The Man of Steel: Watson Timeline Part II

[Dr. Cynic]

I'm putting the Watson TL on a minor break for the next couple of weeks as I work on other things. If I can update in that time, great, but if not, please understand why it's taking so long.

[Dr. Cynic]

"The Alabama delegation, proud to be first in line always in Democratic politics, awards all her delegates to the son of her esteem: Senator Jefferson Dent to receive the nomination for President of the United States!".....

"Alaska, respectfully yields her traditional second vote to the state which came second in the union... The great Keystone State of Pennsylvania!"

"The Pennsylvania delegation, proud to be once again represented on a national ticket after a VERY long absence... Awards all her delegates to the great Alabama Senator Jefferson Dent for the Presidential nomination... But more importantly, she awards all her delegates for the Vice Presidential nomination to her favorite son: Senator Lawrence Watson!"...

And so it went on...

"How long do they have to go on with all this bullsh**t?" Dent wondered, with a real sense of impatience. "The only states that really should be laying on all the flowery crap are my state and Lar's state."

Watson knew he had to smile and continue clapping each time a delegation announced for Dent. This was on television after all. Truth of the matter, like Dent, he was bored. He wanted to get to work on more important things and he wanted to spend a few hours with his family and with Laura. When the two candidates finally appeared onstage together to hold each others' hands up in victory, Lawrence, a bit overeager nearly tore Jeff's arm out as he raised it. Laughing together, Watson whispered he was sorry to which Dent grinned and whispered back, "These dumbasses think we're sharing a private joke, so just laugh it up and we won't let on you nearly broke my shoulder..."

Just as Dent told him to do, Watson smiled and laughed.


That night in the hotel, as he had promised her, Lawrence and Laura were able to enjoy the night with their family. Watson had Jim Lewis instruct the secret service agents guarding the doors to not let anyone so much as knock unless it was Dent and there were to be no calls through. That night, Laura was very happy to have. She had felt that he had been losing his grounding since this all started and she very much was sick of all the time apart. He was always very affectionate when they were together in private. That's what she missed the most.

"I finally have you all to me," she told him playfully as she traced his jawline before they kissed. "I'm going to enjoy every second..."

And so they did. Damn, was it good. Such a long wait made it better. As they laid in bed together, the phone rang. He picked it up with irritation.

"I'm not taking any calls!"

"Not even a hello?"

He recognized the voice on the other end as Bob Casey's. "What the hell do you want at 1 o'clock in the morning, Bob? Shouldn't you be trying to beat me?"

"Oh, not yet, Larry. Not until after the election. But once it's over, I'm taking the Governor's mansion and I'm taking the state back, you son of a b**tch. You've taken everything way too far left. You've given everything to the western side of the state and ignored us in the east."

"Oh, horsesh*t, Bob! You're the one who wouldn't endorse Flaherty in '78 and you're the one who attacked me about the alcohol and you were the one who stirred the sh*t about Laura being Australian! I warned you in 1985 not to say a goddamn thing about my wife and you didn't listen, as far as I'm concerned, I will not stop until I've broken your machine and I've broken you, Casey!"

"You don't have a single bit of proof of that. What the hell do you take me for, Senator? A rube? You think you're the only one who can play the damn game?! Pete Flaherty was not a good choice for ALL of Pennsylvania. He was just good for you in the west. That's what it's always been about with you. Pittsburgh's pride, how easy you are to actually figure out. By 1990, your lieutenants had better be ready, because they're not gonna win this round... Especially with you down in Washington. You really are English, aren't you? All that arrogance and superiority..."

By this time, Watson had turned beet red and the shouts had woken Laura up from a peaceful sleep. Realizing her husband looked as though he was going to snap, Laura sat up and tried to put her hands on his shoulders. It was no good. He barely noticed through his rage. Angered at the slight to his ancestry, Watson let out his frustration at the Irish Casey, even though his beloved Pittsburgh was filled with mostly Irish Catholics who had been hostile to his English-born Protestant grandfather. Although no such hostility was particularly prevalent in Pittsburgh (or Pennsylvania, generally) today, the old wounds heal hard.

"...Then go ahead and run in 1990, Bob! I swear to god on primary day, we're going to jam the loss so far down your throat, you'll choke the next time you take communion, you Irish bastard!"

With the flurry of profanity and epithets between them finished, Watson slammed the phone down and hurled it across the room with such force that it ripped the line out. The two secret service agents rushed into the room just as Laura Watson was restraining her husband.

"Look at me, Lawrence! Stop. Just stop!"

"Senator, are you alright?"

Watson buried his face in his hands, ashamed of the outburst. His temper had gotten to him again. Why could he never keep his cool? His wife and children didn't deserve this.

"Phil, Mike... Everything's okay. Listen, get in my wallet here and go and give the clerk the money to replace the phone I just ripped apart. Then go get some burgers or something and sit out here in the main room instead of out in the hall."

With that done, Lawrence laid back down with Laura.

"This is getting to me and we haven't even really started yet."

"Listen to me, Lawrence. You're better than this, but you need to work on it. What can I do to help, I feel like I'm losing pieces of you to politics every day and I don't want that to happen."

[FEMA Camp Administrator]

Read the entire thread through. Interesting stuff. As someone who likes Bob Casey, this feud's pretty interesting.

EDIT: By the way, would it be possible for me to use Watson in my own timeline? He could have an important role in the state of Pennsylvania.

[Dr. Cynic]

Thanks! Casey will begin to feature more prominently as I go forward, so keep reading!

You have my permission to use Watson (and by extent his family) in your timeline as you wish to do. As I told Mechaman, I've got no problems with it

[Dr. Cynic]

New Year's Eve, 1982
A big party at the Washington residence of Montana Senator Scott Westman

Scott always threw the biggest parties. Lawrence and Laura had found a babysitter in the Senator's mother who had come down to Washington to spend the Christmas holidays with her son and grandchildren. The Watson's enjoyed Scott's parties, as did most of the younger members of Congress. Westman appeared with his current flame of the month and by the time Lawrence and Laura had arrived, Westman had already had too much to drink.

Westman: Lar! Laura! Come on in! This is Sherri!
The Girl: Carrie!
Westman: Carrie, sorry! in' hell! Hey Larry! Air hockey in the back! Grab a cocktail and follow!
Laura: Dammit, Scott, you know Lawrence can't drink!
Watson: I can beat your drunken ass at air hockey, though! Get your ass back there, Scott!
Laura: I play winner!
Watson: She'll beat either of us, Scott.
Westman: Well, put your money up, sucker.

As ever, the party went on. Everyone got drunk and a few got stoned. "I smell pot! Who here's got the f*king hookup?" Bellowed Westman. Indeed, he'd let himself get out of control, something that Mo Udall remarked on as he lit up a joint.

"I ain't giving him any," he told the then side-burned Watson. "He'll be as bad as Biden with this sh*t. He can't handle a small amount, he's always gotta get out of control. When are you going to shave those damn things off?"

"Laura hates them too. I guess after shaving the beard, I didn't want to look so damn baby faced."

As her husband played darts with Udall, Laura found herself beating all comers at the air hockey table. She had beaten Scott every time he'd tried his luck and eventually he admitted to defeat.

"You're damn good at this," Westman told her. Stumbling a bit, Laura helped him regain his balance. Filled to the brim with liquid courage and not realizing any better, Westman kissed her deeply. It wasn't a particularly great kiss. Sloppy and tasting of the booze that he'd consumed. It didn't much matter to her. Laura's instincts were to shove him away firmly, but not so much as to send him toppling.

"Don't ever do that again," she warned. "You get off because you've had too much, but I mean it, don't."

"Come on, Laura. You don't feel a spark. I know Larry's not the perfect husband. He never has time for you. I could give you what he can't."

She turned and walked away. In a few hours all was forgiven as everyone gathered to watch the ball drop. Setting off streamers, Lawrence and Laura shared the traditional first kiss of the new year. Her lips tasted off booze. He figured she'd just had a drink or two. If he'd known, no good could have come of it. It could potentially have ruined his friendship with Scott and what good could come of that?

Lawrence and Laura spent the rest of the party together, enjoying the company of the Senators and Congressmen that Westman regarded as cool enough to join. One thing Lawrence did better than most was tell a story. He was a very talented raconteur and he kept half a dozen people amused with his stories at a time. Stories of his football days or of being a kid in Pittsburgh. Stories of working on Pete Flaherty's staff and he delighted in telling exactly every movement on the night he won election to the Senate in 1980.

"The results were announced in 20 seconds," Jeff Dent remarked to Ted Kennedy. "But he can get three hours worth of material out of that damn election."

"He's pretty damn good at doing it though," Kennedy observed.

[Dr. Cynic]

The 1988 campaign has been a boring affair. Bob Dole and Jefferson Dent are not the people to elicit excited crowds of activists to shout slogans and wave streamers. Dole is a dull, middle of the road conservative who is running on repairing the bad Reagan policies and keeping the good ones. Dent is another veteran who is entirely set on dumping Reaganite policies. Dent is running to finally provide universal health coverage, so long desired by Democrats, as well as increased anti-poverty programs and new infrastructure. Dent's tax policy is much more sophisticated than Dole's. Dole is running on the status quo, hoping that low taxes and high consumer spending in the most recent quarter will vindicate Reagan's policies. The Dent ticket, meanwhile is hammering on unemployment and a sluggish economy. Dent warns that Reagan's policies will only deepen the recession.

The most personal clashes are between the number two men on the ticket. Both powerful Pennsylvanians. John Heinz is genial, cool, popular and moderate. Lawrence Watson is also popular, but he's more passionate, more liberal and the most charismatic of the four ticket members. Heinz relies on the Republican desire to keep a member of the party in office on election day, so PA Republicans dedicate a great deal to just keeping ground. Watson virtually controls Pennsylvania's Democratic Party. The Governor, the Mayor of Pittsburgh, most of the state legislature and others are allies. His only serious rival in the state isn't a Republican, but conservative Democrat Bob Casey.

Most polls are indicating a massive Dent win on election day. Dent lost in 1984, but performed as well as any Democrat could have hoped. Now, the White House looks to be within his grasp. Dent's campaign managers aren't the type to get complacent. They are veterans of the big campaign and they finally look to taste victory...

[Dr. Cynic]

Dent and Watson sit together on Dent's campaign bus. The campaign is closing in on the first of the debates...

Watson: (Lighting a cigar) Don't tell Laura.
Dent: I don't give a damn if you smoke that thing and she isn't here to tell you what to do.
Watson: Thanks, man. So, how do we look?
Dent: Cakewalk. Debate camp is this weekend though and we're not gonna go easy... I got Dale to play John Heinz for you. They seem like a good match.
Watson: Who's playing Bob Dole?
Dent: Bob Kerrey's gonna do it.
Watson: That's not bad, I guess.
Dent: Something on your mind? It's a long trip, you might as well tell me.

Watson did indeed unload the long story of what was troubling him. The Casey conversation had been haunting him for awhile now. Dent listened politely, he did take a genuine interest in his young friend.

Dent: I don't see why you let yourself get worked up. Just crush Casey and be through with him. Once we win, you'll have the administration itself behind you. We can always let you take the lead in Pennsylvania's affairs.
Watson: The bastard is hard to crush though. I give him credit, he's relentless.
Dent: You know what to do. So do it. Besides, we've got bigger fish to fry, boy.

At that moment, Jim Lewis came over and plopped down a front page article from Newsweek.

Lewis: Gentlemen, we have a problem...

DENT AND WATSON ARE BOTH UNFIT ACCORDING TO PROMINENT DEMOCRAT

Dent: Who the hell did this?

[Dr. Cynic]

A few days later, Watson's DC Office...

Watson and Jim Lewis, off of the trail, sit in Watson's DC office where the Senator sits, looking disheveled and tired, snacking on peanuts. Lewis sits next to him, smoking a cigar.

Lewis: How did you get out of Vietnam?
Watson: Do you want the truth or the spin that we need to put out?
Lewis: You can tell me. We've been friends since 1956.
Watson: Well, when they drafted you, where did you go?
Lewis: I wasn't drafted. They found out that I was bisexual. That was when I went to England, remember?
Watson: I can't even, really. Drinking has destroyed my memory...
Lewis: So what was the story with you? Your family was blue collar. How'd you avoid it? Especially in '68.
Watson: The short story is, I enrolled at Pitt. Full football scholarship. The long story is, they did draft me. But some strings were pulled to get me into Pitt before they could send me off to Vietnam. It was more than one person doing it, but they made sure I never even had to turn up at the physical. It was really buried deep.
Lewis: How did Bob find out about all this if it was buried so far?
Watson: Just like in one of the Godfather movies, the answer is simple: Someone ratted. All I can do now is tell the short story and hope to god that the long story doesn't get out. They already are questioning my patriotism because I married Laura. Do you know how bad it could get now?
Lewis: I'll find out all I can, Senator. (Beat) I'd rather you had been a draft dodger than dead. You're no use to anybody if you were killed.
Watson: Just what the hell is that supposed to mean?
Lewis: It means you're still alive. That's what's most important.

[Dr. Cynic]

TIME

A Choice of Patriotism?

Senators Jefferson Dent and Bob Dole have both served in the military and have distinguished records. Senator John Heinz as well has some military experience as he was in the Air Force Reserve during Vietnam. (Heinz would have been considered old for the draft during the war) One stands out though. Senator Lawrence Watson however, has none. How he got out of the draft that would have surely sent him to Vietnam is a bit perplexing. Now, a former Watson staffer who now works for the Scranton Post is saying that Senator Watson is a draft dodger and he has the proof.

The staffer is named Edward Kearns and he worked on Watson's first Senatorial campaign where he won a tough primary against now Governor Allen Ertel and then won the brutal general election against Arlen Specter. Kearns has stated that he has proof that Watson was to be drafted, but his connections to Mayor Pete Flaherty and the Hubert Humphrey campaign (Watson was a Pennsylvania volunteer for Young Democrats for Humphrey) allowed him to wriggle loose of military service. The Dent campaign has refused to comment on this story as has Watson's office. Kearns' threat to reveal also once again brings up the issue of patriotism. Many people have questioned Watson before for marrying a woman from another country. Laura Watson is a well-liked, if slightly introverted member of Washington society. But there is a very firm element of people outside who dislike her for her thick Australian accent and they hate her husband even more not just for marrying her, but for his liberal policies, his charisma and his Huey Long-esque control of Pennsylvanian politics. His patriotism has been questioned before and it is so again. Not just by crusading idealists like Edward Kearns. But it could also be questioned now by the very people who have elected him to office and loved him since 1976.

[Dr. Cynic]

A Helpful History of Pennsylvania Politics For the Readers of this TL
Since it's been discussed in another timeline, I thought it might be helpful to take a moment and explain how a left liberal got complete control of Pennsylvania politics.

Pennsylvania, historically, likes to elect moderates. Both Democrat and Republican. A moderate politician, for whatever reason, appeals to Pennsylvanian sensibilities. Moderate Democrats in PA tend to be pro-life and labor backed. Moderate Republicans tend to be on the socially liberal end and those that aren't, are expected to be compromisers. Pennsylvania seems to believe that moderates have the ability to get the most done for the state. Whether this is true or not is open to interpretation.

Sometimes, liberal Democrats can do well. Milton Shapp was a traditionally liberal Democrat who was twice elected Governor and though his administration was plagued by corrupt people, Shapp was not corrupt and remained personally popular. Ed Rendell too campaigned as a traditional liberal and defeated more moderate candidates.

Conservative Republicans can do well too, perfectly evidenced by Rick Santorum managing to get in. However, Santorum's two opponents were either not big enough names (Klink) or were swept out very closely in an anti-Democratic year (Wofford). The moment Santorum faced a real challenger who had name recognition and a bit of strength, he folded thanks to his ultra-conservative views.

So, how on earth did a liberal get control and how was the Pittsburgh population saved?

In this timeline, Pittsburgh's population does experience a decrease as it did historically, however, the population recovers much faster. Why? Well, right now, the Metro area of Pittsburgh is about 2 million people. In this timeline, it's 3.5 million. Pittsburgh's population increase to almost 1 million residents (967,000 give or take) come from the city incorporating the near entirety of Allegheny County (which has not happened, but in this timeline happened in 1978) and a slight increase of what counts as Pittsburgh's Metro area on my part.

How does a strongly liberal (and young) politician gain such power? In real life, Watson would have a very hard time winning in Pennsylvania as his views mimic many of my own and indeed he is much myself in an alternate universe. Using many (though not all) of the real names of people I know and of my family makes it easier for me to keep track of as well as pay tribute to people I care about. Watson's success at first is entirely based on sheer luck as well as connections to the right people to advance him quickly. The liberal Philadelphia section connects with his views and Pittsburgh identifies him as their favorite son in part for his charisma and in part because he is so close to the labor movement, which has always been a part of Western Pennsylvania heritage. Once in Congress, he happened to associate with the right people and he happened to have very shrewd management behind him. He also got very lucky in that he had enough of an uncanny ability to make enemies friends (like Allen Ertel) and he could charm the right people into getting what he wanted. Before anyone realized it, he had established a machine of his own to rival the more moderate one. Watson hates the Casey machine because of past wrongs that have been explained and Casey hates Watson's machine equally for past wrongs. I've also chosen to play up an ancestral roots rivalry between them. Watson is of English and Cornish descent (as I am IRL) and his family experienced shunning by Irish politicians, who at one time controlled politics in the state, especially Pittsburgh politics. I have done this because my own great-grandfather, an immigrant from Plymouth, England experienced such shunning in the city, so much so that he left Pittsburgh for the smaller town of Donora. In later entries, I will go back and explore this subject further as I feel it will make for interesting writing.

Any questions or comments, please let me know in the thread and I'll be happy to address them. I hope you continue to enjoy the story.

[Dr. Cynic]

I had a nice update written and everything and lost it... That's a heartbreaker.

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

I had a nice update written and everything and lost it... That's a heartbreaker.

Happened to me a few times, so I feel it.

[Dr. Cynic]

A meeting later that week

Watson: Well, look where it comes from. Scranton isn't exactly the Watsonite hotbed for the PA Democratic Party.
Lewis: I don't remember Edward Kearns. Do you?
Watson: Big guy. Short blonde hair. He was the one with the tattoo's.
Lewis: Oh, yeah. Now, I remember. He was only here for a little while and then he was gone. Probably was just a Casey operative from the start.
Bob O'Connor: Look, I'll put my ears to the ground in the state capital and see what I can figure out.
Watson: Thanks, Bob. What do the polls say, Jimmy?
Lewis: Mainly that Dole's closing the gap thanks to this October Surprise.
Watson: What a f**king week. What does Jeff want me to do?
Lewis: Well, Dent's people said to relax and keep following the travel schedule sent by the office.
Watson: If I get another goddamn question about why didn't I go to Vietnam, I'm going to snap. Since when does every Vice President have to have a military record?
Lewis: It's not just that. They will want to know how you got out of it and why you were so fortunate.
Watson: How could I even answer that? I was 18 years old!
Lewis: Are you a drag on the ticket? Are you a gutless coward?

Watson stands and grabs Lewis by the tie, then lets him go.

Lewis: You react like that on a live TV interview and it WILL be over for you.

[Dr. Cynic]

Ok, I do still wanna keep this going.

Any questions so far?

[Dr. Cynic]

Following Excerpt from his book "Watson: Larger than Life" Kindly Provided by Watson biographer William Vaughn:

Watson revealed much later that not only had an entire independent political group had attempted to label him as unpatriotic, but also began targeting his sons; Brian and Owen, with a whispering campaign that they had been born in Australia because the Watson's refused to use American doctors, but also issued threats of assault or murder at Laura. The Dent campaign decided to beef up the security detail protecting the Watson family, but Lawrence had advised agents to be more vigilant towards protecting his family than himself.

Lawrence was not helped either by his inability to stay calm. News cameras in Houston (which was unfriendly territory as it was) caught him squaring off and harshly poking his finger into the chest of Texas Representative Tom DeLay. DeLay, at 5'10" was a full half a foot shorter than the hulking Watson who was portrayed by Texas media as being an outsider (a Northern outsider at that) who was harassing a smaller man. Watson later claimed that DeLay had made unflattering remarks about his wife, but it was also speculated that DeLay had called Watson a coward during the last day of the Congressional session before the recess and Watson had held onto it long enough to want to respond. Though the true story isn't known, from that point in October, Watson's appearances were strategically limited until a week before election day. Dent was encouraged from that point by several advisers to limit his potential Vice President's power, though Dent resisted, as he said, he "liked having a VP who would crack skulls".

[Dr. Cynic]

"This is miserable," Watson thought to himself. "The best thing I can do is just answer it."

"I know what you're thinking," Dent said to him as they sat together on the campaign bus. "Look, I know you're angry about some of this, but trust me, it's the best way to do it. You've got to prep for your debate with John, so just focus on that. You're good... Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm old, I need to piss."

Dent got up and left. Watson knew he wouldn't be coming back over. Dent had a lot of people to confer with. This is what being Vice President will be like. Why did you ever agree to it? John Heinz would be a difficult opponent. Heinz was media-savvy and affable. A perfect television politician. Watson moved his glasses to the edge of his nose and rubbed his eyes. He was tired of this campaign. Something he'd never thought would happen. He loved to campaign and he had a gift for it. After the Kearns issue and his own poor performance, he'd been pulled from all but select events. But the debate with John Heinz could change that. Here, he thought would be a good place to make his stand. In order to steel himself up to this new challenge, he took the photo of his wife out of his wallet and stared at it for a long while.

Well, here goes nothing...

[Dr. Cynic]

The 1988 Vice Presidential debate turned into a rather bloodless affair. Heinz had resisted internal party pressure to go after Watson who was being plagued with a bad campaign. Instead Heinz kept to the job of going after Dent and the Democratic Party while pushing Bob Dole as a moderate Republican who would look after business interests.

Watson also shone. He didn't go after Heinz, but doggedly attacked Dole's economic and social platform. Complaining that Dole had opposed the Pell-Watson Grants and other popular social programs that the Democrats were pushing. Most commentators felt the debate was a draw or a slight Watson win since Watson had maintained his composure and appeared calm and jovial through the entirety.

"How much did it hurt you not to start ranting," Scott Westman teased him over the phone.

"John's not a dick, so it wasn't that bad. Besides, I've got to start watching my damned blood pressure."

"I think Jeff was happy with how you did. If this damn Senate race wasn't so tight, I'd have watched it live. I had to make another campaign stop."

"Don't worry about it, Scott. You'll win out anyway. Back to the Senate you'll go."

"You'll love being Veep, Lar. No more bill writing. I know you always hated that. Jeff'll have you work the guys over on the phone and all that. You'll like that better. It's what you're good at."

"If we win."

"You'll win. Look at the polls."

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

The 1988 Vice Presidential debate turned into a rather bloodless affair. Heinz had resisted internal party pressure to go after Watson who was being plagued with a bad campaign. Instead Heinz kept to the job of going after Dent and the Democratic Party while pushing Bob Dole as a moderate Republican who would look after business interests.

Watson also shone. He didn't go after Heinz, but doggedly attacked Dole's economic and social platform. Complaining that Dole had opposed the Pell-Watson Grants and other popular social programs that the Democrats were pushing. Most commentators felt the debate was a draw or a slight Watson win since Watson had maintained his composure and appeared calm and jovial through the entirety.

That was probably the best strategy.

[Dr. Cynic]

The 1988 Vice Presidential debate turned into a rather bloodless affair. Heinz had resisted internal party pressure to go after Watson who was being plagued with a bad campaign. Instead Heinz kept to the job of going after Dent and the Democratic Party while pushing Bob Dole as a moderate Republican who would look after business interests.

Watson also shone. He didn't go after Heinz, but doggedly attacked Dole's economic and social platform. Complaining that Dole had opposed the Pell-Watson Grants and other popular social programs that the Democrats were pushing. Most commentators felt the debate was a draw or a slight Watson win since Watson had maintained his composure and appeared calm and jovial through the entirety.

That was probably the best strategy.

Yep. Going for the draw was the best move for Watson rather than trying to go for the kill and then alienating people. Also, Heinz decided against baiting him for similar reasons, because if he couldn't bait Watson, then he'd have looked worse.

[Dr. Cynic]

The British House of Commons, 1879:

Mr. Speaker: Order! The Hon. Member will resume his seat when I am on my feet!
Mr. Watson (Devonport): Why will the government not answer, Mr. Speaker?! My son and many others fought in Zululand. Many young soldiers were killed at Isandlwana and we should have the right as members of this House to hold both the government and Lord Chelmsford himself responsible for such a lack of judgement.
Mr. Balfour (Hertford): A point of order, Mr. Speaker. The Hon. Member from Devonport is showing utter disdain for the traditions of this House by trying to continue shouting from a sedentary position. Further to that, Mr. Speaker--
Mr. Speaker: Order!
Lord Russell (Tavistock): Mr. Speaker, further to that point of order---
Mr. Speaker: Order! There's nothing further to add, Lord Russell!
Mr. Watson: Mr. Speaker, will the Conservative government ever allow the House to get definitive answers from Lord Chelmsford in regards to the disaster at Isandlwana?
Mr. Speaker: Better phrasing, sir. The Prime Minister!
The Prime Minister (Buckinghamshire): Mr. Speaker, perhaps the Hon. Member from Devonport's thick whiskers have affected his hearing... (Hon Members: Oh!) To once again answer the question, I have recalled Lord Chelmsford, but there is very little that this government can do to hasten his return from Natal.
Mr. Speaker: Mr. William Gladstone!
Mr. Gladstone (Greenwich): Mr. Speaker, once again the Prime Minister dodges the question and issues a personal attack on a Hon. Member! Will the Prime Minister answer how long he expects the Zululand campaign to continue?
The Prime Minister: This government will continue to defend the Natal Colony from the Zulu forces and we will force Cetshwayo to capitulate. (Hon Members: Oh!)

Philip Watson had put forth his own forceful argument against the Anglo-Zulu campaign. A Liberal, Watson had a populist bent that put him solidly on the left of the Liberals and generally out of step with much of Gladstone's policies. Watson's ties were increasingly with the British labor movement thanks in part to his time spent working in the Dockyard. His son Frederick had avoided the disaster (not one soldier on the forward firing line survived) but Watson was opposed to the bullying tactics of the government. He had a deep mistrust of war thanks in part to the loss of his father in battle and he had never really trusted Frederic Thesiger to be anything other than a foolish glory hound. He'd known Anthony Durnford briefly when Durnford had been stationed in Devonport though that had been years before. Watson had been saddened to hear of Col. Durnford's last stand made with his loyal Basutos. So many men, he'd thought to himself when he heard the news (Not long after, he received the good news of Plymouth-born John Chard and 140 other Englishman had heroically held off the Zulus at Rorke's Drift).

From the book Watson: Larger Than Life by William Vaughn:

During the 1870s-1880s, Philip Watson showed himself to be heavily influenced by John Stuart Mill. Like Mill, Watson supported universal suffrage and proportional representation. Watson was not a great thinker, but rather his politics were felt through emotion. "What felt right and wrong" was how he based his opinions. Consequently, he was generally forgotten after his death just before the dawn of the 20th century. His legacy, however, as an advocate for left wing causes was revisited 100 years later by historians who looked to the Watson family history as a way of analyzing the politics of his descendant, Lawrence. In a way they are remarkably similar. Though far more verbose than his great-grandfather, Lawrence Watson also practiced the politics of emotion. He wasn't a philosopher or indeed a great thinker. He was an emotive actor who relied on "what felt right" to him. In the Senate, Watson was very restricted in some ways by the rules of the body. He probably would have made a happier home in the combative world of British politics. It's not hard to imagine him crossing swords with Thatcher if he'd have gotten the chance. Philip S. Watson, though obscure today, should be considered the primary historical motivator for political psychologists who want to understand Senator Watson's policies.

[Dr. Cynic]

Election 88 coming tomorrow if anyone's interested.

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

Election 88 coming tomorrow if anyone's interested.

No, nobody's interested, stop posting now and forewer.

This message should be read as it's opposite/size]

[Dr. Cynic]

ELECTION 1988

In the aftermath of the "October Surprise" Watson scandal and prominent Democrat Bob Casey's endorsement of the Republican ticket saying that "Dent and Watson are both unfit", the Democrats were still expecting a victory on election night, though now it was by no means certain. Dole's numbers had surged in the last polls before Election Day, though exit polling confirmed a strong tilt towards Dent. The earliest results drew favorable cheers from the Democrats at the party-like atmosphere in Birmingham, AL where the Democrats were competitive again with Alabaman Dent on the ticket. Senator Dent watched returns come in with his closest staff, prominent Democrats such as Dale Bumpers and Mo Udall, as well as Watson and his wife and children. The atmosphere was decidedly more somber for the Republicans as Dole and Heinz gathered together in Topeka with only their families while aids watched returns at the central HQ. Still, at the end of the night, Dole could take stock that he held on to several states that Regain carried, even New Jersey which most pundits thought would skew for the Democrats. But in the end, the Democratic tide was a heavy one and through no fault of his other than being a member of the unpopular incumbent's party, Bob Dole was defeated.

A Dent Presidency promised sweeping reforms in the short victory speech, Jefferson Dent made clear that being President would not be the deserved gift after a lifetime of political service, but his would be a proactive administration looking to get things done. Though Jeff Dent had always been thought of as the arch-typical 'corrupt, sweaty Southern politician', his victory remarks promised hard work and reform. Not the words the press had been thinking they'd hear.

[Dr. Cynic]

You know, I wish we could have revived Americana all together. I keep attempting to write on this and I keep losing my place. It's quite annoying

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

Since it's your TL, I'll just assume that's some other Dent dude, that has nothing to do with my original character.