Tito, the communist dictator of Yugoslavia, Constantine II of Greece, and Willy Brandt of the SPD. I predict we'll see the SPD in German politics, Constantine return to the throne, and Tito face something.
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Blue Skies in Camelot: An Alternate 60's and Beyond
- Thread starter President_Lincoln
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BP Booker
Banned
My guess is that the people of Greece overthrow the dictatorial government of that country, or outside forces take it down, and Constantine returns as the rightful king (He was still king in name only, in exile until 1973)
President Lincoln, is Romney more pro free trade or more pro tarrifs?
President Lincoln, is Romney more pro free trade or more pro tarrifs?
A good question! Based on the Republican platform of 1968 IOTL and Romney's experience in the Auto Industry, I would say that he is slightly more pro-Tariff, though not radically so. It's also something he disagrees with many in his party about, including his own Vice President, who is more pro-free trade.
Interesting predictions, ImperialTheorist!
I look forward to hearing what you think of the chapter once it's up.
Worffan101
Gone Fishin'
I'm curious to see how well Wallace can hold on to political relevance. One thing I personally find amusing is that his and Falwell's alliance stands a good chance of permanently tainting evangelical conservatism with association with Jim Crow. Could save us from Reagan, at least, especially if the main political debate comes to be between socially-moderate economically-left-wing Democrats and economically-moderate socially-liberal Republicans. Ironically that would make moderate movements stronger because of the division on the left and the disrespectability of the Conservatives (thanks, Wallace).
On the other hand, if Wallace crashes and burns in the '70s, then we might still get Reagan (though I hope not) and the Republicans could shift back to the right.
On the other hand, if Wallace crashes and burns in the '70s, then we might still get Reagan (though I hope not) and the Republicans could shift back to the right.
I could see a four-pole system: The three we know, plus a Progressive Party. The party of Mondale, McGovern, Gore, and Obama...
BP Booker
Banned
ERROR MESSAGE
ELECTORAL COLLEGE.EXE HAS STOPPED WORKING
America is searching a solution to this problem...
Neither was Gore. I could see both of them shifting Left ITTL, assuming the lack of a Neoliberal movement.
Worffan101
Gone Fishin'
I sure as Hell hope that neoliberalism never gets off the ground! I'd prefer a revival of anarcho-syndicalism, but that's not happening as long as there's a USSR and a Red Scare.
Adenauer comes back from the grave and defeats Brandt.
Constantin comes back but is assassinated by Greek communists who pledge their loyalty to Andropov and thus second Greek civil war erupts.
Enver Hoxha invades Kosovo and thus Yugoslav-Albanian war erupts.
Generally speaking, Romney is for fiscal responsibility (his campaign strongly empahsized his turning around Michigan's state deficit into a comfortable surplus), moderate interventionism abroad to contain and where possible, rollback Communism, lower taxes, and a protective tariff.
As for original policy of his own, Romney wants to create a larger fund for college scholarships at a national level, a bigger version of what he did in Michigan.
Chapter 48
Chapter 48: I Can’t Get Next to You: A Snapshot of Other Parts of the World, ‘68 - ‘69
While 1968 had brought a great many shifts in the dynamic of the Cold War: the Prague Spring and its subsequent squashing by the Soviets; Alexei Kosygin’s ouster by Yuri Andropov and the politburo; Mao Tse-Tsung’s assassination by his own wife and handpicked successors; the election of a somewhat more hawkish President in the United States in George Romney; one man remained steadfast in his place in the great Twilight Struggle of the 20th Century: Josip Broz Tito, Marshall and President for Life of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. A man whose very name dripped with controversy across the globe, Tito had built a complicated reputation for himself since his days as leader of the partisans against Nazi occupation during World War II. Having received limited Red Army support in kicking the Germans out when the time for liberating Eastern Europe came, the Yugoslav public always had an independent streak about it, and the famous Tito-Stalin split of 1948 cemented that nation’s status as the only nation in the Communist bloc to be free from Soviet Hegemony. Having variously flirted with receiving U.S. aid in the immediate post-war years and reopening ties with the USSR after Khrushchev’s rise to power, only one thing was known for certain about Belgrade’s Benevolent Dictator: his commitment to independence. In addition to his national responsibilities, Tito also served as the first Secretary-General of the Non-Aligned Movement, doing so from 1961 to 1964 before being succeeded by Gamal Abdel Nasser of Egypt. The movement aimed to prevent the Americans and Soviets from completely dominating the developing world, and enjoyed widespread support across the globe, from India to Latin America. Proud of his symbolic resonance as the man who stood up to Stalin and lived to tell the tale, Tito could also boast of building a semi-market based socialist economy which outpaced most of its Eastern European neighbors, and offered its people a higher standard of living than most. On the other hand, Tito cracked down viciously on dissent, particularly on ethnic Albanians who publicly expressed their heritage, or Communists, Democrats, and liberals who spoke out against his rule. His was an iron fist veiled only slightly by a glove of light red silk. Nonetheless, he remained beloved throughout his country and respected internationally as well. Through his sheer force of will and cult of personality, Tito held together a federation of nearly a dozen ethnicities, each beginning to grumble for national recognition and independence from the pan-slavic state, itself seen as a relic of a bygone era.
Tito was insistent however that all southern slavs should remain united under one banner, for the sake of preserving their agency in a world dominated by “imperialist superpowers” from both the east and west. Throughout the 1960’s, Tito and his secret police, quietly modeled after the Soviet KGB, cracked down hard on nationalist movements and threw millions of political dissidents into state prisons. Realizing that age was starting to catch up with him, and that he would not live forever, the Dictator sought to eliminate threats to his legacy, “root and stem”. If he had anything to say about it, Yugoslavia would remain united in its vision for a better life for its people through socialism, forever. He also saw that the most critical step in ensuring the survival of his rapidly progressing nation after his passing was to find a worthy successor, someone he could groom for whatever time he had left, to step in, seize the reins, and hold the diverse nation of theirs together, as he had done. Though he worked through lists of potential picks from among his allies for years, weeding out those he saw as weak, sycophantic, or “uncommitted”, Tito finally settled on his choice in the early months of 1969: former President of the People’s Assembly of Macedonia and talented, world hopping diplomat Lazar Koliševski.
Among the most trusted in Tito’s inner circle, Kolisevski survived where other loyalists perished due to his tireless work ethic, his dedication to Yugoslav unity and pan-slavic nationalism, and in Tito’s mind his plain, good natured common sense. In the five years Kolisevski had been given to reform Macedonia’s economy in the mid 1950’s, he managed to turn it from the poorest region of Yugoslavia into its fastest developing economy. Its capital, Skopje, went from a rural backwater to an industrial center and the third largest urban center in the nation. These traits, combined with his ability to relate to the other non-aligned leaders on a personal level and represent Yugoslav interests abroad made him an incredibly attractive choice for Tito to groom. Though Tito would remain firmly in power in Belgrade until his death in 1980, beginning in ‘69, he started devolving responsibilities and government functions to Kolisevski, who was all too willing to learn at the knee of the master. A cunning politician to Tito’s military-trained strongman, Kolisevski also began outreach programs in the late 60’s and early 70’s, encouraging a pan-slavic identity in the country, in an attempt to quell nationalist outcries without the constant need for violence. “There’s no need to remove their head if you can reach their heart.” He explained to his teacher.
…
The Kingdom of Greece held a special place in the imagination of the western world. It was home to the great philosophers of the ancient past, the birthplace of democracy, and a former front in the early stages of the Cold War. As part of Truman Doctrine of the 1940’s, the United States joined with Britain’s Prime Minister Churchill in supporting authoritarian, right wing regimes in Greece, Turkey, and Iran to prevent Soviet influence there. To Stalin, this seemed more an attempt to envelope the USSR for an attack on all fronts, to Truman, it was “containment”. The hellenic peninsula nation had, since 1952, become a fully fledged NATO ally and bulwark against Communism in Eastern Europe, but the banning of the communist party and alliance with the west did not end political instability in the country. In a sense, they only served to inflame the situation there, and create an atmosphere of doubt and paranoia.
In 1961, various factions of the liberal political center joined together in a new political party, christened the Center Union (EK), which was aimed at providing a credible alternative to the right wing National Radical Union (ERE) of Prime Minister Konstantinos Karamanlis (below left). Soon after, Karamanlis, not wanting to see his power diminish on account of new opposition, called a general election which led to a clear victory for his party. However, Georgios Papandreou (below right) and other Center Union politicians, as well as the leftist EDA started claiming that Karamanlis' election victory was largely due to "violence and vote-rigging". Papandreou, a gifted orator, launched a "relentless struggle" aimed at forcing the "illegal government" of Karamanlis from power. In May 1963 Karamanlis resigned, officially over a dispute with King Paul on the latter's planned visit to the UK, although there is speculation that the "Relentless Struggle" and other crises (most notably the assassination of leftist independent MP Gregorios Lambrakis, with alleged involvement of the police and the secret service) had greatly weakened Karamanlis' position.
After many years of conservative rule, the election of Papandreou as Prime Minister was a sign of change. In a bid to gain more control over the country's government than his limited constitutional powers allowed, the young and inexperienced King Constantine II clashed with liberal reformers, dismissing Papandreou in 1965 and causing a constitutional crisis known as the "Apostasia of 1965".
After making several attempts to form governments, relying on dissident Centre Union and conservative MPs, Constantine II appointed an interim government under Ioannis Paraskevopoulos, and new elections were called for May 28th, 1967. There were indications that Papandreou's Centre Union would emerge as the largest party, but would not be able to form a single-party government and would be then forced into an alliance with the United Democratic Left, which was suspected by conservatives of being a proxy for the banned communist party, the KKE. This suspicion began to widely circulate the upper echelons of the Greek military and some within high command favored removing such a contingency with a coup d'etat. Word of these plans was quickly picked up by CIA agents stationed in Greece however and a briefing on the situation was prepared for President Kennedy.
Dedicated to the preservation of the principle of Democracy as a means of winning the Cold War “fair and square”, JFK was opposed “to the removal of any democratically elected government in Greece, so long as that government honestly represents the will and prerogative of the Greek people.” As the crisis and stalemate in Greece worsened and the May ‘67 elections loomed, the President set up a secret summit between Secretary of State Robert McNamara and King Constantine in Geneva, Switzerland. The purpose of the summit was to lay out, in no uncertain terms, that the United States under a Kennedy administration, would refuse to acknowledge any Greek government “born in bloodshed and derived from the denial of the people's’ right of self-determination”. McNamara advised King Constantine to “avail himself” of his father’s numerous advisers, and embrace his role as a constitutional Monarch and figurehead, or else he would himself likely face removal by the same power hungry military junta from whom he hoped to derive authority. Astounded that the Americans would dare to interfere in the political situation in his country in this way, King Constantine demanded to know where President Kennedy thought he had the right. JFK wrly replied, via phone call: “We’re Americans, we always fight for freedom. I advise you to do the same, your majesty.”
Realizing the need to save face before his nation’s most powerful ally, Constantine began clamping down on calls for a coup from within the military. As it turned out, mid-level officers formed the majority of putschists, not the high command, and with the King’s (albeit unwilling) support, the situation on the ground began to pacify. The elections, now protected from interference by the intervention of President Kennedy, proceeded. As predicted, Georgios Papandreou and his Centre Union managed a sizeable victory but not enough for an absolute majority and were forced to form a coalition with the United Democratic Left. As Papandreou celebrated his victory, he laid out plans to modernize Greece and progress it from the authoritarian influence of the last several decades to a place of true equity and liberty. Though he would leave most of these dreams to his son, Andreas to complete, Papandreou nonetheless began the process of restoring the “birthplace of democracy” to a place where it could be practiced freely. King Constantine II never again attempted to increase his own power beyond its legal limits, nor did the Greek military deviate from its mission of protecting their nation’s sovereignty and constitution.
…
Since the late 1950’s, the Federal Republic of Germany, better known simply as “West Germany” was undergoing what could only be described as a “Wirtschaftswunder”, an utter economic miracle. From the ashes of the pulverized Third Reich, “the Bonn Republic” took what it received in financial aid through the U.S. Marshall Plan and within a decade remade itself into one of the world’s premiere economies. Chancellor Konrad Adenauer, founder of the centre-right Christian-Democratic Union, led the resurgent nation from 1949 to 1963, and was committed to a broad vision of market based liberal democracy, and anti-communism, forging strong ties with NATO, France, the United Kingdom, and the United States against rival East Germany and the Eastern bloc. Called “the Elder” as he was already 73 years old when he first took office, Adenauer nonetheless managed to hold onto power in Deutschland for 14 years and rebuilt his beloved nation in his image. A shrewd political mind and an iron will carried Adenauer far, but even the devoutly Catholic father of Bonn could not stay in power forever. A tense, distrusting relationship with American President Kennedy and several disparaging remarks about popular Social Democratic Party Mayor of West Berlin, Willy Brandt, led to the people turning on Adenauer and demanding he step down in favor of a younger successor. Reluctant to give up on power, Adenauer suffered a tremendous scandal when police arrested five journalists of the popular news magazine, Der Spiegel in 1962 for publishing documents which showed that West Germany’s military or Bundeswehr, was weaker than the government in Bonn let on. Though the Chancellor had not ordered the arrests, he initially tried to defend the one who did, his defense minister, Franz Josef Strauss, calling the published memo “on the abyss of treason.” When protests mounted and coalition partner the FDP condemned Strauss, Adenauer asked for his resignation from the cabinet, but the damage to the CDU had been done. In a portent of what was to befall Charles de Gaulle in france six years later in France, the German people demanded that Adenauer finally retire, which he did in October of 1963.
Adenauer was replaced, much to his displeasure, by his finance minister, Ludwig Erhard. Unlike Adenauer, who had privately supported France’s opposition to Britain’s entrance to the EEC, Erhard was a firm supporter of the community, pan-European integration, and a great friend to the UK, not to mention an admirer of President Kennedy and the new generation of western leaders, whom his predecessor had found “soft”. The brains behind many of the economic policies that had led to the boom in West Germany since the war, Erhard seemed to many in his nation the natural heir to the throne and an able leader. His domestic agenda included a series of programmes aimed at extending the length of compulsory education in West Germany, as well as significantly increasing public funding for education. The next several years however, would challenge this notion and leave doubt in the minds of the German people, as Erhard stumbled through several blunders in foreign relations. First, his support of Great Britain alienated Charles de Gaulle, whom Adenauer had worked with to carefully negotiate a Franco-German axis to give Europe negotiating power on the world stage and some breathing room from American socio-economic domination. Next, Erhard rather thoughtlessly attempted to offer the Soviet Union a 25 million Deutschmark loan in 1964 in exchange for liberalization in East Germany, with his eventual goal being reunification. Though Khrushchev was initially receptive to the offer of financial aid from Germany, Alexei Kosygin’s 1965 economic reforms soon freed the Soviets of the need for help, and the offer became dead on arrival. The final nail in Erhard’s coffin was when in 1966 the economy, the one positive, undeniable good he had done for the country, began to finally slow, its “miracle” returning to normal levels of GDP growth. Though the Germans were still happy and employed, after a full decade of boom, even growth seemed a slow down and the people began to turn on their Chancellor. Deeply unpopular personally despite his party winning the 1965 Federal elections, Erhard decided to step down and allow yet another CDU politician to man the helm.
Kurt Georg Kiesinger, former Minister-President of Baden-Württemberg, was elected to serve as Erhard’s replacement, heading a new alliance between the CDU and Willy Brandt’s SPD (Social Democratic Party of Deutschland) as Chancellor. Given the tenuous nature of Kiesinger’s rise to power, he agreed to let popular opposition leader Brandt serve as Vice Chancellor and Foreign Minister for his government, a move initially well received by the people. Furthering education reform, with the building of new universities and a marked increase in grants issued by the government in Bonn, Kiesinger nonetheless soon incurred the wrath of student protesters across the country. Fed up with what they perceived as authoritarian leadership by the CDU, the student movement demanded social progress and change, to match the images they saw beamed into their living rooms from Kennedy’s United States. In Germany, for instance, a married woman could not take out a bank loan without her husband’s permission. This, along with issues of the government’s position against homosexuality, which had once been largely accepted during the Weimar Republic, led to widespread demonstrations and calls for Kisesinger to step down. An astute politician, Brandt sensed blood in the water and campaigned hard for the upcoming 1969 Federal elections, which he and his SPD easily won, largely thanks to record high turnout among young voters. Forming a new coalition with the classically liberal FDP, Brandt immediately set to work pushing through social programs and a new outlook toward the East, called “Ostpolitik”. With his eventual goal being German reunification, Brandt correctly believed that he would need to reach out and earn the trust of the Soviet Union and their eastern allies before progress could be made. He earned former President Kennedy’s admiration but suspicion from incoming President Romney, who feared that West German friendship with the East could jeopardize America’s diplomatic position.
Next Time on Blue Skies in Camelot: The United States at War!
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Loved it. Nice that Tito picked a successor, something I don't believe he did OTL. No military coup in Greece, thank God. Hope Brandt isn't forced to resign because of an aid being revealed as a spy, as what happened to him OTL.
A coup of West Germany is unlikely I'd say, seeing as they are a highly stable western Democracy. We could see German-American relations suffer somewhat under Romney and the Republicans, however.
- Weathermen?
- New Chief Justice?
- Chappaquiddick?
- Gaddafi?
- Biafra?
- Australian election?
- New Chief Justice?
- Chappaquiddick?
- Gaddafi?
- Biafra?
- Australian election?
I'll make sure to cover all of these soon!
Chappaquiddick plays a major role in an upcoming chapter.