A time traveler takes j,f,k on November 22 1963 takes him to 2016. he is nominated by th e Democrats can he beat Donald trump Jackie, jfk jr are also brought in by the time travler.
JFK’s secret affairs and hidden health problems would be disqualifiers in this day and age. The press would out him in a millisecond.
In an ironic way, JFK and Donald Trump are mirror images of each other. Both of them came from nouveau riche, semi-ethnic (Irish Catholic for Kennedy, German Protestant fro Trump) backgrounds where they still sough to integrate themselves into the folkways of the traditional East Coast WASP “Establishment” by going to the appropriate prep schools and Ivy League colleges. Trump and Kennedy had similar “alpha” personality types which were highly self-aggrandizing and expressed itself in extensive sexual conquests. Both gained much fame from having best-selling books ghostwritten for them as well. Perhaps most poignantly, Kennedy and Trump are bookends as politicians of the age of mass media, especially television. Much of Kennedy’s strength as a candidate came from the youthful, energetic image he gave on television to the extent that gained a decisive advantage over his opponent in the 1960 Presidential Election due to their contrasting appearance in the first Presidential debate to be televised. Yet even if curmurdgeons complained about this triumph of style over substance, Kennedy, the New Frontier, and television all seemed to combine to produce a singular, intoxicating effect-that of a confident, booming, Space Age midcentury postwar America which reigned supreme in the world and whose citizens could be sure that each new generation would be better off then the previous one. In this paradigm, television was yet another technological triumph just like nuclear power and space rockets promising to enlighten mass audiences in the comfort of their homes with its seemingly miraculous ability to reproduce images. Now over half a century later, Donald Trump represents the ultimate culmination of television culture as well as a bridge to the more decentralized and anarchic culture of the Internet. In the end, in an America that grew increasingly neoliberal, culturally libertarian, and atomistic in ethos (and one might add without a strong tradition of state/public broadcasting like the BBC), the worst instincts triumphed and television programming became a triumph of commercialized spectacle and gossip logically concluding with that most narcissistic and tawdry of TV shows-namely reality television. And of course, no man proved a better master of reality television as well as a celebrity-obssessed news media then Donald Trump. It is but fitting that Trump should come to power in and because of an American society whose decayed and destroyed nature is reflected in the disappointing result of television. Much as television failed, so has much of the rest of the midcentury vision. America in the end did enact civil rights legislation for blacks, vastly expand women’s rights, and even triumph over communism. Yet at the same time some of the fundamental promises of the midcentury vision failed totally as deindustrialization and triumph of right-wing forces brought about a stagnation and even decline in living standards while a society that simultaneously grew more diverse and individualistic left millions isolated and alienated. This societal, collective failure in turn brought about the election of Donald Trump as President who openly embraced his celebrity status which Kennedy only implicitly accepted while gaudily parading the twadry personal life that Kennedy had been forced to keep secret. Thus in both his biography and the manner of his triumph, Trump becomes a sort of a twisted, sick parody/caricature of John F. Kennedy-in fitting with the nature of our society.
Of course, we mustn’t forget the parallels between the rivals of these two men as well. Hillary Clinton and Richard Nixon were superb foils for their rivals, coming from respectable but undistinguished middle-class Protestant backgrounds. Both were considered “unlikable”, secretive, corrupt, and power-hungry and utterly despised by their partisan opponents despite being relatively moderate in their political views.
JFK probably wins if he can adapt to 2016 and is just as blithe as Trump in dismissing his peccadillos given 1) the strength of the Kennedy myth especially among Boomers and 2) that very few candidates can do much worse then Clinton did with white working-class voters.
…versus Trump?
But if he suddenly emerges in 2016, what is that myth based on?
The myth is alive and well. The public consistently ranks JFK as one of our greatest Presidents even though historians rank him much lower. And this in spite of knowing about his personal affairs. JFK would blow Trump out of the water.
JFK and Trump are scheduled to fight each other? This I want tickets for!
Also if Trump got his head blown apart, everyone would remember where they were when it happened because of all the cheering and dancing in the street.
I’m very interested in how Chris Kennedy (Bobby’s son) does in his run for Governor of Illinois. I find it somewhat a test of how much of the Kennedy Mystique has lasted to today. (Without the familial relationship, he right now comes off as just another rich businessman running for Illinois Guv.)
Having said that, if Kennedy wins the primary, I’m almost certain to do volunteer work for his campaign against Rauner.
The man who faced down the Soviet Union vs the blowhard? You’re talking a blowout, Reaganesque, victory.
Wait, Kennedy had secret affairs? That’s news to me.
Not the affairs part-- The secret part.
The press did not report about them, so they were not generally known at the time. Of course they aren’t secret now. Nor did he press report about his poor health.
I don’t know much about Chris. Unlike some of his siblings and cousins he seems to have a stable background and family life, so that’s a plus.
The younger generation of Kennedy men is pretty disappointing. I’ve always hoped more Kennedy women would get into politics, they are the true rocks of the family.
Right, but this is a time travel scenario, not a, “What if Kennedy had been born fifty years later,” scenario. The press wouldn’t be "outing"anything about him - these would be established facts that everyone already knows about the guy before he suddenly reappears in our time stream and runs for president again. How much do they matter in how the public reacts to him when he’s a living person again, and not a tragically murdered icon obscured by decades of nostalgia?
Gee, I dunno. What do the polls say?
Let’s be clear here. Are we talking about J.f.k, j,f,k, jfk or JFK?
Given the general consensus in the discussion about Hillary’s failure that just about anybody except Hillary would have won and that even Hillary would have won if her hired professionals weren’t totally incompetent why wouldn’t JFK have won big?
Maybe not. The health issues may be treatable today.
And the extra-marital affairs are old news. The last time he schtupped a woman not his wife was 54 years ago. 
Bizarrely, Kennedy is considered the 8th best president by modern historians. https://www.c-span.org/presidentsurvey2017/?page=overall