Barry Goldwater Wins The 1964 Presidential Election

[Zyobot]

With the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Great Society programs, and a cooperative Congress to his name, incumbent Pr'esident Lyndon B. Johnson won reelection by a landslide in the 1964 election. A whopping 61.1% of the popular vote and 486 out of 538 electoral votes went to the 6'3 Texan Democrat who had a history of cajoling his colleagues and coercing them into getting what he wanted. What a U-turn it must've been for him to withdraw from the subsequent race in 1968.

But what if things had turned out differently? What if instead of LBJ securing his first full term, his Republican opponent--the low-tax, small-government named Barry Goldwater--won the White House on November 3rd, 1964 and was sworn in as President of the United States the following year?

Thank you in advance,
Zyobot

[insect]

Zyobot , For Goldwater to have won the 64 election some serious bats must of went into space. Maybe if JFk. survives and it comes out he had affair with a mobsters girl and Marlyn Monroe or Bobby baker scandal engulfs Johnson. If the g.o.p put up William Scranton they may of had a chance. 1980 under Reagan America Was ready for conservatism.

Any how Goldwater presidency in 1965-

America goes  into a more libertarian  direction. if Goldwater gets us into Vietnam expect a Humphrey  anti war  run in 68.

[Zyobot]

Aug 13, 2019 0:55:00 GMT insect said:

Zyobot , For Goldwater to have won the 64 election some serious bats must of went into space. Maybe if JFk. survives and it comes out he had affair with a mobsters girl and Marlyn Monroe or Bobby baker scandal engulfs Johnson. If the g.o.p put up William Scranton they may of had a chance. 1980 under Reagan America Was ready for conservatism.

Any how Goldwater presidency in 1965-

America goes  into a more libertarian  direction. if Goldwater gets us into Vietnam expect a Humphrey  anti war  run in 68.

Could B. Goldwater have stood more of a chance if he abandoned (or at least, downplayed) his opposition to civil rights legislation and more virulently railed against the Vietnam War with the campaign promise of getting America out of it, do you think? As far as I'm aware, his relative silence on the latter certainly hurt his chances of becoming President.

Further, if by some means he did win in 1964, what sort of agenda would he likely implement that makes America more libertarian? And would the Republican Party trend in that direction as well, rather than a more traditionally right-wing one?

[insect]

Vietnam did not get unpopular until Johnson won the 64 election. Goldwater won many southern stead because of his opposition to civil rights bill. he believed in states rights.
If Johnson did something illegal maybe Goldwater would have a chance. If elected he wouldn't fund Medicare. social security. McGovern had the same problem but on the other hand of the political spectrum.

[Zyobot]

Aug 14, 2019 2:30:28 GMT insect said:

Vietnam did not get unpopular until Johnson won the 64 election. Goldwater won many southern stead because of his opposition to civil rights bill. he believed in states rights.
If Johnson did something illegal maybe Goldwater would have a chance. If elected he wouldn't fund Medicare. social security. McGovern had the same problem but on the other hand of the political spectrum.

Ah. That clarifies a number of things. Could Goldwater have sacrificed an appeal to Southern states in exchange for looking to the rest of the country, meaning at least downplaying his opposition to civil rights legislation?

I might know the answer I'll get already, but I had to ask nevertheless. Barry G. strikes me as the kind of candidate who didn't have as much of a platform to start out with, which would bring him down when facing off against an incumbent President LBJ, who had quite a few accomplishments to his name.

[insect]

Read Goldwater's book conscience of a conservative.