TLIAW: The Search for a Successor

Chapter IV: The Election of 1912

The Republican Party was elated going into the Presidential Election of 1912. The President was popular and successful, and he handily won renomination despite some minor opposition from disgruntled conservatives who cast their votes for former Vice President Charles Fairbanks. While there were rumors that progressives would try to unseat Vice President Herrick, no challenger emerged and the Republican National Convention renominated the man by acclimation.

However, it was not entirely smooth sailing for the Republican Party, with the dispute over tariffs taking center stage in the Platform Committee. Historically, the Republican Party had supported high tariffs to protect domestic manufacturing industries, but progressive Republicans sought to lower the rates because of their belief that it raised the cost of living for the average American. President Wood and President Roosevelt before him had sought to avoid the issue altogether, and the platform in 1908 only committed the Republican Party to unspecified adjustments to the tariffs.

However, with nothing being done regarding tariffs since President Wood assumed office, both progressive and conservative Republicans felt that the vagueness in the 1908 Platform had been the cause of inaction. As negotiations stretched on, Senator Robert M. La Follette threatened to bolt the Republican Party and form his own ticket that could properly represent the interests of ordinary Americans. Conservatives threatened to refuse to vote for the President and simply stay home if the platform supported lowering tariffs, which would've threatened the President in key states like New York and Ohio.

However, thanks largely to Senator Albert J. Beveridge and a few other key players within the Republican Party, the Platform Committee adopted a plank promising a "thourough review of all tariffs" with adjustments to follow "determined to be in the best interest of the United States." It was vague enough to forestall further fighting whilst active enough to promise a thorough review of the issue - once the Republican Party had secured four more years under President Wood and, it was hoped, a Republican Congress.

Compared to the Democrats, however, the Republican National Convention was a cakewalk. Going into the Democratic National Convention, the primary contendors were House Majority Leader Oscar Underwood of Alabama, Governor Judson Harmon of Ohio, and Governor Simeon E. Baldwin of Connecticut. With the President's popularity and success, many potential candidates had decided to stay out of the race and wait it out another four years, which left the Democratic Party without any clear choice for the nomination.

It continued on like that for a dozen ballots... Two dozen ballots... Three dozen ballots... Underwood took an early lead, but stark opposition from much of the South eventually saw his support collapse. Governor Harmon was opposed by progressives. Baldwin's past record as a Republican put off many potential supporters. And so on it went.

Plenty of other names were raised as potential choices. Speaker Champ Clark and Governor Lucius F.C. Garvin and Governor Woodrow Wilson and the aged William Jennings Bryan. Former Mayor George B. McClellan, Jr. and Governor Thomas R. Marshall and Senator George E. Chamberlain and even State Senator Lewis Stevenson, the son of the former Vice President. Fifty ballots went by with no real progress made towards nominating a candidate.

Perhaps the most intense lobbying came to bring in Woodrow Wilson. At the very least, it would prove to be the most influential. It was after the seventy-eighth ballot that Woodrow Wilson ascended the convention stage. After forty-five minutes of applause, Governor Wilson made a most unexpected announcement. He nominated Senator Robert Latham Owen of Oklahoma for the Democratic Nomination for President.

While it took another eight ballots, the choice proved popular enough for Owen to secure the nomination, especially with such a public endorsement from Governor Wilson. He had the recourd capable of hitting President Wood hard on economic issues, including banking and trusts. Selecting Congressman Francis Burton Harrison from New York to be his running mate, a young Democrat with a record favoring greater Filipino control of the Philippines, the Democrats got their campaign underway. Unfortunately, the divisions that emerged from the Democratic National Convention were hard to overcome.

Additionally, President Wood and many prominent Republicans in his Cabinet and the Senate began to speak about the kinds of reforms for the financial industry that Owen had made his name on, which proved disastrous for the Democratic Party. The campaign proved much less vigorous than it had four years ago, prompting many to draw comparisons to 1904. There was much goodwill for the President and his policies, despite the grumblings of some of the stauncher progressives on the issues of trust-busting and tariffs.

In the end, the comparison proved more than apt; the Democratic Party simply couldn't overcome the successes of the Wood Administration or the campaign apparatus of a Republican Party with strong support from progressives and the business community.

genusmap.php

President Leonard Wood/Vice President Myron T. Herrick (Republican) - 368 Electoral Votes (54.16%)

Senator Robert L. Owen/Congressman Francis Burton Harrison (Democratic) - 163 Electoral Votes (40.44%)

Fmr. State Senator Eugene V. Debs/Mayor Emil Seidel (Socialist) - (3.87%)
Activist Eugene W. Chafin/College President Aaron S. Watkins (Prohibition) - (1.43%)


U.S. Senate - 1912:
Republicans: 54 (-4)
Democrats: 38 (+1)

U.S. House - 1912:

Republicans: 236 (+48)
Democrats: 198 (-7)
Socialist: 1 (--)
 
Is it bad that a eighty six ballot convention at this time seems quite tame in comparison to the 103 ballots for the Democratic Convention in 1924? :p I presume from what you've written here that it was just as hectic as the 1924 convention was? Good write up BTW, its going to be interesting to see if the Democrats finally get in in 1916, only to be screwed over by the fact it was a poisoned chalice OTL.
 
Is it bad that a eighty six ballot convention at this time seems quite tame in comparison to the 103 ballots for the Democratic Convention in 1924? :p I presume from what you've written here that it was just as hectic as the 1924 convention was? Good write up BTW, its going to be interesting to see if the Democrats finally get in in 1916, only to be screwed over by the fact it was a poisoned chalice OTL.

Haha, yes, 1924 IOTL is probably a good comparison for the 1912 DNC ITTL, although also keep in mind the number of ballots at the 1912 DNC IOTL was considering a lot and that was about half the number of ballots it took the DNC ITTL.
 
Chapter V: Progress, Modernization, and Efficiency (1913-1914)

President: Leonard Wood (R-NH)
Vice President: Myron T. Herrick (R-OH)
Secretary of State: Henry L. Stimson (R-NY)
Secretary of the Treasury: John W. Weeks (R-MA)
Secretary of War: Newton W. Gilbert (R-IN)
Attorney General: Charles Nagel (R-MO)
Postmaster General: Harry S. New (R-IN)
Secretary of the Navy: William Loeb, Jr. (R-NY)
Secretary of the Interior: Gifford Pinchot (R-PA)
Secretary of Agriculture: George L. Sheldon (R-NE)
Secretary of Commerce: Edwin Sydney Stuart (R-PA)
Secretary of Labor: James Rudolph Garfield (R-OH)

After securing four more years in the White House, President Wood was not going to accept the slow start that had occurred during his first term. He was widely popular with the Republican Party and the American public, and the GOP possessed decent margins in Congress to act. Once the new Congress assembled in April 1913, a series of minor reform bills that Congress didn't have the time or votes to pass in the previous section was sent to the Presidents desk and signed into law.

Throughout the summer, however, President Wood, with the help of his aides and Secretaries Weeks, Nagel, and Stuart, was spending most of his political capital on the Hill striving to pass legislation to institute an income tax and establish a national bank. For the Wood Administration, the two issues were closely linked and it was hoped to be an early victory that would help the Republican Party maintain Congress in the Mid-Term Elections the following year.

The biggest problem was in trying to handle the matter whilst avoiding tariffs, which the Democrats were not willing to let happen. Many in the Democratic Party argued that the establishment of an income tax, which was widely supported, would allow the United States to lower its tariff rates because revenue would be generated from the income tax. Progressives of both parties supported this argument. Conservative Republicans, however, were not going to let that happen without a fight. Throughout the summer, the Vice President and conservative Republicans met with the President almost daily, reminding him that the Party Platform promised a review of tariffs before action be taken and that those actions were supposed to make adjustments in America's interest. Lowering tariff rates, by their arguments, was not in the interests of the United States, because it would weaken American industry. Furthermore, they argued that the additional revenue from having tariffs and an income tax could be used to build out the United States military, which was a point that especially caught the attention of the president.

By mid-July, the process had slowed down significantly. President Wood decided he would have to get involved more directly with the process if anything was going to be accomplished before the Congressional session expired. He began to take the journey to the Hill at least once a week, often more, to meet with important Republican Senators and Representatives, trying to forge a party consensus on the matter. Nothing was getting accomplished, however, and by the time Congress was packing up to go back home, President Wood surprised the country by calling for a special session of Congress to settle the matter.

It was during this special session that progressive Republicans decided to partner with their Democratic colleagues. The National Reserve System would be established - partially vindicating, for many Democrats, the selection of Senator Owen to be their Presidential Nominee the year before - an income tax imposed on the wealthiest Americans, and a mild reduction in tariffs was signed into law. Conservative Republicans were furious at the President's decision to go along with the plan, but progressives across the country cheered.

He secured minor funding to begin the development of militarized aircraft within the United States Army. The President signed legislation that would provide support for American farmers seeking to modernize their techniques. At the President's behest, there was an expansion of the nation's road system through rural America. He instructed his Cabinet Secretaries to search their budgets for wasteful spending and to report back what could be cut.

The President continued his push for further building the United States Navy, although he found stiff resistance following the autumn of 1913. Conservative Republicans were fuming over what they viewed as the President's betrayal on the issue of tariffs. Many progressive Republicans were skeptical over the necessity of continuing to expand the nation's naval power, despite the strong advocacy from Senators Lodge, Beveridge, and Root. Democrats were quick to point to the President's past efforts to call for a treaty limiting naval armaments, painting Wood as hypocritical on the issue. While he did his best to explain his belief that maintaining a peace that protected American interests required strength and that it was only with a strong navy that the U.S. could have credibility with foreign powers to call for restrictions on naval power, but President Wood could not have hoped to persuade the American people like his predecessor could. He was an administrator more than a politician, and, while he was well liked, he could not give a speech like Theodore Roosevelt could.

Secretary of the Navy William Loeb, formerly President Roosevelt's secretary, suggested to President Wood that he call on T.R. to help rally the public to increase naval expenditures, but President Wood resisted. He was still friends with his predecessor, of course, and the two wrote numerous letters to each other and met semi-frequently to discuss policy. However, this was a matter of pride for President Wood. Secretary Loeb continued to seek President Wood's approval to reach out to Theodore Roosevelt, especially before the former President was to leave for South America later that year. It was not until late June that the President finally swallowed his pride. On June 27th, 1914, President Wood wrote to Theodore Roosevelt to formally request the assistance of his friend to rally the public to this cause.

On July 28th, 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary was assassinated in Sarajevo.
 
Chapter VI: A President on the Warpath (1914-1915)

President:
Leonard Wood (R-NH)
Vice President: Myron T. Herrick (R-OH)
Secretary of State: Henry L. Stimson (R-NY)
Secretary of the Treasury: John W. Weeks (R-MA)
Secretary of War: Paul Drennan Cravath (R-NY)
Attorney General: Herbert S. Hadley (R-MO)
Postmaster General: Harry S. New (R-IN)
Secretary of the Navy: Frank Knox (R-IL)
Secretary of the Interior: Gifford Pinchot (R-PA)
Secretary of Agriculture: George L. Sheldon (R-NE)
Secretary of Commerce: Edwin Sydney Stuart (R-PA)
Secretary of Labor: William Loeb, Jr. (R-NY)

After learning of the outbreak of the Great War in Europe, the President took quick action. He reshuffled certain key posts in his Cabinet and wrote an open letter to the American people discussing the need to be prepared to go to war should it fall upon the country. The letter, coming from a man who had spent his life in the military and knew war, was very well received by the American public. Congress quickly approved additional funding for the War and Naval Departments.

As the nation watched the ongoing developments in Europe, the President sent word to the Philippines to keep watch for any Japanese aggression. Should Japan move into China, the President wanted a quick American response on the grounds of maintaining the Open Door Policy. He was horrified, however, when reports came back regarding the behavior of the German Army in Belgium, and he and the American people were outraged. (Historians would later discover that it was after hearing of the Rape of Belgium that President Wood resolved to intervene in the Great War.)

The President sought to reunify the Republican Party and gain support for entering the war. These efforts were private at first, for the American people had not yet come to desire war. However, while he met with legislator day by day, the War and Navy Departments purchased armaments and munitions and the President encouraged American men to enlist or begin training on their own so that the nation might be prepared for war should German aggression extend to the United States.

There were some conservative Republicans who were willing to reconcile themselves with the President because of the ongoing war, but far from enough for the President to push for a declaration of war. In the Mid-Term Elections, the Democratic Party campaigned on the message of "Weapons Mean War" and against the preparedness efforts of President Wood to mixed results.

U.S. Senate - 1914:
Republicans: 57
(-1)
Democrats: 39 (+1)

U.S. House - 1914:
Democrats: 218
(+20)
Republicans: 215 (-21)
Socialist: 1 (--)
Independent: 1 (+1)

As 1914 turned to 1915, the President ordered the navy to protect American ships in the Atlantic. It would prove to be a fateful decision. The Air Service was expanded, and U.S. Army soldiers trained how to fly and shoot in the air; it quickly became a very glamorous position in the armed forces, which helped draw more young American men to enlist (as did former President Roosevelt's public campaign encouraging young men to enlist).

While many Democrats wanted the President to restrict or ban the loaning of money to belligerent nations, the President and his Cabinet were opposed to this measure. There were some efforts by Republicans to actually tilt the allowed lending practices to favor the Entente in the ongoing war, but the Democrats in the House blocked this measure. Both chambers of Congress, however, passed resolutions affirming the rights of neutral countries to freedom of the seas in April 1915.

On May 7th, the passenger vessel RMS Lusitania was sunk by the Second Reich. On board were over 100 American passengers. Days later, the Second Reich sunk an American cargo ship. American public opinion rapidly shifted over the course of the month, and the United States declared war against the German Empire on May 22nd, 1915.
 
Depending on how the war goes it may provide another term for the GOP in the White House. I find it interesting that the Progressive-aligned Independent won a House seat, then again without the Progressives popping up and gaining seats ITTL as they did in the House in OTL 1912, that's hardly surprising.
 
Chapter VII: The Armed Progressive (1915-1917)

President:
Leonard Wood (R-NH)
Vice President: Myron T. Herrick (R-OH)
Secretary of State: Henry L. Stimson (R-NY)
Secretary of the Treasury: John W. Weeks (R-MA)
Secretary of War: Paul Drennan Cravath (R-NY)
Attorney General: Herbert S. Hadley (R-MO) (res. 1916); Harlan F. Stone (R-MA)
Postmaster General: Harry S. New (R-IN)
Secretary of the Navy: Frank Knox (R-IL)
Secretary of the Interior: Gifford Pinchot (R-PA)
Secretary of Agriculture: George L. Sheldon (R-NE)
Secretary of Commerce: Edwin Sydney Stuart (R-PA)
Secretary of Labor: William Loeb, Jr. (R-NY)

As the country mobilized for war, Congress granted the White House expansive wartime powers. The Wood Administration set up a series of agencies to help manage resources and manufacturing goals across the country, recruiting businessmen from across the country to head up the agencies and ensure the government and business community were cooperating to lead a successful war effort. President Wood's decision to bring in men like Paul Drennan Cravath and Frank Knox into the Cabinet provided additional points of contact between the business community and the White House - under no circumstances was President Wood going to let American businessmen derail the war effort.

The military build-up that successive Republican administrations had overseen allowed the United States to begin sending soldiers to the Western Front by July 1915, although they proved to be far less effective in combat than what some might have expected. American soldiers grew antsy with trench warfare but were often outsmarted by the Germans when in a fight. It took time for the U.S. Army to adapt, but slowly they did. Perhaps most controversial of all was President Wood's decision to accept former President Theodore Roosevelt's offer to serve as an officer on the front, recreating his Rough Riders, but there are some historians that credit Roosevelt's service as helping boost the morale of American doughboys (the hero of San Juan Hill being one of most widely held military heroes for American soldiers). The most successful campaigns led by the United States Army were undoubtedly in the Low Countries, slowly but steadily pushing the Germans out of Belgium.

The United States Navy proved far more effective, helping the United Kingdom strangle the German economy with a blockade, hunting down German U-Boats in the Atlantic, and seizing German possessions in the Far East. Of course, U-Boat hunting was by no means easy, but the Entente appreciated the willingness of the United States to at least try to take out the German Navy. While the Japanese protested America's seizure of German possessions in the Far East, President Wood and Secretary Stimson guaranteed the Japanese that it was only a temporary, war-time measure; they were not satisfied with the answer but were unable to do anything about it.

Domestically, the creation of the National Bureau of Investigation proved a powerful tool to fight against radical socialists and anarchists and other groups that hoped to sabotage the war effort. Be it on grounds of espionage, sedition, or inciting violence, the Wood Administration took an unrelenting and tough line on the issue. Several propaganda campaigns were undertaken to ensure the American people stayed committed to the war, including a few "Liberty Loan" campaigns to help the United States pay for the war effort. However, as the war dragged on, it became harder for the Wood Administration to convince the American people of the righteousness of their cause.

Many Americans hoped that entering the war would decisively turn the tide against the Germans and that the war would be over by the end of the year or shortly thereafter. However, even with thousands upon thousands of American soldiers making their way to France and then Belgium, it was slow going. Most damaging to American resolve of all was the death toll caused by poisonous gas attacks alone. While the United States was not innocent of using gas against their enemies, the horrors it caused would generate a strong feeling within the United States that they would need to be banned once the war was done - within the public-at-large and the Wood Administration.

As 1916 dawned and spring came, no one was sure if President Wood would seek a third term to finish out the war or if he would anoint a successor to continue the struggle. The President was certainly considering it, but on any given day there were more pressing concerns for him to attend. There was a major joint offensive mounted in March 1916 that the British, French, and Americans hoped would finally break the center of the German lines. If successful, it was hoped that it might even force the Germans to divert resources and manpower away from the Eastern Front, allowing the Russians to break the standstill there. If.

It was disastrous and resulted in significant loss of life. Public opinion began to turn against the President and the decision to get into the war. Within the Republican Party, there was fear that the Democrats would win and seek a separate peace with the German Reich. Most party bosses in the GOP believed that President Wood seeking a third term would only seal the party's fate in the Presidential Election, and he was finally convinced to allow another Republican to be nominated for President in the election.

There was another significant offensive in September, which proved successful. It came at the right time to allow the Republican Party to secure another four years in the White House, and President Wood asked his successor to send him abroad once he left the White House in March 1917. His request was granted, and in April 1917 he joined Theodore Roosevelt and the Rough Riders in the German Rhineland. The Germans sued for peace that summer.
 
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This was never intended to be the most expansive and sweeping TL. Just a small little project that I hoped you liked. I’ve got some more ideas for what may happen down the road, so there might be a successor TL some time in the future. Maybe. I’m not sure yet.

I have a specific man in mind, but I kept it vague on purpose... Who do you think is Wood’s successor?
 
This was never intended to be the most expansive and sweeping TL. Just a small little project that I hoped you liked. I’ve got some more ideas for what may happen down the road, so there might be a successor TL some time in the future. Maybe. I’m not sure yet.

I have a specific man in mind, but I kept it vague on purpose... Who do you think is Wood’s successor?
Theodore Roosevelt
 
Here's hoping Germany doesn't get as bad terms and the Monarchy survives.
I have a feeling the Democrats will preside over the Great Depression this time
 
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