A long time ago (in internet terms) in a place far away (Myspace), there was a group similar to this one. Someone posted a picture of Frank Sinatra, and captioned it “36th President of the United States. This scenario began to take shape for me: -January, 1960. After a huge fundraiser at the Sands in Las Vegas, John and Robert Kennedy hear out a rant by Frank Sinatra about how New Jersey would benefit from legalized gambling. They half kiddingly say he should run for governor. He takes them seriously. -September, 1960. Realizing that Sinatra is serious about running for governor, and what he could do to their campaign if upset, the Kennedys promise him their endorsement in the 1961 New Jersey gubernatorial race. -November, 1961. With the endorsement of JFK and heavy union support, Frank Sinatra is elected governor of New Jersey. -January 1, 1963. Legalized casino gambling begins in Atlantic City. -October, 1963. Fidel and Raul Castro are killed in a coup assisted by the CIA and the Mafia. Huber Matos is released from prison and becomes the provisional President of Cuba. -November, 1963. FBI and Secret Service agents, acting on information provided by the new Cuban government, arrest Lee Harvey Oswald on charges of plotting to kill the President of the United States. -November, 1964. In a sharply fought yet rhetorically divisive election, John F. Kennedy narrowly defeats Barry Goldwater and is re-elected President. The heavy gambling by delegates at the Atlantic City convention is an issue, which backfires on the Republicans as Democrats nationwide begin to move towards the legalization of casinos. -November, 1965. Governor Sinatra is re-elected in New Jersey by a wide margin. -1966. President Kennedy sharply escalates the US presence in Vietnam. Defense Secretary MacNamara insists on close control of American forces in Vietnam and worldwide. Meanwhile, the strength and militancy of the “New Left” continues to build on US campi. -June, 1967. The intelligence gathering ship USS Liberty is sunk with all hands in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. The Kennedy Administration demands an apology and reparations from the Egyptian government, which denies responsibility for the attack. -November, 1967. Admiral Thomas Moorer, the Chief of Naval Operations, resigns and announces that the Liberty was sunk by the Israelis. He accuses Secretary MacNamara of ordering the recall of F-4 Phantom fighters dispatched to protect the Liberty during the course of the attack. -December, 1967. The Israeli newspaper Haaretz confirms through Israeli Navy sources that the Liberty was inadvertently sunk by IDF forces after being mistaken for an Egyptian vessel. -January, 1968. The Liberty Affair is investigated by a US Senate committee. Senator Sam Ervin expands his investigation to include the micromanagement of US forces in Vietnam. Barry Goldwater announces his candidacy for the Presidency and declares that his choice for VP will be Admiral Moorer. Attorney General Kennedy, in an effort to divert attention, seeks the indictment of a number of Mafia officials, including key lieutenants in New York’s “Five Families”. -February, 1968. Embattled Defense Secretary MacNamara is forced to resign. The Ervin Committee finds that a cabal of Administration officials, including Vice President Johnson and Attorney General Kennedy as well as MacNamara, negatively impacted the conduct of the war through micromanagement. -March, 1968. Governor Sinatra announces his candidacy for President of the United States. -March, 1968. In a secret meeting at the Watergate Hotel in Washington, Clyde Tolson (representing J. Edgar Hoover) and representatives of the organized crime Commission reach a deal. The FBI will aid the Sinatra campaign and ignore the activities of the Commission in return for exemption for Hoover from federal retirement regulations if Sinatra is elected. The Commission will agree to stay out of the drug trade and will assist in the monitoring of radical groups, will set up Sam Giancana to be arrested and convicted, and turn over to Hoover certain photographic negatives of a personal nature. -April 4, 1968. A gunman shoots at Martin Luther King, Jr. in Memphis, TN. He misses as King turns at the last second to answer a question from an aide (who turns out to be a former Chicago numbers runner affiliated with Anthony Accardo’s organization). -July, 1968. Mayor Richard Daley of Chicago endorses Governor Sinatra for the Presidency. FBI agents in the COINTELPRO program discover a plot by SDS leaders to disrupt the Chicago convention. Attorney General Kennedy refuses to authorize arrests on the grounds that the plot was discovered illegally and the evidence questionable. He admits to confidants that he is hoping for a disruption that will embarrass Daley. -August, 1968. Jerry Rubin and Abbie Hoffman are killed by a car bomb in a Chicago suburb. John Froines, David Dellinger, and Tom Hayden are arrested when Madison, WI police, acting on an anonymous tip, find ten pounds of heroin, seven pounds of LSD, numerous blocks of C-4, and plans to the Chicago convention center in a house where they are meeting. -The Democratic National Convention in Chicago proceeds in an atmosphere of disorganized peaceful demonstrations effectively contained by the Chicago police department. On the first ballot, Governor Sinatra of New Jersey narrowly defeats Attorney General Kennedy, who has been damaged during recent weeks by revelations concerning his personal life and his veto of the arrest of the SDS leaders. Senator John Stennis of Mississippi, a prominent member of the Ervin Committee, is Sinatras choice as a running mate. -September, 1968. The Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr appears with Governor Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis, Jr, in Newark, endorsing him for the Presidency. This effectively blunts inroads Senator Goldwater had been making on the black vote by focusing on Senator Stennis and rumored racist statements by Sinatra. -October, 1968. During a debate, Governor Sinatra announces his intent to appoint a commission to review the Vietnam War and recommend general strategy which the military will be allowed to follow without excessive political meddling. He announces that Senator Stennis will chair this commission and that Senator Goldwater and Admiral Moorer will be invited to be a part of it. Post-election polls show that this move defuses the war issue, making Sinatra seem no more dovish than Goldwater, who has advocated a simpler win-or-get-out strategy. Both candidates have promised to end the draft by 1971. -November, 1968. Narrowly winning Arkansas and Ohio, and winning by a disputed vote count in Illinois, Governor Sinatra is elected with 273 electoral votes to Senator Goldwaters 232. Governor Wallace received 33.
Posted on: Fri, 25 Apr 2014 15:52:14 +0000
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