WI: Kennedy Lives, Health Conditions Exposed to the Public in 1964

What if President John F. Kennedy had survived his assassination, lived into 1964, just to see the secrets of his health conditions revealed to the public by the press before the 1964 election were to take place?
 

Delta Force

Banned
What do you mean by surviving the assassination? If Kennedy is injured during it (such as being shot in the throat) that would be a more immediate and prominent concern.
 
I think this is potentially a good POD.

We often talk about what if JFK's affairs had been exposed, but not near as often about his health conditions.

And for a guy in his mid-40s, not the greatest of health. As I understand, back problems from the war and painkillers to deal with them ( and 1960s painkillers at that), Addison's disease which has something to do with adrenal insufficiency and maybe more. And President Kennedy was seeing not necessarily a full-fledged Dr. Feel Good, but a doctor somewhat outside the medical mainstream.

And if he is re-elected, how does his health issues affect his second term?
 
Shall we narrow that down a bit? Namely, is this before or after the convention?

If before, I could see a move gaining traction to replace Johnson on the ticket with someone more attuned (at least superficially) to Kennedy's views on the theory that should the unthinkable happen, there would be no significant loss of continuity. And I doubt that Johnson would put up much of a fight: by then he'd probably have reached Garner's conclusion about the vice presidency. He'd probably return to Texas with an eye to returning to the Senate in '66 and a possible run for the big job in '68.

That might lead to a Kennedy-Humphrey ticket in '64. In that case, one of two things happens in the Republican party:

• The GOP decides to fight fire with fire and baggage or no baggage with respect to a divorce, nominates Nelson Rockefeller.
• The GOP decides to make the election a real them-or-us affair, and gives Barry Goldwater the nod as in OTL.

In either case, I could see perhaps Thruston Morton as a running mate to yield some counterbalance and an appeal to all.

The second scenario would probably yield a Kennedy win although not by a landslide, and would show some GOP inroads in the previously solid south. The first scenario would yield a very confused electorate and an election sufficiently close to make 1960 look like a landslide by comparison. In that case I'd go out on a limb and suggest a Rockefeller win since he has no obvious health problems.

It's also not impossible for a regional ticket to spring up in the south since possibly neither option would appeal to southern voters. George Smathers might be sufficiently urbane and polished to gain some modest support outside the south if he were willing. If not, it'll be an old school Dixiecrat type.
 
In that case I'd go out on a limb and suggest a Rockefeller win since he has no obvious health problems.
But wouldn't President Kennedy receive sympathy, and more importantly, admiration for carrying on in spite of his health issues?

And weren't most of them solvable/manageable in any case?
 

Delta Force

Banned
But wouldn't President Kennedy receive sympathy, and more importantly, admiration for carrying on in spite of his health issues?

And weren't most of them solvable/manageable in any case?

Some claim that his health conditions may have constituted a terminal condition that would leave him unlikely to survive beyond 1970.
 
If Rockefeller runs, I believe he wins. JFK with severe health issues isn't going to look as good to voters, and it would be easy for an attack add to say he wouldn't live 4 more years.
 

Japhy

Banned
Nelson Rockefeller is still going to get divorced and remarried, so no, he's a non-starter. You want a Rockefeller type figure to run, you have Romney or Scranton, but no Rockefeller isn't going to happen.

Kennedy's chances really depends on how the news comes out, there's plenty of room to write off his various conditions in a way to makes him look better.
 

shiftygiant

Gone Fishin'
The always helpful Doctor Zebra for the rundown.

Goldwater will still win Nomination in this Scenario- Rockefeller is, at this point, too far a long shot to actually get nomination (I remember reading somewhere about an extreme hostility many Southern delegates faced about the possibility of them voting Rockefeller), and the still recent memories of his infidelity are still going to be a concern. We also still have the birth of his son (assuming that his son is still conceived and born at the same general time) that will sink him like lead.

However, unless JFK drops dead before the first debate, JFK would win re-election. Perhaps not as comfortably as Johnson, but re-election none the less. Although I've said in the past that stress of a second term is likely to kill him, and I do stand by that basic premise (note however Addison's isn't terminal), the larger issue that will swamp, and may actually destroy JFK in the election, are the drugs. What doesn't look good is a President who's on a variable cocktail of drugs. I think Zebra says is best:

Doctor Zebra said:
To put things in a different light, if an officer in the U.S. Air Force were taking any one of these medications, he or she would not even be allowed to talk on the radio to aircraft as supervisor of flying. Kennedy, as commander-in-chief, was supervisor for the entire Air Force.
 
However, unless JFK drops dead before the first debate, JFK would win re-election.

IMO there are not going to be any debates. Yes, I know JFK told friends he would enjoy debating with Goldwater, but no doubt political advisers would point out to him that it makes no sense for someone far ahead in the polls to debate his challenger and thereby give him stature if it can possibly be avoided. And as 1968 and 1972 show, in tose days it *could* be avoided.
 
Top