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Merlin Sheldrake, pansexual Fungologist. My favorite Fungi: Magic Mushrooms! My second favorite: visionary Chinese billionaire Fung Wah!
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Preview of the 1994 Midterms | The Kennedy Dynasty
The 1994 midterms are drawing near, and although President Dick Van Dyke is more popular than ever, his party is mired in dysfunction and on pace to lose control of Congress. Dick Van Dyke has done an incredible job turning around the American economy after a recession under his predecessor, establishing normal relations with the Soviet Union after the end of the Cold War, and getting progressive legislation passed with bipartisan support. However, he has also raised taxes, increased military funding, and pursued an aggressive free-trade agenda which has left some working-class Americans stranded. While Dick Van Dyke has the charisma and humor to remain popular even in this factitious political climate, establishment members of his party are not, and are increasingly being portrayed as self-serving career bureaucrats after the controversial ruling in Preate v. Jackson. For the first time in a long time, there's plenty of opposition parties to choose from. Is the Democratic reign of dominance done, or can they hold on for one more cycle? Here's where the political climate stands entering a crucial midterm year:
The Democratic Party is in a very unusual spot heading into the 1994 election cycle. President Dick Van Dyke is personally popular, as he's led America's economic recovery after a recession during the Gravel Administration, passed most of his ambitious agenda with strong bipartisan support, and used the Washington Telethon as both a vehicle to raise money for disaster aid and a public stage for him to embellish his public image.
However, the Democratic Party as a whole is deeply unpopular. They've held the White House for six years. They've held both houses of Congress for four of six, and they've held the House since 1984. They're seen as deeply establishment. They raised taxes. They oppose term limits. They've increased military spending, and they've mortgaged American jobs as part of Dick Van Dyke's free trade agenda. Not all Democrats are that unpopular though. Labor Democrats are in a very strong position right now, as many are seen as populist heroes for their fierce, vocal opposition to the North American Free Trade Agreement. Progressive Democrats are also in a good position heading into 1994, as they've assumed responsibility for gay rights protections for federal employees and Congressional representation for D.C. and Puerto Rico - two longtime goals of the social progressive movement. They've also leaned in to collaboration with the Greens, rather than fighting against them. With the expected success of these two factions, the Democrats could narrowly hold both chambers of Congress, but the sheer unpopularity of the party establishment is hard to be understated. They're quickly losing labor voters to Reform, progressive voters to the Greens, and suburban moderates to the Republicans. A lot of high-profile Democrats are facing very difficult re-election bids for the first time in years.
The Republicans see an opportunity to regain control of the House and Senate this cycle, and they might be able to pull it off, as they're leaning in to the most popular policies pushed by Ron Paul and Christine Todd Whitman two years ago. They're putting income tax relief at the heart of their campaign, arguing that Dick Van Dyke and the Democrats are placing too great of a tax burden on the American middle class. They're pushing for a major income tax cut, supplemented by two new taxes: a wealth tax on individuals with a net worth of $10 million or higher and a national sales tax on all purchases of non-essential goods nationwide. By finding new sources of revenue and cutting waste, fraud, and abuse, the Republicans argue that America's middle-class families could save thousands of dollars per year on their tax bills. They're also a lot more supportive of Dick Van Dyke's agenda than an opposition party would normally be. While some social conservatives are very much against his decision to protect gay and lesbian federal employees, moderate Republicans are for the most part in support of this decision. They're also in support of Dick Van Dyke's free trade agenda, applauding the president for removing barriers to unrestricted trade between the nations of the world and creating a prosperous future for the United States economy. Six years ago, the Democrats were the party of optimism, while the Republicans were mired in institutional crisis. In 1994, it's the exact opposite: the Democrats are tearing themselves apart over the trade issue while the Republicans move forward into the 21st century with a vision of peace and prosperity.
Reform is in a interesting spot right now. For one, they're running more viable candidates in high-profile races than they ever have before. They're seriously contesting fifteen state Governorships and ten Senate seats not currently held by their party. They're also defending the seat of party-switcher Keith Goodenough against vigorous opposition from both the Democrats and the Republicans. They've also cross-endorsed a number of candidates for House and Senate seats, ranging from staunch pro-labor Democrats to deeply conservative Republicans, casting a wide net in case their party is needed to form a governing coalition in either of the two houses of Congress come January. They can do that because their party is incredibly ideologically diverse. They've got left-wing populists from the Gravel movement, right-wing populist holdovers from the Phil Crane era, Libertarians, and a bunch of in-betweeners. However, for the most part, they agree on a few crucial issues. Most Reform Party members want to cut taxes, cut military spending, and assume a stronger stance against illegal immigration. The party is divided on trade, with some free-traders and some protectionists, but most Reform Party figures will argue in favor of some form of protective tariffs. Reform has created a home for anti-establishment figures of all political persuasions under one roof, and they've done an impressive job recruiting high-profile converts for their party. The question is: does it translate to electoral success?
The Green Party has the smallest pool of financial resources available of any major party, but they're still poised to gain quite a bit in this electoral cycle. The party is strategically disciplined, and has poured money into races they see as "winnable". In addition to defending California Governor Tom Hayden, who's facing a Democratic, Republican, and Reform challenger this year, they're also trying to flip an open Senate seat in Minnesota and the Governorships in Maine and New Mexico. The retirement of three-term Democratic Senator Wendell Anderson opened up a perfect opportunity for 1992 Green Party presidential nominee Paul Wellstone to win higher office. Wellstone has run for Senate before, and, although he was hesitant, chose to run again for the good of a party he's helped develop in Minnesota for decades. In Maine, Congressman Jonathan Carter has decided to run for the open Governorship after one term in the House, and in New Mexico, incumbent Republican Governor Manuel Lujan Jr., a moderate, is being challenged by an establishment Democrat and a conservative populist from the Reform Party member, creating a split in the moderate and conservative vote that could propel progressive Steven Schmidt to the Governor's mansion. The Green Party platform this year centers economic justice and environmentalism. They've teamed up with Progressives and Labor Democrats to oppose Dick Van Dyke's free trade agenda, which should help them with rural voters, and they've leaned in to the environmentalist message, arguing that the Dick Van Dyke administration isn't doing enough to solve the climate crisis. That should help them a lot too, considering many of their target seats are in states with strong conservationist movements. While their ambitions for the House this year mainly focus on protecting incumbents and helping progressives across all parties win seats, they very well could end the 1994 cycle with two Senators and five Governorships - record numbers for a small, financially-limited party.
There is also one major policy proposal, first proposed by the Reform Party, that many Republicans and Green Party candidates are now signing on to as well: a constitutional amendment creating term limits for all federal offices not covered by the 22nd amendment. In the aftermath of Preate v. Jackson, there's been a lot of grassroots activism targeted towards limiting the power of career government officials. A draft constitutional amendment proposes term limits of eight years for the Vice President and all cabinet-level positions, twelve years for Senators and Representatives, and eighteen years for Supreme Court Justices and all other federal judges. The Term Limit Amendment has become one of the most popular policies in America, although the Democratic establishment has fiercely resisted it, arguing that it decreases government expertise. However, that seems pretty shallow coming from a group of people who, in some cases, are serving twenty years or more in their Congressional roles. If the Democrats hold the House and Senate, this won't go anywhere. If either body changes control, expect a vote on the Term Limit Amendment to come soon into the next legislative session.
The 1994 midterms are going to show whether America is ready for a change after decades of a Democratic stranglehold on the federal government. For the first time in nearly a century, there are several viable political parties and ideologies represented on a national stage, rather than a two-party system. Dick Van Dyke may be popular, but six years in to his presidency, with his party largely dysfunctional, a lot of Americans are moving on to parties offering a clearer vision of the country's future. The Democrats may hold both Houses, the Republicans could flip both, or the government could be divided in any number of ways. Ultimately, the choice is up to voters: does America need continuity or change?
u/RWBIII_22 — 12 days ago
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Mitsubishi Starion
Spotted in Astoria, Oregon in June 2026.
u/RWBIII_22 — 13 days ago
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The Kennedy Dynasty | President Dick Van Dyke's term (1993-1994)
President Dick Van Dyke and his on-screen spouse Mary Tyler Moore host the 1993 Washington Telethon.
In the 1992 election, Dick Van Dyke was re-elected by one of the slimmest margins in American history. A few thousand votes in Missouri returned the old song-and-dance man to the White House and avoided a messy contingent election decided by the House of Representatives. The beginning of his second term would see two pieces of historic progressive legislation passed and the ratification of a major trade agreement that would serve as the centerpiece of Dick Van Dyke's economic policy plan. However, it would also see the rise of a major multinational terror cell in Eastern Europe and major government dysfunction set on by party-switches that made it hard to figure out who was in control of the Senate. There are ups, downs, and plenty of big moments in between. Here's how it all went down:
Van Dyke's Cabinet
Vice President: Jesse Jackson (1993-94), Richard Celeste (1994-95)
Secretary of State: Lee Hamilt
on (1993-94), Jesse Jackson (1994-95)
Secretary of the Treasury: Robert Rubin
Secretary of Defense: Norman Schwarzkopf Jr. (1993-94), Les Aspin (1994-95)
Attorney General: Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Secretary of the Interior: Tom Udall
Secretary of Agriculture: Jo Ann Zimmerman
Secretary of Commerce: Jim Florio (1993-94), Bill Gradison (Acting, 1994-95), James Blanchard (1995)
Secretary of Labor: Lane Kirkland
Secretary of Health and Human Services: Jim McDermott
Secretary of Housing and Urban Development: George McDonald
Secretary of Transportation: Norman Mineta
Secretary of Energy: John Rowe
Secretary of Education: Richard Celeste (1993-94), John Brademas (Acting, 1994-95), Roy Romer (1995)
Director of National Security: Les Aspin (1993-94), Stansfield Turner (Acting, 1994-95), Leon Panetta (1995)
Secretary of Veterans Affairs: Max Cleland
Director of the Office of Budget and Management: Alice Rivlin
United States Trade Representative: Felix Rohatyn (1993-94), Mike Hatch (1994-95)
Ambassador to the United Nations: John Lewis
Chair of the Council of Economic Advisors: Alan Blinder (1993-94), Laura Tyson (1994-95)
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency: Bruce Babbitt
Administrator of the Small Business Administration: Bill Gradison
Director of the Federal Emergency Management Administration: Art Agnos
Director of National Drug Control Policy: Kathleen Kennedy Townsend (1994-95)
Preate v. Jackson
Shortly before inauguration day, the Supreme Court handed down a verdict in Preate v. Jackson, a case that would determine whether the 22nd Amendment, which limits the President to two terms, also applies to the Vice Presidency. The case has major implications, as if the court ruled in favor of Pennsylvania Attorney General Ernie Preate, Vice President-elect Jesse Jackson would not be allowed to serve a third term and therefore would not get sworn in with Dick Van Dyke on January 20th.
Luckily, the court ruled 5-4 in favor of Jesse Jackson, with Chief Justice Stephen Breyer's majority opinion adopting a textualist argument: the 22nd Amendment explicitly limits the President and says nothing about the Vice President. Therefore, the Court cannot extend restrictions to any office not mentioned in its text. Joining Breyer in the majority were: Shirley Hufstedler, George J. Mitchell, Eleanor Holmes Norton, and Cyrus Vance. Jesse Jackson would be sworn in as planned and serve a partial third term as Vice President.
The real story, however, was the scathing dissent written by Associate Justice Mary Elizabeth Hanford. She did not argue that the amendment explicitly covers Vice Presidents, but rather that it exists to protect American democracy from the threat of authoritarianism by limiting executive tenure in some of the country's highest offices. She accused her fellow justices - three of whom were appointed by Dick Van Dyke - of adopting an artificially narrow reading to benefit the current administration. This is part of a growing pattern for Justice Hanford, who, when appointed in 1988 by then-president Mike Gravel was seen as a voice for progressivism on the court. Since then, however, Hanford has slowly drifted towards the court's Conservative wing, aligning with Justices Arlin Adams, Richard Posner, and Byron White in resisting so-called "government overreach". This puts the court in a rather precarious position. The liberal majority is thinning, Cyrus Vance isn't getting any younger, and odds are the next president won't be a liberal Democrat. The balance of the Supreme Court could be very different post-1996.
New Reform
New Reform Party chairman Beryl Anthony Jr.
Shortly before inauguration day, Donald Trump, the interim chairman of the Reform Party, announced that he'd found a permanent successor to former chairman Phil Crane, whom he'd ousted from the party shortly before the 1992 election. The new chairman of Reform would be former Congressman Beryl Anthony Jr., a Southern populist with close ties to Trump through their mutual friend, former Governor of Arkansas Bill Clinton. Anthony is also known for being a loyal supporter of former President Mike Gravel. With Anthony installed as chair, it was pretty clear to see what was about to happen next.
In early 1993, former President Mike Gravel joined the Reform Party alongside his two closest remaining allies, Pat Choate and Amory Lovins. Five years ago, Gravel defecting to Reform would've been unfathomable, but in 1993, it's a marriage that benefits both sides. Trump is trying to broaden the appeal of the party by creating a home for outsider movements and politicians who don't neatly fit within the left-right political spectrum. Gravel needs a home for his movement after his 1992 presidential campaign failed to reach 5% of the vote due to poor campaign infrastructure. The new Reform Party is as ideologically diverse as you can get, with some Libertarians, some Gravelites, and a whole bunch of prominent figures lying somewhere in between. A few commonalities exist throughout the party, however. For the most party, Reform Party members want to cut taxes, limit American intervention in foreign wars, and cut down on illegal immigration.
"New Reform" scored it's first major Congressional defection when George Wallace Jr., recently elected to represent Alabama's second congressional district in the House, changed his affiliation from Democratic. The party's Congressional delegation is still small, with just one Senator - Pat Robertson of South Carolina - and three Representatives - Walter Jones Jr. of North Carolina, Joe Shea of California, and Wallace - but with Trump's deep coffers and Gravel's loyal following, they could seriously expand those numbers following the 1994 midterms.
Fall of the House of Romanov
New Soviet Supreme Leader Alexander Yakovlev
In early 1993, Grigory Romanov would resign as Supreme Leader of the Soviet Union. His resignation had been a long time coming, as his heavy-handed response to pro-Democracy protesters triggered a national crisis that could've toppled the Soviet regime entirely had the American Government not interfered on his behalf. Admittedly, Romanov did a good job modernizing the Soviet Economy, which is in a far better place than it was when he became Supreme Leader nearly ten years ago, but the Communist party's central committee saw him as too much of a hardliner for a post-Cold War era. The central committee selected Alexander Yakovlev, widely known as one of the most pro-reform and pro-Western figures in Soviet leadership. This elevation signals the Soviet Union is not abandoning socialism entirely, but rather reforming the Soviet system from within, loosening central control, and creating a Soviet Union more compatible for trade and cooperation with their new Western allies.
Yakovlev's first major achievement was ratifying the Baltic Independence Agreement, granting full independence to Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia, effective January 1st, 1995. Then, a few months later, Yakovlev negotiated a major US-Soviet trade agreement with US Trade Representative Felix Rohatyn. The two countries agreed to greater collaboration with each other in scientific and technological research, partial integration of the two nations' industrial supply chains, and, most importantly, the lifting of major restrictions on American commerce in the Soviet Union. Under Yakovlev, the Soviet Union will allow major American investment in their country, and in exchange, American businesses may now access the untapped pool of Soviet customers. Romanov and Gravel helped end the Cold War. Now, Dick Van Dyke and Alexander Yakovlev are bringing the United States and the Soviet Union into the 21st century through economic cooperation.
Major Mergers
In early 1993, two Dick Van Dyke appointees replaced the final remaining appointees from the Gravel administration sitting on the Federal Trade Commission. With favorable commissioners in place, the FTC administration soon approved a pair of controversial corporate mergers.
First, they allowed tech giant Microsoft to purchase struggling personal computer manufacturer Apple. Microsoft has emerged as a powerful player in the software industry, but it is still heavily reliant on hardware from other manufacturers, including IBM, their chief rival and the industry leader. Dick Van Dyke's FTC argued that, by allowing Microsoft to purchase Apple, they'd be able to better contend with IBM, creating more competition in the computer industry. Critics argued that allowing this merger would concentrate too much power in a few big technology firms, squeezing out smaller competitors and ultimately hurting the American consumer. This merger had been held up for years while Gravel appointees on the FTC aggressively policed antitrust laws. Now, with all Gravel-era holdovers gone, a merger that will change America's tech industry forever has been allowed to proceed.
The second, more visible merger, was the NFL-USFL merger, ending a decade of competition between the two rival leagues and creating the largest professional sports league in American history. Ahead of the 1993 season, eight of the fourteen USFL teams would become new NFL franchises: The Birmingham Stallions, Los Angeles Express, Memphis Showboats, New Jersey Generals, Orlando Bulls, Philadelphia Stars, Portland Breakers, and San Jose Invaders. The merger expands the NFL into four new cities, gives New York City, Los Angeles, and the San Francisco Bay Area additional teams, and returns football to Philadelphia, a city still reeling from the relocation of the Eagles to Arizona in 1985. Six teams located in cities with established NFL franchises, the Chicago Machine, Denver Gold, Houston Gamblers, Michigan Panthers, Tampa Bay Bandits, and Washington Federals, were folded, with their players re-distributed to the eight surviving USFL teams.
The merger was pushed heavily by former President and current USFL Commissioner Jack Kemp and San Jose Invaders owners Paul and Nancy Pelosi, who donated millions of dollars to Dick Van Dyke's presidential campaigns in 1988 and 1992. It was vigorously opposed by the Gravel administration, mainly as a slight to Kemp for his vocal opposition during Gravel's presidency. For years, the NFL-USFL merger had been held up by Gravel appointees and a lawsuit led by the mayors of Chicago, Detroit, and Houston, who argued that their cities' USFL teams should be saved. Football fans can rejoice, as the NFL and USFL's long-awaited merger plan has come to fruition, bringing the finest the sport has to offer to millions more fans nationwide.
A New Threat Rises in Eastern Europe
On February 26, 1993, a rented van carrying a nitrate-hydrogen gas bomb would crash into the North Tower of the World Trade Center, a sudden act of terrorism that stunned the country to its core. Soon after the bombing, the Revolutionary Guard, a far-right ultranationalist group with it's origins in Vladimir Putin's United People's Front claimed responsibility for the act. Their primary motive was revenge against the United States for support of the Soviet Union during the Eastern European crisis. The Justice Department and the Department of National Security quickly moved to investigate the bombing and prosecute everyone involved. For a while, things returned to normal.
In Summer 1993, President Dick Van Dyke hosted the second annual Washington Telethon, raising billions in relief funding for flood-ravaged cities in the American Midwest. As part of the aid rollout, Dick Van Dyke toured the cities and towns that had been hardest hit by flooding, handing out emergency supplies, and giving speeches. At one stop in Valmeyer, Illinois, a town nearly wiped off the map by flooding, President Van Dyke nearly became the victim of a great American tragedy. Shortly into his speech, shots were fired at the President from afar. A shooter, perched atop a hill high atop the floodwaters, had shot at Dick Van Dyke with a sniper rifle. A few days later, United States Customs and Border Patrol agents arrested Gerald Tucker, real name Gennadiy Trukhanov, at the Mexican Border. Trukhanov was a Soviet national and former United People's Front member who idolized Vladimir Putin. Trukhanov had evaded capture by Soviet forces after the war's end, fleeing from Eastern Europe into England using a false passport, before entering the U.S. on a tourist visa through St. Louis. His weapon originated in the Soviet Union, and was likely smuggled over the Mexican border by Trukhanov's co-conspirators. DNS has begun investigating whether the Revolutionary Guard was involved in this incident as well. Although tension between the US and Soviet Union is cooling off, the rise of terrorist organizations poses a new threat to American national security that future administrations must prepare better for in the future.
Progressive Promises Kept
Gay rights advocates march in Washington in the leadup to voting on a major gay rights bill.
In 1993, President Dick Van Dyke would sign into law two pieces of major legislation delivering on promises he made to appease the Progressive wing of his party. First, President Van Dyke signed the Federal Employment Non-Discrimination Act, or FENDA. While limited in scope, the act established a principle that had never been previously recognized at the federal level: sexual orientation could not be used as a barrier to federal employment or government service. The bill was sponsored by four openly gay members of Congress: Harry Britt of the Green Party, Karen Burstein and David Clarenbach of the Democratic Party, and Jim Kolbe of the Republican Party. Qualified federal employees could now serve openly without the threat of losing their jobs. Although some on the left were critical that the act only applied to federal employees, several states, led by California, Oregon, and Vermont, soon passed similar acts. Many major corporations followed suit as well, enshrining protection for gay and lesbian employees into their corporate bylaws.
Representative Carlos Romero Barcelo (D-PR).
Next, Dick Van Dyke signed the D.C. and Puerto Rico Representation Act, giving Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico one voting member in the House of Representatives each, in doing so expanding the size of the House from 435 to 437 members. For the first time in U.S. History, people living in one of America's territories will be able to send voting Representatives to the lower body of Congress. The bill also established a path to Puerto Rican statehood. A 1994 referendum will decide whether the Caribbean territory remains a Commonwealth or applies to become America's 51st state. In November 1993 special elections, Julius Hobson Jr. of the Green Party, the son of deceased People's Party founder Julius Hobson Sr, won Washington D.C.'s newly-created House seat, while Puerto Rico's new House Seat went to Democrat Carlos Romero Barcelo. Barcelo's first order of business after being sworn in to the House was rallying support among Democrats for full Puerto Rican statehood. For Dick Van Dyke, these two bills constituted much needed wins that'll help him keep Progressives on his side for the upcoming midterms.
NAFTA
Wyoming Senator Keith Goodenough
In early 1994, the North American Free Trade Agreement, a trade deal that'd become the centerpiece of Dick Van Dyke's economic agenda heading into his second term, passed through both houses of Congress with bipartisan support. The agreement removed all barriers to trade and investment between Canada, the United States, and Mexico. It was supported by a majority of Democrats and a majority of Republicans, as well as Mexican President Carlos Salinas de Gothari and Canadian Prime Minister Sheila Copps. The bill also faced fierce bipartisan opposition. In the House, it passed despite Speaker David Bonior giving an impassioned speech against it's passage. In the Senate, it was held up even longer due to a two-day long filibuster from Senators Keith Goodenough (D-WY), Richard Lamm (D-CO), and Bernie Sanders (G-VT). The filibuster got enormous amounts of media attention, and elevated Goodenough and Lamm from little-known first-term Senators to political celebrities overnight. However, despite fierce opposition from the Labor Democratic bloc in the Senate, NAFTA got the 60 votes required to pass. As Dick Van Dyke celebrated alongside Copps and Gothatri in front of the newly-repaired World Trade Center, Keith Goodenough and Richard Lamm got on C-SPAN and announced to the country that they were leaving the Democratic Party for Reform.
Chaos Ensues
The departure of Goodenough and Lamm from the Democratic Party to Reform set off a chain of party-switches that resulted in nobody having any clear idea about who was in control of the Senate. Pat Robertson, vocally opposed to both Donald Trump and Mike Gravel, left Reform soon after Goodenough and Lamm arrived, becoming an Independent. Then, Wally Hickel of Alaska, the Senate's lone Independent, officially joined the Republican Party after years of persistent persuasion from Minority Leader Ted Stevens. Then, right on schedule, Vice President Jesse Jackson resigned from his post on June 1st, 1994. At the time of Jackson's resignation, the Senate had 49 Democrats, 47 Republicans, two Reform Party Members, one Green Party member, and one Independent. For the first time in recent memory, no single party had control of the U.S. Senate. That's not a great environment if you need to appoint a new Vice President and Secretary of State.
Goodenough and Lamm never had enough support for their economic populist beliefs to govern. However, they had just enough power to obstruct. They joined with Robertson and all of the Senate Republicans to impede the appointments of Richard Celeste to the Vice Presidency and Jesse Jackson to his old position as Secretary of State. Republicans were upset about the Preate v. Jackson verdict. Goodenough and Lamm were upset about NAFTA. For nearly four months, America went without a Vice President as fifty Senators stood in solidarity, demanding that President Dick Van Dyke withdraw the nomination of Jesse Jackson and appoint a non-Democrat as Secretary of State in his place. Neither side appeared willing to budge. That's when Dick Van Dyke decided to meet with Goodenough and Lamm one-on-one.
The two disgruntled Democrats wanted blood after Dick Van Dyke betrayed the labor-populist wing of his party. Goodenough and Lamm drew up a list of Cabinet members they wanted to see removed. To end four months of Congressional dysfunction and get Celeste and Jackson confirmed, President Dick Van Dyke reluctantly obliged. Out of a list of eight potential cabinet members to dismiss, including Secretary of the Treasury Robert Rubin, OMB Director Alice Rivlin, and Attorney General Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Van Dyke settled on four men: Secretary of Defense Norman Schwarzkopf Sr., Secretary of Commerce Jim Florio, U.S. Trade Representative Felix Rohatyn, and Chair of the Council of Economic Advisors Alan Blinder. Blinder, Florio, and Rohatyn were among the most vocal pro-business and pro-free trade voices in Dick Van Dyke's cabinet, and all had their hands on the North American Free Trade Agreement in some way. Now, all are gone. So is Norman Schwarzkopf, not for any NAFTA-related reasons, but because he had sent American peacekeeping troops to Haiti, Somalia, and Yugoslavia, an unpopular foreign policy decision that had been weighing down Dick Van Dyke in national polls ahead of the 1994 midterms. Van Dyke had been searching for a reason to dismiss Schwarzkopf for months, and when his name appeared on the Goodenough-Lamm hit list, he jumped at the opportunity to fire his least popular cabinet official.
With the midterms too close to hold lengthy confirmation hearings for new appointees to a slew of open cabinet positions, Dick Van Dyke quickly moved to fill as many openings as he could with internal nominees. Some elevations, such as promoting former Congressman Les Aspin to Secretary of Defense, promoting Deputy Secretary of Commerce Mike Hatch to Trade Representative, and naming Laura Tyson as Chair of the Council of Economic Advisors, were permanent, while other moves, including the elevation of presidential advisor John Brademas to Secretary of Education and the elevation of Small Business Administration head Bill Gradison to Secretary of Commerce, were made on an acting basis, until the designees for those roles, Governor of Colorado Roy Romer and Governor of Michigan James Blanchard, were able to finish their terms. All were easily confirmed. Dick Van Dyke's new cabinet is still largely pro-business and economically centrist, but there's a lot more representation from Labor Democrats than there used to be.
The Juice is Spilled
While Lamm and Goodenough kept the Senate closed down all summer long, President Dick Van Dyke kept himself busy, hosting the Third Annual Washington Telethon, raising funds for earthquake relief in Southern California. As with every year, the event was a huge success. However, once again, it preceded a tragedy, as, just days after appearing at the Telethon, actor and football star O.J. Simpson and his wife Lisa Bonet Simpson were found stabbed to death in their California home.
Simpson was a legendary football player, suiting up for the Philadelphia Eagles and Los Angeles Rams during his eleven-season NFL career. He then transitioned seamlessly to Hollywood, budding into an action star in television and movies. He had been at the Telethon to promote his upcoming NBC television series Frogmen, where he'd smiled and joyfully interacted with an excited crowd. Bonet was his second wife, whom he'd married in 1987. She was famous for playing Denise Huxtable in The Cosby Show and had begun to venture out into movies as well. She was only 26 at the time of her death.
Days later, the Los Angeles Police Department arrested the suspected killers, Nicole Brown, a waitress, and her boyfriend Keith Zlomsowitch, a known drug dealer. Brown and Zlomsowitch had tired to flee in a white Ford Mustang belonging to a mutual friend, Hollywood socialite Faye Resnick, but were caught after a televised low-speed chase. Brown, a drug addict with mental health issues, had met Simpson years prior in a Los Angeles club. Since that chance meeting, she had obsessed over the actor and football star, convinced he was in love with her. On the night of the murders, Brown and Zlomsowitch allegedly got high on cocaine, then traveled to the Simpson residence and waited for Simpson and Bonet to return home from a gala dinner. Then, the pair stabbed Simpson to death with a knife that investigators failed to recover. Bonet was stabbed far fewer times, likely killed trying to defend her husband from his killers.
Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy Kathleen Kennedy Townsend.
In response to the deaths of Simpson and Bonet, President Dick Van Dyke re-authorized the Office of National Drug Control Policy, which had been first established during the Kemp administration before being eliminated entirely by the Gravel Administration less than five years later. President Van Dyke would name Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, the daughter of former President Robert F. Kennedy and the sister of famous drug overdose victim Robert F. Kennedy Jr., as it's new head. Townsend's early priorities go far beyond stronger enforcement of drug trafficking. She wants to prioritize expanding access to treatment programs nationwide, increasing government funding for addiction research, developing early intervention programs for severe drug abuse and mental illness, and investigating the connections between addiction, mental health issues, and violent crime. Expect drug policy to be a major policy priority for the Dick Van Dyke administration in it's final years.
The Washington Telethon, meanwhile, has developed a cursed reputation. In 1992, it went off without a hitch. However, in 1993, it was followed by an assassination attempt, and in 1993, it was followed by one of the most senseless celebrity murders in recent memory. The telethons are highly successful, both as a fundraising tool and as a boost for Dick Van Dyke's popularity. They will continue. However, performers in the future may be wary of appearing, fearful of becoming the next victim of the Curse of the Telethon.
Early polling for the 1994 midterms is not favorable for the President or the Democratic Party. Dick Van Dyke has served six years as President, and in that six years, he's accomplished a lot of progressive goals, but he's also raised taxes, expanded the military, and eliminated Gravel-era protections for American labor. As is typical for a President six years into his term, voters want a change. The Green Party and Reform Party hope to capitalize on that dissatisfaction, especially from the working-class and the progressive left, hoping it'll propel them further towards major party status. Meanwhile, the Republicans are just a few flips away from re-gaining control of the Senate, and they've got a comprehensive plan they hope will accomplish that for them. But, if there's one thing that's been incredibly clear over the past six years, it is that America loves Dick Van Dyke. They may not love his party, or his policies, but the humor and optimism he brings to the White House is genuinely refreshing in a changing post-Cold War era.
u/RWBIII_22 — 15 days ago
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1992 House, Senate, and Gubernatorial Races | The Kennedy Dynasty
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"A New Day In America": the 1992 Election | The Kennedy Dynasty
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1992 election Preview | The Kennedy Dynasty
1992 is a new beginning for America. The Cold War is over, and gone with is the political order that has defined American politics since the end of World War II. An ideological vacuum has emerged, and as a result, America's major political parties are experimenting with new ideas and ideologies. The only through-current - everyone is hopeful for the future again. Dick Van Dyke and the Democrats - the incumbents - are caught in the middle. Four years ago, they ran on optimism and delivered a dramatic reshaping of the domestic agenda. But, they stumbled on foreign policy. Now, Dick Van Dyke faces a challenger from the Right with strong grassroots support and a platform with lots of new ideas that've never been tried before on a national stage, a challenger from the left who's selling himself as more presidential than the president, and a challenge from his bombastic predecessor who claims to have single-handedly solved the Cold War. That's a hard group of candidates to win re-election against, but if anyone can do it, it's a man who's spent 50 years making Americans happy.
This year, there are four viable nominees for the Presidency, including the incumbent and his predecessor. Here's where they all stand.
The Democratic Party nominates President Dick Van Dyke of Oregon and Vice President Jesse Jackson of Illinois.
Wait a minute, Jesse Jackson can't run again! He's already served most of two terms! If he runs again, he'd be violating the 22nd amendment. Not exactly. The 22nd amendment technically doesn't say anything about the Vice President. Tom Ridge, the Governor of Pennsylvania, believing the exact same thing I'm sure many of you did, told his Attorney General, Edwin Preate, to remove Jackson's name from the ballot in Pennsylvania, as Ridge deemed him ineligible to run. The Supreme Court quickly intervened, issuing an order that allowed Jesse Jackson to remain on the ballot in all 50 states while the Court hears the case of Preate v. Jackson, the ruling of which will determine whether or not the 22nd amendment applies to the Vice President or not. In the mean time, the court hopes that voters will settle this issue for them. To assuage concerns that he has no intention of stepping over constitutional limits, Jesse Jackson has promised to step down as Vice President no later than June 1, 1994 - eight years after he was first sworn into office. Secretary of Education Richard Celeste is next in line to replace Jackson if the incumbent Democrats are re-elected.
With that out of the way, incumbent President Dick Van Dyke runs another campaign centered around American optimism. He's highlighted all of the great achievements he's made as President: universal pre-K, major investments in infrastructure, transportation, and green energy, a full reversal of the nuclear shutdown, and a continuation of diplomacy-first foreign policy that finally brought an end to the Cold War. In his second term, Dick Van Dyke has promised to help rebuild Eastern Europe after years of conflict and enshrine strong legal protections for same-sex couples. He will also continue to rebuild America's economy through free trade and smart investment in innovative and emerging sectors of the economy. His campaign events are still star-studded affairs, as all his friends in Hollywood are more than happy to come out and perform for his behalf. He's had a rough start to his presidency, especially on foreign policy, but America still loves this old song-and-dance man, and he stands a good chance of getting re-elected to a second term.
The Republican Party and the Reform Party nominate Senator Ron Paul of Texas and Senator Christine Todd Whitman of New Jersey.
The Republicans and Reform Party are running a Presidential campaign that is far from anything ever seen before. First, they've made Ron Paul and Christine Todd Whitman dual nominees - a feat only seen once before in the Democratic-People's fusion that got Mike Gravel elected as president in 1984. Second, they've made Whitman the first female vice presidential nominee for both parties. Third, they've got an ideologically diverse platform fusing Libertarian and Kempist economic principles, anti-war populism, social liberalism, and Reform Party anti-establishment politics. It's even got a snappy name: the "Freedom Platform"
The core proposals of the Freedom Platform include massive income tax cuts, which would be offset by the introduction of a nationwide sales tax and a nationwide wealth tax. Paul has strongly opposed wealth taxes in the past, but his more moderate advisors, chief among them Lowell Weicker, urged him to add it to his platform to deflect criticism that he would cut taxes primarily for the wealthy. Also offsetting the proposed Freedom tax cuts would be another major cut in the Pentagon budget, reversing Dick Van Dyke's decision to quietly increase defense spending. Paul is also championing a pilot program for universal basic income - paid out from the revenues created by the wealth tax to low-income families to offset the cost of the sales tax. Similar programs already exist in Alaska, Vermont and West Virginia.
Paul has proposed a huge federal investment in technology and innovation to help bring the American economy into the 21st century, has championed stronger enforcement of immigration laws to protect American labor from unfair competition, and wants to expand civil liberties so that all Americans can live freely any way they choose to. Paul and Whitman promise an America that achieves prosperity through freedom, and for the first time in nearly a decade, the Republican Party has a clear, optimistic vision of the future again.
The Green Party nominates political strategist Paul Wellstone of Minnesota and former Secretary of Health and Human Services Barbara Ackermann of Massachusetts.
It seems crazy, but the Green Party has a reasonably viable path to putting a Democratic Socialist administration in the White House in just their first go-around as a major party. Their message: America's future is bright, but corporate capitalism threatens it. Their Presidential nominee - former Gravel advisor Paul Wellstone - is not well known, but he does have a compelling message. Wellstone argues that Dick Van Dyke ran on continuing popular progressive policies four years ago, but has since drifted towards the center, and the solution to that is not electing Ron Paul - who's tax plan implicitly favors the wealthy. He argues that the Green Party is the only party that actually stands for the needs of the American People - and with a platform of strong federal labor protections, stronger use of nationalization powers, aggressive enforcement of the recently passed National Climate Action Plan, a rapid transition away from fossil fuel use, expansion of social programs, peace first foreign policy, and protections for same-sex couples, he's got a good point. Wellstone also strongly supports the Wealth Tax - both he and Ron Paul claim the other one lifted it from their platform. Ackermann's high national profile and decades of executive experience add a lot of credibility to the Green Party ticket. Paul Wellstone is seen as the most presidential of the four major candidates, which says a lot, considering two of them have already been President. By hammering in the message that the Greens are the party of responsible, sustainable governance, the Greens may end up with the White House in November.
The Populist Party nominates former President Mike Gravel of Alaska and economist Pat Choate of Ohio.
39th President of the United States Mike Gravel is still one of America's most polarizing politicians. His third run for president is built almost entirely around personality, populism, and ideological intensity. Gravel, currently serving as the United States Special Envoy to the Soviet Union, is billing himself as "The man who single-handedly ended the Cold War". In addition to his self-aggrandization, he's also thrown a number of shots at his opponents. He's called incumbent President Dick Van Dyke an "upper-class Hollywood elite", "a stooge for big business" and "a puppet of the Kennedy Family". He's called his former chief advisor Paul Wellstone a "traitor to the working class", a "professional saboteur" and "chiefly responsible for the mishandling of the nuclear shutdown". Only Ron Paul - who's on record saying favorable things about him in the past - has been spared public humiliation.
Gravel runs on the Populist Party, a minor party that claims to be the direct successor to the old People's Party. His campaign is reminiscent of the last two: anti-corporate, anti-elite, anti-war, anti-tax, pro-nationalization, and fiercely futuristic. In typical gravel fashion, he's got a whole list of infrastructure megaprojects to campaign on, the most bizarre of which are Gravel Cities - green, transit-oriented, futuristic cities built by the government on federal land. It's a proposal that's become a political punchline for many - especially after it was relentlessly satirized by comedian Bill Murray, impersonating Gravel in a Saturday Night Live cold open - but for some, it's a genuinely fascinating policy proposal. Despite running for a party with almost no national infrastructure, Gravel routinely polls in double digits in four-way polls. In an election this chaotic, he seriously could win a second term.
Now, on to the candidates with no shot of winning:
The American Party nominates former Libertarian Party and Reform Party chairman Phil Crane of Illinois and environmental lawyer Kay Slaughter of Virginia.
American Party Presidential nominee Phil Crane.
The American Party is a remnant of the old American Independent Party, which ceased to exist at some point in the last five years, nobody really knows. It's become a refuge of sorts for far-right Reform Party ideologues who've been pushed out by new chairman Donald Trump. They've nominated Phil Crane, an institution of right-wing protest movements, fresh off his ouster from the Reform Party chairmanship after an admission of severe alcoholism. His running mate is Kay Slaughter, an environmental lawyer from Virginia who's also the daughter of deceased Reform Party Congressman French Slaughter. They run a campaign centered on social conservatism, religious traditionalism, hardline stances on cultural issues, such as abortion access and gay rights. Economically, Crane shares similar beliefs to Ron Paul, believing in low taxes, limited regulation and balanced budgets, but he also supports strict moral legislation and tough-on-crime policing, both policies which Paul strongly opposes. They're polling strongly among religious conservatives, although they could have a hard time pulling voters away from Paul, as conservatives are vary wary that vote splitting could mean a second Van Dyke term - or worse.
The Libertarian Party nominates author and lecturer Richard Boddie of California and physicist Mary Ruwart of Texas.
Libertarian Party Presidential nominee Richard Boddie.
Oh, how the mighty have fallen.
The Libertarian Party was once considered a mid-major party in the late 1970s and early 1980s, but most of it's mainstream base is now firmly aligned with the Republican Party and Reform - even more so now that Ron Paul - a former Libertarian Congressman, has won both of those parties' presidential nominations. What's left is an ideologically purist party that is far too extreme to ever seriously contend for major office.
Richard Boddie and Mary Ruwart campaign on a platform of near-total economic de-regulation, the abolition of dozens of federal agencies, drastic reductions in military spending, the complete legalization of drugs, and broad protections for privacy and free speech. In contrast to Paul - who's considered a moderate by their standards - they oppose all taxes, whether they be income, sales, or wealth taxes, immigration restrictions, and all forms of welfare, especially Paul's innovative UBI program. Their campaign appeals only to libertarian academics and radical anti-state activists.
The Natural Law Party nominates physicist John Hagelin of Iowa and businessman William Scranton III of California.
Natural Law Party Presidential candidate John Hagelin.
The Natural Law Party is a new party rooted in the transcendental meditation movement associated with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. The party frames politics not merely as policy disputes, but as reflections of collective human consciousness. Their platform mixes alternative medicine, meditation, environmentalism, education reform, scientific research, and anti-stress public health initiatives. Their presidential candidate is John Hagelin of Iowa, one of the nation's leading physicists and the president of Maharishi International University. His running mate, William Scranton III, is the son of former Governor of Pennsylvania William Scranton. The younger Scranton was briefly a rising star in Pennsylvania politics, finishing second behind Bob Casey in the Republican Primary for the state governorship in 1982. However, for the past ten years, he's been living in California and amassing a small fortune by investing in Silicon Valley's burgeoning tech industry. In an even more fascinating twist, their largest donor is Hollywood arthouse director David Lynch. Hagelin and Scranton's campaign stops are part political rally, part wellness seminar, and part avant-garde art gathering. Critics are calling their campaign bizarre. Supporters call it visionary.
u/RWBIII_22 — 1 month ago
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1992 Green Party Vice Presidential Selection FINAL ROUND | The Kennedy Dynasty
The Green Party Convention in Sacramento is just days away, and Presidential Nominee Paul Wellstone is down to two vice presidential finalists.
Wellstone has eliminated former Secretary of State and Attorney General Ramsey Clark from consideration, worried that Clark's gargantuan political stature could overshadow him on the campaign trail. That leaves him with two very qualified choices: Barbara Ackermann and Ken Hechler.
Ackermann is the current favorite. She is a strong progressive with two decades of executive experience between serving as Governor of Massachusetts and Secretary of Health and Human Services. Her progressive stances on social issues, specifically gay rights, appeal to the Tom Hayden wing of the party, and her leadership during the AIDS epidemic is proof that she is good in a crisis. While the Hayden wing of the party loves her, the Walt Brown labor populist wing sees her as too liberal and too establishment and a running mate who caters more towards skeptical Dick Van Dyke voters than left-leaning independents.
The other candidate, Ken Hechler, is an elder of the labor left. He served for 18 years as a champion of progressive causes in Congress before becoming Governor of West Virginia in 1976. As Governor, West Virginia became a testing ground for many of the Social Democratic policies Wellstone hopes to implement nationwide if elected president. He's beloved by the party's rural and populist wing and has a huge grassroots following. However, at 78 years old, he would be the oldest vice president ever elected if Wellstone wins in November. But, even in old age, Hechler is still an energetic campaigner.
Both of these choices are strong in their own ways and risky in others. However, only one can be Paul Wellstone's running mate come November. Soon, we will know who it will be.
u/RWBIII_22 — 1 month ago
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1992 Green Party Vice Presidential Selection Round #3 | The Kennedy Dynasty
Paul Wellstone at a campaign stop in Duluth, Minnesota.
Green Party presidential nominee Paul Wellstone is inching closer towards deciding on a running mate. Two more candidates are out of the running, leaving three experienced left-wing public servants for Wellstone to choose from.
The latest reporting indicates that CalEPA director Larry Agran is no longer being considered for the Green Party's vice presidential position. Neither is Dennis Kucinich, who has just filed for re-election to the House in Ohio's 19th Congressional District. Paul Wellstone began with six men and women on his vice presidential shortlist, but has since narrowed his list down to include only the three most experienced choices. They are: Barbara Ackermann, the former Governor of Massachusetts and Secretary of Health and Human Services, known for her fierce advocacy for gay rights and leadership in the fight against AIDS, Ramsey Clark, a political titan who has served as Attorney General and Secretary of State in the RFK and Gravel administrations, and Ken Hechler, the beloved former Governor of West Virginia, a left-wing populist, environmentalist and labor rights advocate.
Ramsey Clark campaigns on Paul Wellstone's behalf at an anti-war rally in New York City.
All three are overly qualified for the position and all three come with major flaws. Ackermann is more socially liberal than Wellstone's base, Clark has clashed with Wellstone in the past and could overshadow him on the campaign trail, and Hechler would be the oldest person ever elected vice president if the Green Party prevails in November. Despite their flaws, one will soon be the Green Party VP nominee. Which one? The answer continues to draw nearer.
u/RWBIII_22 — 1 month ago
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1992 Republican/Reform Vice Presidential Selection FINAL ROUND | The Kennedy Dynasty
Republican and Reform Party presidential nominee Ron Paul is down to two top choices for his running mate in 1992. Governor of New Mexico Manuel Lujan Jr. and Senator Sam Nunn are no longer under consideration, as Paul believes his two strongest options are Utah Governor Jon Huntsman Sr. and New Jersey Senator Christine Todd Whitman.
Choosing Huntsman would help unify Paul's ideological diverse base. Huntsman has broad appeal. He's a billionaire business magnate, a philanthropist, a former US Ambassador, and the sitting Governor of Utah. He is moderate enough to appeal to suburban Republicans put off by Paul's anti-establishment positioning and socially conservative enough to appeal to the religious right. Every major group in Paul's base has something to be happy about with Huntsman's selection. But this choice feels somewhat safe, as Huntsman doesn't expand Paul's base as much as his other option.
Senator Christine Todd Whitman has been a vocal supporter of Ron Paul since Jay Rockefeller dropped out of the Republican presidential race. She's atypical for a Paul supporter, being a socially moderate, female Senator from the northeast who comes from a long line of mainstream Republican politicians. However, she's a strong prescriber to Kempist economic theory, supporting low-taxes and pro-growth, pro-business regulatory positions, drawing her to Paul, a socially permissive, fiscally conservative, anti-establishment politician. She has the potential to become the first female VP selection for the Republican Party, and she could help bring in female voters, moderates, suburbanites, and liberal Republicans in the Northeast. If Paul can add those groups to his base, he could be an unstoppable force in 1992. Whitman isn't a safe choice by any means. She's got deep ties to the Republican Party's Northeastern establishment and she's only served in the Senate for a little over a year, but the upside of choosing her is tremendous.
Soon, one of these two will be announced as Paul's running mate at the Republican National Convention in San Diego. Which one? Well, we're about to find out.
u/RWBIII_22 — 2 months ago
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1992 Green Party Vice Presidential Selection Round #2 | The Kennedy Dynasty
The 1992 Green Party convention will be held at the historic Sacramento Memorial Auditorium.
As the 1992 Green Party convention approaches, presidential nominee Paul Wellstone is a little bit closer to knowing who will join him as his running mate at the convention stage in Sacramento. One top candidate is out, and five qualified individuals remain. Here's what's going on in the Green Party VP selection process:
Green Party nominee is reportedly no longer considering Tonie Nathan. While she's a strong campaigner and a great media presence, her views on economic issues are far more liberal than Wellstone's base, so a pairing of the two of them was unlikely to be successful. He's down to a final five that includes Barbara Ackermann, formerly the Governor of Massachusetts and Secretary of Health and Human services and currently a gay rights activist, the consensus "safe" choice, policy expert and Tom Hayden ally Larry Agran, former Attorney General, Secretary of State and political celebrity Ramsey Clark, progressive movement elder and former Governor of West Virginia Ken Hechler, and Dennis Kucinich, the pragmatic Green Party leader in Congress. All are strong choices, but some are more risky than others. Agran's inexperience, Clark's strong personality, and Hechler's age are all worrisome, but in the end all would be an asset to the Green Party in the general election.
u/RWBIII_22 — 2 months ago
1992 Republican/Reform Vice Presidential Selection Round #2 | The Kennedy Dynasty
Republican/Reform Party presidential nominee Ron Paul is a little bit closer to choosing a vice presidential nominee. He's down to his top four nominees after eliminate Senator Dirk Kempthorne and Governor Dick Randolph from contention. Paul believes his presence on the ticket alone is enough to win over fiscal conservatives, so there's no need to choose an ideologically similar running mate. Instead, he'll focus on expanding his base. His final four options are a reflection of that goal.
Paul is still considering Jon Huntsman, a billionaire industrial magnate and philanthropist and sitting Governor of Utah who appeals to all sectors of his base, Manuel Lujan Jr., the experienced, pragmatic Governor of New Mexico who, if selected, would be the first Hispanic major party VP nominee, Sam Nunn, a conservative Democrat with great foreign policy credentials who could help Paul reach across the aisle to the Gravel Democrats he's trying hard to win over, and Christine Todd Whitman, his senate colleague from New Jersey, an anti-tax moderate with liberal positions on social issues who would be the first female VP nominee for the Republican Party. All are strong choices, and all would expand Paul's base in some way. Huntsman remains the consensus "safe choice", but all four of them have a good shot to be the Republican/Reform Party vice presidential nominee in November. Shortly, we should know who Ron Paul chooses.
u/RWBIII_22 — 2 months ago
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1992 Green Party Vice Presidential Selection | The Kennedy Dynasty
Paul Wellstone and his wife celebrate their victory in the 1992 Green Party presidential primaries.
In the 1992 Green Party presidential primaries, Paul Wellstone, a little-known political organizer and presidential advisor from the Twin Cities toppled a political goliath in California Governor Tom Hayden to win the presidential nomination. He is now in the process of selecting a running mate. His primary concern: name recognition. Wellstone is up against three candidates, President Dick Van Dyke, Former President Mike Gravel, and Senator Ron Paul, who all have established names and broad-based movements. Wellstone, on the other hand, is still relatively unknown. The right vice presidential selection could change that instantly. Wellstone also wants a vice president with governing experience, as he knows his best path to win the White House is by campaigning as an experienced, steady-handed politician who serves the people first, a stark contrast from the relative inexperience and anti-"big government" ethos of his competitors.
Out of the available vice presidential choices, one woman stands out above the rest as the best possible option:
Former Governor of Massachusetts Barbara Ackermann
Barbara Ackermann was the Governor of Massachusetts from 1979 to 1985 and the Secretary of Health and Human Services under Mike Gravel from 1985 to 1989. She has considerable executive experience both on the state and federal level, strong progressive stances on both social and economic issues, and high national visibility from her relentless work combatting the AIDS crisis at HHS. Since the end of her tenure as Secretary of Health and Human Services, she's been a leading activist for federal protections for same-sex couples, raising her progressive credibility even more. If selected, she'd also continue the Green Party's streak of having at least one woman on every presidential ticket, a streak that their 1988 presidential nominee, Angela Davis, is fighting hard to preserve. However, Ackermann is on the older side, as she'll be nearly 68 by the time she is inaugurated. She's also less labor-oriented and more socially progressive than the average Green Party politician, which could push Walt Brown's bloc of rural Greens towards Ron Paul.
He's also considering a few other choices, such as:
California EPA Director Larry Agran
Larry Agran is a close ally of Wellstone's primary opponent Tom Hayden, and would be a good choice if Wellstone wants to preserve party unity at all costs. He's also a brilliant policy mind and a media darling who'd be excellent support for Wellstone on the campaign trail. Under his leadership, California enacted the strongest environmental protection laws in the country. Thus, he's the preferred choice for Vice President of the party's environmentalist wing. The only problem: Agran has even less national recognition than Wellstone. A Wellstone/Agran ticket would be strong, but the pair would have their work cut out for them getting their message across to people outside of Green Party circles.
Former Secretary of State Ramsey Clark
Ramsey Clark is likely the most nationally-recognized running mate Wellstone could get. He served as Attorney General from 1969 to 1975 under Robert F. Kennedy, then returned to executive branch service in the Gravel administration, serving as UN Ambassador before being elevated to Secretary of State. Clark is an extraordinary orator, has decades of foreign policy experience, and is one of the leading faces of the anti-war movement. He's also a strong personality, and frequently clashed with Wellstone during their time together in the Gravel Administration. Clark has supported Wellstone throughout the 1992 election, but there's concern the friction between the two men could return if they share the Green Party ticket. There's also worries that his national gravitas could overshadow Wellstone entirely. Clark would be a headline-grabbing VP selection, but commanding media attention doesn't always translate to electoral success. Just ask Tom Hayden.
Former Governor of West Virginia Ken Hechler
Ken Hechler is a left-wing icon. During his tenure as Governor of West Virginia from 1975 to 1983, he turned the state into a policy lab for left-wing progressivism. He's got decades of executive experience, a long and storied history of pro-labor and progressive policy stances, and is beloved by the working-class, rural Americans. However, at 78 years old, he'd be by far the oldest vice president ever elected. He's also reluctant to accept the role due to his age and desire to stay in West Virginia. But, he's still energetic, as good a campaigner as ever, and a great choice if Wellstone wants to lean in to winning over the rural left.
Congressman Dennis Kucinich of Ohio
Dennis Kucinich, a Congressman who's represented parts of Cleveland in the House since 1973 is exactly the high-profile choice Wellstone needs. Kucinich has led the People's/Green Party in the House since the late 1970s, and is a nationally recognized progressive and pro-labor activist. He's also a strong campaigner, although he does little to expand the electoral map for Wellstone, as the two share nearly identical political positions and are from the same home region. Kucinich is also seen as a beltway politician by some parts of Wellstone's base due to his long tenure in Congress and reputation for reaching across the aisle. Choosing Kucinich would be good for the party, but not the best option for electoral success.
State Senator Tonie Nathan of Oregon
From 1977 to 1983, Tonie Nathan was the leader of the Libertarian Party in Congress. Since the 1980s, she's moved considerably to the left and officially joined the Green Party in 1990. She currently leads the party in the Oregon State Senate, where they're part of a majority coalition with the Democrats. Nathan was a local television host before becoming a politician, so she's very media savvy. She's also a strong campaigner. Nathan holds progressive positions on social issues such as abortion, gay rights, and the environment, but she also holds neoliberal stances on economic issues, favoring free trade and deregulation. That could help Wellstone with independents, but the labor wing of the Green Party would likely revolt if Nathan is selected as his running mate. She'd be a strong asset to the Wellstone campaign, but choosing her is risky.
u/RWBIII_22 — 2 months ago
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1992 Republican Vice Presidential Selection | The Kennedy Dynasty
Ron Paul, the 1992 Republican and Reform Party nominee.
Ron Paul has done what pundits believed to be impossible at the beginning of primary season. He has somehow won both the Republican and Reform Party presidential nominations. Paul has united conservatives behind a platform that is anti-tax, anti-regulation, anti-war, and deeply pro-individual rights. He carries a diverse but fragile coalition ranging from hardcore Libertarians to anti-tax moderates into the general election. Now, he must choose a running mate that'll appeal to an ideologically divided base.
There is one clear early favorite for the nomination:
Governor of Utah Jon Huntsman Sr.
Jon Huntsman, the Governor of Utah since 1989, might be the most universally acceptable choice on Ron Paul's shortlist. Huntsman is a billionaire philanthropist with strong religious values and more moderate stances on economic policy than Paul. He's also got strong foreign policy credentials after serving as a US Ambassador during the Kemp Administration. Huntsman appeals to pretty much every group Paul is trying to court in some way: moderates, conservatives, independents, libertarians, anti-establishment activists, the business community, and the religious right all see admirable traits in the Utah governor. However, Ron Paul's campaign has thrived on disruption. This choice feels far too safe a move considering the candidate we're dealing with.
Paul is also considering some more unconventional options, such as:
Senator Dirk Kempthorne of Idaho
Dirk Kempthorne is a young, charismatic politician who's represented Idaho in the US Senate since 1985. Ideologically, Kempthorne is a close match with Paul, being a pro-business conservative with a Libertarian streak on regulatory policy. Kempthorne would also be a major asset to Paul on the campaign trail, given that he's young, media-savvy, and a talented speaker. However, Kempthorne does little to expand Paul's base, considering his ideological overlap with the Republican/Reform Party nominee. He's also less nationally recognized than some of the other candidates Paul's is considering to be his running mate.
Governor of New Mexico Manuel Lujan Jr.
Manuel Lujan is a businessman-turned politician who served in the U.S. House of Representatives for 20 years before becoming Governor of New Mexico in 1991. Lujan is a respected, senior Republican who holds moderate views on social issues and believes in Kempist pro-business and pro-growth economic policies. Lujan is a beloved leader of the growing bloc of Hispanic Republicans, and if selected, he'd become the first Hispanic vice presidential nominee for a major party. On the flip side, Lujan will be 65 years old early next year and is not an energetic campaigner. He's also deeply tied to the Republican establishment, which could draw the ire of Paul's anti-establishment base.
Senator Sam Nunn of Georgia
Sam Nunn is a conservative Democrat who's represented Georgia in the U.S. Senate since 1981. Ron Paul has never been afraid to reach across party lines, and adding Nunn, an expert on foreign policy and defense issues, adds a lot of credibility to his campaign. Nunn is easily the most conservative Democrat in the Senate, voting in line with Senator Paul's philosophy of low taxes and minimal government spending more often than not. He's slightly more liberal on social issues, strongly opposing gay rights but supporting abortion, gun control, and affirmative action. Nunn would be a good choice if Paul wants to reach across the aisle and court moderate and Southern Democrats, but he could alienate Paul's base, especially Republicans, who may stay home in November rather than vote for a candidate who frequently shows disloyalty to the party that just awarded him their presidential nomination.
Former Governor of Alaska Dick Randolph
Dick Randolph and Ron Paul were two of the biggest national figures in the Libertarian Party at it's height in the late 1970s. Paul defected to the Republicans in 1983, the same year Randolph became Governor of Alaska. Randolph later joined the Reform Party in 1986. The two share a lot of history together, and as a result, Randolph has deep credibility within Paul's movement. He's also seen as a policy visionary for helping create the Alaska Permanent Fund, one of the first universal basic income programs in the country, paid for by oil and gas revenues. However, his achievements as Governor could be overshadowed by his activities after leaving office. Since 1991, Randolph has been a top lobbyist for the healthcare industry and has worked behind the scenes to build up support for ending Medicare For All by privatizing Medicare. Randolph's lobbyist background and support for a politically radioactive policy position are going to be easy targets for Ron Paul's opponents to attack him on if he chooses the former Governor of Alaska as his running mate.
Senator Christine Todd Whitman of New Jersey
Christine Todd Whitman has represented New Jersey in the US Senate since 1991. Her upset victory over Democrat Bill Bradley helped Republicans re-gain the Senate for the first time in nearly 40 years. She's an anti-tax fiscal conservative with moderate stances on social issues, aligning well with Paul's ideology while still being very appealing to moderate Republicans. Whitman would also become the first female vice presidential nominee for the Republican Party if selected. However, populists and Reform Party activists may be turned off by her selection, as she comes from a wealthy political dynasty and is considered "too establishment" by the more radical factions of Paul's base.
u/RWBIII_22 — 2 months ago
1992 Republican Primaries FINAL ROUND | The Kennedy Dynasty
We're down to the last two men standing in the Republican Primary, as one candidate, once seen as a front-runner, saw his campaign crash and burn over the course of late March through early April.
The collapse of the John McCain campaign would begin on March 17th, when the Arizona Senator placed third in primaries in Illinois and Michigan. Tom Ridge won in the Prairie State, but Paul's victory in Michigan was the real headline-grabber, proving he could expand his coalition outside of the rural South and Mountain West. McCain rebounded slightly, placing second in Connecticut, but he was far from competitive for first place amidst one of Tom Ridge's best primary performances.
Then, on April 7th, the wheels fell off. Four states voted in primaries: Kansas, Minnesota, New York, and Wisconsin. McCain placed third in three of four, placing second in New York. Tom Ridge won the majority of delegates in Minnesota and New York, while Kansas and Wisconsin fell in Paul's column. The following day, John McCain exited the race, offering no formal endorsement, although sources close to McCain overwhelmingly claim that he privately favors Ridge.
In fact, the Pennsylvania Governor has wide-ranging institutional support from the national party, with endorsements from a majority of Republican Governors, Senators, and Representatives RNC leadership figures, major corporate donors and interest groups. Paul, meanwhile has built an eclectic grassroots following of grassroots conservatives, libertarians, anti-tax moderates, populists, and anti-establishment figures of all parties and political leanings. His endorsement list reflects the eccentricity of his campaign. Among his most notable supporters are Former Vice President Paul Laxalt, Senate Majority Leader Ted Stevens, libertarian icon and Washington Senator Jack Metcalf, moderates Lowell Weicker and Christine Todd Whitman, and pragmatic anti-corruption crusader Larry Pressler.
This is a battle for the ideology of post-Cold War conservatism. Ridge stands for pragmatism, institutionalism, internationalism, and incrementalist change, while Paul is a populist, anti-tax, anti-war, anti-big government ideologue who is deeply suspicious of federal power and not afraid to say it. The final half of the 1992 Republican Primary will decide whether it will continue to be dominated by the pro-business, pro-labor, pro-big government, socially conservative Keystone Republican wing, or whether a unique coalition of Kempists, Libertarians, and Populists can seize control and usher in a new age for the Republican Party.
State of the Race
| Candidate | Delegate Count | Contests Won |
|---|---|---|
| Ron Paul | 350 | Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Wisconsin |
| Tom Ridge | 340 | Connecticut, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island |
| John McCain (withdrawn) | 293 | Colorado, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, South Dakota |
| Jay Rockefeller (withdrawn) | 73 | |
| Oliver North (withdrawn) | 17 | |
| Christine Todd Whitman (withdrawn) | 6 | |
| Tom Kean (withdrawn) | 5 | |
| Jim Edgar (withdrawn) | 1 |
u/RWBIII_22 — 2 months ago
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1992 Republican Primaries Round #6 | The Kennedy Dynasty
Super Tuesday was a big day in the 1992 Republican Primary. Eight States: Florida, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, Tennessee, and Texas, held their primary elections, and the day had one big winner and a couple of very disappointing losers. And, at the end of the night, a new candidate sits atop the Republican presidential field.
That man is Texas Senator Ron Paul, who won five of eight Super Tuesday contests. He narrowly defeated Tom Ridge in Tennessee and scored huge victories in Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and Texas. He won in the Lone Star State with just under 50% of the vote, carrying nearly every county in rural West Texas. It was the strongest single-candidate performance in a Republican primary so far this year, and in a state with a massive delegate haul. Tom Ridge had a respectable outing, winning both Massachusetts and Rhode Island and placing second in a number of states, most notably Florida, Louisiana, and Tennessee. John McCain struggled, only winning Florida - a far departure from his lofty expectations. As a result, he lost his spot atop the delegate leaderboard to Paul, who is now the race's front-runner after a dominant win in his home state.
Jay Rockefeller came close to a victory in Rhode Island, but that would be the highlight of his Super Tuesday. He finished in last place in most of the Southern states, places where his brand of liberal Republicanism is a tough sell. He'll endorse Tom Ridge, despite Ridge's far more conservative positions on social policy. This race is down to three men, and all three have a legitimate shot at the nomination. Illinois and Michigan are the next two primaries up, and they should be interesting with no true moderate left in the race. These two contests will decide whether the Republican Party wants a candidate who is economically liberal and socially conservative (Ridge), a candidate who is socially liberal and economically conservative (Paul), or a candidate who sits in the middle of the two extremes (McCain). Paul has the edge, and he'll be on the ballot regardless after shoring up the Reform Party nomination, but overall, this is still anyone's race.
State of the Race
| Candidate | Delegate Count | Contests Won |
|---|---|---|
| Ron Paul | 211 | Iowa, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas |
| John McCain | 198 | Colorado, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, South Dakota |
| Tom Ridge | 169 | Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island |
| Jay Rockefeller (withdrawn) | 73 | |
| Oliver North (withdrawn) | 17 | |
| Christine Todd Whitman (withdrawn) | 6 | |
| Tom Kean (withdrawn) | 5 | |
| Jim Edgar (withdrawn) | 1 |
u/RWBIII_22 — 2 months ago
1992 Reform Party Primaries FINAL ROUND | The Kennedy Dynasty
The Reform Party is very close to choosing their presidential nominee. Ron Paul is almost certainly their primary's big winner, but how he got there is a story of one man's humiliating downfall and another man's rise to become the "savior of Reform".
In the March 3rd Primaries, Ron Paul would get two more wins in Colorado and Georgia, while Donald Trump would get a win of his own in Maryland. Phil Crane performed well out of the gate, placing second in all three contests, although nowhere close to first place in any of them. But, four days later, his fortunes finally changed. In a surprising outcome, Phil Crane won the South Carolina primary by just a few percentage points over Ron Paul. It appears his campaign may not be a lost cause after all.
His victory lap would last just a few hours before things came crashing down.
At his victory party in Charleston, Phil Crane, heavily intoxicated, berated a female reporter who was interviewing him after his victory. Rumors of his alcoholism made the rounds on TV news shows the next day, with Donald Trump appearing on several different programs to disparage him in front of a national audience. Later that night, Phil Crane would hold a press conference where he would admit to his struggles with alcoholism over the past decade. His admission did not play well with the Reform Party's executive board, giving Donald Trump just enough votes to finally end the power struggle and oust Crane as chairman. Trump would be named interim chairman while a national search was conducted to find a permanent replacement, ending his presidential campaign to accept the role. With Trump at the helm, the national party is spending millions to help Ron Paul win the nomination. Yet, somehow, Phil Crane's quixotic presidential run soldiers on. Crane has lost everything: his power, his party, and his dignity, in one fell swoop. He can't let it destroy his presidential bid too. Crane has little to no chance of beating Ron Paul, but he's committed to riding his campaign out until the party convention, where, unless he pulls of a miracle, he'll bid farewell to an illustrious political career spanning three decades.
State of the Race
| Candidate | Delegate Count | Contests Won |
|---|---|---|
| Ron Paul | 101 | Colorado, Iowa, Georgia, New Hampshire, South Dakota |
| Donald Trump (withdrawn) | 73 | Maryland |
| Phil Crane | 49 | South Carolina |
| Pat Buchanan (withdrawn) | 20 | |
| Bob Dornan (withdrawn) | 3 | |
| Pat Robertson (write-in) | 3 |
u/RWBIII_22 — 2 months ago