A Different America: 1948 Presidential election General election thread
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  A Different America: 1948 Presidential election General election thread
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JacksonHitchcock
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« on: April 24, 2020, 06:03:54 PM »
« edited: April 25, 2020, 06:18:06 PM by JacksonHitchcock »

A different America

In this thread, you will write about your character's actions in the 1948 election for both the Presidential election and their personal actions during this time. The actions will receive points and will receive bonuses the dice when the election is rolled for.

Enjoy!

The main candidates are

Strom Thurmond/Fielding Wright
Harry S. Truman/Alben W. Barkley
Earl Warren/Thomas Dewey
Henry Wallace/Glen H. Taylor
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« Reply #1 on: April 24, 2020, 10:06:36 PM »

Gerald O'Connor elected not to run for office this year, instead focusing on doing whatever he could to help President Truman have any hope of winning re-election. He campaigned heavily for Truman across Chicago, rallying laborers to get out to vote, invoking the New Deal and how it "saved this great nation from a fate not unlike to Germany's." He also moved to appeal to ethnic minorities, reminding them how the CFL had fought racism under John Fitzpatrick and how the Republicans in Chicago had previously supported the Klan. The goal of O'Connor was to do his level best to run up Truman's margin in Cook County to the point where, combined with his popularity downstate, he should be able to capture Illinois's 28 electoral votes in a walk, allowing him to focus on other key races against Governor Warren.

O'Connor, however, was not idle in his own ambitions during this time. He spoke with numerous leaders of ethnic communities in Chicago about potentially allowing him to represent their interests in Congress, should one of their own Representatives die or retire. Several, seeing the charisma of the young Irishman, agreed to this proposal (mostly with the caveat that he would not remain in the seat for a particularly long period). He also gained the blessing of Mayor Martin H. Kennedy to move in this way, setting him up for a likely candidacy in the early 1950s.
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It’s so Joever
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« Reply #2 on: April 25, 2020, 12:23:44 AM »
« Edited: April 25, 2020, 12:32:57 AM by Forumlurker »

Knowing full well of the ancestral Democratic dominance in his home State of Texas, William Anderson did not believe there was a chance of a Republican winning Texas on a federal level. That being said, out of pure stubbornness, Anderson tirelessly promoted Warren’s candidacy, both highlighting his achievements as governor of California (although personally, Anderson wasn’t enthusiastic about Warren) and tried his best to convince voters to not vote for Truman, citing his recent power grabs as president, and warning of possible tyranny/the degradation of the ideas of the Founding Fathers, if left unchecked. Anderson campaigned tirelessly for limited government and efficiency. Although he may have not swung as many voters as he would have liked, Anderson certainly did build up his reputation among the McLennan county GOP, due to his efforts.
Interestingly enough, Anderson was sympathetic to the some of the ideas of Thurmond.
In the meantime, he continued his studies, eager to follow in his father’s footsteps. He also became an active member of the Baylor College Republicans, and donated to local GOP candidates.
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« Reply #3 on: April 25, 2020, 01:04:07 AM »

Kenway made the decision not to run for office this year and instead focus on completing his legal degree. During the campaign however, he would campaign heavily for Truman using the slogan "Give'em Hell, Harry!". He would also campaign against Wallace, statting "I like Henry, but the man is simply too close with the Communists to be a legitimate candidate."

Most notably, he would serve as an organiser for the Truman campaign in Iowa City and serve as the campaign's effective leader at the University of Iowa, mobilising the college vote for Truman. He also campaigned among Iowa veterans, citing that it had been Truman who had taken care of them since the war ended, but had been effectively blocked by the Do-Nothing Congress.

He was not idle on his own plans for the future however, and began forging plans to sign up with the Johnson County Attorney's office upon his graduation with an eye to running for office in the 1950s. most notably however, he began laying the foundations for a liberal organisation called Veterans for A Better America.
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« Reply #4 on: April 25, 2020, 05:23:01 AM »
« Edited: April 25, 2020, 05:56:05 AM by Representative Elcaspar »

Anton Jepsen decided not to run for office this year, as he was instead focused on dedicating his time to help the candidacy of former Vice President Henry Wallace in the spirit of his Farmer-Labor roots. Jepsen knew full well that Wallace couldn't win, but Jepsen always believed in fighting for what he believed was right, despite what others might think and the futility of it all.

He campaigns for Wallace in the traditional Farmer-Labor constituencies of laborers, trade unions and of course farmers. He will travel across the state to make Wallace's case, citing his long and consistent advocacy for farmers, his successful tenure as Sec. of Agriculture, as well the agricultural sections of the Progressive Party platform laid out in understandable terms.

When campaigning among laborers and unions, he will campaign on Wallace's advocacy of a repeal of Taft-Hartley, a national 1$ an hour minimum wage, establishing adequate safety and health standards for all workers in hazardous industries. Not to mention other parts of the labor section of the Progressive Party platform, laid out in understandable terms.

Among both groups he will cite how Wallace's was an ardent supporter of the New Deal, cite his support for Roosevelt's Second Bill of Rights, as well as how both parties disregard the Bill of Rights when they support things like banning the Communist Party and the investigations of the HUAC. Lastly he will campaign on the legacy of former Governor Floyd Olson and the Farmer-Labor Party.

Once all the campaigning is over Jepsen plans to temporarily return to his job as an instructor at the University of Minnesota, as well as mulling on his political future.
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« Reply #5 on: April 25, 2020, 01:37:00 PM »
« Edited: April 26, 2020, 05:57:26 PM by KaiserDave »

Will Angler 1948

Suffice it to say that if Earl Warren wasn't winning Vermont by a landslide than there wasn't much of chance for him to win anywhere. But fortunately that wasn't the case. Will Angler was quite enthusiastic about the nomination of the California Governor. He was a liberal, he was sensible, and he was the right man for the job. Everybody knew that Will Angler was behind Warren, and made sure to put a variety of Warren signage across his property. At the Local Stowe and Burlington Republican Clubs he gave speeches for Warren and pushed annoyed conservative Republicans on side.

However, Angler's main objective was getting reelected as Representative for Lamoille-1. His reelection was quite likely but he vigorously campaigned. He met with voters, he held town halls, and he gave speeches. He pushed for public desegregation, for health standards for workers in dangerous jobs, for farm supports, and for sensible good government free from corruption or dysfunction of party machines.
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« Reply #6 on: April 25, 2020, 06:37:07 PM »

Jackson decided to leave the Presidential Race alone, due to his personal dislike of President Truman, not campaigning for him but still endorsing the Truman/Barkley ticket as he believes Florida will be a lock for the Democrats in this Election.

Due to his Election being all but certain with the statewide Republican Party being non-existent, Jackson has instead campaigned across his district to win the race for the House Seat, mainly focusing on the need to promote agriculture/farming and his internationalist stance. He doesn't mention the segregation issue at all, having no true opinion on it. With this in mind, he hopes to win by a landslide.
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« Reply #7 on: April 25, 2020, 07:14:31 PM »
« Edited: April 26, 2020, 12:38:17 AM by Asenath Waite »

Michael Feinberg hadn't been able to get too excited about who the Republican nominee was. As a New Yorker it would stand to reason that he should support Dewey yet he couldn't help but feel that there was something untrustworthy and shallow about him, something that reminded him of the blue blooded bastards who looked down his nose when he'd made the mistake of trying to join a Young Republicans Club in Manhattan back in high school. It baffled him that these blue bloods could claim the mantle of the Party of Lincoln. Just as they'd look down their nose at any Yid, Mick or Dago that tried to join them yesterday they surely would have thought that Honest Abe himself was a plainspoken backwoods hick and thrown him to the curb. He was also a proven loser. Although many would chalk it up to the war being in it's final year anybody should have been able to see that FDR was in poor health and a better candidate might have won easily.

One thing he knew for certain was that under no circumstances could he bring himself to vote for Robert Taft. The isolationists were an enigma to him, he never understood how you could claim to be serious about fighting communism while also wanting to withdraw from the world. As far as Feinberg was concerned Taft and his ilk had been a fifth column for Berlin and Tokyo in 1941 and were a fifth column for Moscow today. He'd sooner vote for that schmuck Truman who at least showed some commitment to containment! Ultimately he would have preferred MacArthur to be the nominee but was happy to settle for Warren who seemed a better choice to head the ticket then the man on the wedding cake.

Whoever won though he knew he served at the pleasure of J Edgar Hoover. He'd only been in the bureau six months and already he'd heard enough to know the old queer had more power then any president. He was glad and eager to prove his loyalty on the coming undercover assignment in Chicago. Although New York was the major thoroughfare for left-wing radicals in the United States he knew it wouldn't be safe for him to be assigned there as he'd run the risk of being recognized. He dreaded the thought of leaving Rachel behind but knew it was necessary for the sake of the free world.
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Orwell
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« Reply #8 on: April 25, 2020, 09:21:46 PM »


A Different America

Campaign scores
Truman: 69 +5 +5 = 79
Warren: 81 +3 +2 = 86
Thurmond: 53 +3 = 56
Wallace: 78 +10 = 88

Turnout scores
Truman turnout: 45
Warren turnout: 59
Thurmond turnout: 74
Wallace turnout: 92

X factor scores
Truman: 43
Warren: 51
Thurmond: 46
Wallace: 70

House Democrats: 89
House Republicans: 100

House Democrat turnout: 33
House Republican turnout: 75


Senate Democrats: 34
Senate Republicans: 44

Senate Democrat turnout: 53
Senate Republican turnout: 58

Democratic Governor: 57
Republican Governors: 42

Democratic Governor Turnout: 89
Republican Governor Turnout: 25

Initiatives:
 
Gerald O’Connor (Entropy in Action): 83 (+3)=88 +3 points
William Anderson (ForumLurker): 18 (+5)=23 +2 points
Thomas Kenway (GoTFan): 44 (+5)=49 +2 points
Anton Jepsen (Elcapsar): 13 (+10)=23 +5 points
Will Angler (KaiserDave): 54 (+5)=59 +3 points
Marcus A. Jackson II(New Tennessean Politician): 75 (+3)=78 +3 points
Michael Feinburg (Asenath White): 69 (+5)=74 +3 points

October Surprise 1-100 1-31 Warren Scandal Truman Scandal 32-62 63-100 No Scandal: 13 (Warren scandal)

Keys to the White House:

As you know if 5 or more of these are false then the incumbent President is predicted to lose the popular vote!

Bold: True
Nonbold: False
1. Party Mandate: After the midterm elections, the incumbent party holds more seats in the U.S. House of Representatives than after the previous midterm elections.
2. Contest: There is no serious contest for the incumbent party nomination.
3. Incumbency: The incumbent party candidate is the sitting president.
4. Third-party: There is no significant third party or independent campaign.
5. Short term economy: The economy is not in recession during the election campaign.​
6. Long term economy: Real per capita economic growth during the term equals or exceeds mean growth during the previous two terms.​
7. Policy change: The incumbent administration effects major changes in national policy.​
8. Social unrest: There is no sustained social unrest during the term.​
9. Scandal: The incumbent administration is untainted by major scandal.​
10. Foreign/military failure: The incumbent administration suffers no major failure in foreign or military affairs.​
11. Foreign/military success: The incumbent administration achieves a major success in foreign or military affairs.​
12. Incumbent charisma: The incumbent party candidate is charismatic or a national hero. This Key cannot be altered through player point expenditures​
13. Challenger charisma: The challenging party candidate is not charismatic or a national hero. This Key cannot be altered through player point expenditures



The 1948 Presidential Election


   When the sprint towards the finish began things turned from bad to worse against President Truman, already having lost the support of the Governors and delegations from South Carolina, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama the Democratic party of Georgia declared their support for South Carolina Governor Strom Thurmond. Another worrying development for President Truman was the explosive strength of Former Vice President Henry A. Wallace’s campaign, he had gained considerable support in key states such as Iowa, New York, and California.

   As the campaign continued, Truman met a young Irish-American named Gerald O’Connor who had helped organize a stop on Truman’s whistlestop tour. O’Connor also made efforts to ingratiate himself among the immigrant communities, for the most part, his efforts were successful, he made valuable contacts among the Scottish, Italian, and Polish American communities and expanded his relationship with many in the Irish American community one of the local Chicago Congressmen who planned to retire in 1950 offered his support to O’Connor in the next election as did local Chicago Labor chapters.

   In Texas William Anderson who campaigned heavily for Warren was pelted with rocks by some local farmers and was refused service by local restaurants, his work among the college Republicans at Baylor was slightly more successful, as he made friends with a few more moderate members of the society, but the President of the Baylor College Republicans Buck Heisenberg was not a fan of Mr.Anderson, Masterson was the scion of an old German-American ranching family his goons attempted to make Anderson a persona non grata at Baylor, but with the help of his friends Anderson managed to keep himself as a more fringe member of the College Republicans.

   Thomas Kenway had a mix of success and failure during his campaigning for Harry, he did succeed in drawing some Republicans to President Truman, but he failed in attempting to lure away any supporters of Wallace who’s focus on the former supporters of Farmer-Labor in Iowa drew him strong support in the state. Kenway’s new organization Veteran’s for a Better America did draw some supporters across the nation, but it remains a localized organization to the Democrats near the University of Iowa, struggling to draw much support from non-politicals and Republicans.
 
   Anton Jepsen was one of the key members of the Wallace campaign in the state, and he was named as the Minnesota Co-Chairman of the Progressive Party, he even was able to meet with Vice President Wallace during one of his trips to the state. Jepsen expertly led Wallace’s campaign in the state and his plan to focus on the former supporters of the Farmer-Labor party worked quite well, but there were problems at the University front where Jepsen was called to attend to the HUAC community days before the election which put his position at the University in jeopardy and many believe it was due to his connections with the Wallace campaign and leftist causes.

   Will Angler’s campaign for reelection to the Vermont State legislature was easily reelected with his Democratic opponent being a local small farmer who barely campaigned for the seat. He was re-elected with over 75% of the vote and when he returned to the Capital the members of the Republican caucus asked Angler if he wished to be named the Republican whip of the chamber, which was helped by his popularity among the chamber, but he was also in line to be the Chairman of the Committee on Appropriations in the chamber and he would have to choose between the two.

   Marcus Jackson was easily elected to the seat in Florida-3 district without even a Republican opponent, he has also become friends with one of Florida’s Senators Claude Pepper, who while not being an ideological ally of Jackson took a liking to the younger man, it is up to Jackson whether he wishes to keep this friendship with Pepper who is up for reelection in 1950 or to ally himself with other State Democrats who may not be as friendly to the Freshman Congressman.

   Michael Feinburg’s assignment to Chicago was quite run of the mill just a group of Anarchists describing their dreams for the downfall of the American government, but there was something of interest there was a man who sat in the back of their meetings and left right after, could he be another g-man sent by Hoover to watch Feinburg by Hoover, or was he an Anarchist with something to hide it would be up to Feinburg to decide what to do about this man.

Election Night: 1948
On election night President Truman and Governor Warren faced off, but Vice President Wallace had an incredible turnout and even though the polls had shown narrowing polls in the final days, it seemed that Governor Warren was going to pull off the victory with a final push led by Governor Dewey in the final days in Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, along with a final stop in Iowa with both men before Dewey headed to New York and Warren to Sacramento. Truman and Barkley made similar stops and coupled with a scandal regarding Warren’s leadership during World War 2 these narrowed the pre-election polls.
   When election night came, Warren would win a victory of 281 electoral votes to 197 for President Truman and 53 for South Carolina Governor Strom Thurmond. In the popular vote, Warren would win with 46.7% to Truman’s 44.5% with 3.5% of the vote going to Strom Thurmond and 5.3% for Former Vice President Henry A. Wallace. The electoral map looked like this:



In the Senate Republican Senators John Sherman Cooper, George Wilson, Charles brooks, Henry Dworshak were able to retain their seats while Democratic incumbent Senator J. Allen Frear lost to his Republican opponent, the Democrats still regained their majority in the Senate.

However in the House, the Republicans lost 13 seats, but this left them with 233 seats which are 15 more than the needed 218 for a majority. In the gubernatorial elections, the Democrats gained 5 governorships, while narrowly holding onto the governorship in Washington and Utah.


The End!

I hope you guys enjoyed this first turn, hopefully, the first of many I will be putting up President Warren’s first term on Monday including the midterm elections, so be prepared for that if anyone has any questions please ask and I would like to thank everyone for playing! Smiley
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« Reply #9 on: April 25, 2020, 10:26:22 PM »

(Sorry for being late)

Smith will not run for office this year. He will energetically campaign for Governor Warren in New York. He is especially excited to vote for Governor Warren, since Governor Warren is on the liberal wing of the party like Mr. Smith. Mr. Smith will not rule out running for office in 1950.
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Asenath Waite
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« Reply #10 on: April 26, 2020, 01:27:06 AM »

Am I allowed to continue the action? Because I already have some ideas in mind for what to have Feinberg do next.
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GoTfan
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« Reply #11 on: April 26, 2020, 02:14:19 AM »

Am I allowed to continue the action? Because I already have some ideas in mind for what to have Feinberg do next.

Same.
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« Reply #12 on: April 26, 2020, 10:34:28 AM »

OOC : I think he would like us to detail what our characters do for the 1949-1951 and 1951-1952 years leading up to the 1952 Conventions and Elections. I'll do them myself anyway.

Congressman Jackson decided to make his name known in Congress by being a strict anti-communist and interventionist hawk, stating in several speeches in Congress "Communism is the devil of the Earth that we must fight against! We must never give up! We must never surrender! We must never concede anything to the Reds!" He pens a Anti-Appeasement Amendment and hopes to see it be passed by Congress soon. The amendment states that should a communist power, a dictatorship, or a group of terrorists demand anything for nothing, it should not be given to them and the suggestion to do so would result in a possible investigation as to why the person would do such a thing. While he does this, he also promotes agricultural reforms, stating that the more land and cash farmers have, the better they can use those resources to increase their output. Finally, he decides to build his relationship with the Florida Democratic Party, focusing on becoming friends with several state senators, fellow Congressmen, and Governor Fuller Warren, planning for a future bid either for Governor or Senator. He makes it clear that his friendship with Senator Pepper is based on mutual respect and nothing ideological. The Congressman decides to campaign for his personal friend against Representative George Smathers in the 1950 Florida Democratic Senate Primary, stating that despite their obvious ideological differences, he prefers his friend and a native Floridian to a yankee who moved south.

On his final things, he states that any military action undertaken by a communist power should be responded to quickly, with a quick destruction of their military and a push to their pre-invasion borders before a peace can be signed, stating he'd rather contain communism then try and conquer nations that already have it or let it spread. He then declares that the United States and her allies should never recognize the Communist Party as the legitimate Government of China and that it should always be Chiang Kai-Shek and his successors. The last thing he wants is a discussion in which he says the Defense Department should give as much money as possible to several nations across the world to help them develop their military and defenses against an oncoming Communist Threat. On Segregation, he continues to remain silent, knowing how truly divisive the issue can be for some, though he does applaud Governor Warren on his ideas in private.
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« Reply #13 on: April 26, 2020, 10:38:36 AM »
« Edited: April 26, 2020, 05:57:13 PM by KaiserDave »

Will Angler 1948-1950


On election night Will held a small party for friends at his home near Stowe. However most would have left when it became clear that Earl Warren had won the presidency. Will Angler was ecstatic, finally a liberal Republican was in the saddle! He imagined all the things that could be done, an interstate highway system, more spending on defense, more jobs, higher wages, cleaner politics! He read in the local paper the next morning that he had won an easy reelection, though this did not surprise him.

He humbly declined a position as whip of the Republican caucus in the State House, careful not to show too much ambition. He took up position as Chair of the Appropriations committee, where he quickly became relevant in state politics. He developed a fierce, bloodhound like way of finding waste and fraudulent spending in appropriations bills and rooting them out. From his position as chair he became a symbol for fiscal restraint and responsibility at the Golden Dome. This of course would make him some enemies in the Dome, but that was something he was prepared to do. The local press loved it, and he made sure to post monthly how much in taxpayer money he'd saved. But it wasn't just fiscal responsibility, but he became a passionate advocate for farmers, and promoted every effort to the support of the state's farmers. He followed path of the President on many other issues, he pushed for investment into community colleges, state public works project to capitalize on wartime surpluses with an emphasis on employing veterans like himself, and pushed for desegregation of public facilities in every vote. He was all the while a staunch support of the President.

Going into 1950 William Angler was once again up for reelection, which he pursued with gusto. Once again he campaigned across his district, and he was always very clear on messaging. He always made sure through his friendship with local press that the taxpayer savings he got through were published, his speeches on his other values published too, and he even got on local radio. He was a tireless campaigner, trying to reach voters by every metric he could. It would distract from his legislative work in the latter half go 1950, but on that front he'd certainly made his mark too.

(I will write a second part for this once I know if I am reelected)
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« Reply #14 on: April 26, 2020, 03:23:49 PM »

Campaigning for Vice President Wallace had certainly been an experience for Anton Jepsen. He had become the Co-Chairman of the Minnesota Progressive Party in the process, and had expertly led the Progressive Party campaign in the state by focusing on bringing in former supporters of the Farmer-Labor Party to vote for Henry Wallace. Jepsen even got to meet Henry Wallace while he was on a trip to Minnesota, which was amazing to him as he looked up to the former Vice President. Not to mention being called upon by the HUAC a few days before election day, which put his formerly safe position as an instructor at the University of Minnesota in jeopardy. Jepsen was incensed at the idea that he could lose his job just because of his political views, this was supposed to be a free county after all.

It was in that moment that he decided that he wanted to run for office in 1950. The House of Representatives needed more progressives like himself Jepsen thought, and he had the experience to run a campaign now after all. While Jepsen considered running in MN-7 where he was born, he decided that MN-5 was the better option since he lived there now. Jepsen has set his political ambitions, and all that remains is to get there.

Jepsen was not surprised at what happened on election night. He didn't believe Truman was able to win in the face of two splinter parties, the States' Rights Democratic Party from the right and the Progressive Party from the left. And it showed on election night, as Earl Warren narrowly won both the popular vote and the Electoral College. "At least it wasn't a conservative Republican" Jepsen thought, but it would still leave something to be desired compared to even Truman. And sadly Henry Wallace never stood a chance at all. In the end it was what it was.

With his position as a instructor at the University uncertain, Jepsen would give his time to other causes in the next two years. He had heard about a newly founded organization called Veteran’s for a Better America from some veteran friends of his, and wanted to make the organization known and well-organized in Minnesota to also better promote veteran's issues. He volunteered and promoted the organization to best of his ability, and he got his father who was also a veteran to do so as well, thinking that two veterans promoting the cause is better than one.

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« Reply #15 on: April 26, 2020, 04:48:17 PM »

Gerald O'Connor, while disappointed by President Truman's loss in his home state, managed to bounce back quickly when he learned that Adolph J. Sabath, of IL-07 (just going off the list of Rep's at the time; feel free to correct me on this), was planning to retire, and gladly supported O'Connor's bid to succeed him. Sabath joined the CFL and numerous local and industry-specific unions in championing O'Connor, effectively making him a lock for the Democratic nomination, and an easy winner in the strongly Democratic, strongly immigrant-based district. Regardless, O'Connor campaigned fiercely for his seat, proudly touting his union support and accusing his opponent, Henry Hayes (again, willing to fix if necessary), of being in favor of the conditions the nation lived under prior to the New Deal, "or perhaps prior to TR's trust busts." Hayes denied this, but O'Connor's backers made sure the claim stuck, and so O'Connor felt confident heading into Election Day.

At the same time, O'Connor was constantly campaigning for the Democratic challengers to Richard B. Vail (IL-02) and Fred Busbey (IL-03). He touted Barratt O'Hara and Neil Linehan as "proud sons of Ireland, proud sons of America, and proud sons of labor!" He also slammed Vail as "a man of the party of Hoover, both Herbert and J. Edgar!" (this was a reference to Vail's time in the FBI), as well as Busbey's time in HUAC ("Is there anything more un-American than to undermine the freedom of speech that is the foundation of the very first amendment to our Constitution?").

However, perhaps the most iconic moment of O'Connor's campaign came when a Republican agitator called him "a God-d---ed Red!" He responded quickly: "And tell me, sir, your Un-American Committee [a personal favorite nickname for HUAC] seeks to take away the common man's freedom of speech! It seeks to subject him to the iron will of the state, in wages and in rights to organize to have them raised! It seeks to tax him in cartload lots, that the rich might be less 'burdened'! Tell me, sir, does that not mean they are the 'God-d---ed Reds'?" The CFL's publications proudly trumpeted this, and the Republicans never called O'Connor a Red again (at least, publicly).
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« Reply #16 on: April 26, 2020, 05:08:24 PM »

OOC : Also, I have an infobox and iirc, that'd help you increase your points and stuff, so if I need to PM it to you, I'll send it to you Jason as it's in my Wikipedia Sandbox.
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« Reply #17 on: April 26, 2020, 05:21:20 PM »

OOC : Also, I have an infobox and iirc, that'd help you increase your points and stuff, so if I need to PM it to you, I'll send it to you Jason as it's in my Wikipedia Sandbox.

Yea just PM it to me and you'll get your points
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« Reply #18 on: April 26, 2020, 05:24:35 PM »

OOC : Also, I have an infobox and iirc, that'd help you increase your points and stuff, so if I need to PM it to you, I'll send it to you Jason as it's in my Wikipedia Sandbox.

Yea just PM it to me and you'll get your points

Alright, just sent. Also, do you think you can clear up a few of the questions we had since we were essentially clueless starting out today.
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« Reply #19 on: April 26, 2020, 06:12:27 PM »
« Edited: April 26, 2020, 06:18:38 PM by Asenath Waite »

Michael Feinberg's instincts had proven him right again. The man that he befriended that night at the Anarchist meeting was a young Polish immigrant named Jan Sikorsky. Posing as a local Jewish radical Feinberg introduced himself and they got to talking. It turned out that Sikorsky had family members who had fought in the Polish resistance against the Nazis during the war who had been murdered. Politically he seemed confused and Feinberg was unable to place him except to realize that he seemed to be left-wing and have a distrust of both the United States and the Soviet Union and a particularly intense hatred of everything German, a hatred that he assumed Feinberg as a Jew would naturally share. Although Feinberg found him to be a bit mishigas he began to develop an affection for him given that he himself had relatives who had been murdered in the holocaust. He relayed as many reports back to Hoover as possible who ordered 24/7 surveillance.

One night when enough information had been gathered Feinberg along with several other agents from the Chicago field office tailed him to Grant Park and cornered him in a secluded corner where he was sending messages over a short wave radio. Sikorsky broke down almost immediately, he admitted that he was a KGB agent. He'd been recruited by the Soviets during the war and requested an assignment to the US with the hope of eventually seeking immunity. He also admitted that he'd deliberately been leaving a trail of breadcrumbs to lead them right to him. He offered to turn double and insisted that he had a treasure trove of information both on the Soviet Union and on various political factions in the US ranging from the far-right to the anti-Stalinist left that he'd been assigned to keep tabs on, of particular interest to Feinberg was his close ties to Gerald O'Connor, a Democratic congressional candidate. It turned out that the two were friends, having worked together at the CFL and attended the same church. He just wanted assurance that he'd never have to return to Poland, it turned out that his family really had been murdered by the Nazis and the ones that hadn't had been sent to the gulag. Feinberg vowed to do everything he could for him and relayed the information back to Hoover who rewarded him with a promotion back to the National Office in DC. Feinberg could not believe his luck.
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KaiserDave
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« Reply #20 on: April 26, 2020, 07:37:15 PM »

Note: Everything here is pre approved and so on


Will Angler 1950-1952


Will Angler won reelection in the Vermont state house, now on to his third term in the chamber. His opponent was a local Democratic townsperson, whom he defeat handily by a 70-30 margin. Angler returned to his position as Chair of the Appropriations Committee where he continued his rapport with the press on saving taxpayer dollars and investing them responsibly as opposed towards corrupt or self serving enterprises. He would cultivate this reputation as a responsible leader, an advocate of responsible liberalism not just with the local papers, but at the local Republican clubs. He made connections, met with higher ups, and of course had many meetings with fellow liberal Republican Governor Ernest W. Gibson Jr. to whom he became friends with. From his perch at the committee Angler was quickly making connections with the state party. He quickly became a common face at state GOP leadership meetings, and he made every available effort to get a meeting with President Warren who he greatly admired. Warren, a man who won both Democratic and Republican primaries in his state. Truly a bridge builder, both figuratively and literally.

Going into 1952 Angler made sure the party gears were moving quickly so Warren could cruise to another landslide, but he focused primarily on his new campaign. For the Lamoille County Seat in the Vermont Senate. Angler mobilized his supports in the local GOP and campaign vigorously as he always had. He utilized his connections to the press, to local farmers, and to the Governor to win election to Vermont's upper legislative body.
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Elcaspar
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« Reply #21 on: April 26, 2020, 08:00:35 PM »

OOC : Also, I have an infobox and iirc, that'd help you increase your points and stuff, so if I need to PM it to you, I'll send it to you Jason as it's in my Wikipedia Sandbox.

Yea just PM it to me and you'll get your points

Alright, just sent. Also, do you think you can clear up a few of the questions we had since we were essentially clueless starting out today.

Seconding this message.
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Asenath Waite
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« Reply #22 on: April 26, 2020, 08:04:37 PM »

OOC : Also, I have an infobox and iirc, that'd help you increase your points and stuff, so if I need to PM it to you, I'll send it to you Jason as it's in my Wikipedia Sandbox.

Yea just PM it to me and you'll get your points

Alright, just sent. Also, do you think you can clear up a few of the questions we had since we were essentially clueless starting out today.

Seconding this message.

thirded
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KaiserDave
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« Reply #23 on: April 26, 2020, 08:11:53 PM »

OOC : Also, I have an infobox and iirc, that'd help you increase your points and stuff, so if I need to PM it to you, I'll send it to you Jason as it's in my Wikipedia Sandbox.

Yea just PM it to me and you'll get your points

Alright, just sent. Also, do you think you can clear up a few of the questions we had since we were essentially clueless starting out today.

Seconding this message.

thirded

I’ve been told a FAQ is coming
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GoTfan
GoTfan21
Junior Chimp
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Australia


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« Reply #24 on: April 27, 2020, 12:58:03 AM »

Thomas Kenway, 1948-1952

Kenway was disappointed, but not shocked by Truman's defeat. The fact was that the Do-Nothing Congress would prefer to put their party above all else. At least it was Earl Warren and not a conservative, he supposed.

Completing his education in 1949, Kenway immedaitely signed up with the Johnson County Attorney's office, determined to gain some practical experience before seeking a political office. He would prove to be a valuable asset to the office, being skilled at trapping witnesses and pushing them into corners. Notably, he held firm to his view of 'innocent until proven guilty', which extended to his views on HUAC. While believing that HUAC was overstepping its bounds in private, his public caution got the better of him

He might've been a progressive, but socialism and communism was a step too far.

As the new decade dawned, he also focused on continuing to build Veterans for a Better America. The organisation was meant to be non-partisan, pushing for better care of veterans in particular and wider liberal policies in general. In mid 1950, he released the organisation's 3 core missions:

1) Advocate for action on mental health of veterans to address those returning with mental wounds; such as combat stress reaction and depression.

2) Support of progressive policies such as universal healthcare, for the enormous benefits that they would not only grant veterans returning with physical wounds, but the country as a whole.

3) Anti-communism. Progressivism is not communism, and attempts to cast it as so are done by bad-faith arguers.

This organisation, he hoped, would become a powerful tool in progressives' arsenals over the years. He was soon attemtping to establish chapters in Minnesota and Wisconsin, two states he believed would be receptive to the message.

In late 1951, he also began building for for a run for the Iowa House of Representatives in 1954 in the 74th District, centred on Johnson County. This included contacting old friends from law school and other like-minded individuals within the districth
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