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The Presidents: 1836-1936 - An Interactive US AAR

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I fear I cannot throw my support behind Mr. Davis, at least not without the assurance that his presidency will become an apologist for, or worse, a champion of, the Confederacy. If I feel that this candidacy on your part, Mr. Davis, is more in the interest of the South, rather than the entire nation, I will not support you!
 
blindgoose said:
There are two ideas of government. There are those who believe that if you legislate to make the wealthy prosperous, that their prosperity will be bestowed benevolently by them upon those who make their prosperity possible. The Democratic idea has been that if you legislate to make the working-class prosperous, their prosperity will find its way up and through every class that rests upon it. For the producing masses, are the consuming masses, and their prosperity is the direct instigator of the prosperity of the owners.

You come to us and tell us that the great barons of industry and finance are in favor of the gold standard. I tell you that the great barons rest upon these broad and fertile prairies, upon the toil and labor of the industrial and agrarian working-class. Disappear your great barons and leave our farms and ingenuity, and your industry and prosperity will spring up again as if by magic. But destroy our farms and ingenuity, and the grass will grow in the streets of every city in the country.

If they dare to come out in the open field and defend the gold standard, their fictional economy, as a good thing, we shall fight them to the uttermost, having behind us the working-classes of the nation and the world. Having behind us the ingenuity and productivity all the toiling masses, we shall answer their demands for a gold standard by saying to them, you shall not press down upon the brow of labor this crown of thorns. You shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold.

((I hope no one minds my borrowing WJB's historic phrase.))
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Such a beautiful speech mr. Hayden. Worthy of a candidate representing the party of the working classes. This year will be our year.
 
My Vice President shall by Senator George Walsh!

A Square Deal

- Though the reforms passed under the Vallejo administration are commendable, what is necessary is to create a national board through which all industrial relations may be conducted, at which both employers and workers will be represented and where standards can be set for labor across the country.

- We must encourage the development of democratic governance throughout the world via the Commonwealth and propose that only sufficiently democratic countries may be accepted into the Commonwealth in the future.

- We must develop a good neighbor policy in the Western Hemisphere in order to best utilize our influence. This entails encouraging democracy, but also refraining from meddling in the democratic processes of countries.

- We must develop a nuanced trade policy which places tariffs only in critical areas so that we ensure that the American economy is self sufficient and the working-class have jobs available to them.

- Though our exceptional growth is a boon to our country, we must ensure that this is not just a massive boom which shall be followed by an equally massive bust, as in the past. As such, we must have a government which is involved in the economy to ensure that speculation does not run rampant and that our economy remains fair and competitive.

- We must create a legal framework within which the workers' right to withhold labor is guaranteed and which prevents the violent suppression of peaceful labor movements.

- We must esnure that all those seeking to partake of the American life shall have an equal opportunity, regardless of home country, religion, or any other artificial divisions.

- We must allow our currency to be backed by silver, in order to allow easy money to the small farmers of the prairie.

- Each and every veteran of the United States Armed Forces deserves a Square Deal as well. All veterans shall receive healthcare on behalf of the government for life and shall be entitled to a free education at any university or technical school to which they have been accepted.

((Pro-Military - Secularism - Protectionism - Interventionism - Full Citizenship))
 
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The Presidential Election of 1889​

The National Conventions of 1888 and the election that followed were the moment that defined the new direction of American politics. In the time since the Reshuffle, politicians had merely nominally been for one party or another. 1888-9 cemented the ACP’s existence, and the new looks of the Federal and Democratic parties. Once the election of 1889 was over, the new order was in place.
The Federal Party’s Convention was over in a day. Daniel Vallejo ran for the nomination essentially unopposed, and was elected on the first ballot. Consulting Governor Harrison, who held the key the Party’s main power base in New England and commanded considerable respect in the West because of his escapades there in the 1870s and 1880s, Vallejo laid down a definite party line. The Federals had been an unusually large tent before this, and while it had allowed them to snag many of the up and coming politicians of the day, it had also made the party easy to fracture, contributing to the maelstrom of the Reshuffle. Now, the party was focused and had a clear line the electorate could follow.
The ACP’s convention commanded the most media attention. The new party had yet to make itself truly heard in national politics north of the former Mason-Dixon Line. The party’s rhetoric and choice of candidate in its first presidential election did little to assure Northern conservatives that they had a chance to wrest their states from the Federal and Democratic parties. The ACP nominated Samuel Lee Davis, the youngest son of the Confederate General-in-Chief, ostensibly on a platform of “Compassionate Conservatism”, but both Davis and non-Southern conservatives feared his image would be stained by the “Lost Cause” rhetoric that many of those who brought him victory on the sixth ballot espoused.

leedavis.jpg

1. Samuel Lee Davis, ACP presidential candidate for 1889 [1].​

The Democratic Party convened in Chicago, Illinois, calling the Convention of the reformed party “a step toward the freedom of the American Worker”. The Democrats nominated Joe Hayden, a well-known former Libertarian and one-time mayor of Boston. His opponent, Jimmy Nightmore, was described by the press as “charismatic, but not charismatic enough to get the voting man to quit drinking [2]”.
The parties thus had their candidates. With the still relatively untested waters of the post-Reshuffle nation acting as the battleground, the candidates prepared for what could possibly become the closest election since 1861.

[1] – Northern conservatives attempted to downplay how similar in appearance he was to a young James Harrison, fearing that it would instead act as a twisted reminder for New England voters cast their ballots for the party Governor Harrison supported.

[2] – Nightmore was a staunch prohibitionist.

Candidates/Tickets for the 1889 Election​

Election Manifesto of the Federal Party
vallejo1889.jpg

Presidential Candidate: Daniel Vallejo
Vice-Presidential Candidate: Oliver Glynn​

"I am honored to stand before you, asking for my reappointment by the people - my free brothers around our nation - to the position I was voted for four years ago. My fellow Americans, stand with me again to continue our establishment of a just and lasting peace. Our policies are the same: peace and honest dealings abroad, just and free dealings domestically."

The Common Sense Planks of the Federal Platform

America will have honest and open negotiations with the peoples of the world.

- We will continue our bond with the Commonwealth in order to pursue our common goals of peace and freedom by mutual understanding.
- We will reach out along with the Commonwealth if they agree to arbitrate, fairly and openly, disputes which would otherwise create war and petty intrigues.
- We will stand by our free allies to prevent them from being opportunistically enslaved in times of weakness.
- We will counter the spread of other influences which seek to undermine free democracy and understanding in the Americas.

America shall further her industrial progress with free and vibrant trade.

-We shall support the free enterprise of industry across our great land with only the necessary regulations and interventions as needed for the public good.
- Free Trade is an admirable goal - American industry can compete with the best that the rest of the world has to offer - and tariffs and quotas will be reduced slowly and with careful caution to this aim. Programs will be set up to support industries to alleviate any temporary growing pains associated with these changes. We will work together trade agreements with the Americas in particular, which can use our resources, and with the markets in Asia as well.
- We will maintain and improve on infrastructure where needed to promote industrial growth and the economic well-being of our workers.
- We will provide ways for labor and capital to negotiate without coercion, a place to come to fair and equitable agreements.
- We will ensure that working conditions are safe and sanitary, to improve the working conditions and productivity of the American worker.

America shall deter aggression against her liberties or the liberties of her allies by having a strong and ready military.

- We will continue our military policies of forming a flexible and mighty military force capable of projecting power abroad rather than being constrained to fighting in our own cities and fields.
- We will continue to aid other democracies in the ways only we have been blessed with to provide with our status and greatness.
- We will send goodwill fleets to show our strength and friendship with other nations

Peace shall reign over a truly free people.

- We shall continue to develop excellent methods of learning to continue to educate the American people.
- We shall develop the FBI to focus on the issues which local police are unable to deal with efficiently, adapting each regional command to the particular needs of its region (whether it be organized crime, anarchist plots, or other forms of criminal activity), and shall provide support for overextended local police forces in parts of the West where the spread of populations has outpaced the development of the law.

Election Manifesto of the American Conservative Party
leedavis.jpg

Presidential Candidate: Samuel Lee Davis
Vice-Presidential Candidate: Andrew Garrett​

A Compassionate Conservative Platform

- While the Military and the navy shall continue to be amply funded, and the Navy in Particular expanded, No aggressive foreign action should be taken. However, if invited to a diplomatic conference on the future of Africa with the European powers I would accept a small area to serve as a strategic American Naval Base.

- We will not go on Democratic Crusades to force our system of Government on Other Nations. Economic dominance in the Americas is to be maintained for the sake of American Industry and all currently signed agreements will be honored.

- While good Christian morals should and will continue to be encouraged in all other religions, so long as they are not subversive to the democratic ideals of the United States, other religions will be tolerated.

- While many social reforms have been passed at this point, new reforms must soon cease to be enacted. Reform for Reforms sake is no good. We have guaranteed that no worker lives in poverty. Some Agricultural Subsidies should be instituted, with a particular emphasis on subsidizing cotton.

- Trade should not be restricted with other countries, Low tariffs and only limited export restriction should be in place. My administration will eliminate all Tariffs.

- A Flat Tax shall be instituted, 20% on all. This will simplify the Tax code, limit the ability of politicians and political machines to embezzle money, and provide for a equality of opportunity for all.

- Government intervention is not at all necessary in the economy at this time. The Economy is Booming, and if it isn't broken, don't fix it.

- While a Framework must be instituted to prevent ethnic persecutions and the rights of the post-bellum South must be respected, unrestricted immigration and full citizenship is sadly not an option at this time.

- Government can and should be, as much as is reasonable, devolved to State Level. If the People support it, a Cabinet Department of the West, The South, and The North shall be put in place in my cabinet to provide me with specific advice from agencies overseeing those regions.

Election Manifesto of the Democratic Party
haydenr.jpg

Presidential Candidate: Joe Hayden
Vice-Presidential Candidate: George Walsh​

A Square Deal

- Though the reforms passed under the Vallejo administration are commendable, what is necessary is to create a national board through which all industrial relations may be conducted, at which both employers and workers will be represented and where standards can be set for labor across the country.

- We must encourage the development of democratic governance throughout the world via the Commonwealth and propose that only sufficiently democratic countries may be accepted into the Commonwealth in the future.

- We must develop a good neighbor policy in the Western Hemisphere in order to best utilize our influence. This entails encouraging democracy, but also refraining from meddling in the democratic processes of countries.

- We must develop a nuanced trade policy which places tariffs only in critical areas so that we ensure that the American economy is self sufficient and the working-class have jobs available to them.

- Though our exceptional growth is a boon to our country, we must ensure that this is not just a massive boom which shall be followed by an equally massive bust, as in the past. As such, we must have a government which is involved in the economy to ensure that speculation does not run rampant and that our economy remains fair and competitive.

- We must create a legal framework within which the workers' right to withhold labor is guaranteed and which prevents the violent suppression of peaceful labor movements.

- We must ensure that all those seeking to partake of the American life shall have an equal opportunity, regardless of home country, religion, or any other artificial divisions.

- We must allow our currency to be backed by silver, in order to allow easy money to the small farmers of the prairie.

- Each and every veteran of the United States Armed Forces deserves a Square Deal as well. All veterans shall receive healthcare on behalf of the government for life and shall be entitled to a free education at any university or technical school to which they have been accepted.

-----------------------

Exceptional Situation(s):

Voting time!
 
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I will refrain from voting for now... I must ask Mr. Davis what is the point of having those regional departments? We have already seen a department of the South, and how it came to strong-arm politics, and was overall a negative force for America; why would we wish to create more of the same? Furthermore, is this not a gross amount of government intrusion into the state's jurisdiction? I feel it is too much and that it goes beyond the limits, the confines, of government.

Also, your seem to be too moderate on foreign policy, and too willing to engage in imperialism. Why must we create bases in Africa? Are we going to go to war? As well, when shall we leave the Philippines? We need to return our troops and our resources home, so that we can better our nation!

Finally, I am immensely concerned about the support you garnered; it came almost entirely from the South! I fear you may be the most regionalist candidate since antebellum America! You also had strong support from those who seem to be champions of this 'Lost Cause,' which is an utterly foolish idea; revering the slavery system!

Before I even consider voting for you, Mr. Davis, and indeed all candidates, where are you on these issues?
 
I am incredibly reluctant to cast a vote for Mr. Davis, despite that he is the closest in view to myself, and has as a running mate a man I both respect and admire. Although the Federal Party's intent to project power abroad troubles me, I am even more troubled by Mr. Davis's Departments of Regions. I feel as though those Departments will only serve to divide the nation further, as if the very nature of his primary victory did not already seem to indicate some very deep divides.
 
((I'm George by the way. Eldud was a long time ago.))
 
roy_mustang said:
I am incredibly reluctant to cast a vote for Mr. Davis, despite that he is the closest in view to myself, and has as a running mate a man I both respect and admire. Although the Federal Party's intent to project power abroad troubles me, I am even more troubled by Mr. Davis's Departments of Regions. I feel as though those Departments will only serve to divide the nation further, as if the very nature of his primary victory did not already seem to indicate some very deep divides.
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Soo... are you voting for someone, waiting for clarification like Riccardo, or abstaining? :)
 
George Walsh speaking in Richmond, Virginia

Forget the arguments about the ACP being a regional party, a party just for the south. I am here to talk about why the American Conservative Party is not the best option for the south. About why the Democrats are.

The economy is now in a boom. An incredible boom. And what’s happened in the past after booms? Busts. And now the same mistakes are being repeated. So you know what Samuel Lee Davis says about the economy, people of Richmond? He says, ““if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”” People of Richmond, would you believe a man who says “”If it ain’t being robbed, don’t guard it.””? “”If it ain’t dying, don’t have a doctor.””? “”If you ain’t starving, don’t get a job.””? Really? Because that is what Samuel Lee Davis is saying. If a southerner’s job is threatened, the Democrats will help save it. If a southerner does not have a job, the Democrats will help get him one. Samuel Lee Davis will sit back and drink a bottle of wine.

Some people believe the south should be independent again. They are nothing but a pack of fools. This country was torn apart in a war over that. My brother died in a war over that. A return to southern nationalism will give us nothing but another war and many more pointless deaths. And even if a new southern state rises from the ashes of it, will our lives change at all? No. You will fly the Stars and bars instead of the Stars and Stripes, and Samuel Lee Davis will have chance to screw us up in a new and original way. We will gain nothing from independence.

Who votes for Samuel Lee Davis and the ACP? People who say “the south will rise again!” People who say “the confederacy will live in the hearts of our people”. Are these right-thinking people, my friends? Just because we are southerners does not mean we have to vote for this man. We don’t have to vote for our destruction and ruin. Joe Hayden maybe a northerner, but I am not, and I can tell you that Joe Hayden will bring our troops home and help us keep this country fair and equal.
 
((Well, now I'm leaning more towards Vallejo... but I'll give Davis a chance...))
 
WelshDude said:
((We'll bring our boys home. :)))
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((I like that, I really do, but ultimately, I'm driven more by economic policy than anything else... I like Davis' stances, just not him :D. I don't like most of Vallejo's views, but he wants a free market, so... With Hayden, I like his non-interventionism, but can't stand his economic policy. So, I'm in a bit of a pickle.))
 
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