1964-?: Stop the World, I Want to Get Off

[Peter the Lefty]

October 5, 1964

Ike Calls Parliament into Session; Johnson Wins Vote of Confidence

      The Governor General called parliament back into session the next day, and the House of Commons affirmed its confidence in Lyndon Johnson's new government, thanks to Labor.  The throne speech entailed more and more domestic reform and made no explicit reference to Vietnam.  It was all desegregation, the New America programs, and the other programs proposed by the Liberal Party during the election campaign. 

[Peter the Lefty]

October 14, 1964

Khrushchev Resigns Under Suspicious Circumstances; Bhrezhnev to Replace Him as First Secretary, Kosygin as Premier

      Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev unexpectedly announced his resignation as First Secretary of the Communist Party and as Premier at a meeting of the USSR's ruling party in Moscow.  According to his own statement and that of the Communist Party, the 70-year old resigned due to poor health, though many Western observers suspected that he had been quietly forced to step aside by his subordinates.  It was well known that many of his fellow Communist Party apparatchiks were disgruntled by his poor judgment during the Cuban missile crisis, as well as the deterioration of Sino-Soviet relations which had occurred during his leadership, as well as his increasingly erratic behavior in recent months. 
      Khrushchev's former protege, Leonid Brezhnev, a senior member of the Politburo, would replace him as First Secretary of the Communist Party.  Many suspected that Brezhnev had lead the charge in removing his former ally.  The First Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers, Alexei Kosygin, would take Khrushchev's place as Premier.  Anastas Mikoyan, another top Soviet politician, was to serve as Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet in what was officially to be a collective leadership.

[Peter the Lefty]

November 1, 1964

Eisenhower to Step Down as Governor General

      It was for real this time.  Governor General Dwight D. Eisenhower was to step down by December of 1964.  He had previously announced his intention to step down soon in July of 1963, but the shock felt by the nation in the aftermath of the Stevenson assassination caused him to stay on past the February '64 deadline he had previously set for himself.  He was, indeed, a symbol of stability which would be difficult to replace.
      He was the first American-born Governor General, and was perfect for the job when appointed in 1954.  A war hero with universal respect across his country and the Western world, he took a much more active role in American politics than any of his aristocratic, British-born predecessors.  Some on the left criticized him for what many viewed as a too-close relationship with Prime Minister Dewey (he did offer advice to the cautious Premier many times), though he never took any particular actions which were attacked for favoring either side–during Dewey's Premiership, at least.  Indeed, he forged a grandfatherly image which, to most Americans, radiated goodwill.  He was the constant factor; the symbol of the stability of the Dewey era.
      In the wake of the 1960 election, it was well-known among political circles that Ike, as he was popularly known, was infuriated by Liberal Leader Adlai Stevenson's decision to form a coalition with Labor to oust the Conservative government.  The two had engaged in a verbal argument in which the Governor General went on a rather explosive attack, while the calm and measured Illinois intellectual kept his cool.  Yet Eisenhower proved helpful during the Cuban Missile Crisis by doing Stevenson the favor of breaking the news of the discovery of the missiles to Nixon.  Yet everyone knew he wouldn't stay on forever, and in 1963, he announced his intention to retire.  But the shock felt by the nation in the wake of the Stevenson assassination was so tremendous that the last thing the country needed was for the last "stabilizing" factor in place (Ike himself) to leave. 
      Now, the shock had at least somewhat worn off.  Johnson now had a month to decide on a successor to recommend to Her Majesty.

[Peter the Lefty]

Oh and I forgot this bit.

Cabinet of America

Prime Minister–The Honorable Lyndon Baines Johnson (Lib)
Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of the Economy and Business–The Hon. Jacob Javits (Lib)
Minister of Foreign Affairs–The Hon. Stuart Symington (Lib)
Minister of Defense–The Hon. Frank Lausche (Lib)
Minister of Finance–The Hon. John W. McCormack (Lib)
Minister of the Interior–The Hon. Earl Warren (Lib)
Minister of Education–The Hon. Harold Stassen (Lib)
Minister of Health–The Hon. John O. Pastore (Lib)
Minister of Public Lands–The Hon. Edmund Muskie (Lib)
Minister of Labor–The Hon. Clifford P. Case, Jr. (Lib)
Minister of Justice–The Hon. Thomas J. Dodd (Lib)
Minister of Transportation–The Hon. Harrison A. Williams (Lib)
Minister of Agriculture–The Hon. A. S. Mike Monroney (Lib)
Minister of Energy and Fuel–The Hon. Robert S. Kerr (Lib)
Minister of Social Welfare–The Hon. Al Ullman (Lib)
Minister of Communications–The Hon. John E. Moss (Lib)
Minister of Trade–The Hon. J. Allen Frear (Lib)
Minister of Space Exploration–The Hon. Clinton P. Anderson (Lib)
Minister of Aboriginal and Minority Affairs–The Hon. Edward Brooke (Lib)
Minister of Intergovernmental Relations–The Hon. Donald J. Irwin (Lib)
Minister of the Budget–The Hon. Lloyd Bentsen (Lib)
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs–The Hon. James Roosevelt (Lib)
Deputy Minister of Finance–The Hon. Dennis Wyatt Chavez (Lib)
Deputy Minister of Defense–The Hon. Howard Cannon (Lib)
Deputy Minister of Education–The Hon. John V. Lindsay (Lib)
Deputy Minister of Health–The Hon. Cecil R. King (Lib)
Deputy Minister of Justice–The Hon. Emmanuel Celler (Lib)
Deputy Minister of the Interior–The Hon. Michael J. Kirwan (Lib)
Government Leader in the House of Commons–The Hon. Mike Mansfield (Lib)
Government Chief Whip in the House of Commons–The Hon. Daniel J. Flood (Lib)
Government Leader in the Senate–The Hon. Carl Hayden (Lib)
Government Chief Whip in the Senate–The Hon. Scott W. Lucas (Lib)

[Peter the Lefty]

Official Opposition Shadow Cabinet

Leader of Her Majesty's Most Loyal Opposition, Leader of the Conservative Party–The Honorable Richard M. Nixon (Con)
Deputy Leader of Her Majesty's Most Loyal Opposition, Deputy Leader of the Conservative Party, Shadow Minister of Finance–The Hon. Nelson Rockefeller (Con)
Shadow Minister of Foreign Affairs–The Hon. Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr. (Con)
Shadow Minister of Defense–The Hon. William F. Knowland (Con)
Shadow Minister of Education–The Hon. Everett Dirksen (Con)
Shadow Minister of Health–The Hon. Prescott Bush (Con)
Shadow Minister of Justice–The Hon. Roman Hruska (Con)
Shadow Minister of the Interior–The Hon. Gerald R. Ford (Con)
Shadow Minister of the Economy and Business–The Hon. Hugh D. Scott (Con)
Shadow Minister of Public Lands–The Hon. Douglas McKay (Con)
Shadow Minister of Transportation–The Hon. Francis H. Case (Con)
Shadow Minister of Agriculture–The Hon. Milton Young (Con)
Shadow Minister of Trade–The Hon. Thomas E. Martin (Con)
Shadow Minister of Labor–The Hon. William E. Miller (Con)
Shadow Minister of Veterans' Protection–The Hon. Homer E. Capehart (Con)
Shadow Minister of Social Welfare–The Hon. Margaret Chase Smith (Con)
Shadow Minister of Energy and Fuel–The Hon. Bourke B. Hickenlooper (Con)
Shadow Minister of Intergovernmental Relations–The Hon. Frank Carlson (Con)
Shadow Minister of Aboriginal and Minority Affairs–The Hon. Catherine St. George (Con)
Shadow Minister of the Budget–The Hon. Wallace F. Bennett (Con)
Shadow Minister of Space Exploration–The Hon. George Smathers (Con)
Shadow Minister of Communications–The Hon. Oren E. Long (Con)
Shadow Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs–The Hon. Winston L. Prouty (Con)
Shadow Deputy Minister of Finance–The Hon. John J. Williams (Con)
Shadow Deputy Minister of Defense–The Hon. Melvin Laird (Con)
Shadow Deputy Minister of Education–The Hon. Spessard Holland (Con)
Shadow Deputy Minister of Health–The Hon. James Glenn Bell (Con)
Shadow Deputy Minister of Justice–The Hon. Kenneth Keating (Con)
Shadow Deputy Minister of the Interior–The Hon. Carl E. Mundt (Con)
Shadow Leader of the House of Commons–The Hon. Charles A. Halleck (Con)
Official Opposition Chief Whip in the House of Commons–The Hon. Leslie C. Arends (Con)
Leader of the Senate–The Hon. Douglas MacArthur (Con)
Government Chief Whip in the Senate–The Hon. Leverett Saltonstall (Con)

[Peter the Lefty]

Labor Party Shadow Cabinet

Leader of the Labor Party–The Honorable Hubert Humphrey (Lab)
Shadow Minister of Foreign Affairs–The Hon. Abraham Ribicoff (Lab)
Shadow Minister of Finance–The Hon. Paul Douglas (Lab)
Shadow Minister of Defense–The Hon. John F. Kennedy (Lab)
Shadow Minister of Health–The Hon. Joseph S. Clark, Jr. (Lab)
Shadow Minister of Education–The Hon. Claiborne Pell (Lab)
Shadow Minister of Justice–The Hon. Wayne Morse (Lab)
Shadow Minister of the Interior–The Hon. Robert F. Kennedy (Lab)
Shadow Minister of Public Lands–The Hon. Ralph Yarborough (Lab)
Shadow Minister of Labor–The Hon. Patrick McNamara (Lab)
Shadow Minister of Agriculture–The Hon. Eugene McCarthy (Lab)
Shadow Minister of Domestic Social Welfare–The Hon. George S. McGovern (Lab)
Shadow Minister of International Social Welfare–The Hon. Sargent Shriver (Lab)
Shadow Minister of Energy and Fuel–The Hon. Henry M. Jackson (Lab)
Shadow Minister of Transportation–The Hon. William Fitts Ryan (Lab)
Shadow Minister of Business and the Economy–The Hon. Philip Hart (Lab)
Shadow Minister of Veterans' Affairs–The Hon. Vance Hartke (Lab)
Shadow Minister of Communications–The Hon. John E. Moss (Lab)
Shadow Minister of the Budget–The Hon. Stephen M. Young (Lab)
Shadow Minister of Trade–The Hon. Arthur Goldberg (Lab)
Shadow Minister of Civil Rights–The Hon. Andrew Young (Lab)
Shadow Minister of Building and Urban Issues–The Hon. Helen Gallaghan Douglas (Lab)
Shadow Minister of Space Exploration–The Hon. William Proxmire (Lab)
Shadow Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs–The Hon. Maurine Brown Neuberger (Lab)
Shadow Deputy Minister of Finance–The Hon. Jennings Randolph (Lab)
Shadow Deputy Minister of Defense–The Hon. Hugh Mulzac (Lab)
Shadow Deputy Minister of Education–The Hon. Shirley Chisholm (Lab)
Shadow Deputy Minister of Health–The Hon. Lee Metcalf (Lab)
Shadow Deputy Minister of Justice–The Hon. Birch Bayh (Lab)
Shadow Deputy Minister of the Interior–The Hon. Frank Church (Lab)
Leader of the Labor Party in the House of Commons–The Hon. Edna F. Kelly (Lab)
Labor Party Chief Whip in the House of Commons–The Hon. Michael Harrington (Lab)

[Peter the Lefty]

American National Movement Shadow Cabinet

Leader of the American People's Party–The Honorable Richard B. Russell (ANM)
Shadow Minister of Foreign Affairs–Hon. J. William Fullbright (ANM)
Shadow Minister of Finance–Hon. John Sparkman (ANM)
Shadow Minister of Defense–Hon. John C. Stennis (ANM)
Shadow Minister of Education–Hon. Dale Alford (ANM)
Shadow Minister of Health–Hon. Joseph Lister Hill (ANM)
Shadow Minister of Justice–Hon. George Wallace (ANM)
Shadow Minister of the Interior–Hon. John Little McClellan (ANM)
Shadow Minister of Public Lands–Hon. Absalom Willis Robertson (ANM)
Shadow Minister of the Economy and Business–Hon. William A. Blakey (ANM)
Shadow Minister of Transportation–Hon. James Eastland (ANM)
Shadow Minister of Social Welfare–Hon. Allen J. Ellender (ANM)
Shadow Minister of Agriculture–Hon. Herman Talmadge (ANM)
Shadow Minister of Labor–Hon. Russel B. Long (ANM)
Shadow Minister of Energy and Fuel–Hon. Hale Boggs (ANM)
Shadow Minister of Trade–Hon. Brett Spence (ANM)
Shadow Minister of Intergovernmental Relations–Hon. John Tower (ANM)
Shadow Minister of Racial Order–Hon. L. Mendel Rivers (ANM)
Shadow Minister of Veterans' Services–Hon. B. Everett Jordan (ANM)
Shadow Minister of Space Exploration–Hon. Felix A. Herbert (ANM)
Shadow Minister of Communications–Hon. Price Daniel (ANM)
Shadow Minister of the Budget–Hon. Robert Byrd (ANM)
Shadow Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs–Hon. Robert W. Hempill (ANM)
Shadow Deputy Minister of Finance–Hon. John Wright Pittman (ANM)
Shadow Deputy Minister of Defense–Hon. Carl Vinson (ANM)
Shadow Deputy Minister of Education–Hon. J. L. Pilcher (ANM)
Shadow Deputy Minister of Health–Hon. Wilbur Mills (ANM)
Shadow Deputy Minister of Justice–Hon. Sam Ervin (ANM)
Shadow Deputy Minister of the Interior–Hon. Martin Dies, Jr. (ANM)
American National Movement Leader in the House of Commons–Hon. John Geraerdt Crommelin (ANM)
American National Movement Chief Whip in the House of Commons–Hon. Iris F. Blitch (ANM)

[Peter the Lefty]

Libertarian Party Shadow Cabinet

Leader of the Libertarian Party, Shadow Minister of Foreign Affairs, Shadow Minister of Finance–The Hon. Barry Goldwater (Libert)
Deputy Leader of the Libertarian Party, Shadow Minister of Justice, Shadow Minister of Education–The Hon. James B. Utt (Libert)
Shadow Minister of Defense, Shadow Minister of the Interior, Shadow Minister of Veterans' Affairs–The Hon. Bob Wilson (Libert)
Shadow Minister of Health, Shadow Minister of Business and the Economy, Libertarian Party Leader in the House of Commons–The Hon. Ronald Paul (Libert)

[Peter the Lefty]

November 3, 1964

Humphrey: MLK "Should be Obvious Choice for Governor General"

      The Labor Leader and former Deputy Prime Minister voiced his opinion rather soon after Eisenhower's second announcement was made.  In his opinion, the nation's most prolific civil rights activist "should be the clear and obvious choice to serve as the representative of our sovereign."  "The Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. is not only a man of incredible courage and moral integrity, but a hero of modern times.  His fight for equal rights for all Americans, peace, and social justice, is a quintessentially American struggle.  I believe that should he be willing to take the position, Dr. King should be the runaway choice."

[Peter the Lefty]

November 4, 1964

Nixon Recommends Academic for Gov. General

     Conservative Leader Richard Nixon recommended that an academic mind would be best fit to perform the Queen's functions in her absence.  He called Humphrey's suggestion of King a "good idea," but questioned King's ability to be impartial in light of his active role in anti-poverty and peace movements, which made his support for the Labor Party all too clear for someone who is supposed to be politically impartial.  He recommended that any leading academic mind would be a good idea, and pointed to Harvard Professor Henry Kissinger as an example.

Russell Blasts Humphrey for MLK Suggestion, Calls it an Insult to Her Majesty

     ANM Leader Richard Russell blasted Humphrey's suggestion of Dr. King for the position of Governor General.  Pointing out that the Governor General is theoretically a representative of the Queen, he said he was "not prepared to have our beloved Queen represented by a communist, philandering, homosexual Negro."  He blasted Humphrey's plan as a step in the "communization" of America.

Goldwater Proposes Businessperson

     Goldwater also said he opposed the idea of King's accession to Lincoln Hall (The Governor General's residence), but his rhetoric was careful to include no racial undertones.  He simply called Dr. King "too politically oriented to hold an impartial office."  He went on to recommend that the position be given to a prominent businessman or businesswoman.

[Peter the Lefty]

November 5, 1964

King "Will Not" Accept Governor Generalship

     "Let me put all of the speculation to rest now.  I do not wish to accept, and will not accept, the position of Governor General of the American Commonwealth.  I am flattered by the praise which has been heaped upon me by those have suggested that I should hold the position.  And believe me when I tell you that the color of the skin of our next Governor General should not matter.  
      But now that civil rights legislation has been passed, this does not mean that I will cease to fight in God's name against the injustices which I see.  I will continue to fight the forces of racism and bigotry wherever I see them.  I will continue to fight the forces of poverty wherever I see them.  I cannot do so on the fine and mighty foundations of Lincoln Hall.  I cannot, under the chandeliers and grand staircases, strive to ensure that none of God's children are hungry.  The only place where I can do so is down here on the streets with you.  
      So I am flattered by Mr. Humphrey's suggestion.  And I applaud him and his party for everything they have done to right the injustices of this world.  But if Mr. Johnson–to whom I am also most grateful–takes Mr. Humphrey's advice, I will decline."

[Peter the Lefty]

November 6, 1964

A Johnson Cabinet Meeting

Lyndon Baines Johnson: All right boys.  We've got ourselves a *beep*ing sh**tpot mess right here.
Jacob Javits: Who thought picking a Governor General would be so goddamn difficult...
John W. McCormack: It wouldn't be if only Hubert hadn't gone around expressing himself to the reporters.
Stuart Symington: Yes, but so what?  They're not in the government anymore, and we're not talking about a crucial vote here.  Humphrey's just another opposition party leader now.  
LBJ: Yes but that ain't the point!  They still think we're still in cahoots.  And hell, we basically are.
Earl Warren: So who do we appoint?
LBJ: Lowest common denominator.  Douglas Edwards.
Symington: Doesn't sound like he'll be too outrageous to anyone.  
Javits: And if he says no?
Stassen: Swayze.  
LBJ: Now that's a dang good idea.  Keep it to newsmen.  
Frank Lausche: So that's settled?
Ed Muskie: Seems like it.
LBJ: Yes it is.  One of 'em's gotta accept it.  Odds are too high.  Now, for the next sh**tstorm of the agenda.
Symington: Vietnam.
LBJ: These Viet Cong mother*beep*ers are stepping up their attacks on us–and they're growin' in numbers.  They're about a million now, and we're talking compared to 850,000 in 61.  Now we've been keepin' this quiet since then because we've wanted not to get involved any further in this, but in accordance with containment, we's got to.  They're becomin' too big of a threat, and the North Viets are bombing the South in order to help the Cong mofos.  
Lausche: We're going to need reprisal airstrikes–
LBJ: Did I tell you ya could talk, Laush**t?  
Lausche: Sir, I'm the Defense Minister.  I thought I should be involved in the explanation of–
LBJ:–No.  Anyways, we're going to need reprisal airstrikes on North Vietnamese air bases sometime in the early months of next year.  And we gots to do it quick.  The goal is to knock the commies down for long enough to help the South Vietnamese get on their feet.  And we're supposedly caring about pressuring them to democratize.  That was the b.s. we told Labor, anyhow.
Symington: But we will, won't we?  At least somewhat?
LBJ: (dismissively) Sure.  Why the *beep* not?

[Peter the Lefty]

Labor Party to See Deputy Leadership Election Soon

      In run-up to the 1964 election, A. Phillip Randolph, one of the Labor Party's most highly-regarded figures, had decided to retire.  In addition to being a prolific MP, and cabinet minister, and a prolific civil rights activist, he had also been Deputy Leader of the Labor Party since 1954.  He also retired from this position at the time of the '64 election.  This now meant that the Deputy Leadership of the Labor Party was vacant.  By January 31 of 1961, the Party would have to hold an election for his successor.
      The American Labor Party was unique in that its leadership and deputy leadership elections were held amongst the party membership.  The formula had been crafted by the party's second leader, Robert La Follette, in 1921.  La Follette had a burning passion for democracy, as well as a desire to, at the height of the first Red Scare, prove that the Labor Party was committed to democratic principles.  So he not only added Senate abolition to the Labor Party's constitution as a goal, but also created a formula for electing Leaders and Deputy Leaders.  Under it, 75% of the votes would come from the Party's rank-and-file membership, including MP's, whose votes would be worth no more than those of any other Labor Party member.  The other 25% of the vote would come from the trade unions. 
      The last time this system was put into action was in 1958, when Hubert Humphrey was overwhelmingly elected to succeed Estes Kefauver as Leader of the Labor Party, defeating Wayne Morse on the final ballot.  Humphrey was vigorously backed by the trade unions, African-Americans industrial workers, most of the party's frontbench, and, most believed, Kefauver himself, which was more than enough to overcome Morse's backing from left-intellectuals, old-style socialists (who only begrudgingly backed him against Humphrey), and Thomasite pacifists. 
      Whomever the coalition that had backed Humphrey decided to back for the Deputy Leadership was almost certain to win.  The party's members, unions, and MP's all overwhelmingly came from the social democratic right-wing of the party.  Yet the margin of victory would give a good sense of the party's internal pulse.

[H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY]

What's Lincoln Hall, the Capitol building? Why's it named after Lincoln, specifically? Also, could we have a list of Gov-Gens so far?

[Peter the Lefty]

What's Lincoln Hall, the Capitol building? Why's it named after Lincoln, specifically? Also, could we have a list of Gov-Gens so far?

It's the Governor General's residence.  It's named after Lincoln because the history of American Confederation which I explained a post on my 1960-1964 thread (which I'll repost here momentarily.)

I actually don't have a list of Governor Generals yet.  Eisenhower's the first American-born one is all I know.  Beforehand, it's like Canada originally: a bunch of British aristocrats.

[Peter the Lefty]

The Birth of a Commonwealth

     In 1852, the young, tall, and skinny Justice Minister of Illinois, Abraham Lincoln, was elected to the leadership of the Liberal Party of Illinois, thus assuming the highest office any politician in Illinois could achieve at the time: the Premiership of the province.  
      Upon assuming power, he began to organize a group of Liberal Premiers in the cause of greater Home Rule for the British colonies in North America.  With Premiers Thaddeus Stevens of Pennsylvania, William Seward of New York, Charles Sumner of Massachusetts, Benjamin Wade of Ohio, John C. Fremont of California, and Francis Hincks of Canada East, Lincoln co-authored a petition to Queen Victoria advocating a federal parliament and government of all of the North American colonies.  It also pushed the abolition of slavery in all British territories in North America.  While he'd been one of the holdouts on including the demand for abolition, Lincoln did most of the wording for the letter, and having been the one who organized the movement, he emerged as its unofficial leader.  
      As the Premiers announced their petition to Queen Victoria, it was widely laughed at.  White Southerners were enraged by the demand for the abolition of slavery.  True to her imperialist ideology, the Queen sent a rejection to the Premiers' proposal.  It came as a major defeat to the new Premier, especially one year before the next provincial election.  And it took its toll.  In the 1853 provincial election, Stephen Douglas's Conservative Party swept to power.  Douglas derided Lincoln as "anti-royalist," "radical," and "republican."  Douglas was also a dynamic leader, and the status of Illinois politics soon became a gauge of the national zeitgeist.  
      In 1857, Lincoln and the Liberals surged back to power in Illinois.  He reorganized all of the Liberal Premiers of the British North American colonies, and another petition was sent to the Queen, demanding Confederation and an end to slavery.  The British government again rejected it.  Another petition was sent a year later, with the same requests, and was rejected yet again.  Yet Liberals were now consistently winning North American provincial elections (except in the Southeast), and it was clear that Lincoln's movement now had the support of the majority British subjects in North America.  In 1861, the Liberals in Illinois (and many other provinces) scored smashing majorities, leading London to give in to both demands.  
      The British government then declared that a gradual, 18-year phase out of slavery would be introduced in the North American colonies, and replaced (over the protests of Stevens and his followers) by a system of racial segregation.  Then, there would be a one-year period in which the dust would settle.  Then, two separate Commonwealth governments would be created: one including Quebec, the far-Atlantic provinces, Canada West, and British Colombia (and all territory in between).  The other would include Washington, Florida, California, Texas, Maine, and all territory between.  The reason was simple: Quebec and the Southeast were both regions which had cultural and historical bitterness bottled up inside, and should they join together they'd pose a major threat to any single-Commonwealth government that included them both (and the possibility of the then-pro-slavery Irish Catholic population of the American Northeast joining such an alliance could have made it lethal.). Therefore, they had to be in separate "countries," so to speak.  Both "Canada" and "America" would have enough people from the rest of the country to keep the "trouble regions" in check.  
      Before the deal was made, however, the Queen made it very clear to Lincoln that he must agree never to become involved in federal American politics.  She mistrusted him, believing he was an upstart, a man who was too intelligent to be trusted, and someone with secret radical tendencies.  In truth, he was a secret republican.  Yet he was very pragmatic.  He secretly saw the Commonwealth concept as a stepping-stone to a republic, since he felt it could prove that the "primitive" colonists could be trusted with self-governance.  And for it, he was willing to sacrifice his political aspirations.  
      
      A century and a year later, the first Liberal Prime Minister who had been an Illinois Premier announced six words to all American forces via radio: "The quarantine is now in effect."

[H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY]

Thank you, I appreciate the repost.

[Peter the Lefty]

Thank you, I appreciate the repost.

No probs.  And hopefully I'll be able to compile a list of Governor Generals soon.

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

Though his interests might lie in the Conservative leadership after the election defeat, I would think that Rockefeller would be taking a look into Lincoln Hall. Is he under any consideration?

[Peter the Lefty]

Though his interests might lie in the Conservative leadership after the election defeat, I would think that Rockefeller would be taking a look into Lincoln Hall. Is he under any consideration?

Nah.  It would basically be the finale of his political career if he were to become Gov. General, and he's after much bigger fish (or at least, more powerful). 

[Peter the Lefty]

Labor Deputy Leadership Election: Possible Candidates

     Abraham Ribicoff: The former Health Minister was almost certainly the second-most well-known member of Labor's frontbench after Humphrey, and would be a natural fit for Deputy Leader.  Raised in poverty, he'd first gotten into Connecticut provincial politics in 1947, after returning from his naval service.  By 1951, he was suddenly the Leader of the Connecticut Labor Party, and under his leadership, the party saw significant gains in a province whose wealth made had always made the Liberals the dominant progressive party in the province.  
      Ribicoff had federal ambitions, as many Connecticut Labor leaders before him did.  In 1956, he made good on these ambitions and ran for parliament himself.  He was swiftly promoted to the party's frontbench as Shadow Minister of the Interior.  In 1960, he found himself as Minister for Health in the very first federal cabinet with Labor Ministers in American history.  In this position, his fame was cemented.  He became the key crafter of the NAHS, which, while modeled on the British NHS, left certain services of lower cost to the provinces (except in those which refused to comply, where the federal government picked up the tab).  He was also in the motorcade with Prime Minister Adlai Stevenson when the latter was assassinated in Columbus, Ohio.  Ribicoff himself was wounded in the arm in the same incident, which was already sparking quiet whispers of a possible conspiracy.  
      Ribicoff was likely to be backed by the Labor Party's right wing in the contest if he were to run.

      Wayne Morse: As the runner-up to Humphrey in the Labor Party's 1958 leadership election, Morse was likely to contest the Deputy Leadership, especially after the debacle over the Gulf of Tonkin incident.  Morse had resigned from the cabinet (he'd been Deputy Minister of Justice) over Johnson's resolution, which affirmed parliamentary support for "all measures necessary" to stop "Communist aggression in Southeast Asia."  Morse then lead a backbench revolt against the Labor party's leadership in voting "no" on the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, which did not truly authorize or allow for any actions.  All it did was to affirm parliamentary support for Johnson if he were to send ground troops into South Vietnam, which was actually a royal prerogative (meaning he could have done it without parliamentary consent).  He had not yet sent troops into Vietnam, but had many "military advisers" who served the same purpose, and ground troops were appearing likelier and likelier to be inevitable.
      Morse had been elected to the House of Commons in 1940 in an election which otherwise saw horrible losses for Labor.  He was a passionate supporter of Norman Thomas's leadership in spite of the latter having lead Labor in two elections which had seen it take large drubbings.  Morse then gradually became less vocal about public ownership of industry, but remained a fervent peacenik.  He ran as the soft-left candidate in the leadership election of 1948, but went largely unnoticed, and was dismissed as a "maybe someday" candidate.  He ran again in 1958 and made it to the final ballot, surging past the hard-left candidate, Darlington Hoopes, who had made it to and lost the final ballot to Kefauver in 1948.  Yet the coalition that backed him (Thomasite pacifists, hard-leftists who would've preferred Hoopes, and left-intellectuals) were no match for the labor unions, white-collar workers, civil rights groups (and the great majority of African-Americans), and the party's establishment.  
      Assuming he would run, Morse was likely to make this campaign about Vietnam.  He had accused Humphrey, after the Gulf Resolution was passed, of allowing the Labor Party to get sucked into the Liberal Party's platform on foreign policy, while also making mention of more nationalization of large monopolies.

     Joseph S. Clark, Jr. A member of the social democratic right-wing of the party, Clark had started his political career on the Philadelphia City Council in 1945.  He was elected to the House of Commons in 1952 after briefly considering staying in municipal politics to run for mayor a few years later.  As a minister in the Stevenson-Johnson I cabinet, he was naturally considered a potential candidate.  

     John F. Kennedy: Also a member of the cabinet during the coalition government, he was well known for his strong charisma and charm.  His achilles' heel was the fact that he was a party turncoat; he'd first been elected to the House in 1948 as a Liberal, and was not exactly considered a "grapefruit" (a slur often used against Liberal MP's who appear to be more in line with Labor ideologically but entered the Liberal Party for opportunistic reasons).  Months after the 1952 election resulted in a fiasco for the Liberal Party, Kennedy raised eyebrows when he crossed the floor to the Labor Party.  Labor's strong result in that election (combined with many recent provincial successes) led many pundits and political experts to believe that a Tory-Labor political alignment was just on the horizon.  So a party-switch on any young aspiring Liberal politician's part was hardly surprising.  
      Kennedy's arrival in the Labor Party was greeted with a wild mix of cautious embrace (in the case of the right) to fanatic opposition (in the case of the left).  Yet after becoming Leader of the Party in 1958, Humphrey appointed Kennedy to the front bench as Shadow Minister of the Economy and Business, a portfolio which he would also hold in the 1960-1964 coalition government.  Despite his strong performance in that position, his personal wealth and background, as well as his political past, were a huge hemorrhage to his ambitions in the Labor Party.

     Ralph Yarborough: After defying expectations in El Paso in 1948 that he wouldn't possibly win election to the House of Commons (he was, after all, a Labor candidate in Texas), he continued to defy the "experts" by getting re-elected in every election since.  In so doing, he'd remained true to Labor's values.  He's staunchly backed civil rights, social democratic economic reforms, labor union rights, environmental protection laws, and peace efforts in spite of the risks it all posed in Texas.  He was also on the Labor right, but in Texas he may as well have been a Trotskyite.
      He'd briefly served as Deputy Minister of Justice in the twilight months of the last government.  And he also, in the eyes of most of his admirers, served as a quintessential counterexample to all negative stereotypes of white Southerners.  

Adam Clayton Powell, Jr.
      He was a prominent civil rights activist, and many considered it to be natural to have one civil rights activist followed by another.  Yet he was in certain ways a rival to Randolph and King.  His legendary ego had always made him wish he'd been the true leader of the civil rights movement, but it was already clear that King would have this status when the history was written.
      Powell was also not exactly of proper moral standards for the job.  He had a felony charge against him in his own riding, and was spending increasingly large amounts of time in Florida, making him quite frequently absent from parliament.  A recall effort against him was now underway, and many of his fellow Labor MP's couldn't wait to see the back of him.  His womanizing was also well-known.  Yet he was bound to run for the deputy leadership.  His ego and ambition were overpowering.

     Frank Zeidler: The old-fashioned socialist had taken over as mayor of Milwaukee in 1944 when his predecessor, Daniel Hoan (also a Labor man) decided to run for parliament.  Zeider inherited Hoan's Sewer Socialist policies, and aggressively fought to annex the suburbs into which the white inhabitants of the city often fled.  He also fought to bring a greater proportion of Milwaukee's workforce into the public sector.  In addition, he'd been a staunch supporter of civil rights and integration.  He retired in 1960 on health grounds, but decided to run for parliament in 1964, and was elected in a newly created but nominal safe seat.
      Despite being new to parliament, he had a staunch following on the party's far-left-wing.  Morse, for many of them, was too moderate and not fervently enough committed to public control of industries.  Zeidler was a staunch supporter of federal nationalization of all industries, and would accept nothing less.  The fact that he, as a former Mayor of a decently-sized city, was not given a front-bench promotion was considered by a great deal of the party's left-wing to be a snub.  But while he wasn't likely to win, Zeidler was likely to run for the Deputy Leadership in order to give new life to his faction of the party.

[Hifly]

How long did it take to write all of this?

[Peter the Lefty]

How long did it tell to write all of this?

That last post, you mean?  Basically this entire week. 

[Hifly]

Takes some determination! well done

[Peter the Lefty]

Deputy Leaders of the Parties

Deputy Leaders of the Liberal Party
1. Theodore Roosevelt, 1898-1901
2. George Gray, 1901-1910
3. Charles Evans Hughes, 1910-1917
4. Hiram Johnson, 1917-1926
5. Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1926-1931
6. Cordell Hull, 1931-1944
7. Harry S. Truman, 1944-1945
8. Harold Stassen, 1945-1952
9. Lyndon B. Johnson, 1952-1963
10. Jacob Javits, 1963-Present

Deputy Leaders of the Conservative Party
1. Levi P. Morton, 1898-1905
2. Charles W. Fairbanks, 1905-1918
3. Warren Harding, 1918-1925
4. Herbert Hoover, 1925-1932
5. Arthur Vandenberg, 1932-1942
6. Robert Taft, 1942-1953
7. Everett Dirksen, 1953-1961
8. Nelson Rockefeller, 1961-Present

Deputy Leaders of the Labor Party
1. Victor Berger, 1900-1909
2. Morris Hillquit, 1909-1915
3. James Maurer, 1915-1926
4. Haim Kantorivich, 1926-1933
5. Clarence Senior, 1933-1939
6. Robert La Follette, Jr., 1939-1946
7. Algernon Lee, 1946-1954
8. A. Phillip Randolph, 1954-1964

Deputy Leaders of the American National Movement
1. Richard B. Russell, 1947-1960
2. J. William Fullbright, 1961-Present

Deputy Leaders of the Libertarians
1. James B. Utt, 1962-Present