American Caesar Part 3

The first two months of the war went poorly for the US to say the least. The Syndicalists were closing in on Washington D.C. from the north, while the AUS troops were approaching from the south. Further north, the Canadians peacefully occupied New England and Alaska. MacArthur opted not to press the issue for the time being, privately admitting that it was probably for the best, considering that he had no troops in the region, and that without the Canadians, New England would likely have fallen to the Syndicalists. On the West Coast, there were fears that California, Washington State, and Oregon would secede from the Union, but a tense meeting between California governor Frank Merriam and MacArthur resulted in them agreeing to join forces.

By December of 1936, it was clear that MacArthur's strategic position east of the Mississippi River was indefensible. AUS troops had captured the naval base at Norfolk, Virginia, while Syndicalist troops took Baltimore after a bloody battle. With the fall of Washington clearly inevitable, MacArthur made the difficult decision to retreat his troops westward to the Mississippi River where they would regroup and form a new defensive line. Vowing to return, MacArthur and his wife and son boarded a biplane and flew to the new temporary capital of Denver, Colorado. By January of 1937, most of his troops had made it to St. Louis, Missouri, which MacArthur had chosen as the center of the new front line.

To make things even worse, the syndicalist government in Mexico decided to take the chance to declare war on the United States in order to regain lost territory. For the most part, MacArthur tried to limit the war with Mexico to small border clashes, but it hardly made his position easier. It was difficult to see how he could accomplish victory now...

American Caesar, Part 2

September 26, 1936, Washington D.C.:

General Douglas MacArthur had fervently hoped it would never come to this, but alas it had. President Hoover had proved himself unwilling and unable to quell the chaos and subversion of the Syndicalists and America Firsters. If America was to be saved from tyranny, Hoover had to go. MacArthur had already secretly discussed this with Vice President Curtis, who had agreed to support him, and the General was now marching on Washington at the head of his 1st Infantry Division.

Within a few minutes after leaving the barracks, a number of civilians had gathered around to see what was going on, and many of them jeered at the troops.
"Syndies..." MacArthur snarled under his breath. One of the soldiers next to him seemed nervous, casting worried glances at the angry mob.
"Don't worry Private." MacArthur told the young man. "As long as you keep marching and don't let on that you're afraid, they won't dare bother you."
"Yes Sir." The young soldier replied. Sure enough, as the troops marched on undaunted, the mob lost their nerve and dispersed. Within a few minutes, MacArthur and his men could see the White House just ahead. As they neared the gates, they finally encountered a guard.

"HALT! WHO GOES THERE?!" The guard demanded.

"General Douglas MacArthur." The General replied calmly. If there was one thing he'd learned after so many years in the army, it was keeping cool under pressure. He wasn't about to back down now, not with so much at stake.

"What's your business?" The guard asked.

"To save this republic." MacArthur replied, keeping his poker face as much as possible.

The two men stared at each other in silence for a tense few seconds. Finally, the guard spoke.

"Alright. Go ahead sir." He said, opening the gate and saluting MacArthur, who strolled into the White House lawn as his troops surrounded the building. Finally, he came to the Oval Office door, took a deep breath, and opened it.

"General MacArthur?!" President Hoover exclaimed. "I wasn't notified that you had an appointment here/ What's going on?!"

"Mr. President," MacArthur replied, with all the nerve he could muster, "as you have proven yourself unable and unwilling to protect this country from subversive elements, I, as Chief of the Army Staff, am invoking the 25th Amendment, which allows for the cabinet to remove a president who has become unfit for office. As Vice President Curtis is in poor health, he has agreed to place me in office as acting president."

"THIS IS AN OUTRAGE! IT'S TREASONOUS!" Hoover bellowed.

"On the contrary Mr. President, it's perfectly constitutional."

"And what if I refuse to comply?!" Hoover demanded.

"I would not recommend that, Mr. President. My troops have surrounded the building. I suggest you do things the easy way, and leave peacefully.

Hoover's face was still red with rage, but he grumbled "Fine" through clenched teeth. MacArthur than had him escorted out of the building to a comfortable house arrest.

-
The next day, Acting President General MacArthur made a speech to congress, announcing his takeover from Hoover and cancellation of the 1936 election until the situation had stabilized.. Congress, having essentially been presented with a fait accompli, voted unanimously to approve MacArthur's coup, giving his junta an air of democratic legitimacy. MacArthur made it clear that he did not intend to impose a dictatorship, and would keep the Congress in place as an advisory body. Most ordinary Americans, both Democrats and Republicans, breathed a sigh of relief, believing that the crisis was over. But not everyone accepted the change so readily. Syndicalists rioted in several cities, and MacArthur responded by declaring martial law, and banning the Combined Syndicates, as well as the America First Party.

This proved to be the last straw for the extremists. On November 24, 1936, Jack Reed's Syndicalists took control of Chicago, and proclaimed a new regime called the Combined Syndicates of America. Two days later, on November 26, Huey Long's Minutemen Militia took control of Atlanta and announced the creation of the American Union State. MacArthur refused to back down, and there was no turning back. The Second American Civil War had begun...

American Caesar, A HOI4 Kaiserreich Playthrough Chapter One

At the dawn of the 20th Century, many Americans believed it would be their time in the sun. However, they were cruelly disillusioned. The German victory in the Great War (also known by its German name, the "Weltkrieg"), and the resulting Syndicalist revolutions in Britain and France, cut the United States off from Europe, resulting in a disastrous economic depression.

Inevitably, the resulting social chaos in the United States led to the rise of extremist parties on both the left and the right. On the left there was the Combined Syndicates of America, led by Jack Reed, a journalist who had covered the failed Bolshevik revolution in Russia, and now wanted to bring Syndicalism to American shores. 

On the right there was the America First Party, led by the Nationalist Populist governor of Louisiana, Huey Long, whose party was full of rather unsavory bigots. 

Caught in between these two extremes, the old Democratic and Republican Parties were losing more and more political support, to the point that President Herbert Hoover's administration was virtually unable to act, and with the 1936 Presidential Election pitting Long against Reed, many feared that the Republic as they knew it was doomed...

But one man refused to let that happen...