Nixon loses in 1968, who is the Republican candidate in 1972?
- Thread starter Bomster
- Start date
Who was the guy who Nixon annihilated with dark arts as exposed in All The President's Men?
Oh lol I looked this up and its a Democrat, I'd always assumed from the film it was a rival of his to the nomination. Well... fuck
McGovern? Doubt he’d switch to the Republicans lol. Personally I think that Reagan has a good chance in ‘72. However he might be seen as too Goldwaterite.
Reagan might be a hard sell to the American people before the New Deal Coalition seemed to have utterly failed the American people.
I doubt Humphrey could do as well as Johnson did against Goldwater, but it wouldn't be impossible for him to paint him as a dangerous radical and second Goldwater if everything is going somewhat well.
Percy has a good chance, a centrist from the Midwest and presidential hopeful in '68 with a good record on economic conservatism but not to the degree of Reagan or Goldwater.
Former Pennsylvania Governors Raymond Shafer and William Scranton would both have a good chance if they ever ran. Scranton would be hurt in his home state his controversial tax-raises while in office, but that would only really have an impact during the primaries and honestly I don't think that'd be enough for an embarrassing upset in the PA primary unless he's running against somebody else from Pennsylvania.
Howard Baker would be another good pick IMO, but he probably wouldn't be prominent enough to take the nomination then. If Reagan bombs as the '72 GOP candidate, I could see Baker after becoming the GOP Senate Leader being the nominee in '76 or '80.
My personal preference would be for a liberal Republican to win the nomination in a favorable year for the GOP. I'd lean towards MA Gov John Volpe or WA Gov Daniel Evans as the only ones with enough potential clout besides Rockefeller, but they also lack his baggage and party insider opposition. Out of the two, I'd say Volpe has way more popular appeal.
I doubt Humphrey could do as well as Johnson did against Goldwater, but it wouldn't be impossible for him to paint him as a dangerous radical and second Goldwater if everything is going somewhat well.
Percy has a good chance, a centrist from the Midwest and presidential hopeful in '68 with a good record on economic conservatism but not to the degree of Reagan or Goldwater.
Former Pennsylvania Governors Raymond Shafer and William Scranton would both have a good chance if they ever ran. Scranton would be hurt in his home state his controversial tax-raises while in office, but that would only really have an impact during the primaries and honestly I don't think that'd be enough for an embarrassing upset in the PA primary unless he's running against somebody else from Pennsylvania.
Howard Baker would be another good pick IMO, but he probably wouldn't be prominent enough to take the nomination then. If Reagan bombs as the '72 GOP candidate, I could see Baker after becoming the GOP Senate Leader being the nominee in '76 or '80.
My personal preference would be for a liberal Republican to win the nomination in a favorable year for the GOP. I'd lean towards MA Gov John Volpe or WA Gov Daniel Evans as the only ones with enough potential clout besides Rockefeller, but they also lack his baggage and party insider opposition. Out of the two, I'd say Volpe has way more popular appeal.
I don't think Percy or Ford would run at all because they are both up for reelection to Congress (Senate and House respectively). In fact Ford wanted to be Speaker, not President, and took the VP position once he realized that he would never become Speaker and VP was the next best thing.
That said, Rockefeller would be tainted by his losses in '64 and '68 but a comeback is not impossible. Reagan is more likely than any other option to be the nominee, however he has no chance of getting elected in 1972. Provided that whoever is elected in 1968 ends the war and the economy is still good, they would be reelected in 1972. And as I explained on a similar thread I created about 1976, Reagan was too right wing even for the GOP during this period. It took Watergate, Carter, and a split moderate establishment in 1980 for Reagan to win the nomination and then the Presidency. The country is still governed under the liberal consensus in 1972, so his chances are slim at best.
That said, Rockefeller would be tainted by his losses in '64 and '68 but a comeback is not impossible. Reagan is more likely than any other option to be the nominee, however he has no chance of getting elected in 1972. Provided that whoever is elected in 1968 ends the war and the economy is still good, they would be reelected in 1972. And as I explained on a similar thread I created about 1976, Reagan was too right wing even for the GOP during this period. It took Watergate, Carter, and a split moderate establishment in 1980 for Reagan to win the nomination and then the Presidency. The country is still governed under the liberal consensus in 1972, so his chances are slim at best.
It feels like Republican '72 would be someone duller and not on the normal list. Or Ronald Reagan. It would not be Rockefeller as his dreams of the presidency died in 1963 with his divorce and was buried in 1964 at the Republican convention when he was rejected, booed, and returned that hate back in full to the Conservatives. Conservatives hated Rockefeller with a passion reserved for a Jesuit against the Devil. Rockefeller, if anything, became a constant spoiler for other Republicans. He was a spoiler in 1964 against Scranton and the attempt of Moderate Republicans to gain steam and coalesce around a candidate to counter Goldwater. Moderates told Rockefeller to drop out and he would not. He was a spoiler for Romney in 1968, telling him he would not run and giving him his support, and then deciding he was going to run. Romney said the reason he lost 1968 was not brainwashing comments but because Rockefeller got into the race and he gave up because he could not beat Rockefeller.