What if JFK lived and won reelection in 1964? Who would be President today?
1965
US forces begin pullout from Vietnam.
Kennedy Administration passes major social reforms, called The Really Good Society.
Bob Packwood, businessman in the Beaver State, begins writing a diary.
1966
US completes Vietnam withdrawal on March 2. Saigon falls on March 3.
Military draft ends. Selective Service registration to continue for one more year.
U.S.S. Mayaguez is captured & briefly held by Cambodia.
1968
Riding on economic boom, VP Lyndon Johnson & Sen. Hubert H. Humphrey (D-MN) win landslide over former VP Richard Nixon & Gov. Spiro Agnew (R-MD). Nixon declares he will forevermore be unavailable.
Despite the hype, rock & roll concert on upstate NY farm attracts little attention. Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin join Peace Corps. Pat Boone's latest album goes platinum.
Newark, New Jersey and the Watts section of Los Angeles are commended by HUD as prime examples of urban renewal.
1969
Martin Luther King Jr. elected Senator from Georgia; is 1st black ever elected to Senate.
Robert F. Kennedy becomes Senate Majority Leader, succeeding Hubert Humphrey, who resigns to become Vice President.
Frustrated by unflattering news reports, Humphrey calls the press the nattering nabobs of negativism and accuses them of being pusillanimous pussyfooters.
Neil Armstrong becomes 1st person to play golf on the moon. He shoots 2 over par.
1970
Stock market slumps as does Johnson's approval rating.
Federal budget is in the red for the 1st time since WWII.
Johnson establishes Environmental Protection Agency. Morris Udall (D-AZ) becomes its Administrator.
Former President Harry S Truman receives the Medal of Freedom.
1972
Economy improves. Johnson looks like shoe-in for reelection.
Sen. Eugene McCarthy (D-MN), running for President as independent, splits Democratic vote. Sen. Howard Baker (R-TN) and Rep. John Anderson (R-IL) are elected President and Vice President, ending 12 years of Democratic rule. Democrats add to their majority in the Senate and retain control of the House.
Rep. Gerald R. Ford (R-MI) becomes House Minority leader.
1973
Texas millionaire Ross Perot is fined $5 million and gets suspended jail sentence for falsifying records to effect Wall Street takeover.
Supreme Court rules that state laws restricting abortion are unconstitutional. President Baker introduces legislation in Congress to outlaw abortion, but bill never makes it out of committee.
Campaign of Richard Nixon, attempting to unseat Calif. Gov. Ronald Reagan, are accused of burglarizing Reagan campaign headquarters. Nixon denies any wrongdoing.
1975
Beatles celebrate 11th year in US with appearance on new TV show, Saturday Night Live.
Marilyn Monroe wins Oscar for Best Actress in Gentlemen Prefer Wide Neckties.
1976
Ending 4 years of unremarkable GOP rule, Gov. Robert Kennedy (D-NY) and Rep. Mo Udall are elected to the White House.
Kennedy's older brother, former President John Kennedy, dies on Cape Cod from complications of Addison's disease at age 59. He is eulogized by his youngest brother, Senator Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA).
National Academy of Sciences declares that wide neckties, extra wide lapels, bellbottoms and muttonchop sideburns may cause cancer. Quiana is declared an endangered species.
1979
President Kennedy narrowly escapes 2 assassination attempts by followers of Charles Manson.
Interest rates & inflation, lowest in 15 years, rise due to sharp increases in oil prices.
Kennedy creates Dept. of Energy and splits HEW into Dept. of HHS and Dept. of Education.
1980
Kennedy/Udall reelected with the help of Elvis, Jim Morrison and radio icon Don Imus. Democrats gain 60-seat majority in Senate.
Space Station Freedom completed by shuttle fleet. NASA begins planning lunar colony.
National health insurance takes effect.
1983
US completes negotiations on free trade agreement with Mexico, Canada and Quebec, though the French republic threatens to pull out if unallowed to tax imports of rich, heavy sauces and smelly cheese.
1984
Beatles' 20th anniversary tour interrupted when scaffolding collapse ignites Ringo's hair.
85% of District of Columbia becomes 51st state, called New Columbia. President Kennedy holds signing ceremony at DuPont Circle.
Republican Gov. Caroll Campbell (SC)/Nancy Kassebaum (KS) ticket defeats Democratic Gov. Jimmy Carter (GA)/Birch Bayh (ID) in presidential election. Democratic hopes are dashed when Gov. Carter asserts that Eastern Europe isn't dominated by the Soviet Union. Kassebaum is 1st woman Vice President.
1987
Dow Jones hits record 3,000 mark on October 12.
GOP makes significant gains in House. Senate falls into GOP hands for 1st time in more than 4 decades, but Democrats regain control 2 years later. Bob Dole (R-KS) becomes Majority Leader.
1988
Crises in Iran, Afghanistan and Iraq rock Campbell Administration. American and foreign hostages are taken by Iranian militants and held for 2 weeks at American embassy in Tehran, until freed by Israeli commando raid.
Oil prices soar, fueling inflation and interest rates. Gas rationing becomes necessary.
Internal party challenge from former Gov. Reagan almost wrests GOP nomination from incumbent president. Almost matches bitter primary fight between Sen. Edward Kennedy and little-known Democratic governor from Arkansas.
Election becomes deadlocked for 1st time in American history. House of Representatives hands White House keys to Kennedy and running mate, Sen. Albert Gore, Jr. (D-TN).
1990
Constitutional amendment to scrap electoral college fails to garner approval by 2/3 of the states, but wins a clear majority. Despite Kennedy's popularity, public is still uneasy about the House choosing the President.
Eastern Europe frees itself from USSR without bloodshed. President Kennedy sends Jimmy Carter to Moscow as envoy.
Albania declares war on itself, citing unpronounceable names and insufficient sheep. Despite being dead for 2 years, Chairman Enver Hoxha (pronounced Wvrsthlt Cklbnrtz) retains complete control.
HHS Sec'y Jesse Jackson says poverty, homelessness and illiteracy are at all-time lows.
Radio personality Rush Limbaugh replaces Johnny Carson as host of The Tonight Show.
1992
Press reports surface of affair between President Kennedy and singer/actress Madonna. Madonna cancels Saturday Night Live appearance at which the President is scheduled to attend.
Citing 20 year old back injury, Kennedy declines to run for 2nd term.
NYC Mayor Mario Cuomo threatens, but declines to run for Dem. nomination. Vice President Gore and Texas Gov. Ann Richards handily defeat GOP Gov. Guy Hunt (AL) and former Sec'y of Treasury Lynn Martin in general election. Is 1st time 2 women oppose each other in a national election.
Soviet Union collapses, with former republics becoming independent states. Half the states declare war on the other half, but are foiled upon discovering that all ammunition has been stolen and resold on the black market.
Aquittal of 5 LA police officers of excessively beating Hassidic motorist precipitates widespread Jewish rioting in Beverly Hills and Westwood.
1993
President Gore signs as witness for comprehensive peace settlement in Middle East.
At US urging, Biodiversity Treaty is expanded and enforced. Naugas are added to the endangered species list.
Heavily Democratic Congress passes Freedom of Choice Act. Christian Coalition files suit, but Supreme Court refuses to hear the case. Coalition founder Rev. Pat Robertson quits, saying he is really a woman trapped in a man's body.
Sen. Bob Packwood (R-OR) completes diary begun in 1965.
Replacing retiring Supreme Court Justice Byron White, President Gore appoints Professor Anita Hill. Hill is the 2nd woman and 1st black woman on the Court.
Sen. Strom Thurmond (R-SC), Sen. Sam Nunn (D-GA), Rep. Bob Dornan (R-CA) and singer Michael Jackson are caught in compromising position with Senate page boys. All 3 legislators resign in disgrace.
