The King and US
From Alternative History
In OTL, Elvis Presley suffered a drug overdose (officially at least) and died. In this timeline, Elvis Presley is still alive to this day, having revitalised his health during the 1970s and managing to kick drugs and become healthy again into his forties. In 1978 he made another comeback tour, and this time, there was a point to it. In the aftermath of Watergate, and in the turbulent political climate, Elvis decided he had a message to sell. He became an unlikely political activist, the People's Populist, becoming a firm advocate of the War on Drugs and increased defence spending, while at the same time, advocating more spending on healthcare and a national healthcare system. Elvis's message couldn't have had a better salesman. In 1980, he was elected to the U.S. Congress as an Independent, eschewing the nominations of the major parties, which had both wanted to 'draft' Elvis to run for office. In 1982, he was elected the Governor of Tennessee. This, naturally, led the way for Elvis's election in 1984 as the 41st President of the United States. Politically maverick, devastatingly charismatic, immensely popular and always contraversial, President Presley (or 'President Elvis' as most people still remember him) was, perhaps, one of the most unusual, and certainly one of the most memorable, American leaders of the 20th century, if not the entirety of American history.
This ALT explores Presley's recovery and political career, and examines his Presidency in detail. It explores the ways the Democrats and Republicans were desperate to defeat him, and asks why they were unable to do so. It examines the Presley Administration's role in the Middle East, and in the War on Drugs. And finally, it attempts to answer the big question that political analysts, and the American public, have been asking for two decades - was Presley really as out-of-his-depth as he seemed?
