This might be good enough for an otherwise Amendment-happy Republican Congress to put in a provision similar to the 25th Amendment - but that's just speculation
 
This might be good enough for an otherwise Amendment-happy Republican Congress to put in a provision similar to the 25th Amendment - but that's just speculation

If the President's death didn't cause this, the Vice President's certainly won't. At most, they might legislate to extend the Line of Succession, or just provide for the Senate to automatically reconvene in the event of a double vacancy.
 
Lincoln had much more popular support and political skills that he could use to get what he wanted through Congress. Johnson was a ham-handed amateur. Lincoln could have guided the amendment in a direction he wanted or trip up one going against his desires much better than Johnson could. Especially after becoming a bigger folk hero after overwhelming and defeating an attempted assassin.
 
I'd like to think of a condition where Congress doesn't do anything about the Line of Succession in TTL.

Perhaps a very slightly different form of words in the Constitution, saying that the Senate shall choose its officers, "including a President pro tempore who shall act as Vice President in his absence or when he shall be exercising the office of President."

Since the VP's duties include taking over the Presidency in the event of the death etc of the President, it would arguably be unconstitutional to make anyone else next in line after the VP. Congress could of course add to the line of succession after the Ppt, but wouldn't necessarily do so unless/until the problem actually looked like arising.

BTW, Istr that the Pres Pro Tem was often referred to as "Acting Vice President" until 1886. OTL that title was never official but this change would make it so
 
Personally I think a situation where the three assassination attempts take place and only Johnson dies is kind o a nice one. He wasn't a great president, but I think he was better than most people give him credit for. And he stayed loyal despite every other south Senator leaving.
 
Personally I think a situation where the three assassination attempts take place and only Johnson dies is kind o a nice one. He wasn't a great president, but I think he was better than most people give him credit for. And he stayed loyal despite every other south Senator leaving.

There's a lot to be said for dying at the moment of your greatest success.

Had Lincoln died he must either have got the South readmitted w/o Black Suffrage, in which case later historians would criticise him for "betraying" the Freedmen, or else pursued a policy like that of the Radicals, and met the same failure. Either way his historical reputation would have suffered.
 
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