The Parallels Between 1968 and 2024 May Be Worth Examining
In the 1964 Presidential election, the Democratic Lyndon B. Johnson/Hubert Humphrey ticket won 43,129,040 votes (61.1% of the popular vote) compared to the GOP ticket of Barry Goldwater/William Miller which took 27,175,754 votes (38.5% of the popular vote).
Fierce opposition to the Vietnam War on the nation’s college campuses and within the Democratic Party led LBJ to not seek re-election in 1968.
Anti-war protestors in 1968 (Image: thenation.com)
At the 1968 DNC Convention in Chicago, anti-war protestors were excluded from having a voice and the "enemy" were “g—ks” and “Communist guerillas.” VPOTUS Hubert Humphrey became the POTUS candidate to carry on LBJ's policies. Before that fateful 1968 convention, a candidate named Robert F. Kennedy ran for President but was tragically assassinated months ago. A woman’s right to an abortion was illegal and Moscow had invaded Czechoslovakia.
In the Nov 1968 election, the Humphrey/Muskie ticket won 31,271,839 votes (42.7%) to Nixon/Agnew’s 31,783,783 votes (43.4%). Segregationist George Wallace siphoned away 9,901,118 votes from both the Democrats and the GOP (13.5% of the popular vote and carrying five southern states). Richard M. Nixon narrowly won the White House.
Importantly, the pro-war Humphrey/Muskie ticket received 11,857,201 votes less than from four short years ago. Millions of Democrats did not support the pro-war 1968 Humphrey/Muskie ticket or the Democrat's championing of civil rights.
In similar fashion, in the 2020 election Joe Biden/Kamala Harris won 81,283,501 votes (51.3% of the popular vote) compared to 74,223,975 votes (48.6%) for the GOP Donald Trump/Mike Pence ticket.
In 2024, nationwide campus protests against US support for Israel during its war against Gaza looked eerily similar to college protests against US involvement in Vietnam decades ago.
Anti-war campaigners gather at Harvard University to show their support for Palestinians in Gaza at a rally in Cambridge, MA, on 14 Oct 2023 (AFP)
After a poor performance at one debate, POTUS Joe Biden was persuaded to step aside for his much younger VPOTUS, Kamala Harris. Like in 1968 Chicago, anti-war protestors were excluded from having a voice at the 2024 DNC Convention. The "enemy" in 2024 were not
“g—ks” like in 1968 but “Islamic terrorists.” While Republicans generally support continued arms transfers to Israel, Democrats remain divided on the issue, like US Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT). See his recent statement about stopping arms transfers to Israel linked at bottom.
In 2024, the incumbent POTUS anointed Kamala Harris as his successor and in a virtual roll call, she received 99% delegate votes at the DNC convention. In 2024, a man named Robert F. Kennedy (Jr) ran for POTUS (as an independent), Moscow had invaded Ukraine (in Feb 2022), and a woman’s right to an abortion was illegal—just like 1968.
In the recent 5 Nov 2024 election, Harris/Walz won 73,912,254 votes (48.3% of the popular vote) to Donald Trump/JD Vance’s 76,535,898 votes (50% of the popular vote).
The GOP won 2,311,923 more votes than in 2020. Green Party candidate Jill Stein insignificantly pickpocketed .5% of the popular vote, siphoning off nothing consequential like segregationist George Wallace in 1968.
Critically, the Harris/Walz ticket received a whopping 7,371,247 votes less than in 2020, including Blue State strongholds. In 2024, Democrats simply stayed home (just like in 1968) or voted for Donald Trump.
The Vietnam War destroyed the legacy of LBJ. In 2024, the Biden Administration through USSECSTATE Antony Blinken and D/CIA William J. Burns earnestly tried to achieve a ceasefire with the warring parties in the Middle East to release innocent Israeli and AMCIT hostages, but ultimately failed. Former VPOTUS LBJ and Joe Biden both became one-term presidents (LBJ was a five-year POTUS because of the 1963 JFK assassination).
Sources:
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/op-eds/bernie-sanders-no-more-arms-sales-to-netanyahu/
https://www.cnn.com/2015/01/12/opinion/zelizer-lbj-vietnam-disaster/index.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1968_Democratic_National_Convention_protests
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/dnc-roll-call-of-states-2024/
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