Henry Clay and William Jennings Bryan, to name but two: your task is to pick an American who was significantly involved in politics and generally well-liked for at least a little while, but never became President. Create a scenario where they become President, with the least deviation from OTL until their election, and the greatest deviation thereafter.
Presidents who should have been
- Thread starter River of Death
- Start date
What about Charles Evans Hughes? With him as President we might not have entered WW1, Germany, having disposed of Russia, would have won in the West, with ramifications extending to the present day.
Daniel Webster, President 1845-1848, he lost his bid for re-election over his refusal to annex Texas.
This lead the the election of Martin Van Buren, on the Free soil Party ticket,
Van Buren died in 1848, and his Vice president John Parker Hale took office
Hale lost the election in 1848 to Lewis Cass, But won the 1852 Election.
Hales support of free soil and his attempts to limit the spread of Slavery lead to Civil war in 1855.
This lead the the election of Martin Van Buren, on the Free soil Party ticket,
Van Buren died in 1848, and his Vice president John Parker Hale took office
Hale lost the election in 1848 to Lewis Cass, But won the 1852 Election.
Hales support of free soil and his attempts to limit the spread of Slavery lead to Civil war in 1855.
Well if we've already mentioned Clay and Webster, someone needs to add John C. Calhoun.
DITTO... Charles Evans Hughes had the greatest shot to be President. If he had won California, he would have been President. He stands to be such an interesting character in history. And yes, the change of a President from Wilson would have entirely redesigned how USA reacted to WWI.
One of my favorite thoughts is the Election of 1912. What if Taft had been booted out at the convention and Teddy got the Republican nod. 1912 would have easily brought back the Square Deal. America's foreign policy changed radically. Roosevelt traveling to Europe seeking to mediate the problems brewing. Imagine if Roosevelt went on to win 1916, and just think, he could have stopped WWI from happening, as he was a man who believed personal relationships with leaders could benefit both nations.
In the second "What If" anthology, there is a TL that describes this happening: The Election of Theodore Roosevelt, 1912, by John Lukacs. Among other fun things, Arizona and New Mexico are one state. More importantly, Roosevelt immediately built up America's military, and just after his 1916 re-election he issued a 3-point paper to all of Europe. Quote from book:
"It was a state paper of the greatest importance. The government of the United States, Roosevelt declared, proposes one, the cessation of all hostilities in Europe and on the high seas within a month; two, the return of all armies and Powers to their state frontiers of July, 1914; three, the convocation of a Peace Congress in The Hague three months after the armistice, with the United States represented together with all other powers. None of the governments of Europe had expected such a definite proposal, not even the British. The world was stunned and startled. The cartoonist of a Hearst paper in New York drew TR, with the sun behind him, rising as Augustus Caesar over the tribes of the world."
Anyway...back to Presidents. I missed two important people in the first list: Aaron Burr and Samuel Tilden (1800 and 1876). Then, let's just say that the scenario in The Fourth Battle of Winchester (Richard McMurry) plays out. Then we have George McClellan (1864). To say nothing of politics in the Gilded Age, there could easily be four or five people in there...
I remember that section... I have that book right in the bookcase next to my computer... Beautiful... And I shutter to think of an America if McClellan won, slavery would still be in America and be a plaguing problem.
Election of 1884 - James G. Blaine... If he had not denounced one of his campaign helpers for an anti-Catholic statement, the state of New York would have swung to Blaine instead of Cleveland and won him the election. He would have changed policies altogether. Foreign policy wasn't on the docket until McKinley and Blaine would have made foreign policy the main topic. He would go for more Pan-Americanism. Altogether, changing the face of America.
Actually, the point of that book (The Fourth Battle of Winchester) is to show that if somehow the Confederates achieved a great victory in Virginia in late 1864 and so McClellan won the election, it would not matter because by that time Sherman would be at Virginia's southern border. It expounds the 'Western Paradigm' - that the Civil War was decided by the Confederate losses west of the Appalachians, but that is another story...
Also, I know this doesn't directly fit my original criteria, but WI Andrew Jackson won the 1824 election? Which could have happened, since he had the popular vote and there may have been the 'corrupt bargain' between Adams and Clay?
And finally, General Henry Slocum, President in 1884. I will say nothing more on this, except that it will be a timeline and that anyone who is that deeply interested would do well to read pages 507-509 in David McCullough's The Great Bridge.