PART X: EVOLVING
POLITICS IN AMERICA, WAR IN IRAN AND MARS
After
the Equal Rights Movement and the dark episode of the “Alabama War”, the
landscape of American politics shifted drastically. Almost immediately after
the crisis in Alabama, the Democratic Party began to disintegrate. By the end
of 1974, the Democratic Conventions of Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana,
Mississippi, Georgia, and South Carolina voted to leave the Democratic National
Convention. On February 3, 1975, delegates from these seceding state
conventions met in Atlanta for the formation of the Southern Democratic Party
of the United States. By July of that year, the state democratic conventions in
North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and Texas voted to leave the DNC and Join
the new Southern Democrats.
The
1976 presidential elections were the most tense and interesting elections the
USA had had in years, with three parties having candidates in the running for
the first time since the 1936 elections. The Democratic Party at their
convention in Philadelphia nominated President Kennedy on July 26. The
Republicans nominated Barry Goldwater in Chicago on July 30. The Southern Democrats nominated Orval
Faubus, the party’s chairman and founder, at their convention in Little Rock on
August 3. Kennedy’s high approval rating and the large support from African
American’s across the country led to Kennedy’s close win over Goldwater.
Kennedy ended up with 51% of the votes, with Goldwater having 32% and Faubus
having 28%.
- Hallis, Dr. Robert. The
Great Political Earthquake: 1974 and the End of the Two-Party System. Cambridge,
MA: Harvard University Press: 1999
SPACE STATION IN ORBIT
CAPE CANAVRIL, AUG 4-
The American Space Exploration Agency (ASEA) announced today that their
first space station is in orbit, and that 4 American cosmonauts are aboard.
President Kennedy hailed today’s event as “another positive step in the history
of space exploration”.
ASEA
also announced today that they plan on having three more space stations up in
orbit by the end of 1978, and that they are eyeing some sort of permanent
structure on the Moon by the end of either this decade or the early part of the
next. If this is so, America would
pull ahead of the German space program, which is lagging behind on its attempt
to have a manned mission to Mars.
When
asked about a possible Mars mission, ASEA officials said that one was not
currently planned, but that it wasn’t “off the table”. Germany had been ahead
of the American’s in space up until 1974, when the A-19 test rocket exploded
violently, followed later that year by the death of Warner von Braun, Germany’s
leading rocket scientist. The Imperial Rocket Force hopes that their new A-20
rocket will be ready for testing sometime later this year. The purpose of the
A-20 is for an eventual manned mission to Mars.
“Space Station in Orbit,” Washington Post, August 4, 1976.
FAMED GERMAN ACTRESS TO STAR IN FIRST AMERICAN FILM
HOLLYWOOD, MAY 9- One of the most famous and beloved actress
of the Babelsberg Studios, Anne Frank, will be the star of the upcoming film Western Front, which will be set during
the Great War.
Frank,
48, began acting in 1950 with a small role in Neue Liebe. Her first staring role came in 1954 in Berliner Sommer. To date, what is
considered her best film is the 1970 film Ostland,
a gripping drama telling the story of a young woman caught in the upheaval of
the Polish War. Ostland won the 1971 Academy Award for
Best Foreign Film, and Frank’s acting is what made that award possible.
Filming
on Western Front is expected to begin
next week, and producers hope to have the film ready by next summer.
“Famed German Actress to Star in First American Film,” The Los Angeles Times, May 9, 1977.
A-20 ROCKET EXPLODES, KILLS 58
PEENAMUNDE, MAY 23- In the worst disaster to plague the beleaguered
IRF to date, the new A-20 rocket exploded on the launch pad in a fiery blast
that claimed the lives of 58 scientists and engineers, including all of the
rocket’s principle design team.
Emperor
Louis Ferdinand I declared a state of mourning in honor of the lives lost in
the disaster. Senior IRF officials say that despite disaster, their plan of
going to Mars will not be scrapped. Many Germans are loosing their faith in the
IRF’s ability to get past the loss of the A-19 and A-20 rockets, and have serious
doubts as to whether or not the mission to Mars will ever occur. Recent gains by the Americans in the
so-called “Space Race” have made many people doubt the leadership of the IRF.
One politician in the Reichstag stated that he thought that the IRF should be
“reorganized and given completely new leadership, and should focus on goals
closer to home, like lunar colonization.” Placing a permanent settlement on the
Moon has been the subject of much debate by scientists throughout the Empire,
some arguing that for the American’s to do so first would be a disgrace to the
memory of von Braun, while other’s say the Moon isn’t as important as going to
Mars.
-“A-20 Rocket Explodes, Kills 58,” Berliner Morgenpost, May 23, 1977.
REVOLT IN IRAN
TEHRAN, APRIL 12- The strikes and riots that began earlier
this year have exploded into full-scale revolt against the British and
American-backed Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. Rebels have been pushed out of the
capital by loyal troops. There are several areas, however, that are totally in
the hands of the rebels.
The
Shah’s government has requested British and American aid. Prime Minister Mosley
has pledged that Great Britain and the Commonwealth will fully support the
Shah’s government and help it crush the rebellious religious fanatics that are
calling for the creation of an Islamic Republic in Iran. So far, much to the disappointment of
the United Kingdom and the Shah, the United States has not pledged any support,
and our sources in Washington say that it is unlikely to come, that President
Kennedy and the Liberty Party do not support the war nor it’s goals and intend
to stay neutral.
-“Revolt in Iran,” The
Times (London), April 12, 1978.
TROOPS TO IRAN!
LONDON, MAY 1- Prime Minister Mosley announced today that
Her Majesty’s Armed Forces will begin to invade Iran this morning, arriving in
the Ports of Bushehr and Chabahar. It is expected that the armed forces of
Australia, Canada, South Africa, and India will soon join British troops in the
region. The Dominion of Pakistan has yet to pledge troops. The Iranian Shah has
moved his seat of government from Tehran to Bushehr, due to increased activity
of the Iranian rebels. Tehran has since fallen to the so-called “Islamic
Republic of Iran.” In general, the rebels have occupied the northern part of
Iran, and the south has stayed loyal to the Shah.
-“Troops to Iran,” The
Daily Mail, May 1, 1978.
TRIUMPH IN PEENAMUNDE!
PEENAMUNDE, OCT 11- The scientists, engineers, and soldiers
at the Peenemunde Rocket Facility are jubilant today, after the A-21 rocket
successfully made it into Earth’s orbit. IRF spokesperson Joachim Frank told
reporters that “the success of the A-21 rocket means that the Imperial Rocket
Force is now back on track to launching a successful mission to the planet Mars
within the next three to five years. Despite the past rocketry failures, our
cosmonauts have been diligently training for the coming mission to Mars.
Germany will win the race to Mars. There is no question of that in our minds.”
One
reporter from the KDF asked Frank if the IRF was going to consider Moon
settlement in the near future. Frank replied that “at the moment, our focus
remains Mars. However, now that this goal is within reach, discussions are
moving forwards on an eventual Moon settlement, but this will probably be more
than a decade away from now.”
-“Triumph in Peenemunde!” Frankfurter Zeitung, October 12, 1978.
BRITS IN SPACE!
LONDON, FEB 11- The newly formed Ministry of Information has
released a press release today announcing that the British Space Agency has
successfully launched Britain’s first satellite into space. “Her Majesty’s
Government is pleased to inform her public and the world at large that
yesterday morning at approximately 7:30 a.m. the E-1 rocket made a successful
launch from the BSA Launch Center near Liverpool carrying Great Britain’s first
satellite. A celebratory rally is planned for February 14th to honor
the scientific and engineering success of the British people.”
Prime
Minister Oswald Mosley declared in a short speech on the BBC this evening that
“Germany and America are no longer alone in Space. British astronauts (the
Fascist government’s term for cosmonaut) WILL be on the Moon no later than
1985. We WILL catch up to our rivals in the Space Race!”
-“Brits in Space!” The
Washington Post, February 12, 1979.
The
early part of the Iran war went very poorly for the British. By the start of
1979, as the nation celebrated it’s foray into the Space Race, Britain had only
been able to secure the costal region of Iran. The rest of the country was up
for grabs, and the north was fully under the control of the Islamic Republic.
At the request of the Shah’s government, the British were not allowed to bomb Tehran,
which greatly hindered the British ability to weaken the Republic’s government.
In addition to these problems, Commonwealth assistance was slow to get off the
ground. By March of 1979, only the South Africans and Australians had sent
troops. Canada and India’s governments were having a change of heart, and
Pakistan stood openly opposed to the war, and had declared it’s neutrality,
much to the chagrin of Prime Minister Mosley.
-Hammon, Dr. Samuel. Iran:
Twenty Years of War, Revolt and Chaos. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University
Press, 1999.
In
1972, the American People’s Party met in Seattle, Washington, for their
first-ever national convention.
The Chairman, California Assembly Speaker Ronald Greer stated that, “at
this early point in our movement, we will seek to organize party groups in
every state, and to place our members in Congress. The Presidency shall come
later.” This attitude angered some, but it was officially adopted as the party
policy and would guide the party throughout the 1970s and 80s, and it would not
be until the 1988 election that an APP candidate would even appear on the
national presidential ballot.
By
1975, both California and Oregon had Socialist majorities in their state
legislatures, and socialist Thomas Camden had recently been sworn in as
Governor of Oregon. Washington also had a large contingent of socialists in
their legislature. Outside the Pacific Coast region, Arizona, Texas, Oklahoma,
and Arkansas were becoming major socialist centers. In 1976, both Texas and
Oklahoma had APP majorities in their legislatures, and in Oklahoma socialist
candidate Greg Sampson had narrowly been defeated in the gubernatorial
elections. By this time, there were 5 APP members in the House of
Representatives, and the APP had an operating party in 47 states, in all but
Ohio, Illinois, and Indiana.
In
1978, California sent it’s first APP senator, Ronald Greer, to Washington, and
Arkansas elected future President William Clinton to the House of
Representatives. In total, there were 45 Congressmen and 2 Senators that
belonged to the APP in 1978. 7 states now boasted to have socialist majorities
in their legislatures, including Florida, Arkansas, and New York.
It
was during the 1970s that the APP membership among African American’s really
began to grow. After the split of the Democratic Party, the Southern Democrats
intimidated the reestablishment of the National Democrats in their states, so
many former Democrats who disagreed with the Southern Democratic Party began to
join the APP. Although the African Americans tended to vote for the National
Democrats in the Federal elections, they began to more and more identify with
the socialist organizations in their states, and in the 1980s and 1990s would
help catapult the APP into become one of the largest parties in the nation.
-Jennings, Dr. Karl. The
Rebirth of American Socialism: The Growth and Success of the APP. Los
Angeles: UCLA Academic Press, 2009.
KING WILL RUN IN 1980
WASHINGTON, NOV 12- Secretary of the Interior Martin L. King
has announced that he intends to run for the Presidency in next year’s
election. King has become a popular leader among the National Democrats and a
favorite among President Kennedy’s advisors. This announcement comes a week
after Republican Barry Goldwater announced his intention to run in the election
as well. Although it has not yet been announced, it is widely expected that the
Southern Democrats will again nominate Orval Faubus as their presidential
candidate. Some political analysts for the National Democrats fear that this
may detract votes away from King and give Goldwater the chance he would need to
win the Presidency.
There
is talk amongst National Democratic leaders to possibly change the party name
to distance themselves from the Southern Democrats, but as of yet there has
been no action on this issue.
-“King Will Run in 1980,” The New York Times, November 13, 1979.
The
Election of 1980, although technically consisting of three candidates, was
really just between Republican Barry Goldwater and Liberty Party candidate
Martin L. King, Jr. The Republican’s were supporting an entry into the Iran War
to help lower fuel prices that had begun to skyrocket in 1978. King and the Liberty Party countered
that getting involved in Iran would not be in the best interest of the American
people, and that they should not support the “imperialistic war of the Fascist
regime in Great Britain.”
At
the summer National Democratic Convention, the party officially voted to change
it’s name to the American Liberty Party, on August 2, 1980. Also that month,
the American People’s Party officially endorsed King as their choice for the
Presidency, since they were not nominating a candidate of their own to run. King
promised keeping the peace with Iran, increased integration efforts, and more
funding to the ASEA. In the end, King received 58% of the popular vote, with
Goldwater getting 32% and Faubus getting 10%.
However,
before the January inauguration, tragedy struck the President-elect. Armed men
stormed his home in Atlanta while he was at a meeting in Washington. The men
overwhelmed the secret service guards present and then killed King’s wife
Coretta King and 18-year-old daughter Bernice on December 3, 1980. The nation was shocked and appalled, and
there was a great backlash against the Southern Democrats and white supremacy.
Barry Goldwater was quoted in the Washington Post saying, “This dark and dirty
dead is not the work of civilized men but of monsters who, for some unknown
reason, seem to think that they are better than everyone else simply because
their skin is a little lighter than other people on this planet. Racism is the
single most lethal cancer known to mankind, and this tragedy proves it. My thoughts
and prayers are going out to our President-elect and his children.” The funeral
service was held at King’s church in Atlanta on December 9, 1980, and was
nationally televised.
SD
leader Orval Faubus positioned himself at the center of a very nasty firestorm
two days after the funeral when he remarked to a fellow member of Congress
that, “it is too bad that Martin wasn’t home on the 3rd as well.”
These comments ultimately led to Faubus being ejected from Congress before the
start of the 1981 session, and destroyed whatever credibility the Southern
Democrats had outside the South.
Martin
Luther King, Jr. was sworn in as President of the United States on January 20,
1981, becoming the United State’s first African American president.
-Johnson, Dr. Kyle. The
King Presidency, 1981-1985. New York, American Press Company: 2000.
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