"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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Imagine what would be, if history had occurred a bit
differently. Who says it didn't, somewhere? These fictional news items
explore that possibility. Possibilities such as America becoming a Marxist
superpower, aliens influencing human history in the 18th century and Teddy
Roosevelt winning his 3rd term as president abound in this interesting
fictional blog.
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