WI: Dewey accused Roosevelt of Pearl Harbor foreknowledge in Campaign '44

Let me make it clear first. Pearl Harbor was a surprise attack, and the US government under FDR had sbsolutely no foreknowlege of what was going to happen. Conspiracy theorists please get out of this thread. However, in 1944, Governor Dewey initially planned to accuse President Roosevelt of Pearl Harbour foreknowledge, but was persuaded by the military not to do so. What if Dewey really made such an accusation on the campaign trail? What would happen next? Backfire with a bigger landslide for Roosevelt, or the demoralization of the war and Dewey's victory?
 
A huge backfire as Dewey would have to prove it and he has nothing to back it up with. The Republicans get absolutely murdered in the 1944 election.
 
Gut reaction: Dewey gets a pasting. By 1944 the Americans are fully committed to the war and victory is in sight. Landslide victory for Roosevelt.
 
This happens.
1944Roosevelt.png

1944Roosevelt.png
 
No, Roosevelt did know an attack was going to occur, just not where or when, so there was not much he could have done; even if full preparations were made, Pearl Harbor would not have been subjected to such an order given no one seriously though it was within the operational range of the Imperial Navy.

He also had more than enough evidence; members of his campaign and a number of sympathetic intelligence officers turned up the information, enough to get George Marshall to personally contact him. If such information were revealed, it was feared the Japanese would believe that the Purple Code had been broken (which it was), and they would promptly change it, thus denying the US military that advantage.

Now, Roosevelt is going to lose some votes by virtue of people disenchanted by the course of actions he choose.

However Dewey would face an even stronger backlash, as he has just then put the hundred of thousands of Americans in the Pacific at greater risk.

No idea where the alienated voters would go; liable to simply not vote.
 
No, Roosevelt did know an attack was going to occur, just not where or when, so there was not much he could have done; even if full preparations were made

...Your first sentence is a little schizophrenic. He knew, but not when or where? But even prepared nothing could be done? Anyone could have blindly guessed that and still have been right. All Dewey would have done was tell the Japanese that the US broke their code. It's a GOOD thing he shut his mouth.
 
...Your first sentence is a little schizophrenic. He knew, but not when or where? But even prepared nothing could be done?
Basically he knew a Japanese attack was in the works, but not where it would be, or when it would be. And even then, had he decided to put out an alert, Pearl Harbor would not have been included given it was considered outside the range of the Japanese Navy, especially one of the size that attacked on December 7th.

Places like the Philippines or Guam might be slightly better off, but Pearl Harbor may likely suffer the same fate as in OTL; depends on if an alert translates to there being more caution even in areas, like Pearl, that have been deemed safe from attack. The butterflies at work could very well go in the American's favor regardless, though certainly not enough to prevent serious damage to the Pacific Fleet.

Of course, it would also have to be considered that the Japanese might be tipped off that the Purple Code had been broken, were an alert put out, but then again it might not.
 
And the Republicans nominate Harold Stassen in '48.

After looking at it closely, I think that's very possible. Stassen sweeps MacArthur's bid, has a draw that Taft doesn't, and unless Earl Warren or Arthur Vandenberg opts to go for a national campaign (they might, since the field is much more open).

Truman narrowly won this election to a degree where it was called for Dewey famously (see picture)

dewey-defeats-truman.jpg


Dewey was a horrible campaigner known for making empty platitudes and it was probably his election to lose. Truman fought hard and managed to prevail against all odds, but the fault was probably Dewey's.

So we probably have PotUS Stassen in 1948. How will he handle the outbreak of the Korean War? Would Stassen consider nukes in Korea? And what about the idea of banning the communist party, as Stassen proposed to do?
 
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