-Men films. She was born on August 26, 1945, and married Gambit in early 1985.
5. You did not read that wrongly. OTL Zurab Kipshidze was an actor, while TTL he became involved in Georgian Nationalist propaganda. TTL Irma Nioradze became part of HYDRA in 1985, and was one of the last HYDRA recruits.
Abridged presidential list:
34. Dwight David Eisenhower (R-NY) / Richard Milhous Nixon (R-CA) 1953-1961
35. John Fitzgerald Kennedy (D-MA)* / Lyndon Baines Johnson (D-TX) 1961 - 11/22/1963
36. Lyndon Baines Johnson (D-TX) / vacant 11/22/1963 - 1965
36. Lyndon Baines Johnson (D-TX) / Hubert Horatio Humphrey Jr. (D-MN) 1965-1973
37. Paul Norton McCloskey Jr. (R-CA) / John Bowden Connally Jr. (R-TX) 1973-1977
38. Gary Warren Hart (D-CO) / Geraldine Anne Ferraro (D-MA) 1977-1981
39. John Bayard Anderson (R-IL)** / Robert Joseph Dole (R-KS) 1981-1984
NR. Steven Grant Rogers (HYDRA-NY) / Elisa Sinclair (HYDRA-NJ)*** 3/14/1984 - 9/11/1984
NR. Steven Grant Rogers (HYDRA-NY)**** / vacant 9/11/1984 - 9/26/1984
40. Robert Joseph Dole (R-KS) / vacant 3/14/1984 - 9/26/1984 - 12/6/1984
40. Robert Joseph Dole (R-KS) / George Herbert Walker Bush (R-TX) 12/6/1984 - 1/20/1985
40. Robert Joseph Dole (R-KS) / Marie Corinne Morrison Claiborne Boggs (D-NY) 1985-1989
40. Robert Joseph Dole (R-KS) / George Herbert Walker Bush (R-TX) 1989-1993
41. Edward Moore Kennedy (D-MA) / Anna Marie D'Ancanto LeBeau (D-LA) 1993-2001
42. Anna Marie D'Ancanto LeBeau (D-LA)***** / John Forbes Kerry (D-MA) 2001 - 8/7/2006
43. John Forbes Kerry (D-MA) / vacant 8/7/2006 - 12/5/2006
43. John Forbes Kerry (D-MA) / Joseph Isadore Lieberman (D-CT) 12/5/2006 - 2009
44. Willard Mitt Romney (R-MA) / Henry Philip McCoy (R-IL) 2009-201X
*Assassinated by Lee Harvey Oswald
**Killed in HYDRA takeover
***Killed in a car bomb attack at the Capitol
****Overthrown by the United States Government in Exile; executed for treason
*****Assassinated by Irma Nioradze
As you can see, the Curse of Tippecanoe has yet to be broken.
OTL (up to 2012 only) Presidents who did not take office ITTL:
Richard Milhous Nixon: Became a political analyst initially after his 1968 defeat. Later became the host of NBC's Saturday Night from 1980 until the show's cancellation in 1984. Died on April 9, 1998 in San Clemente, California.
Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr.: Remained as a Senator representing Michigan until he, as hostage, was killed in the same car bomb attack at the Capitol Building, on September 11, 1984.
James Earl Carter Jr.: Became a State Representative representing Georgia in 1980. Still alive as of 2012.
Ronald Wilson Reagan: Lost the Republican nomination in 1980 to John B. Anderson. Later elected as Governor of California in 1986. Died on June 6, 2008.
George Herbert Walker Bush: Became the Vice President of the United States from 1984 to 1985, and from 1989 to 1993. Lost the 1992 Presidential Election to Ted Kennedy. In retirement, and alive as of 2012.
William Jefferson Clinton: Ran for the 1996 Presidential Election as a New Unionist candidate, winning Arkansas and Hawaii only. Became a Senator representing Arkansas in 2002. Alive as of 2012.
George Walker Bush: Ran for the 2000 Presidential Election with Dick Cheney as his running mate, but lost heavily against Anna Marie. Returned as Governor of Texas in 2004, and alive as of 2012.
Barack Hussein Obama: A relatively unknown Representative from Illinois. Alive as of 2012.
