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I think Byrd's a bit too old for president!:laugh:
 
J.J.Jameson: You know what is weird? Someone who turns 86 in 1960 was born in 1874! Seems like eons now.

I am almost done with the next update. Having wrapped up the Republicans pre-convention coverage, I am doing the same for the Democrats. After this update, we'll go to Asia for a bit and then return to the US for the summer conventions. I am going to do a space update soon since I started researching the Manned Orbital Flight tech on January 26th, 1960.
 
Go Scoop!

Liking the electoral build-up but some foreign affairs wouldn't go amiss - is Vietnam approaching?

Yeah, I'm in the pro-Scoop faction unless Knowland gets his act together. Also, isn't Conscience of a Conservative due to be published soon? The groundswell of popularity that gave Goldwater will probably kind of undercut Knowland. If Knowland loses, I'd like to see Goldwater give some version this speech, where he tells Conservatives that they need to put effort into retaking the Republican Party and have a plan to win the nomination.

Edit: David Brinkley and Chet Huntley don't shutup until about nine minutes in.
 
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Jape: You know what is weird? This is called "The Vietnam War Edition" but yet the updates seem to be everything but Vietnam. Hmm...maybe I should've come up with a different name for this AAR.

Someday we will fight in Vietnam...someday...

H.Appleby: Personally, I am leaning towards having Scoop win in November. There is so much fun I can have with him.

As for "The Conscience of a Conservative", I plan on delaying the book until '62-'63ish. My logic is that Goldwater will be motivated by his dislike of the Eastern Establishment to begin moving himself towards grabbing the leadership of the Conservative wing of his Party. Once he wins re-election to the Senate in 1964, I see him becoming the new Bob Taft.

It's interesting to hear Goldwater talk. Thanks for the link.

No kidding. I wonder what they will say in TTL's convention.
 
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Oooh, that means Goldwater is available for '64.... hmmmmmm.
 
H.Appleby: I don't plan on running him for President in '64. Perhaps in '68 or the '70s depending on how things go.
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The Road to Los Angeles
In May 1960, these non-political events also made the news:
  • Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz of “I Love Lucy” television fame divorce after twenty years of marriage
  • The Food and Drug Administration approves the first birth control pill
  • American physicist Theodore Maiman successfully demonstrates the first laser
  • Following a two-year army stint in Austria, Elvis Presley is honorably discharged with the rank of sergeant and returns to the United States to resume his entertainment career. President John Sparkman invites Presley to the White House, where he personally commends him for “setting aside your fame without complaint to serve your country diligently”
  • Glenn Miller, one of the most famous big band leaders of the 1940s and known for hit songs like “Chattanooga Choo Choo” (1941), dies of natural causes at age fifty-six
600full-glenn-miller-2.jpg

Alton Glenn Miller (March 1st, 1904 – May 26th, 1960)
While Knowland and Rockefeller slugged it out during May for the Republican nomination, Jackson dominated his way to the Democratic nomination. Despite his best effort to portray himself as a conservative Democrat in the mainstream, Byrd failed to convince voters to look past his Southern roots. The result: he failed to win a single primary outside the South. His home region held three primaries; of those three, Byrd only won Maryland (held May 17th). The Vice President carried West Virginia and Florida, demonstrating that the Dixiecrats weren’t as dominating in the South as they might have thought. By the time the primaries wrapped up on June 7th, Scoop was for all practical purposes the nominee. The Dixiecrats, having failed to stop him in the primary process, regrouped and started making plans to dramatically disrupt the upcoming party convention in Los Angeles and do whatever they could to weaken Jackson in the general election. Thurmond and others were bent on stopping the Vice President from being elevated to the Presidency no matter what…even if it meant forming a third party just to oppose him. The prospect of the Dixiecrats running amok was one of the reasons Jackson chose Johnson as his running mate: to attract Southerners who didn’t identify with them.
dixiecrat.jpg

Among the issues Scoop ran on during the primaries was the state of the economy. After going through a sharp recession brought on by economic problems both at home and abroad, the United States’ economy began to recover in early 1960. Ignoring a large debt caused by increases in Federal spending and low taxes, the Sparkman Administration and Congress in 1959 enacted several measures to try to get the country out of its’ economic slump. As 1960 began, positive signs emerged indicating that things were turning around and the sluggish economy was now expanding…albeit gradually. Job creation was picking up steam, generated in part by the passage of the Industrial Capacity Act of 1959. A pragmatic proposal which won bipartisan support, the ICA sought to lower unemployment by boosting America’s production capacity. Under the Act, the Federal Government provided the states additional funding to encourage their respective industries to build more factories. The logic was that industries would hire people not only to build these factories but to operate them as well; thus, people would move off of welfare and onto payrolls. Furthermore, new factories meant increases in transportation links like trucks, trains, and river barges – which would improve America’s inadequate transport capacity. Sparkman signed the Act into law and millions of dollars flowed into state coffers for the sole purpose of job creation. Across the country in the winter and spring of 1960, factories sprang up in no particular order with more on the way…their pace determined by how fast the states could get them to be built. In the beginning of July 1960, it was obvious to everyone that the ICA was working. In six months, the transport capacity rose from 921/644 in the red to 922/716 in the red (making America’s supply efficiency 77.66%). In that same time frame, the industrial capacity rose from 277/334 to 308/350.
ScreenSave1.jpg

With the economy improving and unemployment shrinking, the Vice President made the argument that things were moving in the right direction under the Democrats and therefore his Party should be allowed to continue their policies for the next four years. This, combined with forward-looking programs like agriculture/conservation reforms and space exploration, formed the backbone of his campaign slogan:
“Eight Years of Peace and Progress”
As the presumptive nominee, Jackson found support across the country. Sparkman – who held Rockefeller in contempt as a self-absorbed opportunist “of no particular value to this country” – believed Knowland’s election to the Presidency would place his six-year record of accomplishments in jeopardy due to his conservatism. He therefore went all-out in his support of the Vice President, arguing that he was the only one in 1960 truly prepared for the job and the experience it required. Rank-and-file Democrats from sea to shining sea were united behind Scoop, contributing his high standing to his anti-Communist credentials and social liberal philosophy. With the Republicans not in a position yet to present a united front, Jackson headed into summertime leading the Gallup Poll by six points. Further boosting his mood was the endorsement he received from one of his heroes: Eleanor Roosevelt. In her mid-70s in the spring of 1960, Eleanor had spent her entire life fighting to change lives and inspire hope. The wife of her fifth cousin Franklin, ER steadily grew into an independent-minded woman unafraid to speak out and be active in political and social issues that she cared about. As First Lady (1933-1941), Eleanor used her role to be a public activist for such causes as feminism and civil rights. Her proudest moment came in 1939 when she made arrangements for celebrated singer Marian Anderson to perform at the Lincoln Memorial on Easter Sunday after being denied access to Constitution Hall because she was black. Eleanor continued her work post-First Lady, becoming a surprising ally of President Willkie – their friendship built on their mutual advocacy of civil liberties. The highlights of their bipartisan partnership:
  • They established Freedom House, a non-government organization which conducts research and advocacy on democracy, political freedom, and human rights
  • She was one of his staunchest defenders when he made the highly controversial decisions to resist paranoid-driven demands to do something about Japanese-Americans on the West Coast following Pearl Harbor and to begin desegregating the military
FDR’s death in May 1946 didn’t slow down Eleanor, who continued her crusade to enact meaningful progressive measures to fight problems like poverty and a lack of social mobility. She was a revered icon in the eyes of those who believed in using the power of government to give the average American a helping hand…such as Scoop Jackson. As a social liberal, Jackson carried on FDR’s fight and modeled his Fair Deal after his record of accomplishments. Given her history, it should come as no surprise that ER came out strongly for him in 1960. She saw in the Vice President a continuation by the next generation of the work her generation had done to advance the cause of human freedom everywhere.
eleanor4-1.jpg

Henry simply adored Eleanor, a woman who could do no wrong in his eyes. The same cannot be said of Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr., a man Jackson developed a loathing of (or hate for, depending on how you look at it). A savvy and highly successful Irish Catholic businessman from Boston, Kennedy had a large family of nine children and a seemingly bottomless pile of cash in which to give them the best of everything. Ruthlessly ambitious, he dreamed of becoming President one day and decided in 1932 to be a big fundraiser for FDR in the hope that it would eventually lead to his dream. Roosevelt won and rewarded Kennedy by naming him Chairman of the new Securities and Exchange Commission (1934-1935) and then appointed him the US Ambassador to the United Kingdom (1938-1940). It was the latter position that got him into trouble. An outspoken isolationist, Kennedy offended many when he infamously stated during the Battle of Britain, “Democracy is finished in England. It may be here [in America].”
That quote, along with others like it, persuaded FDR to unceremoniously dump him as Ambassador and replace him with Harry Hopkins following the 1940 Presidential election. Kennedy spent World War Two sitting on the sidelines, ignored by Republican Presidents who wanted to have nothing to do with him and unwanted by Democrats who thought he was poison for a variety of reasons. He suffered personal tragedies during this time when his oldest daughter Rosemary underwent a prefrontal lobotomy which rendered her permanently incapacitated and his oldest son Joseph, Jr. was killed in combat as a Naval Aviator. Determined to get one of his remaining sons into the White House now that his own candidacy was out of the question, Kennedy groomed his war hero son John (1917-1968) for a political career. When JFK was elected to the Senate in the Stevenson landslide of 1952, Joseph believed the White House would be within reach in 1960. Regardless of whether or not Adlai was re-elected in 1956, Kennedy felt his second son would have a freehand to pursue the Presidency in eight years either way. What could possibly go wrong beforehand?
50406141-1.jpg

Kennedy was at his Palm Beach estate on March 1st, 1954 when he heard the news that the President had been shot to death on Capitol Hill by a couple of Puerto Rican nationalists. Word also flashed that JFK and LBJ had been wounded in the assault as well. The elder Kennedy felt his world collapse around him that afternoon. With Joseph, Jr. killed in the war, Rosemary institutionalized in Wisconsin, and Kathleen (1920-1984) living away in England with her husband William Cavendish, 11th Duke of Devonshire (1917-1981), Kennedy feared greatly that he was about to “lose” his fourth child. Fortunately, John survived his gunshot wound but was left with a permanent limp. While he recovered and adjusted to his new walking style, his brother Robert (1925-2003) got himself fired from his job at the Justice Department for his role in the Oppenheimer Scandal…making him a black sheep within the Democratic Party much like his father. The election of the Sparkman-Jackson ticket in 1956 seemed to dash any thought of JFK running in 1960. He was friends with the Vice President, often inviting him to stay at the family compound in Hyannis Port for the weekend. John thought Henry deserved to be President and had little interest in trying to stop him. If his friend should lose, then of course JFK would seek the Presidency in 1964. Regardless of whether or not Jackson won re-election in 1964, he privately wasn’t sure if he would be healthy enough to try running in 1968 due to having various health illnesses like chronic severe back problems and Addison’s disease (a rare chronic endocrine disorder which would ultimately contribute to his death).
jacksonCISOPTR110DMSCALE10000000DMWIDTH802DMHEIGHT672-1.jpg

The elder Kennedy conceded that his son wouldn’t have a favorable chance to run in 1960 but decided to settle on the next best thing: making JFK Vice President instead. To him, that was the best way to ensure that his family got their foot into the White House door. During a Jackson visit to Florida early in the year, Kennedy invited him to his Palm Beach property to relax. While staring out at the ocean, Kennedy brought up the running mate issue and recommended that he take a look at his son. Jackson was uncommitted about who he wanted but promised to weigh the ups-and-downs of a Jackson-Kennedy ticket. As it turned out, the Vice President and his campaign team saw mostly downs:
  • JFK probably wouldn’t add much regional strength to the ticket since Massachusetts was considered to be a safe Democratic state. Furthermore, they expected the Northeast to go largely Republican in November
  • Jackson knew JFK had health problems and was worried about the prospect of having a critically ill Vice President at such a dangerous time as the Cold War
  • There was the issue of JFK’s Roman Catholicism. There was still Anti-Catholic prejudice in the country and they feared it would be a distracting issue in the campaign
  • Lastly, the Kennedy name itself was considered to be damaged goods and having that name on the ticket might turn away voters who would otherwise vote Democratic
For these reasons, Jackson rejected his friend and picked Johnson instead. He attempted to soften the blow by promising JFK a prime speaking spot at the convention and a prominent post in his Administration. While the son seemed willing to accept it, his father didn’t. Fiercely ambitious, Joseph arranged a meeting with Scoop and made a vigorous last-minute effort to convince him to change his mind. He promised the Vice President huge sums of campaign cash and would use his various connections to turn out voters if he would replace LBJ with JFK. Jackson was deeply offended by this display of unsolicited influence-mongering. Here was a man who was trying to tell him what to do and was trying to bribe him into doing something he didn’t want to do. Flashing rage, Jackson told Kennedy off and stormed out of the meeting…the father angrily yelling after him. Johnson was equally angry when Scoop informed him that the Kennedy patriarch was trying to push him off the ticket out of his own selfishness. They made the decision to treat him as persona non grata from that moment forward.
JosephPatrickKennedyDOS-1.jpg

Kennedy’s failed effort to get his son onto the ticket would have unintended consequences for his family.
 
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Glad to see that Kathleen, her husband and Bobby lived to ripe ages. A pity that JFK didn't.

About the Kennedy patriarch's demise... I wouldn't mind if it weren't for the consequences.
 
Aaahhh Ricky!!!

More to the point, glad to see Glenn Miller live a longer and more productive life. BTW: I meant Goldwater in '68.

And I'm glad to see that the House of Kennedy is falling down, although Bobby might be able to escape, he was a very smooth operator, even with the McCarthy thing.
 
Let me guess, JFK takes Robert's place on the day of Robert's assassination.

Naah, he's gonna be way too sick by that point.
 
Kurt_Steiner: Quite a bit of life sparings I have done. As for JFK, he had really bad health problems and historians like Robert Dallek believe it probably would have gotten worse had he lived longer. I decided to give JFK another five years to live before his Addison's disease killed him...which is much better than what actually happened to him.

Who's to say that the consequences are necessarily bad, Kurt? Don't forget, Joe Kennedy does have that one other son and all those grandchildren who will see their fathers alive longer.

H.Appleby: Sorry, Ricky. Your marriage to Lucy still goes down the drain.

Yes, we'll get more Glenn Miller music to enjoy because I gave him an extra 16 years to live.

I wonder what Bobby will do considering he is very controversial within the Democratic Party and probably won't rise like he did historically.

Xie: No, he dies from complications with Addison's disease.

H.Appleby: Exactly.

Xie: I think I can keep playing the game to 1970.
 
Who's to say that the consequences are necessarily bad, Kurt? Don't forget, Joe Kennedy does have that one other son and all those grandchildren who will see their fathers alive longer.

That if he manage to be away from troubles and bridges...