What if Henry Clay Became President? 

It was so wonderful to collaborate with you again! A few things: 5:22 Technically Clay ran for President in 1840, too, so he made FIVE unsuccessful attempts for the Presidency. 7:27 Holy crap those similarities! 14:40 Wow, that's something I definitely didn't see coming. 15:30 Polk died soon after he left office anyway, so even if he ran in 1848 it wouldn't have made a difference.

My one big though, changing the civil war, is that there was no Mexican American war. No place for generals to really be broken in and give the confederacy the advantage it truly had

I would like to point out that Clay wouldn't have ran for a second term because both Clay and Polk were in agreement that they would only run for a single term. There would have never been a second term of Clay. It was also a mainstream Whig position at the time so Clay would probably wouldn't have been re-elected even if he did run for re-election. Also Pierce may have never been elected because so much of him being nominated was his war-hero popularity that never happened in this timeline.

I've never heard of the Mayan revolt, but it sounds interesting. I'm gonna have to look into that!

On that online game Campaign Trail the election of 1844 is available and I've won with Henry Clay but it's probably the hardest election on there even with normal difficulty

I'd be interested in seeing a sequel to this. California is still Mexican by the Civil War (and I think so is New Mexico, some of Arizona and Nevada). So we have a bigger Mexico which is going to make US-Mexican dynamics for the next fifty years interesting

Damn I never considered how eventful the 1840s were, especially in the Americas.

EmperorTigerstar doing an alternate history video instead of AlternateHistoryHub? Wait, that's illegal.

How was having the same initials not included in similarities between Clay and Clinton @ 7:26?!

Frelinghuysen's descendant was Henry Cabot Lodge who was Nixon's running mate in the 1960 Nixon presidential ticket

This video made me realize how subconsciously war hawky I am because every time he mentioned a compromise I’d just mutter “pansy”. I should probably figure out where that comes from

Henry Clay... Never had have thought that! Great alternate timeline.

Andrew Jackson: "I have only two regrets: I didn't shoot Henry Clay and I didn't hang John C. Calhoun.”

I love Cody's Tigerstar avatar. I remember in one of Cody's videos about Texas remaining independent that a possible result could be Texas joining the Confederacy, and Mexico allying with the Union, turning it into a two-front war. This could also be in play in this scenario, as the Mexicans could be offered the Yucatan back to help the Union. That wouldn't help the Maya much. Though Mexican mobilization could also prevent the French trying to take it.

If “centrist” was a person, it would be Henry Clay… “I don’t approve of slavery, but why should I be the one to free my slaves?”

I wanted somebody to make a video on this for years and you finally did it

Just watched all them. Just Finished with VloggingThroughHistory. You all are the best at what you do. And btw I'm new to your channel so can't wait to see what you have in store

Dude, you HAVE to get into the consequences of California staying in Mexico! What happens during the Gold Rush? Can Mexican authorities keep American filibusters out? Does it revive the Mexican economy? Do the French try to take it over, is Los Angeles renamed Juárez rather than El Paso? This is a HUGE change and you didn’t get into it at all

Oooh I wish someone of you did what if Henry Wallce was president instead of Truman

I've always wondered on this one, always close but never succeeded. Same election I would choose too

Got to hand to emperor tigerstar this is more realistic than monsiuer Z's version

Hey there. I disagree with the notion that Clay would run for a second term. Clay supported a Constitutional Amendment that would impose a single-term limit on Presidents. He and other Whigs saw it as the only way to prevent Federal overreach. For this reason, I don't think he runs in 1848. Frelinghuysen or whoever Clay chose as Secretary of State might try to go for the nomination but I assume someone like Daniel Webster would be the nominee since he had his own aspirations and was the second most powerful Whig at that point. You also have the rivalry between Webster and Clay which might cause some issues at the convention. Maybe a dark horse would need to be selected to break up a potential deadlock. Thanks for the video!

By not having California, the Transcontinental Railroad would be farther north, plus, we might have a different "Standard" gauge (4 foot, 8-1/2 inches). The Pacific Railroad Acts of 1863 specifications eventually mostly standardized the US gauge. We could have had the 5 foot gauge that a lot on the southern railroads had (the famous Locomotive Chase was on this gauge), Ohio gauge of 4 foot 10 inches, or (doubtful) Texas gauge of 5 foot 6 inches (AKA Portland Maine or in Canada "Provincial"). Although, Erie Railroad's 6 foot gauge would be my personal headcannon.

I've been interested by this election, thanks.

At first I thought we were talking about Henry Clay Frick here, as in the industrialist. Thatd be an equally interesting scenario I'd think

I think this is a good scenario for Mexico in particular.

The real question is would the Yucatan allow itself to become a slave state, could it become a state due to racial and cultural differences, would mexico allow itself to become surrounded or intervene earlier since to the war with the US never happened

9:52 Mexicos history is probably altered heavily by having all this extra land, does anyone have any thoughts on that?

Huh, I'm not sure Clay would have ran for two terms, a lot of whigs favored a one term precedent for presidents rather than two and I believe Clay was one of them.

The correct English syntax is "what if Henry Clay had become president?" "What if Henry Clay became president?" means the same as "What if Henry Clay in the near future should become president."

i’m so happy someone else picked up on the HC & HRC similarities

I love the plushy. It would be awesome (extra beneficial to you) if you offered an optional add-on or purchasable item of some miniature "fruit salad" to pin on him. Maybe even a little medal to hang around his neck, too. Haha, just a thought.

Without a US-Mexican War, it would be VERY unlikely that Winfield Scott would be a war-hero nominee in 1852. The same would apply to Whig VP nominee Billy Graham (you read that right). The Whigs would have had a couple of other very capable and politically agile pols to choose from: former House Speaker and freshman Senator Robert C. Winthrop (an anti-expansion man from Massachusetts and former US Rep Millard Fillmore, who was just returning to politics after a brief hiatus to build up his law career. In OTL the Whigs were on the decline due to indecisiveness over the expansion of slavery. But you're describing 7 years of very capable Whig leadership and political successes from 1845-51. This might well have driven the Southern Democrats to an earlier embrace of the most extreme views of pro-slavery politics. 1852 didn't have to be a slam dunk for Pierce. A Winthrop election in 1852 might well have led to a civil war eight years earlier--and one without the proving ground of a Mexican War to train the Union's generals in early industrial warfare tactics.

Frelinghuysen sounds like something Professor Frink would say

I do wonder if a Pierce presidency was truly inevitable. He gained a lot of notoriety as a general in the Mexican War which obviously doesn't happen in this timeline; also, Cass isn't the 1848 nominee in this scenario and it is possible more Democrats would have supported him in 1852 as a result.

Another Cody recommendation. Appreciate the jazzy background you've got here.

Without the Mexican War, Pierce has no national status. He relied heavily on his war record in '52. Without the Mexican Cession, you don't have the territorial slavery debate tearing apart careers. I think Douglas, Buchanan, Cass, Benton (who wouldn't get toppled as Missouri Senator in '51 in this scenario), and Sam Houston are all MUCH more likely candidates. For the Whigs, Scott still has an impressive military record, but he doesn't have the amazing Mexico City Campaign that secured him the Whig nomination in 1852. Seward's a rising star among northeastern Whigs, Crittenden is Clay's heir apparent in the upper south, the Georgia Whigs who jumped to the Democrats over slavery in the 50s are still Whigs here so Robert Toombs is a possibility if he can lay off the bottle, and Abraham Lincoln is a rising star in the party, being a Clay protege -- not likely to have anywhere near the status for a presidential run in '52, but a potential short-lister for the VP slot. I think filibustering in California is also quite likely, as is Clay trying to buy California (or at least the northern part of it so the US can secure the harbor at San Fransisco. It's unlikely the Mexicans would sell, but maybe the US backing off on the Rio Grande boundary dispute would make it feasible for a Mexican government deep in debt to unload some of its northern edges. Especially if that makes the Mormons the USA's problem. I'd bet against the sale, but it's not impossible.

Wouldn't California try to revolt at some point? Would Mexico try to take back the Yucatan during the American Civil war?

the Yucatan joining the US... now that's a plot twist.

Such a powerhouse collab.

Clay getting elected in 1844 is always a popular What If? election scenario, but I find it interesting that no one ever goes into Clay winning in 1840. Basically the reason that Clay wasn't nominated in 1840 was because the Whig Convention was scheduled for December 4-8, 1839 and occurred after a string of Whig electoral defeats that were linked with Clay and three Southern delegations (that supported Clay) refused to attend. The Whigs wanting to win nominated William Henry Harrison who would then ride a Whig electoral wave that began early in the new year to victory in November. What if the Whig Convention was delayed by weather until spring 1840? A wave of electoral victories for the Whigs would have been attached to Clay, who was the figurehead of the party, and over the months Clay would have persuaded the three wayward Southern delegations to attend the Convention. The result would have seen Clay nominated for President and probably Millard Fillmore for Vice President as favor to one of Harrison's biggest supporters New York boss Thurlow Weed, not because Fillmore was one of his boys but because he was a NY Whig rival and Weed would want him out of the state for four years. A Clay/Fillmore ticket (well any Whig ticket) would cruise to victory just like Harrison/Tyler.

"His second term would focus on his usual love for infrastructure" YO! YOYOYO!!! Way to bury the real story, Mr. TIgerstar!

Not just him but also the gangster and his brother, Cassius Clay

1:22 what a monster face!

The Maya having their own country for a while is probably the coolest little knick-knack of this timeline.

i cant believe that this guy still rocks

Please please please do a Henry Wallace potential presidency. I think the cold war may not have been what it was with him.

Interesting. But I thought you would do: The 1884 presidential election.

Henry Clay would make A great king.

Omg! I was close when I made my joke comment in your livestream about 1852 lol :P

there is a Town of Clay, New York which contains a road called "Henry Clay Blvd.". both named after him. There must have been some admirer's of his when the Town was formed....

When looking at how the Constitution was debated and drafted, the Vice Presidency was originally envisioned as a robust center of power in Congress, a sort of Senator-At-Large for the nation. But John Adams was a jerk and the senators created a more powerful office of "Majority Leader". The Speaker of the House was conversely thought to be a minor, procedural job, with some ceremonial functions (not even required to be a member of Congress). It was Henry Clay who discovered how to turn the office into the most powerful post in Congress, able to reward loyalists with committee assignments, literally scheduling who would be able to speak in debates, and shut the opposition out completely. Henry Clay as President, no matter what else transpires nationally, would be a force to reckon with.

7:25 what did clay do in libya? lol. IK us sailors fought against berbers or something so its probably that if its not a joke

This is a very interesting scenario, and I really think it needs a sequel. There’s still lots of gold and other resources in California. California is still going to boom. Does it happen as a part of Mexico? As its own country (likely taking all of what is today the Southwest US with it)? Does it eventually become a part of the United States anyway, either peacefully or a in a later Mexican-American War?

Wouldn't it be that the Oregon Territory would be divided differently? If memory serves, what ultimately happened OTL was something that ultimately favoured the US. Would a more compromising President not, perhaps, set the border along the columbia river, rather than cut through it? I think Brittain proposed that solution aswell

6:17 So he basically did the "there is no ethical consumption under capitalism" excuse/meme before capitalism was a thing in the southern US.

7:27 I think you forgot to mention the most noticable similarity. The fact that both their names start with H and their last names with C.😅

Interesting implication of annexing the Yucatán means that the US would be more likely to be friendly to incorporating other, primarily Hispanic territories later on. Maybe an earlier Spanish American War or one that ends with Cuba or Puerto Rico statehood?

Clay was one of probably many who owned slaves, but expected it would end in the foreseeable future. I've visited Ashland (his home estate) a few times. I'd say he expected it to end, but was in no personal hurry to speed abolition along. My guess is, he hoped it would end, but after he was dead and no longer hus concern. The 1824 election is an interesting pivot point for alt history, and for actual history. He wanted the presidency, of course, but knew he wouldn't get it that year. Whether it's true or not, widespread belief was that he cut a clandestine deal with Adams for a cabinet position. His own state preferred Jackson over Adam's, so many Kentuckians saw his vote as a betrayal.

~7:26 One more for the list: "First name starting with H and last name starting with Cl"

one thing tigerstar didn't talk about is that filibustering (If it still happens) could become more sucessful, since the yucatan would provide a direct base into central america. Also the creation of an independent mayan state would cause a lot of changes that I can't even predict

I am a big fan of Clay, really wish me was president. Not to many people know about him, glad to see this video made!

0:14 Hoobert Hoover

The universe would collapse in on itself.

The south would lose much quicker in this one, we could also possibly see a Mexican Invasion of the Yucatan in this universe during the civil war, if its with the Union or not in this one, I dont know, but it would still be interesting to see this scenario get a sequel

I can’t believe he didn’t mention Henry Clay’s American System.

Another interesting question that I've thought about- what if Sam Houston had been defeated and killed by Mexican forces ubder Santa Ana at San Jacinto?

3:13 I thought Clay got 4th place in 1924 and so was not eligible to be elected president? You can see on the Wikipedia window you have popped up, Clay gets 3rd in popular vote and 4th in electoral votes. I'm unfamiliar with the intricacies of the system but I strongly assume it goes by electoral votes.

The fact the US is able to annex the yucatan means it would either satisfy southern demands for expansion in central America, or it could of resulted in filibuster attempts being successfull since they now have a base closeby

Not only point, U.S. settler Filibustering, is essentially indistinguishable from what Russia is doing in Ukraine, but without the solid international order to oppose it. Texas was a good example, plus the extreme overstep of then taking over half of Mexico

Does this mean you’re gonna bring back So That Happened?

Clay not only finsihed 4th in 1824 he finished behind a guy in 3rd incapacitated by a stroke 😂

Can you do Charles Sumner

Something to note is that by appointing Henry Clay to be his Secretary of State, John Quincy Adams was essentially teeing him up to be the next president, as at that point in American history, Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, and Quincy Adams himself (in other words, every single president except Washington and Adams) had all been Secretary of State before running for president. So the "Corrupt Bargain" seemed even more quid pro quo.

So which two did alienate voters of the time?

Before 1 hour gang.

henry clay actually didnt try to elect himself in 1824 because he didn't qualify as he finished fourth in the electoral college

You sound just like Rudyard from Whatifalthist.

Idea for an alternate history just popped into my head. What if the hawks over the Oregon territory had more influence and caused the alliance of Mexico and The United Kingdom during the Mexican American War?

8:50 So John must of heard what Henry had to say so Henry would get credit here for HELPING but not doing it since he wasn't president. Had he told James about WANTING To do it, James would of agreed or done something different to get Texas. Can't say I'm shocked neither of them did it.

Henry clay is one of my favorite senators and politician

Not the similarities between Henry Clay and Hilary Clinton 😅😩😩😭😭😭💀🔥 I've been curious about this for a while (ie. Henry Clay, his presidential runs, and in this case, what if he happened to win one of them). While his overall stance as a politician doesn't really convince me (as in, I don't feel like he thought through some of them 🤔) I'd still be curious with how he'd potentially do as a president, especially since he could work with people in the government *that well* (ie. his compromise skills and all...). Turns out, you just released this video! I like what you brought up in this video, it all seems pretty plausible to me 🤔. Interesting that his stance on militaristic intervention (which he was strongly against, especially after the War of 1812 😂🤣💀) wouldn't necessarily completely stop US expansion (heck, it even nabbed Yucatan as a new state...not just a Southern state but a state south of the West Gulf(!!)). Felt like it could be way more consequential than mentioned here (since it would still change the US-Mexican dynamics), but there are just too many variables to be considered related to it 🤔🤨🤔. (It would really make West Gulf blockading during American Civil War way more of a pickle though! That I am sure of 😅🙈) I do wonder if his focus on national infrastructure would change the US mindset (especially those who are involved with the government) on infrastructure significantly (I honestly inclined to think yes, and it would be the single, most significant and undisputedly positive impact a Clay presidency left for the US). Can't say the same for his other policies that influenced the slavery issue though 🙃 (whether directly or indirectly). Especially with how flim-flam he is about it on the national level. The trigger sequence might be slightly different but I too think that American Civil War would still end up happening anyway in the Clay presidency TL. I guess what I figured out while watching this was that I think compromises on long term solutions is a decent think to strive on, good even, but compromises as short term solutions? (especially when you don't really think of the possible long term solutions...) That doesn't seem so good to me, and it seems like Henry Clay did the latter more often.

There's also another similarity between Henry Clay and Hillary Clinton you didn't mention, they're both have the initials HC😂

Good video, but 2 points. One is that I don't think that the reason why the 1824 election in the House came down to Adams and Jackson is that it would have been unseemly for Clay to advocate for himself. I think that Clay wasn't even eligible because he hadn't finished in the top 3 in the electoral college, and they weren't going to choose Crawford because of his mental problems. The other point is that part of the argument made for popular sovereignty being included in the Kansas Nebraska Act is that Congress had already endorsed that principle by including it the Compromise of 1850. Without the Mexican War, there's no Compromise of 1850. So I think it's very possible that without the Mexican War, that provision would have been left out of the Kansas Nebraska Act, and that provision is what led to the birth of the Republican Party and to Bleeding Kansas.

Do a video of WW2 Yugoslavia including chetniks and yugoslav partisans from 1939-1946, as well as Ustase and such.

19:55 battle of Glorietta Pass, 1862

Will the US ever gain the Southwest sometime after the Civil War in this timeline?

Mormons in Mexico is stuck in my head now. If the Mormons were able to keep their heads down and Mexico let them be, when gold is discovered in California, they may have a much easier time moving there than Stateseans. Many Mexicans would also go there, but Mormonism might dominate a much larger area and have more members than in our timeline.

Would mexico intevene in the Civil war to regain lost lands like Yucatan maybe eaven part or all of Texas

Henry Clay - talk about a career politician Joe Biden: hold my 🍺

Neat

6:30 -- It isn't?

Hillary Clinton and Henry Clay even have the same initials! Jeez! They are so similar!

Can you do what if Nixon won in 1960

What if London never created the Southern Confederacy (Confederates) and Northern Confederacy (Canada)? Sole purpose being to retake their lost possession.

henry wasn't wasn't involved in libya at all

Woah

If the Yucatan was annexed as a state, how would the Southerners ensure "white" only voting? I suppose the Mayans would count as full citizens and their voting block would be much larger than any group of Southern adventurers who move down there?

You left out something very significant. The gold in California is Mexican. 750,000 lbs. were mined. All that hard money would have flowed into Mexico, not the USA. Things could have been very different.

It be interesting how this effects this would have on future elections. Like we wouldn't have Ronald Regan as president . Vp Harris or president Biden ect