Talk Elections

Presidential Elections - Analysis and Discussion => Election What-ifs? => Topic started by: Psychic Octopus on August 07, 2010, 08:01:16 PM



Title: Death of a Nation
Post by: Psychic Octopus on August 07, 2010, 08:01:16 PM
Death of a Nation

()

Quote from: Russ Feingold
We stood at the edge of the abyss. We were fighting two costly wars, grappling with an economy in recession, and trying to shake off two decades of indecisive leaders. Our nation was questioning the merits of its own existence. Our presidents, always pushing the mantra of hope and change, became hated and feared as the world came crashing down around them. Senators, myself included, were voted out of office on the grounds that we were part of a culture of corruption. Our society broke. Our lives withered away. We witnessed, albeit unwittingly, the death of a nation.


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: sentinel on August 07, 2010, 08:31:15 PM
You caught my attention


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: MASHED POTATOES. VOTE! on August 07, 2010, 08:35:30 PM
NiK is back :)


Title: Part I: The Collapse
Post by: Psychic Octopus on August 07, 2010, 10:00:05 PM
November 6th, 2012: It truly was a sight to behold. For the first time in American history, two female candidates were competing for the Presidency. I speak of, of course, Hillary Clinton and Sarah Palin. Unfortunately for my party, and perhaps the nation, Secretary Clinton was heavily defeated.

Contributing to her defeat was the successful impeachment of Barack Obama, the first in American history. While his failings were many, none were as significant as his failure to provide relief to a nation in need. When the economy collapsed in December 2010, what remained of his popularity was dragged down with it. The United States, following Europe’s lead, could not meet its financial obligations, and thus, defaulted on its debt. The Republicans, winning a massive mandate the month previously, refused to go along with Obama’s remedy. No compromise was reached, and Congress became deadlocked. Financial institutions failed, and certain states like California became hellholes. In May of 2011, after Obama’s approval rating reached an unbelievable low - 19% - the man of hope and change was forced out of office by Republican revolutionaries and Democratic traitors, in favor of his Vice President, Joe Biden.  President Biden was more willing to cooperate with the Republican Congress, but alas, he also failed to solve the economic crisis.  On free trade and outsourcing – now thoroughly reviled policies – President Biden took immediate action. NAFTA was repealed. Companies that practiced outsourcing were punished. Policies that were historic failures were implemented.

Against this backdrop was the 2012 Republican Primaries – a competition of the weakest candidates the party had seen in years. The frontrunner, at least in the early stages, was none other then Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts Governor and CEO of Bain Capital. However, his Hollywood-style looks could not save him from his past. In the end, his “Romneycare” and former beliefs were used against him, and he was discredited by the time the electoral season began. Other usually-stellar candidates, such as Mitch Daniels and Tim Pawlenty, were considered too boring. Mike Huckabee didn’t run, to the disappointment of many, instead focusing on his TV Show. Ron Paul ran and even won a state, but ultimately was considered to eccentric by the base. No, the real competition was between two champions of conservatism – Newt Gingrich and Sarah Palin. Palin represented the populist evangelicals, Gingrich the movement conservatives. Both were accepted and adored by the so-called “Tea Party.” However, one had the advantage the other didn’t – the favor of the elite. Gingrich won the nomination on Super Tuesday, carrying all of the big states. Palin and Paul’s support was confined to the smaller states, and those were not rich enough in delegates to produce victory.

On the Democratic side of the aisle, the opinion was unanimous. Hillary Clinton should be the nominee, being the only member of the Democratic establishment with any popularity left. Joe Biden opted out of the election, knowing he no longer had the ability to run a successful campaign.

The general election thus began, with Gingrich and Clinton – historic enemies – squaring off in numerous Town Hall debates over the summer. The two knew each other well, the former having fought the spouse of the now-nominee. Although Gingrich led in the polls by a substantial margin, Hillary took steps to fix the problem. Little did she know, though, that someone had already taken those steps – only in a different way.

On August 14th, 2012, Newt Gingrich was assassinated by a crazed group of unemployed Americans. Possessing multiple weapons, they claimed that Gingrich was an agent of the “New World Order” and conspired to bring about a fascist state. The nation was shocked and – as is usually the case – martyred him. As a result, Sarah Palin became the Republican nominee at a brokered convention, with no other candidates being able to appeal to the people. Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett was nominated for Vice President.

She wrapped herself in the legacy of both Reagan and Gingrich following her nomination, and set out to defeat Hillary Clinton – an easy task given the circumstances. The biggest obstacle to a Palin presidency were the debates, which she was able to weather, albeit barely. And thus, on a historic November 6th, 2012, Sarah Palin was elected the first female President of the United States.

(
)

Sarah Palin/Tom Corbett: 61.2% PV, 517 EV
Hillary Clinton/Mark Warner: 35.7% PV, 21 EV


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: MASHED POTATOES. VOTE! on August 07, 2010, 10:12:07 PM
On August 14th, 2012, Newt Gingrich was assassinated by a crazed group of unemployed Americans. Possessing multiple weapons, they claimed that Gingrich was an agent of the “New World Order” and conspired to bring about a fascist world order.

Dude, beware. You may get infraction points after Libertas reports you for "personal attack"


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario) on August 07, 2010, 10:15:04 PM
This is going to be epic. Please continue.


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: Yelnoc on August 08, 2010, 01:02:05 PM
That was awesome, please continue.

@Kalwejt: Lol


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: Antonio the Sixth on August 08, 2010, 03:21:41 PM
This is going to be epic. Please continue.


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: Bo on August 08, 2010, 05:11:02 PM

^


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: Bo on August 08, 2010, 05:29:22 PM
One thing: How do foreign affairs (Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran, etc.) go in this TL?


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: Psychic Octopus on August 08, 2010, 05:34:43 PM
One thing: How do foreign affairs (Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran, etc.) go in this TL?

You'll see. The United States (in order to conserve money) begins an immediate withdrawl from Afghanistan and Iraq in January 2011. Iran, being largely self-reliant, won't suffer directly from the crisis. America will withdraw from the world, enacting protectionist legislation.

I won't reveal anything else yet.


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: sentinel on August 09, 2010, 12:34:21 AM

^^^


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: Sewer on August 09, 2010, 12:52:16 AM
lol


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: pbrower2a on August 09, 2010, 06:39:13 AM
Sarah Palin as President? I can't wait for the military coup as everything falls apart.

No, one of the premises fails: impeachment is not a form of vote of no confidence in an inept President. A sitting President could only be impeached for criminal misconduct -- treason, bribery, war crimes -- or for virtual abandonment of the Presidency.

Resignation in shame makes more sense.


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: Antonio the Sixth on August 09, 2010, 06:53:25 AM
No, one of the premises fails: impeachment is not a form of vote of no confidence in an inept President. A sitting President could only be impeached for criminal misconduct -- treason, bribery, war crimes -- or for virtual abandonment of the Presidency.

This is how it works in theory. In practice, Andrew Johnson (and to a lesser extent Clinton) was almost impeached for petty partisan reasons.


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: Psychic Octopus on August 09, 2010, 03:50:14 PM
No, one of the premises fails: impeachment is not a form of vote of no confidence in an inept President. A sitting President could only be impeached for criminal misconduct -- treason, bribery, war crimes -- or for virtual abandonment of the Presidency.
This is how it works in theory. In practice, Andrew Johnson (and to a lesser extent Clinton) was almost impeached for petty partisan reasons.

Yes, Obama is forced out for pretty partisan reasons. He is charged with the following:

Unlawfully exercising the authority of his office to take private property for public use in violation of the Fifth Amendment of the United States Constitution, which guarantees to the People that “private property shall not be taken for public use without just compensation,” and without “due process of law”;

Unlawfully interferring with the management of private companies for the purpose of achieving government control of them,  in violation of the Fifth Amendment of the United States Constitution.

Unlawfully interferring with the economic rights of the People by imposing unreasonable impairments in the fulfillment of their intended contractual obligations, and their ability to enter into such contracts, and attempting to change our fundamental economic system, where there is no significant or legitimate public purpose to do so.


Title: Chapter II: Renewed Fear
Post by: Psychic Octopus on August 12, 2010, 08:53:58 PM
November 7th, 2012: The party that followed Palin’s triumph was one of great magnitude. Many denizens of America even began to think of the Christian woman as a savior, the reincarnation of Jesus. Pat Buchanan and Sean Hannity reckoned that Palin was the Republican FDR, who could realign the political world in their favor. Even Paul Krugman, once a fierce Democrat and loather of Palin, wrote a favorable article comparing her to William Jennings Bryan, the great populist of old. These people were blind, deluded fools, who desperately hoped for the America they knew to return.

November 10th, 2012: President-elect Sarah Palin announces her economic team, which consisted of hapless supply-siders. Phil Gramm is selected to be Treasury Secretary, an amusing fact given Gramm’s prominent role in the financial meltdown. John Taylor, a professor, assumes the post of Under Secretary of the Treasury. Mitt Romney and Michael Bloomberg, the two men that were on Palin’s short list to head the Commerce and Labor departments respectively, immediately refuse the offer. Instead, the posts go to Gerald Parsky and Peter Wallison.

December 21st, 2012: On the day that was supposed to mark the end of the world, Palin announces her foreign policy picks. Rudy Giuliani, a former neoconservative and hero of 9/11, is chosen to be Secretary of State. Gary Hart, an old hand and former presidential contender, is revealed to be the next Secretary of Defense.

Prominent names notwithstanding, their roles were to be marginal. With the collapse of the American war effort in Afghanistan and Iraq and the closing of many overseas military bases, their roles would be relatively pointless. Secretary Hart’s job was to reconcile the fact that the United States was no longer a superpower, even a great power. Secretary Giuliani’s purpose would be to reach out to former allies, many of which were worse off then America was.

Britain, led by Prime Minister David Milliband, would see a prominent rise in the overall popularity of the British National Party. France, now led by Martine Aubry, experiences a remarkable rise in the activity of the National Front and Revolutionary Communist League. In fact, the UMP doesn’t even make it to the second round in the French presidential election; the National Front does, feeding on the suffering of the French people. In Eastern Europe, movement towards fascism is quite pronounced and swift. On the other side of the world, the emerging giant known as China fragments, with the party hierarchy overthrown by dissidents. The light goes out around the world, and will not turn on for quite some time.

()

President Sarah Palin

January 20th, 2013: On a freezing January day, Sarah Palin becomes the 45th President of the United States. In her inaugural address, she appeals for domestic stability. As the United States was in a state of perpetual lawlessness, her speech is only seen by wealthier, more well-to-do Americans, and not by the people.

More interesting to me, however, were the people at the ceremony itself. I remember Joe Biden, the outgoing president, wearing a face enveloped in fear. Bill Clinton looked visibly shaken. John McCain, the man who made Palin, had his palm on his face the entire time she was speaking.

February 3rd, 2013: Palin’s economic plans reach the heavily Republican congress. Included in her proposals were a repeal of “Obamacare,” privatization of Medicare, privatization of Social Security, an end to spending on certain entitlements, and abolishment of the Department of Education. They all pass congress, with Democratic opposition being ignored by the Republican filibuster-proof majority.

Of course, it is merely a formality. Many no longer have benefits. During the last two years, tax revolts and food shortages became more and more common. In order to cope with economic woes, extended families and close friends move in together, breaking federal regulation. Crops are planted in the backyard, water is saved and used sparingly. Many homes no longer have electricity, which prompts a rather extreme form of whining from Generation Z.

Indeed, as a result of this, fast-food chains and restaurants go bankrupt. People just don’t want to waste money on short-term substance anymore. The fast-food culture deteriorates. Shopping malls are abandoned.

On another note, the urban-rural divide is becoming seen. Urban areas, facing mass looting, are no longer safe. Suburbs, containing huddled families, guard against robbers. Trusting an outsider is increasingly rare. Families that possess weapons are in a much better position. Alliances among houses and close friends are struck. Battle plans are enacted. Networks are created. In a sense, minarchism becomes a reality, albeit at a small scale. Rural areas and self-sustaining communities, by contrast, are safer, being far away from the big cities. The downside, however, is that they are hotbeds for revolutionary activity.

March 21st, 2013: President Palin and Secretary Giuliani announce that the United States will withdraw from the United Nations. The move is greeted with widespread rejoicing among the American public, who no longer wish to fund the organization.

May 15th, 2013: Americans become increasingly critical of Palin, and her approval falls below 50% for the first time. Many thought Palin would be able to take steps to turn the economy around, but in reality, she is powerless to do such a thing. Partisanship is becoming increasingly rare, as surviving and proliferating take the place of petty squabble. A liberal may aid a conservative, and vice-versa. Life matters more then politics.


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: Yelnoc on August 12, 2010, 08:59:24 PM
Well, this is depressing.  Well written, but extremely depressing.


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey on August 12, 2010, 09:03:24 PM
Well, this is depressing.  Well written, but extremely depressing.


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: Goldwater on August 12, 2010, 09:04:36 PM


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: Vepres on August 12, 2010, 09:05:16 PM
One small point: I cannot see anyway that the US would decline from superpower status in 4 years, even given the circumstances here.

Just a thought, great TL, well written :)


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: Psychic Octopus on August 12, 2010, 09:12:36 PM
One small point: I cannot see anyway that the US would decline from superpower status in 4 years, even given the circumstances here.

Just a thought, great TL, well written :)

FWIW, the United States has no money whatsoever to fund foriegn crusades. It isn't exactly superpower status, just levels of power. Pretty much every nation turns inward and globalization collapses.

The United States is in a much better situation to recover then other nations, though, possessing a larger populace and a mythical founding for inspiration.

And thank you. :D


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario) on August 12, 2010, 10:24:45 PM


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: sentinel on August 13, 2010, 02:28:34 AM


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: FEMA Camp Administrator on October 25, 2010, 09:42:00 AM
We gonna continue this or no?


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: sentinel on October 25, 2010, 11:36:12 AM

I vote in the affirmative! This is a great TL thus far


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: Psychic Octopus on November 09, 2010, 10:55:07 PM
This may start up again eventually, I suppose, but I am currently working on a revision of Hughes TL.

It appears that I forecast Feingold's demise in early August. May have to change Prime Minister David Milliband to his brother, though. ;)


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: sentinel on November 09, 2010, 10:56:26 PM
This may start up again eventually, I suppose, but I am currently working on a revision of Hughes TL.

It appears that I forecast Feingold's demise in early August. May have to change Prime Minister David Milliband to his brother, though. ;)

I hope you start it back up. Updates for this TL go to my Blackberry.


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: sentinel on January 26, 2012, 12:48:13 PM
I gave you a year, bring back this timeline.


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: Pingvin on January 26, 2012, 12:51:28 PM
I gave you a year, bring back this timeline.


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: Person Man on January 27, 2012, 07:20:43 PM
This sort of seems like something out of a history book that covers Europe in the Fifth Century.


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: Jerseyrules on January 28, 2012, 12:39:35 AM


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario) on January 28, 2012, 03:16:46 PM


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: FEMA Camp Administrator on January 28, 2012, 03:28:24 PM


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: Psychic Octopus on January 28, 2012, 08:35:12 PM
I am thankful that you want to see this revived. However, it simply isn't feasible right now, since I am really busy.

Besides, were it to be updated, it would probably be a lot different.


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: sentinel on January 30, 2012, 08:47:20 PM
I am thankful that you want to see this revived. However, it simply isn't feasible right now, since I am really busy.

Besides, were it to be updated, it would probably be a lot different.


Would you mind if I created a spin off (once my 2016 election timeline is done)?


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: Person Man on January 31, 2012, 11:42:49 AM
I am thankful that you want to see this revived. However, it simply isn't feasible right now, since I am really busy.

Besides, were it to be updated, it would probably be a lot different.


Would you mind if I created a spin off (once my 2016 election timeline is done)?

I'm sure that would be fun.


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: sentinel on May 30, 2014, 08:12:45 PM
This timeline was superb, and I wrote a spin off of it. I was just looking through the timeline index and I think this is worth bumping.

https://uselectionatlas.org/FORUM/index.php?topic=149157.0


Title: Re: Death of a Nation
Post by: TX Conservative Dem on May 31, 2014, 06:51:26 PM
Palin reminds me of XIII's Harriet Traymore, who was very ruthless and manipulative.

Did Democrats keep the Senate?

How in the world did Hillary lose California and other safe Blue States?