The Iron Eagle III - Fallen Eagle
- Thread starter Kaiser of Brazil
- Start date
America no!!
That version of anthem is perfect for the chapter.
America is getting closer to falling over the edge
Especially as the South is suffering from a low intense conflict it seems and politics are a mess. Long is dying from cancer and is going to jail later apparently. And a Nazi puppet is going to take the WH and cause untold damage.
The Republic is truly in danger, we going to need an American Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus to save the day it looks like.
That version of anthem is perfect for the chapter.
America is getting closer to falling over the edge
Especially as the South is suffering from a low intense conflict it seems and politics are a mess. Long is dying from cancer and is going to jail later apparently. And a Nazi puppet is going to take the WH and cause untold damage.
The Republic is truly in danger, we going to need an American Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus to save the day it looks like.
Especially if his rise to power coincides with the Pakistan Movement’s resurgence.
II - ONE NATION UNDER GOD
THE IRON EAGLE
FALLEN EAGLE
ONE NATION UNDER GOD
FALLEN EAGLE
ONE NATION UNDER GOD
Smith had always known he would win, he always knew it was his fate to bear the burden of this nation and guide it under the light of the Lord. He did not expect Hoffa to die, rest his soul, but God worked in mysterious ways and sometimes that could include a little of lead. His burden was not a light one, but he knew from his prayers that he was meant to command, he was born for this, raised for this, and now he had to act like Hezekiah did, when the great impious enemy was at the gates and the nation was lost to debauchery and sin, and there was no lack of sin in the America he saw around him.
As he took the oath of office, swearing upon his own Bible, Smith reflected on the many challenges he would have to face now. The day Hoffa died was still fresh in his memory, he was in Wisconsin, some assignment to raise support from local donors for the Populist campaign that year, drumming up the people with his God-gifted rhetoric, when suddenly the Secret Service came over in their suits and grabbed him, he was rushed to a plane as a wounded man is rushed to a hospital and only when they were in the air did he get the news. There was a judge there, the local district Judge who was also carried in just for being the highest court official arround. There, high in the clouds, he became the President of the United States of America, arriving at the Babylon called Washington hours later.
Now he had a proper inauguration, he had to admit that sometimes it was tempting to fall to despair when the election went to the House, but the dealing with Thurmond and Cramer went very well, they were men of God, although with their own vices, agreeing to give him the Presidency. But Smith knew better, the Presidency was not given by the people, by politicians, by electors, it was given by the Lord as all things are, this chair was a duty and he was meant to be there to cleanse America from it's sins against the looming threat of the man so many called as "Antichrist". He knew better, there were proper doctrines for this and even, out of curiosity, he read the Pope's declaration and saw no direct accusation that Goebbels was THE Antichrist, it was a matter of millenarianism and Eschatological studies. It did not mean he would have ever allowed the man to set foot in Jerusalem, he threw all the power of the country and had no qualms of using nuclear weapons if all else failed, the fact the Nazis even managed to enter Jerusalem was reason for him to want to sack the entire Military staff out of incompetence, but he contained himself and had faith, a faith that paid off.
It was the year of 1968 and the President was alone in the Oval Office, a break after the recent meeting with his running mate, Lyndon Johnson, who was once again running by his side despite their personal grudges and divergences. He saw the bible on his desk, wondering how long it has been since he properly read a passage, he knew it was needed for the soul like the body needs water, but it has been weeks, turbulent weeks since he made the fateful decision to send the army to the south. He knew that the task was far from over, he made laws but there were still those who defied, he spoke words and yet there were those who did not listen, the enemies of the true American people were all springing out of the gutter to attack like it happened days ago.
But was that task his' to accomplish? Did he not already do what he was set to do? The Nazi horde was beaten, Goebbels was dead, the laws were in place, the Supreme Court just had roughly a plurality, if not a majority, of good Christian men in it's seats. Perhaps that is why he was staring at the bible now, that is why he was grabbing it now, that is why he was opening it, just hoping he could see something, anything that could be a signal of what he ought to do.
As he took the oath of office, swearing upon his own Bible, Smith reflected on the many challenges he would have to face now. The day Hoffa died was still fresh in his memory, he was in Wisconsin, some assignment to raise support from local donors for the Populist campaign that year, drumming up the people with his God-gifted rhetoric, when suddenly the Secret Service came over in their suits and grabbed him, he was rushed to a plane as a wounded man is rushed to a hospital and only when they were in the air did he get the news. There was a judge there, the local district Judge who was also carried in just for being the highest court official arround. There, high in the clouds, he became the President of the United States of America, arriving at the Babylon called Washington hours later.
Now he had a proper inauguration, he had to admit that sometimes it was tempting to fall to despair when the election went to the House, but the dealing with Thurmond and Cramer went very well, they were men of God, although with their own vices, agreeing to give him the Presidency. But Smith knew better, the Presidency was not given by the people, by politicians, by electors, it was given by the Lord as all things are, this chair was a duty and he was meant to be there to cleanse America from it's sins against the looming threat of the man so many called as "Antichrist". He knew better, there were proper doctrines for this and even, out of curiosity, he read the Pope's declaration and saw no direct accusation that Goebbels was THE Antichrist, it was a matter of millenarianism and Eschatological studies. It did not mean he would have ever allowed the man to set foot in Jerusalem, he threw all the power of the country and had no qualms of using nuclear weapons if all else failed, the fact the Nazis even managed to enter Jerusalem was reason for him to want to sack the entire Military staff out of incompetence, but he contained himself and had faith, a faith that paid off.
It was the year of 1968 and the President was alone in the Oval Office, a break after the recent meeting with his running mate, Lyndon Johnson, who was once again running by his side despite their personal grudges and divergences. He saw the bible on his desk, wondering how long it has been since he properly read a passage, he knew it was needed for the soul like the body needs water, but it has been weeks, turbulent weeks since he made the fateful decision to send the army to the south. He knew that the task was far from over, he made laws but there were still those who defied, he spoke words and yet there were those who did not listen, the enemies of the true American people were all springing out of the gutter to attack like it happened days ago.
But was that task his' to accomplish? Did he not already do what he was set to do? The Nazi horde was beaten, Goebbels was dead, the laws were in place, the Supreme Court just had roughly a plurality, if not a majority, of good Christian men in it's seats. Perhaps that is why he was staring at the bible now, that is why he was grabbing it now, that is why he was opening it, just hoping he could see something, anything that could be a signal of what he ought to do.
"For he is God's servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God's wrath on the wrongdoer."
Romans 13:4
Romans 13:4
He opened it exactly where he needed to open, Romans 13, the chapter of Authority. President Smith would feel a warmth on his chest with the reassurance, from the Lord, that what he was doing was right. He set the good book back on his desk, above the Constitution, promising in silence to return to his prayers once again.
Sandra had been going to these marches for days, but it felt like barking off the wrong tree. The Government was about to pass a law that felt almost draconian, something you would have heard from Nazi Europe or Russia, women just seen as baby factories and not human beings of their own, it was just yet another attack on liberties made by this insane government, like they suddenly looked at Germania and thought "hey, that is a good idea". But why she was saying they were in thw wrong tree? Why did they even bother to shout in front of the White House where the man in charge was the one who MADE the proposal when they should be with the others in front of the Capitol? They were supposed to be in a place they could make a difference, sway votes, remind those congressmen that their wives and daughters were watching and opposing them.
But protesting just felt hopeless, she used to admire Huey Long, in a sense she still did praise the man for the things he did. Her family used to have nothing in rural Louisiana, it was his policy as Governor that allowed her to go to College and have an education, then his policies as President, as well as her own job as an attorney, allowed her parents to buy a new house and a good farmland. She went to Populist rallies in the 50s, her college paper was about Long's changed in the education system and even her little brother was named Huey in his homage. How could Huey Long now be the man who was endorsing this tyranny? She was not as stupid as most of her former peers in the Populist Party, she knew nothing in the House could get approved if Long set his foot down on blocking a bill, that is why she had left the party after Smith's election.
That whole place had changed, suddenly there were young men and, most shockingly, women, who were all praising Smith like he was the voice of Jesus himself, that agreed with his fight against "immorality" and applauded the end of the Civil Rights Act that year. She could not bear to stay in the party after that, but after everything she could not vote for the Republicans either, even now she still believed they were "The Wealthy Establishment", if it was up to men like Goldwater, her parents would have stayed starving in their old wrecked home and he would say they just did not work hard enough. So now she was a political orphan, begging for someone, anyone, to hear her.
"We should not be wasting time in this place, you think that old cretin cares about us?"
Sandra told one of her friends, Martha, she came from Louisiana in the bus with her and they rented a hotel room nearby to participate in the protests during the Senate vote, of course she did not say that out loud, but that is what everyone else was thinking there. There was a lookout who was meant to tell whenever Smith or a secretary was near a window or outside so they could shout and show signs, but so far they have done nothing over the last half an hour but to sit there under the sun. Then there was someone approaching, one of the guards it seems, the lookout spotted the President talking to that guard, probably Secret Service from how well dressed he was. The men walked over and they all paid attention to what he would say, perhaps out of expectation, or out of dread for what they knew he would say.
"Ladies, good afternoon, I am here only to inform that the text of the Family Protection Act has been approved in the Senate by sixt-"
They did not hear the rest of what he said, the rest of the protesters all jeered and shouted angrily like it was an spontaneous reaction, the agent was there just to be the messenger of a bad news they all feared to get. Sandra felt a crushing weight on her spirit, every fight they have picked over these last two years had failed, every single one of them had passed one way or the other. Now it was illegal for States to provide Abortion services for any case except for life-threatening circumstances and rape, but that was hardly the main issue of this law and it was not exactly the reason she was protesting either, it also banned the use of such an extensive list of contraceptives that even condoms were included in it. She was working as an attorney for the Planned Parenthood Federation, for sure she was going to be out of a job because Smith for sure was going to send the FBI on them.
She did not know what exactly possessed her, but she only walked ahead to the Agent with the gates of the White House standing between them, she stared at him straight in the eye, the man not even flinching as he stood there like a lamppost, then she turned around to the rowdy crowd and shouted at the top of her lungs for attention.
"HEY!"
Then everyone stared at her.
"Welcome Frauleins, to the Greater American Reich! Let us all salute our beloved Führer Gerald Smith!"
She intended for that to be a mockery, turning around and glaring at the White House with all her built up frustration and anger, she raised her arm in a salute, hoping by God that Smith was looking at them now.
"Sieg Heil! Sieg Heil! Sieg Heil!"
The others began to imitate her, understanding the mockery, it was an inner "joke" in her group that if this law was approved then they should just call Smith as a Führer. But the Agent did not see that as a joke, he saw a group of people within striking distance to the President raising a salute and openly calling themselves as Nazis. Almost out of nowhere, several agents who were watching around them came up and began the arrests, Sandra did not even realize it until she was tackled to the ground and handcuffed, the others tried to run away, dropping their letterboards to try to race, some were not even going along with the salute. Only now did Sandra realize how much of an stupidity that was, to act like Nazis in front of the White House, and while in normal circumstances she knew that the Free Speech laws would protect them, she knew this was no ordinary Supreme Court, not anymore. It was as if the country she had spent so long studying about in College had gone away, this was a new America and she for one did not see much difference between Smith and Hitler now.
The History of the United States under the Smith Administration was like the famous anecdote about a bushfire and gasoline, the darkest moment in the nation's history since the Civil War and the Reconstruction era, surpassing the Depression and the 1947-48 riots of the Thurmond Administration. Smith, a self-described "Christian Nationalist" had gained the Presidency while convinced that it was his God-given duty to hold it and moralize the nation according to his own interpretation of Christianity, with the backing of the Populist Party, the Democratic Party and even a non-unsubstantial amount of Republicans, mainly affiliated with the Society for the Defense of Liberty which backed several of his actions despite being outspokenly opposed to his stay in power.
The strong coalition that held up the Smith Government was mainly commanded by the Head of the Populist Party, the Ex-President and current Speaker of the House Huey Long. Once known as a Progressive, Huey's amoral desire to hold on to power and his considerable influence on Smith and his Cabinet would make him the de facto Head of Government of the United States, coordinating a powerful alliance with Conservative and Reactionaries that even included the Progressive wing of the Populist Party, oddly enough. It cannot be understated how unified the Populists were in this time despite the Progressive's constant frustrations and previous attrition with Long during the late Hoffa Presidency when the POTUS and the Ex-POTUS entered a feud that cost the former his life.
Some called it the "4th Term" of Huey Long, marked by the continuation of the Longist economic policies by the Smith administration, with that and the robust welfare system being shielded by the aggressiveness of the Republican Party by the commanding Coalition. In one hand, that continued to ensure broad support for Longism among the poorer classes, on the other, the system was remarkably corrupt as local politicians, mainly Populists, used the public service to provide jobs to political supporters in return for a percentage of their salaries and political backing during the election. The Spoils System had been renewed and strengthened all throughout the Long Era and, with the Federal State apparatus and the immense control of the Executive over the Judiciary, Legislature and the Welfare systems, it reached such a scale that corruption became generalized in American Politics. The repeal of the old Pendleton act, a quiet dismantlement of an outdated law in favor of a new "Civil Service Reform" in 1955 all but made official the system.
The strong coalition that held up the Smith Government was mainly commanded by the Head of the Populist Party, the Ex-President and current Speaker of the House Huey Long. Once known as a Progressive, Huey's amoral desire to hold on to power and his considerable influence on Smith and his Cabinet would make him the de facto Head of Government of the United States, coordinating a powerful alliance with Conservative and Reactionaries that even included the Progressive wing of the Populist Party, oddly enough. It cannot be understated how unified the Populists were in this time despite the Progressive's constant frustrations and previous attrition with Long during the late Hoffa Presidency when the POTUS and the Ex-POTUS entered a feud that cost the former his life.
Some called it the "4th Term" of Huey Long, marked by the continuation of the Longist economic policies by the Smith administration, with that and the robust welfare system being shielded by the aggressiveness of the Republican Party by the commanding Coalition. In one hand, that continued to ensure broad support for Longism among the poorer classes, on the other, the system was remarkably corrupt as local politicians, mainly Populists, used the public service to provide jobs to political supporters in return for a percentage of their salaries and political backing during the election. The Spoils System had been renewed and strengthened all throughout the Long Era and, with the Federal State apparatus and the immense control of the Executive over the Judiciary, Legislature and the Welfare systems, it reached such a scale that corruption became generalized in American Politics. The repeal of the old Pendleton act, a quiet dismantlement of an outdated law in favor of a new "Civil Service Reform" in 1955 all but made official the system.
The "War Chest" of the Populist Party, kept under the lock and key of Huey Long himself, was a secret fund worth billions of dollars collected by the Party functionaries and representatives for political campaigns and donations which made the party practically invulnerable to the kind of Lobbying used in the Democratic and Republican Parties, opting instead for a more subtle and corrupt alternative than direct donations from large companies and allowing a level of Independence to enact it's agenda. This approach not only allowed Long and his successors to enact harsher laws against Lobbyist companies, from tariffs and exorbitant tax rates, to directly restrictive laws against monopolies and pushing for protectionism, but also gave him an enormous pull on the members of the Party who, during election season, needed "campaign donations" from the War chest, sent through shadow companies and "private individuals".
The whole system was so vast that it was normalized, there were those who did speak out about abuses in local areas that led to a glimpse of the true network being exposed, but usually when that happened the investigation became Federal and put under the FBI, tightly held by the Longists since the loss of Hoover and thanks to the control held by the former director Morrison, a Louisiana Attorney who was, as expected, in Long's pocket. The FBI would then place the investigation on the backlog or sacrifice the local politician with a relatively small stay in prison while ensuring his assets to the family. The FBI went from a crime investigation unit to the shadow hand of the Populist Party to ensure it's scheemes proceeded smoothly and secretive, to the point where locals just began to accept the "War Chest" system as a normal part of Politics, that was especially dominant in the rural and small urban areas where mayors held a strong authority. Very few attorneys dared to go against such system and that is where contacts of the government with the Mafia under the Long and, especially, the Hoffa era came in hand to ensure those voices were silenced and cases were dropped.
The Republican Party and it's associated press, the largest of which being the New York Times, decried and denounced the system many times, but at one point many Americans would fall victim of the trap of "normalization" and others just shrugged it by claiming "They are crooks, but they do stuff", it did not help that the Populists had a powerful propaganda apparatus against the Republicans by claiming them as puppets of corporative powers who wanted to return America to the 1880s. Goldwater being one of the most prominent and outspoken Republicans was something the Populists themselves helped prop up, raising him to that status of leadership among the people to claim he was the "standard" Republican when, in truth, his anti-welfare rhetoric was a fringe idea in the 1964 election.
Speaking of Welfare, the Republicans continued to attack the system with criticisms that could be considered as legitimate, especially that it was bloated and corrupt, with "ghost employees" and unnecessary offices (Goldwater once was thought to be hyperbolic when he claimed the Saint Louis Federal Hospital had an office called "Director of the Needle Disposal Department" when, in truth, that office did exist alongside a whole department of it). In the Federal Educational Facilities, there were jokes that schools had more teachers and janitors than students properly, and in reality the majority of those teachers and janitors were people who never showed up, some didn't even know they had those jobs. The corruption within these systems also included overpriced products (in one case, there was a delivery in Pittsburg of a box of bandages where each bandage cost 5 dollars) and benefits (It was joked in New Reno that public education was more expensive than private solely because of the bribes required for approval).
These cases are local examples, in the majority of the institutions it never reached such extremes, however the perception of corruption was legitimate and the problem in the public institutions was staggering, that is to say nothing about tax evasion or social security frauds. But the solution of Goldwater was seen as extreme in his election: Privatization, the dismantlement of the bloated system by destroying it, with the end of the American Healthcare System (AHS) and the privatization of Educational facilities or at least, according to Goldwater, 90% of them. Furthermore, he would slash taxes enormously across all classes and combat the excessive Anti-Monopoly laws made in the Long Era, that is to say nothing of the Labor Laws made by Hoffa and the Minimum wage which, according to Goldwater, only contributed to the rising inflation.
This system, established over a period of almost two decades, would ensure that the Populist Party under Long was both unified, due to the dependence of the "low clergy" politicians to the patronage of the Kingfish, and dominant over the Public Services of the Federal Government through appointed bureaucrats supportive of Longist politicies, bureaucrats who also had their pull on the voting masses. Furthermore, the control of the Supreme Court (the last Justice not appointed by Huey Long would die in 1965) allowed for cases to be judged accordingly to the Populist interpretation, rather than strict Constitutional Law, with the SCOTUS being weaponized to give precedents that favored the local party offices to combat the established Gerrymandering practices by arguing abuse in the designation of voting districts, only for such cases to rarely ever go forward when brought forward by the opposition against Populist-dominated committees
The "Moral Crusade" was the name of Gerald Smith's Social Policies which took a forefront during his Presidency, namely in his efforts to "Moralize" America through increasingly restrictive and discriminatory laws against divergent social groups that opposed his vision. Many arguments, including at the Supreme Court, were made over a possible infringement of the 1st amendment of the Constitution, the Separation of Church and State, by the Smith Administration. Not only did the President openly justify the passage of laws and decrees through biblical verses and arguments, but he did openly declare his interest in making America a "Godly" Nation, which led to some Political Scientists of the time to consider him a "Protestant Integralist", whereas he declared himself as a "Christian Nationalist".
A class action lawsuit did reach the Supreme Court in 1967 over one such policies, the "National Identity Curriculum Act" which reformed the Educational system to include religious studies which, in truth, was a "Christian Study" as no other religion was included in the curriculum. The Lawsuit moved by a National Teacher's association claimed that the Law was against the First Amendment as it made the teaching of Christian Dogmas a part of the National Curriculum in public school and argued that, if not fully vetoed, then the law should at least include a Plurality of Faiths. This usually was a case where the Supreme Court would consider the law safely unconstitutional, but instead it was a split decision that ended in a 6-5 against the Association as the SCOTUS claimed that the Law did not breach the 1st Amendment and the government was authorized to provide "ethical education" for students. But the closeness of the vote despite the blatant corruption and bias of the Supreme Court, rather than making Smith realize his laws were unconstitutional in a normal context, would only motivate him to expand the court from 11 to 15 members in the Judiciary Act of 1968, quickly appointing 4 Justices who were jokingly called "The Four Cardinals" by Senator Ronald Reagan of Illinois, a harsher version of the joke called them "The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse".
Even before the election, Smith showed the start of his Moralistic campaign in the Illegal Substances Act of 1964, which would intensify the combat against narcotics in the United States during his Administration through the ruthless use of Law Enforcement. It is estimated that the number of policemen in America doubled during the Smith Administration, and in 1966 the "National Security Act", a new law which replaced the previous one made by Long, only strengthened the broad range of powers the American Government held over security and privacy, still riding high on the war against the Mafia, which was blamed for the assassination of President Hoffa.
The National Security Act of 1966 was considered by many as "Tyrannical", a breach in Laws of Free Speech, Due Process, Privacy and Federalism and an affront to the Constitution, although none of the Lawsuits made against the government would prosper as the Supreme Court either deliberately left these cases to rot on the backlog or judged in favor of the Constitutionality of disputed clauses. The FBI not only was expanded in numbers, but also were given authority to take over any investigation where there was "interest" of the Federal Government, the amendment made in 1968 would also allow for searches without warrant. There was the creation of the "Riot Suppression Squadron" (RSS) units, a specialized division which would be required in the Police department of every city over 30 thousand inhabitants, created specifically for crowd and riot control. Furthermore, it would establish the new "Department of Internal Security", with the assignment of contain and suppress internal terroristic and destabilizing threats, which would have it's own agency: The American Security Agency (ASA).
The National Security Act of 1966 was considered by many as "Tyrannical", a breach in Laws of Free Speech, Due Process, Privacy and Federalism and an affront to the Constitution, although none of the Lawsuits made against the government would prosper as the Supreme Court either deliberately left these cases to rot on the backlog or judged in favor of the Constitutionality of disputed clauses. The FBI not only was expanded in numbers, but also were given authority to take over any investigation where there was "interest" of the Federal Government, the amendment made in 1968 would also allow for searches without warrant. There was the creation of the "Riot Suppression Squadron" (RSS) units, a specialized division which would be required in the Police department of every city over 30 thousand inhabitants, created specifically for crowd and riot control. Furthermore, it would establish the new "Department of Internal Security", with the assignment of contain and suppress internal terroristic and destabilizing threats, which would have it's own agency: The American Security Agency (ASA).
The ASA was created by Smith as an Internal Security Agency as the President changed the directives of the CIA to fully concentrate the agency on the combat of foreign threats to the United States after the Nazi-Israeli War reignited fears of foreign invasions. The ASA was split off from both CIA and FBI and placed under it's new Director: James Parker Eastland. Eastland, who would come to be one of the most feared men in America, was born in DC itself on the 9th of June of 1922, little is known of his childhood other than the fact he got his degree in Law in 1943 after graduating in Harvard at a remarkably young age, afterwards he joined the US Army and served as an intelligence agent during the Pacific War, upon returning home he would serve as an Attorney and joined the FBI in 1951, moving to join the Secret Service in 1964 following Hoffa's assassination and then resigning to become the head of the ASA. The details of Eastland's personal life are murky at best other than general information, although it is believed he served in the FBI and also was part of the manhunt for Frank Sheeran.
What is known is that Eastland would take charge of the agency which was nicknamed as "The President's Gestapo", an Internal Security Agency responsible for the combat against organizations considered a threat to the stability of the United States such as the Black Panthers, Puerto Rican separatists, Mexican insurgent groups, Integralist Catholics and the Communist Party of the United States. Meanwhile, Smith also would use the ASA to suppress Social movements such as the Civil Rights movement (Both the NAACP and the Christian Convention would go under the agency's scrutiny), the Feminist movements, the American Jewish Committee, the Gay Rights League, Liberal student groups, even the left wing of the Populist Party was kept under the watch of the ASA. Furthermore, the agency would answer primarily to Smith, a novel agency which was not made by the Long Administration and did not have it's ranks filled with Longists, but men who Smith considered loyal to himself.
The ASA was the de facto Department of Internal Security, the Department was little more than the legal and public face for the organization with few initial attributions, although those would grow over the next two years to include the coordination of Security Forces to combat terrorism during the Black Belt Insurgency that lasted all the remainder of the Smith Administration. The National Security Act of 1966 was decried as a step towards a Police State in America, with the ASA having little restraint in wiretapping and in breaking the correspondence of those under it's investigation. It is believed the Agency also coordinated with William Sullivan, FBI Director, to launch internal sabotage campaigns to fragment movements that were considered a threat by the President, including by the use of Assassinations and even Death Squadrons by the FBI.
The National Security Act was just the most prominent of many controversial laws, but few actions made by Smith were as controversial as his repeal of one: The Civil Rights Act of 1963. The Law, despite being mostly symbolic due to the amendment added to it in the Senate, was seen as a signal by Civil Rights groups that the country was headed in a bright direction and they could expect more from Hoffa's second term or from a Kennedy Presidency, but unfortunately for them the next POTUS was Gerald Smith, a man who could barely disguise his own disgust for the Black population, had decried Hoffa's decision to push for a Civil Rights act and meet with Martin Luther King in the White House during the campaign for the Civil Rights. Not only was Smith a man to the right of the Populist Party, similar to George Wallace, but he was even more sincere in his beliefs than Wallace, who exaggerated his racial discrimination in public as part of a Race-Baiting policy in the 60s to win over the Deep South from the Democratic Party.
No sooner did he take office, Smith already planned to repeal the act and he began to work to do so as part of his 100 days after the inauguration in 1965, but for that he needed to get the "blessing" of Huey Long who, in turn, initially had declined to push for a repeal of the act, knowing such action could potentially spark unrest in the country and be a threat during the 1966 midterms. Smith, on the other hand, believed the repeal would help the Populists in the Southern States and strengthen it's alliance with the Democratic Party, who held the Vice-Presidency under Cramer. Cramer would also be known to have presided the Senate session that approved the repeal of the act, wanting to leave his own personal mark in what he called a "historical moment for every God-fearing American". Long would eventually accept to approve the repeal and rallied both Populists and Democrats to do so, despite the abstaining of the left wing of the Populist Party. Curiously, some Republicans like Goldwater himself did approve the repeal, although for other reasons such as his personal belief that States should legislate their own civil rights policies.
The Repeal of the Civil Rights act happened in March of 1965 after less than 2 years under effect, sparking riots across the country in what came to be known as "Black Spring", the NAACP, the Southern Christian Convention, the Black Panther Party and similar organizations would release a joint statement denouncing the government's repeal as an attack against years of progress and struggle. But in the case of the Black Panthers, a separate declaration made by it's leadership which included members of the New Afrika Movement and the Nation of Islam, would claim this was an attack against the Black Population of the United States and called for those who were targetted by the new law to fight back against their aggressors by arming themselves for "self-defense". Smith considered that the start of an insurgency, his fears growing as the next two months would see the spark of the greatest wave of Racial Riots in American History. In the State of Mississippi, the Governor declared an State of Emergency after the eruption of riots in Vicksburg and Jackson that soon spread all across the State, with the National Guard being mobilized to suppress the rioters through force, this would lead to the deaths of at least 63 black protesters between March and May of 1965 in the State, as well as 7 Police officers who were given a state homage after their deaths. That would be only one of several cases across the Deep South, with Senator George Wallace of Alabama claiming that "The South is in flames, set alight by Negro Terrorism".
But the insurgency would only become a properly organized effort after the 16th of January of 1967 when the Civil Rights leader Martin Luther King would be assassinated, shot while visiting a restaurant in Birmingham before a speech. A member of the American National Socialist Party (ANSP), a man named Edward Reed Fields, would shoot the Reverend twice on the chest before being immobilized, with King dying hours later in the hospital, his last words were nothing of political or social grandiose like some would claim, but rather him asking his wife if she was unharmed, "Did he hit you, Yoki?", following that a public funeral would be held and, controversially, Fields did not get the death penalty, but rather a life sentence, during his trial he compared himself to Adolf Hitler and claimed he was fighting for a better America. He thought his trial would propel his political career like Hitler's did in 1923, but the justices in America were less forgiving of a murder than the Bavarians were of an attempted coup.
The death of Doctor King happened after months of relentless government attempts of dividing the Black rights movements, which only intensified their actions and boycotts following the repeal in 1965, but while the death of King did serve to, alongside everything else, weaken the moderates, it drifted many to the radical groups such as the Panthers, who appeared to be doing a more "decisive" action against a government millions of Americans believed was out to get them. Smith's controversial actions, which included the return of Segregation into the Armed Forces, as well as his declarations and his amnesty policy towards former Klansmen had a radicalizing effect that led to much of the Black Population, if not support, at least sympathize more with Malcom's armed fight and militancy over the NAACP's "political" approach, one that Malcom claimed to have "died with Doctor King". When the Black Panthers would later launch an attack against an Alabama Police Department, stealing weapons from the armory and even massacring a group of 18 policemen, they would be officially declared by President Smith as an "Insurgent Organization", starting the Black Belt Insurgency, a misleading title as that would be spread across the majority of the nation.
The combat of the Black Panther Party and it's affiliated groups not only did lead to a skyrocket in the amount of deaths in the country and brought racial relations to the worst level since Slavery, but it also lead to a general discrimination and hostility by government authorities against the Black Population of the United States, especially in Southern States where black police agents were increasingly sidelined. President Smith once privately commended Eastland by claiming his agency was the only one "Negro-free" in the country, although that is disputed and the APA did infact employ several black informants and agents in it's operations. The fear that any black man or woman could be a member of the Black Panther Party led to a climate of paranoia that caused several incidents of indiscriminate fire and shootouts, the most extreme of those being the Chattanooga Massacre of 1967 in December during a Christmas Celebration, when the police received intelligence that there could be an attack by the Black Panthers, one of the RSS teams would be deployed to keep security during the event, but when a local policemen in the watch lost his nerve and thought he saw a black man pulling a gun from his jacket, he opened fire which led to the RSS firing upon a crowd mostly compromised by Afro-Americans that started to make a protest against the RSS' presence in the event. The RSS, armed with live ammunition, would kill around 27 people, including 3 children, the courts would rule that the commander of the Unit was under "justifiable duress" and that the organization had "credible information" on an incoming attack, so he would be punished with compulsory retirement, much to the outrage of the locals.
The Bank of America, located in the former building of the Federal Reserve of the United States in Eccles, was the target of the fury of millions of American from poor to the wealthy, seen as nothing more than simply the tool of the Executive Office to manipulate the worth of the dollar and it's printing, a piggy bank would be a less accurate way to call it compared to a printing machine. But the contradictions of the American Economy were far from starting just in the paradoxal policies of trying to stop inflation while printing money and increasing spending year after year, it was also the fact the country that was meant to represent a Liberal Economic model contrasted to it's rivals was one of the most protectionist nations on Earth, and that the country that used soft economic power to dominate others was actively striking against Large companies without going as far as offering State-led companies to take their spot in the vacuum.
The American Economy between 1949 and 1969 was the story of how a man got off a crashing train at the right time, men like Smith and Hoffa would take the blame for the economic deceleration brought in the long term by Long's almost draconian policies inspired by his "Share the Wealth" program. The exorbitant tax rates would fall upon a paradox as the income from said tax rates diminished, the so-called "Anti-Monopoly" policies would lead to many companies offshoring their assets to other nations such as Russia and Japan, only for the fall of the latter to it's old government structure and nationalization to lead to a worsening of the recession as mass layoffs were made, worsening the employment situation. Furthermore, the blatant levels of government corruption created an Oligarchic structure where government contracts were biased to not be given to companies known to lobby or have a board sympathizing with the Republican Party.
The prosperous time of the 1950s, brought in by Long's redistributionist policies, allowed the poor and middle class in the country to have an unmatched purchasing power which boosted local economies. The new public programs for Education, Healthcare and Social Security would also give a more secure margin for consumers to spend a larger amount of their monthly income in leisure or investments, although in compensation there would be a worry in the late 50s that the economic policies, if kept unchanged and without proper adjustments, would lead to a constant growth in government spending without an equivalent GDP growth to compensate, breaking the Keynesian Balance. The Solution in the 3rd term of President Long was to use the Bank of America to manipulate interest rates and prevent inflation, with the declining money reserves leading to worry that inflation would skyrocket as the unbalanced government spending brought the national economy to it's limits.
The GDP growth itself started off strong with the end of the post-war depression between 1947 and 1948, with an average of 10 to 12% a year between 1949 and 1954, but said growth would only lower from there to a more stable 6-7% between 1955 and 1956, a decline to 3% in 1957 followed by a burst due to the production frenzy in the military industry during the Ural War, finally 1960 would come with only 2% of growth, but the rest of the decade would pass with the economy never being able to grow over 2%.
Hoffa, a former Union Boss and very much inclined to benefit the Unions, would double down on Longist protectionism (with exceptions such as the Friendship agreement with Britain), he would also attempt further taxes on corporations, expanding the definition to include companies considered of "medium" size, in an attempt to increase revenue when facing the debt spiral the country was in: In 1962, the GDP to Debt radio would reach an staggering 90% with the trend continuing to grow as the GDP growth slowed down and the spending grew much faster, the expenses of the Federal Budget would be greater than the revenue in all years since the 1949 budget. The inflation rate, once contained by interest rates, would skyrocket after 1963 when Hoffa authorized an expansion in the printing process to finance his deficit spending.
Perhaps another reason to explain the economic crisis that followed was the lack of an external consumer Market: Europe was still under a strict embargo of the US government, the new British government under Mountbatten would adopt a more strict economic control under the fears of a looming war and facing colonial conflicts, much of the Middle East was under the control of hostile governments, the Russian Empire was adopting a War Economy during the Ural War and in the years prior to the Ostkrieg, the Chinese Market was closed off by the Maoist system and the Japanese Empire returned with a new "Bakufu" policy preaching Isolation and Autarky. Furthermore, the expansion of Integralist influence in Latin America, as well as of governments such as in Cuba and Guatemala implementing heavier restrictions on American companies, would start to create new barriers to American products, as well as retaliatory tariffs made against the Longist Protectionist Policy. All of that contributed to a general shrinking of the market which, added to the enormous pressure by the government over companies, in part also due to Long's populist preachings that made large corporations into a "boogeyman" for his supporters, led to the decline of Industrial titans from Standard Oil to the Ford Motors company, with new masses joining the unemployment lists.
As it was an electoral year, Smith would implement a new system for unemployment benefits in 1964 and, added to his expansions of the American security apparatus and the cuts made in recently reborn industries such as alcohol (which was subject to heavy regulations, taxation and a ban in advertisement), only worsened the situation as the country saw itself increasingly unable to pay off it's own debts except by printing money or raising taxes further. Smith would attempt to solve this with what he called a "Moral Tax" on gambling, prostitution, alcohol, tobacco, even came to a point of fining women who wore bikinis or men who did not wear shirts on beaches. Those measures did not change much in the grand scheme and soon the Nation, which previously was dealing with just an average inflationary of 2-4% rate a year, was now facing the prospect of a 20 or 30% rate a year between 1965 and 1968, only worsened by the Global crisis caused by the risk of a Third World War, the high levels of tensions causing anxiety among investors that their own investments would never pay off, especially as many American companies had to see their proprieties in Russia being turned towards the war effort by the government.
The Situation would only become worse after the beginning of the War in Mexico, which cut off the United States from one of it's most pivotal trade partners. The Black Belt insurgency led to a flock of investors to retract investments from the Deep South and move to Canada due to the general sense of insecurity. Smith's infamous attempts to discourage women from going to the workplace would also not be sufficient to deal with the unemployment crisis, which also greatly affected the African-American population. The President created the so-called "Breadwinner" initiative which was meant to reward households where only the male party had an active employment with government benefits and favorable tax rates, while he also instructed the IRS to "discipline" households which did not have the female party staying at home by placing their tax debts under tougher scrutiny, although that was never a formal policy, it did reflex Smith's disconnection with the economic situation where the rising living costs started to push for both parents to work more jobs to sustain their way of life or face cut backs in home expenses.
The American Economy between 1949 and 1969 was the story of how a man got off a crashing train at the right time, men like Smith and Hoffa would take the blame for the economic deceleration brought in the long term by Long's almost draconian policies inspired by his "Share the Wealth" program. The exorbitant tax rates would fall upon a paradox as the income from said tax rates diminished, the so-called "Anti-Monopoly" policies would lead to many companies offshoring their assets to other nations such as Russia and Japan, only for the fall of the latter to it's old government structure and nationalization to lead to a worsening of the recession as mass layoffs were made, worsening the employment situation. Furthermore, the blatant levels of government corruption created an Oligarchic structure where government contracts were biased to not be given to companies known to lobby or have a board sympathizing with the Republican Party.
The prosperous time of the 1950s, brought in by Long's redistributionist policies, allowed the poor and middle class in the country to have an unmatched purchasing power which boosted local economies. The new public programs for Education, Healthcare and Social Security would also give a more secure margin for consumers to spend a larger amount of their monthly income in leisure or investments, although in compensation there would be a worry in the late 50s that the economic policies, if kept unchanged and without proper adjustments, would lead to a constant growth in government spending without an equivalent GDP growth to compensate, breaking the Keynesian Balance. The Solution in the 3rd term of President Long was to use the Bank of America to manipulate interest rates and prevent inflation, with the declining money reserves leading to worry that inflation would skyrocket as the unbalanced government spending brought the national economy to it's limits.
The GDP growth itself started off strong with the end of the post-war depression between 1947 and 1948, with an average of 10 to 12% a year between 1949 and 1954, but said growth would only lower from there to a more stable 6-7% between 1955 and 1956, a decline to 3% in 1957 followed by a burst due to the production frenzy in the military industry during the Ural War, finally 1960 would come with only 2% of growth, but the rest of the decade would pass with the economy never being able to grow over 2%.
Hoffa, a former Union Boss and very much inclined to benefit the Unions, would double down on Longist protectionism (with exceptions such as the Friendship agreement with Britain), he would also attempt further taxes on corporations, expanding the definition to include companies considered of "medium" size, in an attempt to increase revenue when facing the debt spiral the country was in: In 1962, the GDP to Debt radio would reach an staggering 90% with the trend continuing to grow as the GDP growth slowed down and the spending grew much faster, the expenses of the Federal Budget would be greater than the revenue in all years since the 1949 budget. The inflation rate, once contained by interest rates, would skyrocket after 1963 when Hoffa authorized an expansion in the printing process to finance his deficit spending.
Perhaps another reason to explain the economic crisis that followed was the lack of an external consumer Market: Europe was still under a strict embargo of the US government, the new British government under Mountbatten would adopt a more strict economic control under the fears of a looming war and facing colonial conflicts, much of the Middle East was under the control of hostile governments, the Russian Empire was adopting a War Economy during the Ural War and in the years prior to the Ostkrieg, the Chinese Market was closed off by the Maoist system and the Japanese Empire returned with a new "Bakufu" policy preaching Isolation and Autarky. Furthermore, the expansion of Integralist influence in Latin America, as well as of governments such as in Cuba and Guatemala implementing heavier restrictions on American companies, would start to create new barriers to American products, as well as retaliatory tariffs made against the Longist Protectionist Policy. All of that contributed to a general shrinking of the market which, added to the enormous pressure by the government over companies, in part also due to Long's populist preachings that made large corporations into a "boogeyman" for his supporters, led to the decline of Industrial titans from Standard Oil to the Ford Motors company, with new masses joining the unemployment lists.
As it was an electoral year, Smith would implement a new system for unemployment benefits in 1964 and, added to his expansions of the American security apparatus and the cuts made in recently reborn industries such as alcohol (which was subject to heavy regulations, taxation and a ban in advertisement), only worsened the situation as the country saw itself increasingly unable to pay off it's own debts except by printing money or raising taxes further. Smith would attempt to solve this with what he called a "Moral Tax" on gambling, prostitution, alcohol, tobacco, even came to a point of fining women who wore bikinis or men who did not wear shirts on beaches. Those measures did not change much in the grand scheme and soon the Nation, which previously was dealing with just an average inflationary of 2-4% rate a year, was now facing the prospect of a 20 or 30% rate a year between 1965 and 1968, only worsened by the Global crisis caused by the risk of a Third World War, the high levels of tensions causing anxiety among investors that their own investments would never pay off, especially as many American companies had to see their proprieties in Russia being turned towards the war effort by the government.
The Situation would only become worse after the beginning of the War in Mexico, which cut off the United States from one of it's most pivotal trade partners. The Black Belt insurgency led to a flock of investors to retract investments from the Deep South and move to Canada due to the general sense of insecurity. Smith's infamous attempts to discourage women from going to the workplace would also not be sufficient to deal with the unemployment crisis, which also greatly affected the African-American population. The President created the so-called "Breadwinner" initiative which was meant to reward households where only the male party had an active employment with government benefits and favorable tax rates, while he also instructed the IRS to "discipline" households which did not have the female party staying at home by placing their tax debts under tougher scrutiny, although that was never a formal policy, it did reflex Smith's disconnection with the economic situation where the rising living costs started to push for both parents to work more jobs to sustain their way of life or face cut backs in home expenses.
Despite the proactive intervention in Israel and Mexico, it would be a mistake to call Gerald Smith as an Interventionist, with the President only openly opposing his party's policy of "America First" in 1965 when approving an immediate intervention against the German-Syrian invasion of Israel. The POTUS had, in fact, made one of the most openly isolationistic moves in American History, one not even Long dared to push for, when he led to the destruction of the United Nations in 1965.
The Organization, born out of Cordell Hull's global vision during the waning days of the Second World War, was meant to be a replacement for the destroyed League of Nations, which would be formaly dissolved in 1946 following the German invasion of Switzerland and the annexation of it's headquarters in Geneve into the French State, being replaced in Europe by the Linz Pakt. The UN would establish itself properly in the late 1940s and at it's peak it included the majority of the Latin American Nations, Russia, China, Japan, India, as well as the members of the Commonwealth and Oceania, it had a strong potential of being a global forum, as it was set to do, but the UN's agenda was a reason for disputes. Despite being officially made with the purpose of pursuing world peace and cooperation, it did not include any of the Nations of mainland Europe (except for Portugal until 1959), especially not Germany which decried the agency as a Jewish instrument against the Reich.
The first issue was the seat of China in the United Nations, as the Civil War drew to a close in 1952, the People's Republic of China would call for the seat in the Security Council, formerly held by the Kuomitang's government, to be given to them as the legitimate Chinese government. But the recent discovery of Stalin's atrocities and the ongoing Red Scare in America would lead to both the United States and the Russian Empire to pressure the United Nations to not grant the PRC with Veto powers in the council, although they would keep a permanent seat. This arrangement was not satisfactory for Mao, who would refuse to join the assembly and instead would reform the Communist International as an organism under his leadership, including the nations of Vietnam, Laos and Korea (or rather North Korea).
That same year, the Integralist government in Brazil, both due to it's ideology and suspicion of the United Nations (many Christian fundamentalists being skeptical of organizations calling for a secular "Global Peace") would announce it's withdrawal in retaliation to the UN sanctions placed upon the regime. It was a symbolically relevant moment as the Brazilian State traditionally made the opening speech of the Organization due to the country's general neutral and friendly atitude added to it's geopolitical context. The failure of the UN to prevent the Syrian-Iranian invasion of Iraq or the Suez War would highlight several of it's flaws and shortcomings as, biding by the principles of International Law, the organization did not possess the capacity of comply members to stick by it's resolutions. Furthermore, when the United Nations, at British behest, condemned the annexation of the lands of the Portuguese Empire in Asia by India, China and Indonesia, it would further sour those nations which saw the UN as only a tool of Anglo-American Diplomatic Imperialism.
The death of the UN happened quickly with the Goebbels era in Germany, the constant refusal of the United Nations to condemn Imperialist powers in Africa and Asia would be argued by nations such as India, Siam and Indonesia as a breach of proper international principles that the Organization was founded upon and when, at last, the UN did openly condemn the existing colonial Empires, it led to both Belgium-Congo and the French Empire to slowly withdraw from the UN under different pretenses. South Africa would also leave the United Nations shortly after it left the Commonwealth with the Boer takeover, as well as Argentina and Uruguay following the Brazilian-sponsored coups in both nations (even outright invasion on the latter case). Hoffa also claimed that, with the Coalition of Nations built, the UN had become an "outdated" institution.
When Smith took power in 1964, he already began to move against the UN in a physical manner, starting by claiming it's existing location in Philadelphia should be returned to American jurisdiction rather than UN jurisdiction. Using of Nationalistic and Religious rhetoric, claiming that the very foundation of the UN under "Secular Humanism" was a Satanic (although he did almost say "Jewish" during the speech, correcting himself mid-sentence) project to bring forth a United World for the Antichrist, Smith would eventually turn the majority of the Americans against the organization, after the existing US ambassador to the UN was retired, Smith refused to appoint a new one and even ignored the UN's proceedings during the Nazi-Israeli war (it was left to the Israeli representative to call for a vote in the security council to condemn Goebbels' escalating actions). When, in 1967, the UN condemned the American response to the racial riots, Smith used that as an excuse to announce the withdrawal of the United States from the UN and symbolically sending American policemen to enforce American jurisdiction on the UN building and, as a matter of humiliation, refusing the UN passaports given to diplomatic agents (as the US government would no longer consider it a legitimate organization) and demanding American visas from said ambassadors.
Once the United States left and an exorbitant rent was demanded out of the United Nations, the organization studied the possibility of moving into Ottawa or Toronto, but ultimately it was a fading organism with little more relavance, as the United Kingdom was left as the sole permanent seat in the UN (The Russian Empire declaring it's exit of the UN in 1966 following the Organization's refusal to back it's offensive against Germany on the grounds that it broke the Treaty of Dublin and started a war of aggression), which brought attrition between the UN and former colonial subjects. In an extraordinary assembly in April of 1967, mere weeks after the US left the organism, the UN would dissolve itself, ending the dream of Cordell Hull with the world shrouded in the prospect of war, as the Organization failed essentially in it's vital mission of preventing mass scale conflicts the moment the Reich refused to even entertain it's ambitions. In essence, it was impossible for a peace organism to prosper if the Rogue State which threatens said peace was never willing to sit down and talk.
The Organization, born out of Cordell Hull's global vision during the waning days of the Second World War, was meant to be a replacement for the destroyed League of Nations, which would be formaly dissolved in 1946 following the German invasion of Switzerland and the annexation of it's headquarters in Geneve into the French State, being replaced in Europe by the Linz Pakt. The UN would establish itself properly in the late 1940s and at it's peak it included the majority of the Latin American Nations, Russia, China, Japan, India, as well as the members of the Commonwealth and Oceania, it had a strong potential of being a global forum, as it was set to do, but the UN's agenda was a reason for disputes. Despite being officially made with the purpose of pursuing world peace and cooperation, it did not include any of the Nations of mainland Europe (except for Portugal until 1959), especially not Germany which decried the agency as a Jewish instrument against the Reich.
The first issue was the seat of China in the United Nations, as the Civil War drew to a close in 1952, the People's Republic of China would call for the seat in the Security Council, formerly held by the Kuomitang's government, to be given to them as the legitimate Chinese government. But the recent discovery of Stalin's atrocities and the ongoing Red Scare in America would lead to both the United States and the Russian Empire to pressure the United Nations to not grant the PRC with Veto powers in the council, although they would keep a permanent seat. This arrangement was not satisfactory for Mao, who would refuse to join the assembly and instead would reform the Communist International as an organism under his leadership, including the nations of Vietnam, Laos and Korea (or rather North Korea).
That same year, the Integralist government in Brazil, both due to it's ideology and suspicion of the United Nations (many Christian fundamentalists being skeptical of organizations calling for a secular "Global Peace") would announce it's withdrawal in retaliation to the UN sanctions placed upon the regime. It was a symbolically relevant moment as the Brazilian State traditionally made the opening speech of the Organization due to the country's general neutral and friendly atitude added to it's geopolitical context. The failure of the UN to prevent the Syrian-Iranian invasion of Iraq or the Suez War would highlight several of it's flaws and shortcomings as, biding by the principles of International Law, the organization did not possess the capacity of comply members to stick by it's resolutions. Furthermore, when the United Nations, at British behest, condemned the annexation of the lands of the Portuguese Empire in Asia by India, China and Indonesia, it would further sour those nations which saw the UN as only a tool of Anglo-American Diplomatic Imperialism.
The death of the UN happened quickly with the Goebbels era in Germany, the constant refusal of the United Nations to condemn Imperialist powers in Africa and Asia would be argued by nations such as India, Siam and Indonesia as a breach of proper international principles that the Organization was founded upon and when, at last, the UN did openly condemn the existing colonial Empires, it led to both Belgium-Congo and the French Empire to slowly withdraw from the UN under different pretenses. South Africa would also leave the United Nations shortly after it left the Commonwealth with the Boer takeover, as well as Argentina and Uruguay following the Brazilian-sponsored coups in both nations (even outright invasion on the latter case). Hoffa also claimed that, with the Coalition of Nations built, the UN had become an "outdated" institution.
When Smith took power in 1964, he already began to move against the UN in a physical manner, starting by claiming it's existing location in Philadelphia should be returned to American jurisdiction rather than UN jurisdiction. Using of Nationalistic and Religious rhetoric, claiming that the very foundation of the UN under "Secular Humanism" was a Satanic (although he did almost say "Jewish" during the speech, correcting himself mid-sentence) project to bring forth a United World for the Antichrist, Smith would eventually turn the majority of the Americans against the organization, after the existing US ambassador to the UN was retired, Smith refused to appoint a new one and even ignored the UN's proceedings during the Nazi-Israeli war (it was left to the Israeli representative to call for a vote in the security council to condemn Goebbels' escalating actions). When, in 1967, the UN condemned the American response to the racial riots, Smith used that as an excuse to announce the withdrawal of the United States from the UN and symbolically sending American policemen to enforce American jurisdiction on the UN building and, as a matter of humiliation, refusing the UN passaports given to diplomatic agents (as the US government would no longer consider it a legitimate organization) and demanding American visas from said ambassadors.
Once the United States left and an exorbitant rent was demanded out of the United Nations, the organization studied the possibility of moving into Ottawa or Toronto, but ultimately it was a fading organism with little more relavance, as the United Kingdom was left as the sole permanent seat in the UN (The Russian Empire declaring it's exit of the UN in 1966 following the Organization's refusal to back it's offensive against Germany on the grounds that it broke the Treaty of Dublin and started a war of aggression), which brought attrition between the UN and former colonial subjects. In an extraordinary assembly in April of 1967, mere weeks after the US left the organism, the UN would dissolve itself, ending the dream of Cordell Hull with the world shrouded in the prospect of war, as the Organization failed essentially in it's vital mission of preventing mass scale conflicts the moment the Reich refused to even entertain it's ambitions. In essence, it was impossible for a peace organism to prosper if the Rogue State which threatens said peace was never willing to sit down and talk.
Governor Richard Nixon of California did not have the best nights of sleep that year, sometimes he needed medication, other cases he simply spent the night with a single glass of Whiskey and nothing else while sitting in his living room. The Governor of one of the few prospering States of the Union had to face the fact this reality would change soon, with the news of the war breaking out in the South coinciding with an upsurge in riots. He had seen the police reports, there were deaths, many, in San Diego there was even an attack of militiamen against a Catholic Church full of Mexicans, accused of being a center of propagation of Integralist ideas. He knew it was true, many churches were doing so, but most of them did not, and he doubted those who were shot by the militiamen were all Sinarquistas. Paranoia had gripped the nation since the Mexican radicals began to retaliate against the invasion by using Mexican-American sympathizers to launch attacks across the Southwest.
That was not the end of his problems at all, a synagogue in San Francisco would write constant requests for security from the Police as the new Supreme Court Decision on the "Sandra Broussard v United States Government" case said that Nazi chants were apparently protected by Free Speech Laws, that allowed the goons of the American National Socialist Party to be able to stage their parades with swastikas and all. How that was allowed and the use of a Chinese flag wasn't is a mystery for him, for Nixon they both represented the antithesis of Americanism, if one is banned then both ought to be banned, the double standards of this Administration amazed him. Yes, he said administration, everyone who had a minimal knowledge of politics by now knew that the Supreme Court was just a tool for the Executive Power.
If only that Louisiana bastard could just fall dead then things could be much easier, but no, he refused to die or at least vacate from this country. Nixon wanted to fight the good fight and he did for many years, in Congress, in the Senate for a term, and now as a governor finishing his second term and already thinking of a third one. He would have ran for President this time, this time he would for sure have carried the nomination, but his political strategy was a flawed one, it burned down the moment he saw Goldwater emerge with that brute in the Madison Square Garden during a rally. The Party was being taken over by the Society, ever since the disgraced death of that poor kid Kennedy, his health problems really came crashing down after the Ilse scandal, he lost his office and the public trust, spent the last two years of his life with so much back pain that he could not walk, like aging 20 years in 2. Despite the fact they were once opposites within the Party, they could really have used the kid's charisma.
Goldwater was going to be the candidate, that was a fact, the left wing of the party had been so completely crushed in the midterms that those bastards with flags had swept clear in several states. There was no point in him running, not with this weather, but by God would he back Barry, he would vote the damned devil himself in the White House if it meant getting rid of this parasite. Twenty years ago, he was just returning home from the war and getting involved in politics, back then he already knew Long was going to be trouble, and to make matters worse... he was right. Now they had a war both within the country and outside in Mexico, the economy was in a debt spiral that was just not worse than it already was because of the fact the Bank was printing bills like candy, he still remembered when it did not take a dollar to buy a chocolate bar.
There were no opportunities in the Land of Opportunity, he should write that down for a campaign speech this year because for sure it would be tough to win reelection with how bad things were, he was investing in the Police, in the new RSS units, they were quite useful to control riots, even the National Guard had been called over a riot by the Black Community in San Francisco, probably linked to the Panthers. Half this problem was because of the Panthers, it meant more spending on security, scared away investments, and it made everything far more complicated than it had to be, if those damned Negroes shut up and stayed on tight for a little longer then he could do something as President, but no, they were making a ruckus and the country hated that, it would only give more credit to Barry and his new associates, but better them than Smith, the White House was no place for a pulpit.
Nixon sipped his whiskey and let his mind wander, where did this all go wrong? Who knows, why does it matter? What matters is trying to find a way to fix it, but they simply could not fix anything while Long had America by the balls. If he was a little more ruthless and a little less Christian, he would have found a way to get that man into a coffin instead of a podium, it would do a service to the whole world, but unfortunately he was not enough of a damned crook to kill a damned crook, his mama raised him too well for that. Defeating the Longists would require for you to outsmart them, be even more of a trickster than them, but how? They were doing nothing but shoot themselves in the foot since Hoffa and still seemed poised to win through their damned scheme, the best Goddamned political machine to ever be built. They had the courts, most of the Governors, most of Congress, all the White House and it's 3 agencies, and what did he have? A glass of whiskey in his hand.
Finally he felt like sleep was coming to him, if only because the sun was already rising on the horizon and he could feel that his eyes were getting heavier to keep awake. He did not want to have even more awkwardness by seeing his staff trying to pretend he did not sleep in the living room again, so he set the half-empty glass aside and began to walk over to his bed, but not before giving a last look out of that window of Sacramento, wondering if they would even survive another term of this Dictator or if America was now forever shackled under their rule. But perhaps he should be optimistic, Huey Long was not immortal, one day he would die and the Populists would tear eachother apart, and in that day there would be plenty of opportunities.
That was not the end of his problems at all, a synagogue in San Francisco would write constant requests for security from the Police as the new Supreme Court Decision on the "Sandra Broussard v United States Government" case said that Nazi chants were apparently protected by Free Speech Laws, that allowed the goons of the American National Socialist Party to be able to stage their parades with swastikas and all. How that was allowed and the use of a Chinese flag wasn't is a mystery for him, for Nixon they both represented the antithesis of Americanism, if one is banned then both ought to be banned, the double standards of this Administration amazed him. Yes, he said administration, everyone who had a minimal knowledge of politics by now knew that the Supreme Court was just a tool for the Executive Power.
If only that Louisiana bastard could just fall dead then things could be much easier, but no, he refused to die or at least vacate from this country. Nixon wanted to fight the good fight and he did for many years, in Congress, in the Senate for a term, and now as a governor finishing his second term and already thinking of a third one. He would have ran for President this time, this time he would for sure have carried the nomination, but his political strategy was a flawed one, it burned down the moment he saw Goldwater emerge with that brute in the Madison Square Garden during a rally. The Party was being taken over by the Society, ever since the disgraced death of that poor kid Kennedy, his health problems really came crashing down after the Ilse scandal, he lost his office and the public trust, spent the last two years of his life with so much back pain that he could not walk, like aging 20 years in 2. Despite the fact they were once opposites within the Party, they could really have used the kid's charisma.
Goldwater was going to be the candidate, that was a fact, the left wing of the party had been so completely crushed in the midterms that those bastards with flags had swept clear in several states. There was no point in him running, not with this weather, but by God would he back Barry, he would vote the damned devil himself in the White House if it meant getting rid of this parasite. Twenty years ago, he was just returning home from the war and getting involved in politics, back then he already knew Long was going to be trouble, and to make matters worse... he was right. Now they had a war both within the country and outside in Mexico, the economy was in a debt spiral that was just not worse than it already was because of the fact the Bank was printing bills like candy, he still remembered when it did not take a dollar to buy a chocolate bar.
There were no opportunities in the Land of Opportunity, he should write that down for a campaign speech this year because for sure it would be tough to win reelection with how bad things were, he was investing in the Police, in the new RSS units, they were quite useful to control riots, even the National Guard had been called over a riot by the Black Community in San Francisco, probably linked to the Panthers. Half this problem was because of the Panthers, it meant more spending on security, scared away investments, and it made everything far more complicated than it had to be, if those damned Negroes shut up and stayed on tight for a little longer then he could do something as President, but no, they were making a ruckus and the country hated that, it would only give more credit to Barry and his new associates, but better them than Smith, the White House was no place for a pulpit.
Nixon sipped his whiskey and let his mind wander, where did this all go wrong? Who knows, why does it matter? What matters is trying to find a way to fix it, but they simply could not fix anything while Long had America by the balls. If he was a little more ruthless and a little less Christian, he would have found a way to get that man into a coffin instead of a podium, it would do a service to the whole world, but unfortunately he was not enough of a damned crook to kill a damned crook, his mama raised him too well for that. Defeating the Longists would require for you to outsmart them, be even more of a trickster than them, but how? They were doing nothing but shoot themselves in the foot since Hoffa and still seemed poised to win through their damned scheme, the best Goddamned political machine to ever be built. They had the courts, most of the Governors, most of Congress, all the White House and it's 3 agencies, and what did he have? A glass of whiskey in his hand.
Finally he felt like sleep was coming to him, if only because the sun was already rising on the horizon and he could feel that his eyes were getting heavier to keep awake. He did not want to have even more awkwardness by seeing his staff trying to pretend he did not sleep in the living room again, so he set the half-empty glass aside and began to walk over to his bed, but not before giving a last look out of that window of Sacramento, wondering if they would even survive another term of this Dictator or if America was now forever shackled under their rule. But perhaps he should be optimistic, Huey Long was not immortal, one day he would die and the Populists would tear eachother apart, and in that day there would be plenty of opportunities.
Now I know why it’s called fallen eagle it wasn’t the fall of the Nazis it’s the fall of the USA the eagle is the symbol of freedom is dead
As I mentioned before, this TL is unique amongst Nazi Cold War TLs in how it sets forth a path for the Nazis to win the Cold War.
My prediction for the future is that the attempts to topple Smith, either by the ballot box, or via coup as hinted in the update before this, will fail in the end and be crushed. Worse, I think the attempts to overthrow him by Goldwater( and possibly Nixon), that General, and the Black Panthers will only radicalize him further and afterwards, especially after Long bites it, will drop the facade and outright rule as a theocratic dictator, no longer making a fig leaf of passing his policies through Congress or having the Supreme Court provide him cover.
At that point liberal democracy will be well and truely dead and the world will be be pretty much dominated by the Third Reich, Maoist China, Integralist Brazil, and Evengelical America. There is Britain I guess but even there, the King has been sidelining Parliament and outright led his own coup.
At that point liberal democracy will be well and truely dead and the world will be be pretty much dominated by the Third Reich, Maoist China, Integralist Brazil, and Evengelical America. There is Britain I guess but even there, the King has been sidelining Parliament and outright led his own coup.
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Now, with the proper context: What would be your Presidential proposals to fix America? Which Party would you run with?
And in India, the Pakistan Movement and the Naxalites are 100% providing Indira with an excuse to do the Emergency.
I guess Russia could wind up becoming a Constitutional Monarchy, but I don't know how likely that is if even Britain is becoming more absolutist. TTL seems to be a democracy screw.
They technically are, Ivan Ilyn was Prime Minister for a time, but during wartime the Russian Empire shuts down it's own Parliament.
I have a idea for the endgame of the TL everyone nukes eachother and fractures apart as the tensions reach a breaking point
AMERICA WILL STAND TALL ONE WAY OR ANOTHER.
NIXON NOW, NIXON TOMORROW, NIXON FOREVER!
I would run as a Republican and focus on being an Ordo-Liberal.
Much of my policy will focus on anti-corruption and balancing the budget if I ran during this timeline.
Was the son of Indira Gandhi.
He was the main mastermind behind 1975 to 1977 Indian National Emergency. Displaced thousands in Delhi Slums by destroying them and conducted random sterilizations without having any constitutional position.
Had total control over brodcast ministry.
Died in Helicopter crash in 1980 after being elected as an MP only for few months.
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