AHC: Roles figures such as Huey Long, Charles Coughlin, Gerald L.K. Smith, Ezra Pound, William Dudley Pelley etc could’ve had in Cold War US?

[Deleted member 191087]

As someone who’s been interested in the Great Depression to the end of WW2 era of American history, one of the things that interested me the most were the big and lesser big figures at the time that, due different circumstances for each of these figures (Long getting shot in 35’ and Coughlin/Smith/Pelley/Pound deciding to dedicate themselves as being open Fascist/Nazi Sympathisers) never got to see themselves having an important career after the war.

For me, this one of the most interesting grounds to base a “what if scenarios” on. It’s fascinating to me because in the case of Huey Long, Smith and Coughlin were archetypes that we’ve never gotten to see in U.S. politics and history since. With Long the progressive, demagogic and lustful somewhat dictator (the closest to having actually been an American one almost) and Coughlin and Smith the angry preachers that attacked the established from a an actual seemingly surface level left-wing populist stance and grounding that said populism in their faith (though of course both could’ve just done it for the grift, which in my eyes seem the most likeliest). These figures really showed what a different country Pre-WW2 America was than the one it turned into after the war. It makes one wonder then, what role would’ve Huey had played in Southern politics and what would his relationship been with the Dixiecrats. What if Coughlin and Smith might’ve actually started the big, decidedly influential, religious political movement akin to what happened in the 70’s decades before that and with a “Christian Democratic” flavour to it. How would’ve that influenced the religious/political bond in America and in what ways would it differ from the one in OTL.

And lastly, what future careers could’ve Pelley and Pound have had in each of their respective artistic fields if neither had gone off the deep end?

Of course, it’s not like that hasn’t been tried before. Emperor Julian’s fantastic second story in their “Ruins of An American Party System” saga dealt with the concept of Huey Long’s career in the context of a world without WW2 and where gets to live out a hypothetical full career, which you can find right here:https://www.alternatehistory.com/fo...rican-party-system-part-one-implosion.344817/

In my hypothetical situation however things would’ve played out like it did in our timeline till the end of WW2 and this time with Huey alive and Coughlin/Smith/Pound and Pelley having not publicly sympathised (they could still have some sympathy towards the axis but then they would keep it a secret to themselves) with the Axis. So with that, I now wanna hear any of your guys thoughts and hypothetical scenarios you guys may have on this!

 

[CarlosTheAltHistoryGuy]

They sell themselves as anti-communists, but how Long would react to desegregation would be interesting tbh

 

[Deleted member 191087]

They sell themselves as anti-communists, but how Long would react to desegregation would be interesting tbh

That’s for sure, one wonders though if they could still be able to stay afloat politically even with “unorthodox” type of politics. Maybe they’d able to create a “third position” in the political spectrum if you will, attracting who like the welfare programs and seemingly anti old establishment bureaucracy while also still being extremely socially conservative, kind of like with the Christian Democrats here in Europe.

In regards to Longs reaction to desegregation, my feeling is that he would probably be against federal civil rights in that he wouldn’t trust the “out-of the touch, bureaucratic” federal government on how to push for civil rights and would instead actually pash trough progressive bills on his own to show of his credentials to his fellow Louisianas as a lover of states rights while also while using this as propaganda to show that he’s the real “southern gentleman, not like those greedy, fake snake oils-men Dixiecrats” which would give than vindicate some southerners in that he showed “those yanks and fake Dixiecrats” that southerners are actually not racist at all in nature. Sorry for the long-winded answer but that’s how I could see him going about it in his progressive but also deeply calculating way.

 

[Major Major]

As someone who’s been interested in the Great Depression to the end of WW2 era of American history, one of the things that interested me the most were the big and lesser big figures at the time that, due different circumstances for each of these figures (Long getting shot in 35’ and Coughlin/Smith/Pelley/Pound deciding to dedicate themselves as being open Fascist/Nazi Sympathisers) never got to see themselves having an important career after the war.

Some would be McCarthy supporters. Most would have been marginalized. Gerald L. K. Smith continued publishing The Cross and the Flag until the seventies.

 

[Deleted member 191087]

Some would be McCarthy supporters. Most would have been marginalized. Gerald L. K. Smith continued publishing The Cross and the Flag until the seventies.

I could definitely see Coughlin being a supporter of McCarthy, considering both were staunch catholic anti-communists and so i’d imagine they‘d try to pander to the same crowd. The Cross and The Flag would be a very different beast though, it could be still be inflammatory, just not “deport all blacks and Jews“ levels of inflammatory and it could actually be a successful newspaper now that he’d be well connected with Long and not go full Neo-Nazi like did IOTL. On an unrelated note, do you imagine Pelley would take politics up, as some conservative activist maybe? Like he might actually become a pastor and become a proto Falwell but maybe even more bombastic (if that can even be possible). What do you think Long would’ve though of McCartby?