The End of Freedom: The Ultimate Cost of the Great Depression

[Mechaman]

Also, African American turnout was high, even in the South.

This isn't possible, is it?

D'oh! (head slap)
Brb.

No it's not, I had a retard moment.

[Mechaman]

March 4, 1933: The Inauguration of William H. Murray



The president takes the podium and Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes administers the oath of office to president elect William H. Murray. Though he despises Murray, Hughes swallows his pride just this once to give the oath of office.

"I William H. Murray do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States of America, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States."

In his Inaugural Address William H. Murray would give the infamous "Black Tide" speech:

Fellow countrymen, today we have before us a most difficult objective: taking back our runaway economy from the three C's, as in the word "Crook": Corporations, Carpetbaggers, and Coons. These three have for long presented a clear and present danger to the efficiency and stability to our economy. It is our ignorance and our cowardness that has allowed these cruel villians to wreck havok upon our Great Economy, this Black Tide that has brought this nation to it's worst levels of unemployment in recent memory brought on by 12 years of Republican corporatism! This Black Tide, when left unchecked as it has in the 12 years of Republican rule, threatens the very fabric of American civilization. Those who speak out against it are demonized, called tyrants, for protecting the civility of the American majority from the immorality of an inferior minority. America, after 12 years of Republican heartlessness and decadence has not the legacy of men like Woodrow Wilson, men who fight for the preservation of American culture, been vindicated? No, not yet, for we have yet to accomplish what we came here to do: To restore America back to it's former glory as a world superpower! That is what we have come here to do today, to begin that great journey. God bless America.

Murray's speech, though filled with hateful racebaiting rhetoric, was met with thunderous applause from the crowd gathered at the podium. Such was the desperation of an era.
But even as confident and shrewd as Murray appeared, nothing could prepare him for what would happen next.

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

I sincere believe that Honorable Alfalfa Bill is an asshole.

[Southern Senator North Carolina Yankee]

Two quick things. The South never would have been competative at all. Period. All the ground Hoover had gained in 1928 would have been wiped out by the Depression.


Second. The Depression did not start on October 29, 1929. The Stock market crash was more then likely a sympton of an existing economic condition. But there is a debate among historians and economists as to whether the Depression was caused by the Crash or whether the Crash was caused by the Depression. One thing for sure is that 1929 was much like 2008 and the contraction likely started as early as the spring of 1929. Stocks had been volatile all summer much like the volatility that existed from Jan 2008 to Sept 2008. And it was the lackluster performance of GE's shares over the preceeding days with the first signs of trouble occurring on the 25th that triggered the crash on the 29th. Following the crash though, a Depression need not to have occured, especially if the Fed had stepped in to stablise the the system in particular the then uninusered bank deposits by increasing liquidity, something which the Fed had been pulling out of the market to the tune of 40% of the Currency in circulation leading up late 1929. Though I have recently read that the Fed was at the time restricted heavily by legislative mandated limits on the amount of Paper money that could be in circulation in relation to the gold reserves in connection with maintaing the gold standard. Whatever the case with so little money in the banks and the crash in consumer and investor confidence caused partly by the Crash, set off the run on the banks, which in turn set off the Depression as we have come to know it. Even still it wasn't till late 1930 to early 1931 that the Depression actually became a political issue.

Sorry for the nitpicking, just had to mention that. OTher then that it looks like a great TL.

[Mechaman]

Suddenly, a challenger appears:


Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt of New York, live radio broadcast May 15th, 1933

My fellow Americans, it is with a heavy heart that I speak with you today. As much as I wish to be optimistic of the future I truly can not. I cannot, with candor, tell you that all is well with the world. Clouds of suspicion, tides of ill-will and intolerance gather darkly in many places. In our own land we enjoy indeed a fullness of life greater than that of most nations. But the rush of modern civilization itself has raised for us new difficulties, new problems which must be solved if we are to preserve to the United States the political and economic freedom for which Washington and Jefferson planned and fought. This generation has a rendezvous with destiny, we can accept the situation as is and do nothing, or we can fight for true change. That is why today I announce the creation of a new political party, one that truly cares about the preservation of human rights and civil liberties and taking care of our nation's downtrodden. If you are of that heart, then the US Liberty Party is the home for you.

After FDR's announcement many northern Democrats would defect to the new Liberty Party, as well as some progressive Republicans. However, not a single one of them would come from the Solid Democratic South which at the moment seemed to hold by far the most political sway in the nation.

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

Go FDR, Kick Alfalfa Bill ass!

(I know it's not going to happen )

[Mechaman]

Two quick things. The South never would have been competative at all. Period. All the ground Hoover had gained in 1928 would have been wiped out by the Depression.


Second. The Depression did not start on October 29, 1929. The Stock market crash was more then likely a sympton of an existing economic condition. But there is a debate among historians and economists as to whether the Depression was caused by the Crash or whether the Crash was caused by the Depression. One thing for sure is that 1929 was much like 2008 and the contraction likely started as early as the spring of 1929. Stocks had been volatile all summer much like the volatility that existed from Jan 2008 to Sept 2008. And it was the lackluster performance of GE's shares over the preceeding days with the first signs of trouble occurring on the 25th that triggered the crash on the 29th. Following the crash though, a Depression need not to have occured, especially if the Fed had stepped in to stablise the the system in particular the then uninusered bank deposits by increasing liquidity, something which the Fed had been pulling out of the market to the tune of 40% of the Currency in circulation leading up late 1929. Though I have recently read that the Fed was at the time restricted heavily by legislative mandated limits on the amount of Paper money that could be in circulation in relation to the gold reserves in connection with maintaing the gold standard. Whatever the case with so little money in the banks and the crash in consumer and investor confidence caused partly by the Crash, set off the run on the banks, which in turn set off the Depression as we have come to know it. Even still it wasn't till late 1930 to early 1931 that the Depression actually became a political issue.

Sorry for the nitpicking, just had to mention that. OTher then that it looks like a great TL.

Thanks.

I had a retard moment on the South, pretty much I forgot that Al Smith was Catholic.
Point taken on the Great Depression.

[aaaa2222]

Go FDR, Kick Alfalfa Bill ass!

(I know it's not going to happen )

[Antonio the Sixth]

Awful...

[Mechaman]

The New Society



Once in office, Murray set about instituting a package of government programs which he referred to as the New Society. In it's infancy it was just a number of economic stimulus bills passed through Congress to encourage people to reinvest into the American economy. There was also significant banking reform, by 1935 the entire American banking system had been nationalized as a government takeover of private banks began. At first there was stiff resistance to this plan, many saying that the Nationalized Banking Bill was a violation of Constitutional principles. In response President Murray (as he did in Oklahoma) would send the National Guard to quell strife among the nation's banks and put them under federal control. President Murray called upon the National Guard more than any president except Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War.
Also included in the New Society were government works programs to get unemployed Americans to work in creating and improving infrastructure around the country that had become mismanaged since the beginning of the Great Depression.
Force had become the president's policy to make sure his objectives went through. A condition he had demanded be put into any and all economic recovery bills passed at the time was that if the receivers of the bill violated any of the major clauses of the bill, depending on the severity (severity would be determined by a joint IRS-Fed court that presides over all such cases):

Minor Offense: $5,000 fine or 30 days in jail.
Notable Offense: 90% tax levied on all monies received from the government, as well as an annual "penalty tax" of 5% (at the time top bracket income earners had income tax of 63%, by 1941 it would be 81%) added onto the income tax of all offending parties and a five month jail sentence for "main offenders".
Major Offense: Full government takeover of entity (seizure of all assets, liability, and owner's equity) and lifetime jail sentence and in some cases even the death penalty.

Due to Murray's excessive use of the National Guard to enforce the New Society Program, very few major offenses occured. The most major offense that occured during the first four years of the New Society Program was that of Texaco Oil Company in October 1938. It was discovered that Texaco had been supplying Nationalist rebels in the Spanish Civil War with over 3.5 million barrels and that federal money had been used to bribe government officials to look the otherway while Texaco sent 3.5 million barrels overseas to Spain under the guise of a "relief effort". Texaco had also sold the barrels at a discount rate, paying off the losses with government money but on the tax returns they claimed to have spent their own cash on. The government would take complete control of Texaco (and in the process would own a significant portion of the oil and gas industry) and 5 members of the Texaco Board of Directors would be given life sentences. The Government takeover of the American Economy was becoming almost inevitable.

What was most surprising about Murray's administration, however, was the lack of pro segregation policies he pushed forth in his first four years as president. In fact the administration was so handsoff on the whole segregation issue that as one comedian put it: "The Three C's of Corruption are: Corporations, Carpetbaggers, and Coons!" "Coons? As in ns?" "No you egghead I mean racoons! Can't you see how racoons help make our economy more inefficient and immoralize our society!?"
What people didn't understand then was that Murray was setting the stage for something much worse than nationwide segregation.....................

Next Entry: Early Resistance to President Murray

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

I have a feeling that a lot of people will be executed in this timeline

[Mechaman]

The Noble Opposition:



Although President Murray had widespread popularity all around the nation due to his "first 100 days" that generated a host of economic reform legislation, there were a few vocal critics of his administration, even from day one.

The first of these adversaries (and in hindsight some would say his biggest adversary) would be New York Governor Franklin Delano Roosevelt,



 the man who in early 1932 was the heavy favorite to win the Democratic nomination for president. However, due to the insurgent populist campaign of Murray as well as the surprise resurgence of former New York Governor and 1928 Democratic Presidential Nominee Alfred E. Smith, FDR suddenly found himself fighting tooth and nail to win primaries in states that he was favored to win heavily. However his hopes of higher office became dashed when an unknown source revealed to the media that FDR was wheelchair bound due to complications brought on by what doctors believed to be polio. As a result the Tammany Hall Machine, who was giving Smith full backing, released political ads in every major newspaper in the US that asked the question "Can you trust a cripple to save our crippled economy?" The results were devastating for Roosevelt, who didn't even get one hundred votes on the Presidential ballot at the Democratic National Convention. Despite his poor showing, Roosevelt refused to turn over his delegates to either Smith or Murray, Smith because of personal animosity and Murray because of his support of segregation.

After the Democratic National Convention FDR would remain oddly quiet throughout the whole general election, instead focusing on his own reelection to the office of Governor. He would win reelection with 58.91% of the popular vote, it seemed that despite the controversy surrounding his illness he benefitted more from riding on the coattails of Murray's landslide victory in the Presidential Election.

After Murray was elected on March 4th, 1933, FDR was still oddly quiet. There had been rumors that he was meeting with numerous northern Democrats and Republicans at his home in Hyde Park, New York, but of what the president had little time or concern for after all he had an economy to "save". Then on the evening of May 15th, 1933 in a nationwide live radio broadcast heard in every major city in the US FDR announced that he (along with other northern Democrats and a few Republicans) had formed a new party called the "Liberty Party", a party that advocated civil liberties and civil rights while supporting welfare for the sick, elderly, and poor:



FDR's announcement was a shocker to many in the political establishment since such a party would likely lure progressives from both parties to join.

That meant that President Murray's social legislation would have to be put on hold, for now. If he just focuses enough on fixing the economy through massive government intervention it should be enough to get liberal Democrats back into the party and further discredit Roosevelt and make him look like he's on an ego trip. By the time unemployment goes back down to 12%, the Liberty Party will look like a big joke.

However, although the economy was gradually getting better than it was in the last two years of Hoover, unemployment was still over 18% come October 1934. Although overall employment improved the failure of the Murray and the Democratic controlled Congress to dramatically improve the economy from where it was two years ago made a number of voters in the north disillusioned and as a result the Democrats lost a number of House and Senate seats to threaten their mandate, and Roosevelt managed to win reelection to Governor of New York. It seemed as though Murray would have to resort to more drastic measures to get Roosevelt "out of the way".

After having a private investigator research Roosevelt's past Murray found a few interesting items:

1) In the 1910's FDR was engaged in numerous affairs outside of marriage, including one with his wife Eleanor's social secretary Lucy Mercer. The affair almost devastated his family, and had the potential to destroy the Roosevelt family's influence in the northeast.


Lucy Mercer, FDR's infamous mistress.

2) In 1919 he helped the Irish Republican Army get around export laws for shipping arms used against British troops in the Irish War of Independence, Britain was America's ally at the time.


As Assistant Secretary of the Navy, Roosevelt secretly helped the Irish Republican Army get around export laws for shipping arms to use against British troops.

The first item would be good for a news item, but seeing as how Roosevelt and his wife reconciled and that it happened almost more than 15 years ago it wouldn't be good enough to qualify even as a scandal. The second one however...........could be very damning to FDR. Although New York had a powerful Irish minority that sympathizes with the Irish Republic, surely they would not condone an act that would be considered an act of treason against an ally. At the very least he could fact impeachment proceedings, if not jail.

On June 18th, 1935, FDR would be brought to federal court over his involvement with the IRA at the time without the US government's consent, the charge brought against him is "treason". The proceedings had been going just as Murray had hoped for until FDR took the stand and made his own defense:

Gentlemen, I do not deny any of the facts presented here today. The fact is I did advise IRA members on how to work around our export laws to get arms back to Ireland to fight the British, who were our allies at the time. I do not deny that this act was a betrayal of the British trust in our alliance, however I wholeheartedly disagree that my actions were an act of "treason" against our government. If you are going to throw me in jail for giving IRA members advice on how to take advantage of trade laws you might as well arrest all of the corrupt cats who run Tammany Hall who sent the IRA hundreds of thousands of dollars in aid! Why are they not on trial? Tell me your honour where is Tammany Hall? If you are going to charge me with treason for putting my allegiance to the people of this nation over that of it's government, then your honour I plea guilty. I however, refuse the title "traitor".

Despite FDR's lack of evidence, the jury reached a verdict of "not guilty". It seemed as if though no matter how hard Murray tried to get rid of FDR, he always came back stronger than ever. It seemed as though attempts at getting FDR impeached were nigh impossible, so Murray would have to go to the deepest darkest part of his soul and get FDR "out of the way" for good without turning him into a martyr.................

[Mechaman]

Breaking News July 8th, 1935: New York Governor Franklin Delano Roosevelt shot multiple times by suspected Chicago Outfit hitman.



Yesterday afternoon while at a public appearance in Central Park, Governor Franklin Delano Roosevelt of New York was shot 4 times in the torso and abdomen by suspected Nitti hitman Giuseppe Zangara. As of late the Liberty Party Governor has taken a more aggressive stance on rooting out organized crime in the nation's biggest city. Despite warnings not to organize any public appearances this week due to numerous death threats his office has received, Governor Roosevelt showed up in Central Park yesterday afternoon at 1:30 to give a speech over the need for political reform in New York City's local government that many saw as a subtle jab at the Tammany Hall Machine that has opposed Roosevelt since he got elected to office in 1929. It is unknown as of this writing the physical condition of Roosevelt.

[Mechaman]

New York Times July 12th, 1935:

In a testament to his sheer will and strength Governor Franklin Delano Roosevelt has survived the attempt on his life 4 days ago. Although it is unlikely that Roosevelt will die from his injuries, a stray bullet that hit his spinal cord has left him a comatose state with no short term hope of recovery. Therefore, since the governor of New York has been incapacitated to a point of inactivity, the New York State Government has no choice but to swear in Lieutenant Governor Herbert H. Lehman (Democrat) as Governor of New York.


New York Lieutenant Governor Herbert H. Lehman, a Democratic Party loyalist, would become acting governor of New York on July 12th, 1935 after Liberty Party Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt falls into a deep coma.

[Scam of God]

Lovely. Please continue this to its finish; it's one of the best (and worst, from a national perspective) timelines I've ever seen.

I hope FDR pulls through.

[Sewer]

Lovely. Please continue this to its finish; it's one of the best (and worst, from a national perspective) timelines I've ever seen.

I hope FDR pulls through.

[Mechaman]

The Tammany Opposition



Another thorn in Murray's side during his first four years as president was the Tammany Hall Machine of New York City:



For almost a century the Tammany Hall Machine has helped create a unique Democratic animal in New York City that has most of it's appeal with urban European minorities, especially Irish Roman Catholics. It is the power of this latter group that has long disturbed William Murray due to their tendency towards liberal politics as well as an irrational fear that such a group would "heed the Pope's beck and call". Tammany Hall was also responsible for the horrenduous electoral defeat that the Democratic Party suffered in 1928, Alfred Smith was the only Democrat to ever lose the state of Texas. As long as the Tammany Hall faction existed, whether it was in the Democratic Party or not, it presented a grave threat to the continued survival of South's dominance on the national stage and must be eliminated.

In the end the solution was perhaps the greatest outcome President Murray could've ever come up with that involved killing two birds with one stone:


Breaking News: Tammany Hall Bosses implicated in plot to assasinate former Governor Franklin Delano Roosevelt of New York.


March 8th, 1936, New York City: Last night at 6:35PM EST one of the largest joint law enforcement operations in history between the New York City Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation raided Tammany Hall based off of information that Tammany Hall and the Nitti Family of Chicago had collectively planned the assasination attempt of comatose former Governor Franklin Delano Roosevelt of New York. The Tammany Hall Bosses (former Governor Al Smith, a boss, in above picture) viruently deny having anything to do with the attempt on Roosevelt's life. Over 300 Tammany Hall members have been thrown into jail in connection with the assasination attempts as well as over 500 counts of extortion, bribery, racketering, conspiracy fraud, theft, and now murder.

New York Times July 11th, 1936
"We are no murderers!" former Governor Smith says


Today at New York City Hall 4 months into the extremely controversial and profilific case of the People of New York vs. Tammany Hall saw an extremely emotional plea from Tammany Hall Boss Alfred E. Smith, former governor of New York, claiming that Tammany Hall was set up by inside operatives for the attempted assasination of former Governor Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Despite overwhelming evidence, none of the 25 Tammany Hall Bosses on trial will admit to being part of the conspiracy to kill Roosevelt.

New York Times July 18th, 1936
"The Verdict is: GUILTY", 300 Tammany Hall members sentenced to life in prison for grand scheme in widespread fraud, extortion, theft, conspiracy, collusion with criminal elements, and murder


Today the Federal Court of New York, after receiving a unanimous "guilty" verdict from the jury, sentenced over 300 Tammany Hall members to life imprisonment sentences on over 1,025 counts of mass extortion, fraud, theft, conspiracy, collusion with criminal elements, disenfranchisement, and last of all, murder. The ruling is bound to be legendary, never before in the history of US law has such a enormous verdict been passed, and Tammany Hall Boss Alfred E. Smith becomes the first former US Governor to receive a life imprisonment sentence. It has met much criticism already for some people seeing it as "way too excessive" to give over 300 men life sentences in one case. President Murray praised the court's decision, saying that "justice has truly been served at New York City Hall.

[Antonio the Sixth]

OMG This Murray is really crazy... I however wonder how the Congress made his bills pass, even though it's dominated by deomcrats.

Excellent, please continue this.

[Mechaman]

OMG This Murray is really crazy... I however wonder how the Congress made his bills pass, even though it's dominated by deomcrats.

Excellent, please continue this.

Three words: "Great", "Depression" and "Fear"

Like Roosevelt he had a hardon for economic interventionism, however unlike Roosevelt who parlayed a spirit of optimism and said "we have nothing to fear but fear itself" Murray would exploit the fears of the populace one hundredfold to pressure Congress to pass legislation (that and his excessive use of the National Guardsmen, and just wait till you see what happens to the Supreme Court after the election of 1936 ).

Also, despite the leaving of quite a few northern Democrats to the new Liberty Party, there were still quite a few (even in Tammany controlled New York) Democrats left in the northeast who were loyal to the national party. Also, the Liberty Party was semi-left of centre on economics, in fact the party itself was divided on the nationalization of banks, the LaFollette wing wholeheartedly opposed it outright due to what they perceived as an "act of coersion" by the state, while the Roosevelt wing supported it minus the use of the National Guard to enforce it constantly. Therefore there were a few Liberty senators and representatives who voted for it. Even a few progressive Republicans voted for bank nationalization in this desperate environment.

Sometime when I'm not too busy with other details of this timeline I shall show the voting records on some of the major New Society legislation. I'll be honest, I'm not the best at describing alternative reality legislation results.

[Antonio the Sixth]

OMG This Murray is really crazy... I however wonder how the Congress made his bills pass, even though it's dominated by deomcrats.

Excellent, please continue this.

Three words: "Great", "Depression" and "Fear"

Like Roosevelt he had a hardon for economic interventionism, however unlike Roosevelt who parlayed a spirit of optimism and said "we have nothing to fear but fear itself" Murray would exploit the fears of the populace one hundredfold to pressure Congress to pass legislation (that and his excessive use of the National Guardsmen, and just wait till you see what happens to the Supreme Court after the election of 1937 ).

Waiting for that...

[Mechaman]

Before I forget:

The Election of 1936:

Republican Party

Despite gaining back seats due to the Democrats failing to dramatically lower the unemployment rate, the Republican Party found itself in shambles. Between March 1935 and Christmas the economy had made an enormous recovery, going from an unemployment rate of 19.32% on March 12th to 9.7% on December 8th, 1935. American confidence in the economy had never be higher and the Murray administration's tough law and order stances on organized crime and the end to the corrupt Tammany Hall Machine of New York City forever restored American confidence in government. They had hoped to capitalize on the schism that occured in 1933 within the Democratic Party that led to the formation of the Liberty Party, but now it seemed as though the Liberty Party would be headed the way of the Dodo as many politicians headed back to the Mothership known as the Democratic Party due to the popular mandate of President William Murray. The best the GOP could hope for is that they are still alive by 1940, so it would be best to minimize their overall losses even if it means nominating the most boring candidates on the face of God's Green Earth.
The GOP leadership already knew that the year would be a major loss for them, so quite a few major GOP front runners decided to stay out that year. However, they would have to pick someone who is nonthreatening and has a moderate record so as to minimize inevitable losses in Congress. In the end the Republican National Convention nominated:

Republican Party Ticket:

President:

 
Senator Frederick Hale of Maine

Vice President:



Governor Alfred Landon of Kansas

Upon seeing the results of the GOP convention Murray would ask his friends who were with him if the GOP would even bother campaigning or are they just trying to give off the impression they aren't a paper tiger?

The Liberty Party Ticket

Due to the resurgence in popularity of the Murray administration, as well as it's mass arrest of the corrupt Tammany Hall Machine for it's involvement in the failed FDR assasination attempt, many Liberty politicians jump back to the Democratic side. However, quite a few also stay in the Liberty Party as a protest against the president's excessive us of force to get his agenda done. The numbers of the party have gone down so much that only two members appeared on the ballot: US Senator Robert M. LaFollette Jr. of Wisconsin and Massachusetts Governor Joseph P. Kennedy. The Convention would vote in majority to nominate LaFollette as it's presidential nominee and Kennedy as it's vice presidential nominee. However, unlike the GOp ticket the Liberty Party had nothing to lose and began an active campaign that attacked the president's violations of civil liberties, excessive use of the force to accomplish it's objectives, and opposition to government nationalization of key industries.

Liberty Party Presidential Ticket

President:



US Senator Robert LaFollette Jr.

Vice President:



Massachusetts Governor Joseph P. Kennedy

Next Entry: General Election '36

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

When you goodle "Alfalfa Bill", you can see a few funny photos of TTL US President:

http://www.life.com/image/72400265

http://www.life.com/image/72400270

(sorry, Mech, I had to post it)

[Mechaman]

When you goodle "Alfalfa Bill", you can see a few funny photos of TTL US President:

http://www.life.com/image/72400265

http://www.life.com/image/72400270

(sorry, Mech, I had to post it)

Yeah I noticed that.
Those pictures will actually come in hand later

Once this election is over and I proceed into the second term of Alfalfa Bill, the sh*t is really REALLY going to hit the fan.

[Scam of God]

More!

[Mechaman]

More!

Working on it as we speak.
These next few updates will blow your f***ing mind (the election will be kind of boring, I just felt it necessary to include the 1936 election because afterall, this is an election what if scenario).