The Third Way

[P. Clodius Pulcher did nothing wrong]

Missouri - DEM GAIN
Congressman Emmanuel Cleaver (D)  - 39%
Senator Roy Blunt, i. (R) - 35%
Secretary of State Jason Kander (NU) - 26%

[DKrol]

Great results and TL! Just one question- how could Kander do so badly, being the strong candidate he is and without the D next to his name?

Going against any other Democratic candidate than Cleaver, Kander would had won, similar to how Koster won the gubernatorial race. Cleaver, however, drew massive margins in St. Louis and Kansas City and absorbed almost all of the lean-Democrat voters in the suburbs that National Unionists won elsewhere. That left Kander with only disaffected Republicans for his base, which was a small number in Missouri, as most were somewhat pleased with Blunt.

Great results and TL! Just one question- how could Kander do so badly, being the strong candidate he is and without the D next to his name?

Similar question - do African Americans remain loyal to the Democrats or do some of them choose the NUP?

It is too early in the NUP's history to make any kind of definite statement on this; in 2016 it varied largely from race to race. Obviously, in places where the NUP and the Democrats co-nominated a candidate, African American percentages were close to or above 90%. In the Missouri Senate race, where the Democratic nominee was African American, less then 5% of African Americans went to the NUP candidate. Presidentially, Bloomberg/Ayotte claimed 20% of the African American vote, compared to 6% for Trump/Pence and 74% for Clinton/Kaine. Clinton's margin was likely bolstered by President Obama's strong support for the Democratic ticket in an effort to preserve his legacy.

[DKrol]

Bloomberg Announces Foreign Policy and National Security Nominees

Secretary of State-designate: Strobe Talbott, President of the Brookings Institute D
 

Secretary of Defense-designate: Eric Fanning, Secretary of the Army D
 

Secretary of Homeland Security-designate: Admiral James Stavridis NU
 

Director of National Intelligence-designate: James Comey, FBI Director R
 

Director of the Central Intelligence Agency-designate: James Clapper, Director of National Intelligence NU
 

Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation-designate: Frank Keating, Former Governor of Oklahoma NU


Ambassador to the United Nations-designate: Nick Burns, Former Acting Secretary of State I
 

National Security Advisor: Evan McMullin, Former Chief Policy Director for the House Republican Conference NU
 

Todd: I think the most obvious choice for the most contentious nominee announced today goes to Eric Fanning for Secretary of Defense, as the rest of his nominees are career bureaucrats or widely recognized and acclaimed officials. Fanning’s only 48 and has never actually served in uniform but, maybe the biggest point of contention for the confirmation process, he’s gay. He made history in 2015 when President Obama nominated him for Secretary of the Army, a position for which he was confirmed by a unanimous voice vote. This certainly isn’t a move of reconciliation from Bloomberg to the wing of the Republican Party that clung to Donald Trump and I’m sure some of their Senators will put up a fight.

The other strange element in this batch of announcements is the shake-up in the intelligence community. President-elect Bloomberg has essentially demoted Director of National Intelligence General James Clapper to Director of the CIA, elevated FBI Director James Comey to Director of National Intelligence, and replaced Comey with former Oklahoma Governor Frank Keating. Now, we should note here that Keating was an FBI agent before entering politics, but he's been out of law enforcement for several decades now.

[DKrol]

Bloomberg Announces Economic and Domestic Nominees

Secretary of the Treasury-designate: Mitt Romney, Former Governor of Massachusetts NU
 

Attorney General-designate: Jason Kander, Secretary of State of Missouri NU
 

Secretary of the Interior-designate: Lynn Scartlett, Former Deputy Secretary of the Interior R
 

Secretary of Agriculture-designate: Mike Johanns, Former Senator from Nebraska R
 

Secretary of Commerce-designate: Arne Sorenson, CEO of Mariott International NU
 

Secretary of Labor-designate: Chris Lu, Former Deputy Secretary of Labor D
 

Secretary of Health and Human Services-designate: Andrew von Eschenbach, former Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration I
 

Secretary of Housing and Urban Development-designate: Christine Quinn, Former Speaker of the New York City Council D
 

Secretary of Transportation-designate: Michael Nutter, Former Mayor of Philadelphia D
 

Secretary of Energy-designate: Elaine Chao, Former Secretary of Labor R
 

Secretary of Education-designate: Jeb Bush, Former Governor of Florida NU
 

Secretary of Veterans Affairs-designate: Heather Wilson, Former Congresswoman R
 

Director of the Office of Management and Budget-designate: Luis Fortuno, Former Governor of Puerto Rico NU
 

Administrator of the EPA-designate:Tom Steyer, Founder of NextGen Climate D
 

Administrator of the Small Business Administration-designate: Robert Greifeld, Former CEO of NASDAQ I
 

United States Trade Representative-designate: Ivo Daalder, Former American Ambassador to NATO I
 

Tapper: We’re hearing from some National Union Party officials, refusing to speak with any more identification than that, that they’re a bit upset that President-elect Bloomberg is producing a cabinet from such a diverse swath of the political spectrum. They were hoping his cabinet would have been much more National Unionist heavy. Instead, the Secretaries of State and Defense are Democrats, with National Unionists heading up the Treasury and the Justice Departments. They also worry the President-elect is being too generous towards Trump Republicans, naming Republicans to the Interior, Agriculture, and Energy Departments, as well as the VA. It’s fair to note, however, that the Republicans and Democrats that the President-elect has chosen are not the Republicans and Democrats who were out on the campaign trail or at the party conventions; they’re largely bureaucrats and career Department officials. By contrast, the National Unionists who have been appointed are the people who were out on the campaign trail, stumping for Bloomberg, and appearing on the media circuits.

[DKrol]

Interesting. I'm sticking it for a while as featured TL.

I got unstuck very quickly.

[DKrol]

Bloomberg Announces Executive Staff

Chief of Staff: Lonn Trost, COO and General Counsel of the New York Yankees I
 

Press Secretary: Tom Allen, Former Congressman NU
 

Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors: Al Roth, Professor of Economics at Stanford I
 

White House Counsel: Paul Clement, Former United States Solicitor General R
 

Chief of Staff to the First Lady: Angella Reid, White House Chief Usher I
 

Chief of Staff to the Vice President: Neil Levesque, Executive Director of the New Hampshire Institute of Politics NU
 

Stephanopoulos: The biggest news out of Manhattan today is that President-elect Bloomberg has chosen to bring none of his senior staff from his time as Mayor of New York City with him to Washington. There was some talk to his former chief lobbyist, Micah Lasher, would be tapped for Chief of Staff, but that job went to New York Yankees General Counsel Lonn Trost. Jean Lockhart, now the Chief of Staff at Bloomberg BNA, was proposed for Press Secretary. Former Maine Congressman Tom Allen will be behind the podium instead. Before former Bush Administration appointee Paul Clement was named White House Counsel, it was speculated that Bloomberg L.P.’s Peter Sherman would get the nod. The effect of leaving these known quantities at home? The President-elect is moving to position himself as a true independent voice, someone who has no ties to any side of the debate and who can work with anyone about anything. At least, that’s what former Congressman Charlie Bass of New Hampshire  thinks in his new op-ed appearing in The New York Times. Joining me to discuss that op-ed, Congressman Bass!

[DKrol]

Unlike some of my TLs that ramble on for a while and then die, this TL has reached the conclusion I intended it to. This was an election TL, and it's fulfilled its purpose. The story of the Bloomberg Administration is a story for another time.

I hope you've all enjoyed reading it as much as I have writing it.

Coming up: A return to one of my favorite kinds of TLs to write - America under a Parliamentary system.

[NHI]

Well done! I enjoyed it very much.