Could 2016 end up something like 1964?

[MineralMan]

I'm beginning to think it might be. Many DUers may not remember that election, but I sure as hell do. The Republicans were seriously divided during the primary elections, and a very unlikely candidate ended up being the nominee. Barry Goldwater was an outside shot, but ended up with the nomination.

It was a disaster for the GOP. The final electoral vote count was 486 to 52 for LBJ. Goldwater was just too far out of the Republican mainstream. He had no chance. Maybe no Republican could have won, but Goldwater lost spectacularly. He won only Arizona and a few states in the Deep South. Here's a quick summary of that year's election:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_presidential_election,_1964

We don't have an assassination of a favorite President this year, so the win won't be that large, probably. Still, the elements are in place for a massive landslide for Hillary Clinton. Donald Trump is easily as wacky as Goldwater, albeit in different ways.

Still, we're going to have to GOTV hard to get Clinton a massive victory.

I'm for doing just that. How about you all?

GOTV 2016 for a landslide victory!

[gademocrat7]

1. Count me in.

[MineralMan]

3. I will. Thanks!

Interestingly, the Republican Convention in 1964 was a raucous affair, much like this year's convention. Despite winning only a few primaries in large states, Goldwater won the nomination going away. The battle was between the conservative and traditional wings of the GOP, and the conservatives won.

They were far out of touch with the American voter, though. I hope a similar thing happens this year.

[JustAnotherGen]

2. My mom sent me a few texts this morning

Pretty much saying the exact same thing.

[MineralMan]

4. I had just graduated from high school in 1963, so it was

the first presidential race I took a strong interest in. How it turned out was very informative to me. I didn't get to vote for a President until 1968, but 1964 was my first election as an adult, even though the government didn't see me as one, unless they needed cannon fodder for the military.

I'm seeing a similarity to that election this year.

[JustAnotherGen]

9. She wouldn't turn 18 until November 1965

But - she was very aware. Her parents were huge Democratic boosters and supporters.

[MineralMan]

11. Tell your mom that there's this old geezer on DU who is

thinking the same way! Except, I advise against implying your mom is a geezer.

[JustAnotherGen]

12. I'll tell her you said crone!

She's loving being a 'crone!'

[MineralMan]

14. I like your mom!

Geezers and Crones Rule!

[mopinko]

22. i love being a crone, too.

i tell people to never mess w an old lady. you have no idea what she had to do to achieve that.

[KingCharlemagne]

16. Ditto my Dad (he's 86) and sends me his musings via snail mail. - nt

[whatthehey]

5. I don't think 64 and 84 style results have much chance these days

Even if we indulge in some fleeting fantasies based on early polls in GA for example, there is little/no chance of doing much damage to the big red L. You could run Hitler (R) against Jesus Christ (D) and the latter wouldn't have any chance in AK, ID, MT, UT (yeah I know the polls but come on), WY, ND, NE, KS, OK, TX, KY, TN, MS, AL, SC, WV, and not really very much in GA, AR, MO IN and SD.

[MineralMan]

6. We shall see.

We're just beginning the general election campaign. Just the start. There's plenty of time for Trump to dig a hole so deep that nobody who is in it will ever be seen again.

I'm on tenterhooks, here.

[iandhr]

7. Turn around three times and spit.

and GOTV

[randome]

8. There is character assassination going on every day and it's starting to hurt the GOP.

So that part of your analogy is also true, to a point.
[hr][font color="blue"][center]Birds are territorial creatures.
The lyrics to the songbird's melodious trill go something like this:
"Stay out of my territory or I'll PECK YOUR GODDAMNED EYES OUT!"[/center][/font][hr]

[MineralMan]

10. With three months of campaigning to go,

much can still happen. In 1964, the voting percentages were 61% for LBJ to 38.5% for Goldwater. A 60/40 split this year is well within probabilities, I think.

The distribution of electoral votes will be different, of course, but a landslide is definitely a possibility, especially if Trump continues along his current path to alienation of his own party's voters.

Republicans can easily shift to Gary Johnson in their desire to escape from voting for Trump, and I think many may do just that.

[tonyt53]

13. Lots of similarities. I was 11 and remember it well. Both used/are using race and fear for votes.

I agree with you completely.

I was in the first 18 y/o's that got to vote. That 1972 election didn't turn out so well for me.

[MineralMan]

15. Yah, there were several crappy elections back then.

A few since then, too. Maybe this year will be one of the great ones!

[Freddie]

17. In your guts you know he's nuts

We could even use the same slogan.

[MineralMan]

18. Great idea!

I love it.

[bluestateguy]

19. No. Still too many fucking angry, uneducated white men

A map like 2008 is the best case scenario.

Let's just focus on winning.

A home run still counts for the same if it goes 500 feet into the upper deck, or just barely goes over the wall.

[procon]

20. The campaigns of Goldwater in 1964 and Trump in 2016 are eerily similar.

Back in the day, Goldwater's extremist political positions made him deeply unpopular in the Republican Party, but he was very attractive to the voters. He brought in large voting blocs from the South, former fringe groups like the powerful white segregationists who were angry about the new civil rights movement. Goldwater also courted Southern religious groups and fanned the flames of racism, bigotry and fear. The hard-right extremists soon dominated the GOP's voter base and moderate views became intolerable. Not too different than what's happening now.

Johnson ran on a platform of anti-poverty programs, and he used his acerbic wit to mock and ridicule Goldwater's policies. When Goldwater came up with a new presidential campaign slogan, "In Your Heart, You Know He's Right", LBJ countered with his famous retort, "In Your Guts, You Know He's Nuts". Match that with Obama declaring that Trump is "unfit" to be the president.

Johnson spoke of ending segregation, and he talked about expanding social and education programs to end poverty and illiteracy. Hillary's policies follow the same path. As history shows, LBJ outed Goldwater in in a landslide victory that gave him 44 of the 50 states to easily take the Presidency. Hillary is on the same trajectory as Johnson in 1964, and winning a YUGE! victory over Trump.

[OutNow]

21. Yes, but not for the reason you think

I am voting for Clinton. But.............

I also remember the 1964 election. It was Johnson against the right wing lunatic Goldwater. Our country already had troops in Vietnam and there was a major national discussion about what our role should be in Southeast Asia. Nuclear warfare was also on everyone's mind. Goldwater was extreme. He was a loud advocate for atom bomb testing and escalation in Vietnam. The Johnson campaign used this against Goldwater and even ran as the "peace" candidate. They ran the infamous "daisy" TV ad.

So, what happened? Goldwater lost in a landslide. And Johnson escalated the war in Vietnam, up to and including the terror bombing of population centers in the north. His administration implemented almost everything that Goldwater advocated. At least Johnson didn't drop an atom bomb on Hanoi. I guess we should be thankful for that.

But I worry that under Clinton our policy in the Middle East be one of escalation rather than peace. I worry that the 2016 election could mirror the 1964 election on issues of war and peace.

I have opposed USA's wars during both Republican and Democratic administrations. War is not the answer.