(Since today is Humphrey’s birthday)
What if, just hours after being sworn in to his own term on 1/20/1965, US President Lyndon B. Johnson dies from a heart attack, making Hubert Humphrey, VP for only a few hours, the new President. What happens next?
It’s very likely that LBJ would be paired with JFK as the US’s greatest Democratic presidents of the era, as both are now martyred leaders of freedom and all that jazz. But what would Humphrey do domestic-policy-wise?
Concerning foreign affairs, how cautious would POTUS Triple-H be about Vietnam?
Turning to politics, how well would a President Humphrey work with congress?
After the 25th Amendment passes (possibly sooner here than IOTL), who would Humphrey pick to be his VP?
Whom would run in the Republican primaries? Could a major Democrat challenge Humphrey for the nomination in 1968? As President, could Humphrey nip his cancer in the bud by getting treatment for it before the 1968 primaries, or would he have to forego more time-consuming treatment if someone serious challenged him for the nomination that year? How would the 1968 general election end up unfolding? Who would win it?
And finally, what would be the short-term and long-term effects be of Hubert Humphrey becoming President in January 1965?
What if, just hours after being sworn in to his own term on 1/20/1965, US President Lyndon B. Johnson dies from a heart attack, making Hubert Humphrey, VP for only a few hours, the new President. What happens next?
It’s very likely that LBJ would be paired with JFK as the US’s greatest Democratic presidents of the era, as both are now martyred leaders of freedom and all that jazz. But what would Humphrey do domestic-policy-wise?
Concerning foreign affairs, how cautious would POTUS Triple-H be about Vietnam?
Turning to politics, how well would a President Humphrey work with congress?
After the 25th Amendment passes (possibly sooner here than IOTL), who would Humphrey pick to be his VP?
Whom would run in the Republican primaries? Could a major Democrat challenge Humphrey for the nomination in 1968? As President, could Humphrey nip his cancer in the bud by getting treatment for it before the 1968 primaries, or would he have to forego more time-consuming treatment if someone serious challenged him for the nomination that year? How would the 1968 general election end up unfolding? Who would win it?
And finally, what would be the short-term and long-term effects be of Hubert Humphrey becoming President in January 1965?