The Rise of the Third Reich

After submitting his resignation and declining Wallace's offer to stay, Harry Hopkins left the White House and headed to Truman's campaign headquarters in Washington. It is now November 5, 1944, and in a few hours, voting for the U.S. presidential election will begin.

There, he met Harry Truman, who was immersed in the excitement of being elected—according to Gallup's poll, after the "Victory of Buenos Aires" and the "imminent capture of Santiago," Harry Truman Truman's approval rating has surpassed that of Thomas Dewey, and he is now expected to be elected.

"He doesn't know what a mess he is about to take over!" When Harry Hopkins was chatting with Truman, his heart was full of sympathy for Truman, who was about to be elected.

"Harry, I heard that you resigned as ambassador to Rome?" Truman's face became serious. He was not ignorant of the difficulties facing the United States, and naturally he also wanted to seek peace after becoming president. And Harry Hopkins was Roosevelt's peace representative, so Truman still wanted to rely on him.

"Yes." Harry Hopkins nodded, "Because I can no longer play a role in Rome, it is better to resign as soon as possible."

"How could it be?" Truman frowned, "Will the war on both sides of the Atlantic continue forever?"

He was not as optimistic about the prospect of war as Wallace, but he was not willing to accept a peace treaty that was too "degrading and humiliating" after he came to power. So I wanted to use Harry Hopkins' experience in the "peace movement" to mediate and strive for the best... at least to get peace conditions that were better than those that Roosevelt was prepared to accept.

"The war cannot last forever," Harry Hopkins said, "but the later peace comes, the worse it will be for the United States of America, that's for sure!"

"What if we gain a certain advantage on the battlefield?" Truman asked, "and fight a few more battles like the bombing of Buenos Aires... Maybe we can also force New Asbania through bombing and offensive The federation collapsed. By then, the Germans should consider reaching a peace treaty that would be more honorable to both sides."

"Impossible." Harry Hopkins shook his head.

"It is impossible for the Germans to accept a fair peace?"

"No, we can't win in the New Asbania Federation!" Harry Hopkins said, "Now that the control of the Atlantic Ocean has been given to Germany, they can use ship-based missiles to attack the United States mainland, and they can also use ship-based missiles to attack the United States. And landing somewhere on the east coast of the United States. In this case, how can we send a large number of troops to the southern region of South America? If the Germans make a breakthrough on the east coast of North America, our victory in South America will be great. What’s the value?”

What he said was military common sense, and the government led by Wallace was doing things that went against common sense for the sake of the election. Of course, some votes can be deceived, but it will not do any good to reverse the decline of the United States in the Atlantic battlefield.

In addition, the illusion of military victory will whet the appetite of the American people. The Truman administration (or the Dewey administration) will handle peace talks cautiously for a period of time in the early days of taking office. This will cost the United States more valuable time...

"But the Germans have stopped missile attacks on the United States." Truman said.

Germany's cessation of missile attacks was also one of the reasons why Truman's approval rating increased - ordinary American voters did not know that Germany took the initiative to stop the attacks, and thought it was the measures taken by the Wallace administration to effectively prevent the attacks.

Harry Hopkins shrugged and said: "The Germans may feel that the effect of the attack is not good, or they may be preparing a new and more powerful attack. In short, they will never let the United States go...unless we take pains. Nearly paid."

Hopkins basically guessed correctly. The German "Tomahawk Project" has not stopped, or is not even suspended. It is just upgrading equipment (equipped with longer-range missiles) and adjusting the navigation system as planned. —Unlike the situation in history, the current "German Tomahawk" has quite reliable intelligence support, so it can correct the missile impact point. However, missiles are not artillery shells, and it is troublesome to adjust the navigation equipment.

Truman shook his head and stopped discussing with Harry Hopkins. Because it’s impossible to spend money quickly!

"Harry," Truman thought for a while and said, "if I am elected president, I hope you can hold an important position in the cabinet."

Hopkins shook his head and said with a wry smile: "My health is very poor. I hope I can retire and recuperate. There is really nothing I can do about peaceful matters. However, Mr. Kennedy has many friends in Europe. Maybe he can open up a new path for you." Peaceful Passage.”

"Okay." Truman nodded. He also knew that Hopkins was sick. "So do you have any advice for me?"

"I can't say advice." Hopkins came to see Truman and didn't want to be an official, so he naturally had something to say. "Just some suggestions."

"Please tell me."

Hopkins said: "The best time for peace has been missed, and war is inevitable. But we don't have to worry too much about the atomic weapons in the hands of the Germans. Hitler and Hessmann will not use it easily. They Not the murderer.

Unless they gain a huge advantage in conventional warfare, they will use atomic weapons as the final tool to force us into submission... So conventional warfare can still protect the United States.

In addition, Caesar Mussolini of the Roman Empire is a true friend of our America. We should fully trust him and regard him as a reliable bridge of peace. "

Truman nodded repeatedly, "Okay, okay, I understand!"

…

"Please vote for Truman!"

"Truman will lead the United States to victory!"

"Truman is a defender of the New Deal! "

When Lindbergh, the leader of the National Fascist Party of the United States, passed through Brooklyn, New York, he saw many middle-aged men in low-quality suits distributing leaflets - they were all supporters of the Bolshevik Party and were now canvassing for Truman.

Although Truman's approval rating in New York State was still lower than Dewey's and it seemed that he had no hope of winning, and the Democratic Party itself was not working hard, the Bolshevik Party, an ally of the Democratic Party, was still working hard to canvass for Truman.

And Lindbergh's National Fascist Party was far less hard than the Bolshevik Party in terms of campaigning for its allies. It was not that the American fascists were unwilling to work hard. It was that most of them were undergoing routine investigations by the FBI. Although Edgar Hoover began to perfunctorily deal with the National Fascist Party after the alliance with the Republican Party, he did not stop the investigation, and thus caused a lot of trouble for the leaders of the National Fascist Party.

For example, if Lindbergh himself had not been summoned to the FBI to explain the problem, he should not be in New York at this time, but should have gone to Atlanta, Georgia to encourage white supremacists there. righteous.

However, Lindbergh did not feel guilty for not trying his best to help the Republican Party, because his Roman mentor (Mussolini) told him in a letter that if he was elected now, he would definitely take over a huge mess. So it is better for the Fascist Party not to become a member of the ruling coalition... The National Fascist Party should look to the future!

Thinking about Mussolini's advice, Lindbergh has come to Thomas Dewey's campaign headquarters.

The atmosphere here is a bit depressed. The latest poll results are not favorable to Dewey, and Dewey's camp has no way to do anything - they can't question the brave American officers and soldiers who just won the victory, right? And after Roosevelt's death, the Democratic government once again sang a high tone, claiming that the United States can drag down Germany! And this is similar to Dewey's war policy. When the policies of the opposition party and the ruling party are close, voters always tend to the ruling party.

"Charles," Dewey, who seemed a little depressed in the office, smiled bitterly at Charles Lindbergh, "The situation is not too bad. Polls show that we are expected to win the congressional elections. We can at least control the House of Representatives. ”

The Republican Party’s advantage in the congressional elections was brought by the National Fascist Party, because the National Fascist Party still has many supporters in the seven southern states of the United States. Although their votes cannot help Dewey win the electoral votes, they can help Republican candidates be elected in many House of Representatives districts.

In addition, the Romani people in New York State (New York State is a gathering place for Italian immigrants) will also support the Republican Party because of the National Fascist Party, which will allow the Republican Party to win all the seats in the House of Representatives in New York State. But it can’t help Dewey in the electoral votes, because New Yorkers already support him.

So after this election, the American political arena is likely to see a situation where the Democratic-Bolshevik Party alliance controls the government and the Republican-Fascist Party alliance controls Congress.

And because both the Bolshevik Party and the Fascist Party made their debut through this election and became important forces on the American political stage, they also influenced their allies to shift to the left or right in their political positions, and the division of American domestic politics was inevitable.

“Mr. Governor,” Lindbergh said to Dewey in a comforting tone, “as long as we control the majority of Congress, the Democratic Party cannot do whatever it wants. "

After another silence, Dewey said, "The vote will be held tomorrow, and I still have a great chance of becoming the President of the United States. After all, the Democratic Party has done a terrible job in the past four years, really terrible..."

Before Dewey finished speaking, one of his secretaries suddenly pushed the door open and walked in. "Mr. Governor, the federal government has just announced the latest war report. We have recovered the entire island of Oahu and made significant progress in South America... The army has already entered Santiago, the capital of Chile!"

Dewey and Lindbergh looked at each other. President Wallace really knows how to seize the opportunity! With these two "favorable" assists, Truman's presidency seems to be a sure thing!