Wilbur Mills (PJW)

Wilbur Mills was the United States Speaker of the House and briefly the 37th President of the United States.

Following the ascension of James William Fulbright to the cabinet of President Harry F. Byrd, Mills became a leading force in the rebuilding of Arkansas following years of racial violence. His popularity due to his support of social programs led to him becoming a leader of the Democrat Party and his election to Speaker of the House of the Representatives in 1962.

Mills and Republican President Richard Nixon often butted heads due to Nixon's usage of funds for growing military expenditures in Vietnam and domestic spending on infrastructure and the growing Federal Bureau of Racial Affairs, rather than Mills's social programs. Following the resignation of Vice President Spiro Agnew, Nixon attempted to appoint a new Vice President. Due to Nixon facing impeachment charges, many, including Mills, saw this as Nixon essentially appointing his own successor. Nixon's appointment of Frank Carlucci failed to pass through Congress, and pundits and politicians blamed Mills for being partisan on a matter of national security, and especially when Mills was next in line for the presidency. Indeed, when Nixon eventually resigned, Mills ascended to the presidency.

Mills was unpopular due to this tainted ascension, and faced disapproval on both sides. His Cabinet was ragtag, with few willing to give up their seats for a "lame duck" presidency. Mills short presidency was mostly quiet, with a half-hearted attempt to increase funding for social programs batted down by Congress.

In the incredibly complex presidential election of 1972, Mills decided to run for re-election. Despite his unpopularity, the party was so divided that Mills managed to become its nominee, resulting in an exodus to George McGovern's Peace Party and the Citizens' Party. The election was thrown into Congress, and the man Mills initially blocked to the presidency, Carlucci, would end up winning the election a month later.