Stand With Israel. Crush Hamas
Ray Goldfield
Junior Chimp
Posts: 7,797
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« on: October 10, 2011, 07:44:37 PM » |
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First one of these. Looking back on the '96 race, it's pretty scary just how strong Pat Buchanan was coming on before Bob Dole clinched the nom. For want of a nail and all that...
For Want of a Nail: America on the Brink
POD: Bob Dole suffers a serious heart attack in early 1996, forcing him to drop out of the Presidential race at a late date. In addition, the Whitewater controversy grows, and Clinton's popularity takes a massive dive after a Congressional report recommends his Censure.
42. William Jefferson Clinton/Al Gore Jr. (D) - January 20th, 1993-January 20th, 1997
43. Patrick J. Buchanan/Dick Cheney (R) - January 20th, 1997-September 6th, 1999 *
44. Dick Cheney/(Vacant)George W. Bush (R) - September 6th, 1999-January 20th, 2001 *
45. Rudolph W. Giuliani/Gen. Colin L. Powell (I) - January 20th, 2001-January 20th, 2005 *
45. Rudolph W. Giuliani/Elizabeth Dole (R) - January 20th, 2005-January 20th, 2009 *
46. John D. "Jay" Rockefeller/Barack Obama (D) - January 20th, 2009-January 20th, 2013 *
47. Joseph I. Lieberman/John Hoeven (R) - January 20th, 2013-? *
Losing Tickets:
President William Jefferson Clinton/Vice President Al Gore Jr.
Al Gore Jr./Senator Evan Bayh Vice President George W. Bush/Senator Orrin Hatch
Governor Howard Dean/Senator John Edwards
Governor Piyush "Bobby" Jindal/Representative Mike Pence
Vice President Barack Obama/Senator Maria Cantwell
* First President Removed from office
* Did not run for re-election
* First independent President, first Italian-American President, first African-American Vice-President
* Giuliani switches back to Republicans, first Female VP
* Chose not to seek re-election after losing Iowa Caucus to his own Vice President, who decided to challenge him amid a populist wave.
* First Jewish-American President. Switched to Republicans after losing 2006 Democratic Primary due to his support for the Giuliani administration.
* 43. After winning a razor-thin victory, the Buchanan administration gets off to a rocky start with the immediate filing of charges against former President Clinton. Buchanan is as divisive as his reputation, frequently branding left-wingers and even moderate members of his own party as disloyal and dangerous. Far-reaching executive orders become commonplace, even in defiance of court orders. Tensions with Israel were escalated by Buchanan, who wished to institute a final peace plan favorable to Arab interests even over the objection of Israel's newly elected government. With tensions rising, Buchanan frequently raised the specter of double loyalty. A raid against the annual AIPAC conference on flimsy charges led to dozens of arrests, including that of Senator Joseph Lieberman, and a large protest against the heavy-handed tactics of the Buchanan Administration was brutally put down by Capitol Police on the President's orders. The country reached a flashpoint when Mayor Rudolph Giuliani of New York had the NYPD turn back federal officers looking to conduct arrests in the city. With protests growing and his approval rating in the toilet, Buchanan planned to declare a state of emergency and supersede Congress and the Supreme Court. Vice President Cheney used the opportunity to convince the cabinet to invoke the 25th Amendment and take control. With Buchanan sidelined, Congress promptly voted to impeach him for abuse of power, and Patrick Buchanan became the first President to be removed from office for misconduct.
* 44. President Cheney immediately made it clear he had no intention of running for President in 2000, knowing his past health issues. He simply intended to serve as a caretaker President, attempting to ease tensions in the aftermath of Buchanan's power grab. He chose not to pardon Buchanan, but also not to pursue charges himself, leaving it up to the next administration. With a vacancy in his VP position, he was asked by the national party to appoint Texas Gov. George W. Bush, the party's preferred 2000 nominee, as his vice President.
* 45. With the uninspired tickets of Bush/Hatch and Gore/Bayh failing to excite the electorate, Rudolph Giuliani announced his bid to run for President of the United States as an independent. Using his standoff with the Buchanan administration as a selling point, he portrayed himself as a strong, decisive leader whose moderate politics were in line with the country. Choosing respected General Colin Luther Powell as his running mate, they were able to decisively win the popular vote and win a razor-thin electoral victory that barely kept the election from going to Congress. It came down to a 2000-vote margin in California, narrowly carried by the Giuliani/Powell ticket. Giuliani became the country's first Italian-American President, and Powell became the first African-American VP.
* 46. The 9/11 terror attacks changed the focus of the Giuliani Presidency, as Giuliani launched a full-scale war against Afghanistan, complete with incursions into Pakistan. The Taliban was overthrown and Osama Bin Laden was killed in 2003, although many liberals felt that his prosecution of the war was a bit too aggressive, and his security policies overly invasive. The Giuliani administration remained popular, but in 2003, Vice President Powell informed Giuliani that he would not be staying on the ticket, wishing to spend more time with his family. With a vacancy, Giuliani met with the Republican party and agreed to run as the Republican nominee in 2004, choosing Elizabeth Dole as his running mate. The Giuliani/Dole ticket won a crushing victory against the Democratic ticket of Dean/Edwards, and Elizabeth Dole became the first female Vice President.
More later, along with electoral maps.
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