| "Jimmy Hoffa Meets Mafia Heads" by Jeff Provine 
  
   Author 
    
    says: we're very pleased to present the ninth story from Jeff Provine's 
  
  excellent blog This 
    
    Day in Alternate History Please note that the opinions expressed in this 
  
  post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s). 
     
     July 30th 1975, 
     
      on this day Jimmy Hoffa met with New Jersey Mafia bosses to present a plan 
      to bring down the Republican Party.
 James Hoffa, once president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, 
      had been through dire straights in the past ten years. He had been born to 
      the working class and risen to fight for labor rights. After being fired 
      as a teenager trying to unionize his fellow grocery workers to fight for 
      fair wages and job security, he joined Local 299 of the Teamsters in 
      Detroit, MI, and rose to the presidency in 1957.
 
 In 1964, his luck changed. He was convicted of attempted bribery of a 
      grand juror and, later, fraud. Gaining a commuted sentence from President 
      Richard Nixon, Hoffa was free on the condition that he not participate in 
      union business until 1980. Resistance in several spheres held back his 
      ability to appeal, and so Hoffa settled to rebuilding his career writing 
      autobiographies and planning his comeback starting again at Local 299.
 
 In 1975, he met at a diner with Anthony Giacolone of Detroit and Anthony 
      Provenzano of New Jersey, both Mafia bosses who had connections with the 
      unions. Provenzano had served as vice-president for the IBT during Hoffa's 
      second term. While the topics discussed remain a mystery, it is believed 
      that Hoffa had a major plan to bring down the Republican Party as 
      vengeance for the betrayal Hoffa felt being kept from union work despite 
      having endorsed Nixon.
 
 Through underground networks, and more openly after 1980, Hoffa began 
      building a massive political machine. Though Reagan would handily win his 
      reelection against Mondale in 1984 (despite the latter carrying Michigan 
      and New Jersey), his Vice-President Bush would narrowly lose out to 
      Michael Dukakis in 1988. Many commentators would say Hoffa's push gave 
      Dukakis the few extra million votes he needed. Hoffa would die of a heart 
      attack the next year at age 76.
 
 The next sixteen years would be a golden age for the Democratic Party. 
      Through two terms of Dukakis (often credited with presiding over the fall 
      of Soviet Russia), a term of Bill Clinton of Arkansas (who would choose 
      not to run in 2000 following a tarnished ), and four years of Al Gore of 
      Tennessee, many progressive Democratic policies would become realities: a 
      nation-wide ban on capital punishment, National Health Insurance, 
      guaranteed housing, an increase of human welfare, and environmental 
      protection.
 
 In 2001, terrorism struck New York City, and President Gore would find 
      himself at the head of a vindictive populace. Pouring resources into 
      international policing and covert operations with the aid of NATO and the 
      UN, Gore would declare a "War on Terrorism". When Afghanistan repeatedly 
      refused to cooperate in search of Osama Bin Laden, an invasion begins. 
      While the Taliban are quickly knocked out of power, the war grinds to a 
      halt with constant insurgency.
 
 War weariness and a growing national debt would beset the American 
      populace, and the Democratic era would in in 2004 with the election of 
      President John McCain, a Vietnam war hero.
 
     
     Author 
    says in reality, Giacolone and Provenzano did not meet with Hoffa. In 
    the following investigations, they both denied even making appointments and 
    had sound alibis. What really happened to Jimmy Hoffa remains a mystery to 
    this day. To view guest historian's comments on this post please visit the
    
    Today in Alternate History web site.
 
 
     Jeff Provine, Guest Historian of
    
    Today in Alternate History, a Daily Updating Blog of Important Events In 
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    superpower, aliens influencing human history in the 18th century and Teddy 
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