Blue Florida - 2004 Interractive Election Game

[Goldeneye]

Plot
Hello ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to an alternate history. The date is August 1, 2003. During the 2000 US presidential election, Vice-President Al Gore is elected as the 43rd president of the United States by narrowly winning Florida (with 171 votes ahead of George W. Bush) and the Sunshine State's 25 great electors, thus putting him at 292 great electors, defeating Texas Governor George W. Bush, the Republican presidential nominee, with 292 great electors, 48,5 % of the popular vote and 21 states + DC over Bush's 246 great electors, 47,7 % of the popular vote and 29 states.

Following George W. Bush's loss in 2000, the Republican Party must decide which way to turn. While Arizona Senator John McCain, former Secretary of Defense and 2000 GOP Vice-Presidential nominee Dick Cheney, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich are viewed as the likeliest potential contenders for the Republican presidential nomination in 2004, pundits are indicating that the Republican field for the nomination is very likely to be wide-open.

•   Al Gore/Joe Lieberman : 292 great electors, 48,5 % of the vote
•   George W. Bush/Dick Cheney : 246 great electors, 47,7 % of the vote



The Game
Post your campaign announcements here, that will constitute turn 1. After that, I will release polls and we will begin turn 2 that will be set from August 1 2003 to August 14 2003.

Rules of the Game
-For each political party, I put a list of likely contenders, but you can also select additional candidates
-Each round will last 72 hours, although a player may request an extension of 24 hours if they wish
-Usually, each round will cover 2 weeks in this game's timeline
-Each round will start with an updated poll summary and a list of the upcoming electoral contests. Periodically, news events will be introduced to elicit responses from the players that will impact the race
-Candidates will post schedules for the week of the turn, although they don't necessarily have to be incredibly specific. Schedules should summarize the week of the candidate.
-Players should PM me, the Game Moderator, for endorsements. The PM should contain the name of the person you'd like to be endorsed by, the most recent office or position they've held, and a brief reason why they would endorse you (for example : Gerald Ford, former President of the United States, should endorse Bob Dole because he was his running mate in 1976).
-Candidates can also make T.V. advertisements, which can help their performance
-Some events in this TL have occurred as they did in OTL while some other events will be alternated due to Al Gore's election as President of the United States in 2000.
-Independent/Third Party candidates will be accepted, but be warned that they will have to work very hard to make a national impression
-On Turn 1, players will sign up as their candidates, and post campaign announcement speeches if they so choose. Turn 2 will be the week of Friday August 1 2003 through Thursday August 14 2003

Current Candidates

Democratic Candidates for 2004

Declared Candidates
President Al Gore (JacksonHitchcock)
Governor Phil Bredesen (New Tennessean Politician)
Senator Russ Feingold (MycroftCZ)

Potential Candidates
Congressman Bernie Sanders
Businessman Donald Trump
General Wesley Clark

Republican Candidates for 2004:

Declared Candidates
Senator John McCain (UWS)
Governor Mike Huckabee (Grass00ts)
Secretary Jack Kemp (Jaguar4Life)
Governor Jeb Bush (Deplorables Unite!)
Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani (Rep. wxtransit)
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (Lumine)
Former Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney (R/H)

Potential Candidates
Senator Rick Santorum
Congressman Tom Tancredo
Senator Fred Thompson
Governor George Allen
Representative Ron Paul
Former Governor Tom Ridge

Independent Candidates for 2004 :

Potential Candidates
Congressman Bernie Sanders
Businessman Donald Trump
General Wesley Clark

All announcements must be done by the end of Friday, January 12th, 2018. Have fun!

[Goldeneye]

Timeline from December 2000 to April 2003, Part 1

2000
•   December 13 : After recount in Florida, including in invalidated voting offices, Vice President Al Gore is declared the winner with 171 more votes than Texas Governor George W. Bush in the Sunshine State, which means that Gore defeats Bush with 292 electoral votes over Bush's 246 electoral votes. During his concession speech in Austin, Texas, Bush wished Gore the best of luck.

2001
•   January 3 : After Joe Lieberman vacated his senate seat before becoming Vice-President of the United States due to Al Gore's victory, Republican Governor of Connecticut John G. Rowland appointed Republican congressman Chris Shays to replace Lieberman, which gives a slim majority for the Republicans at the U.S. Senate, precisely 51 seats for the Republicans and 49 seats for the Democrats.
•   January 20 : Al Gore is inaugurated as the 43rd President of the United States. His running mate Joe Lieberman is inaugurated as Vice-President of the United States, thus becoming the first Jew occupying this office.
•   January 29 : President Gore announces new tax cuts for middle-class while increasing taxes for riches.
•   February 2 : February began with economic concerns. The economy, which had been in a slow decline since the end of 2000, was not getting any better. Many Americans wondered how long the economic slump would continue, especially after the "Dot-Com Bubble" had peaked in March 2000, with NASDAQ rolling in at 5132.52. Government officials assured people that the slow decline in the markets was the result of a "decent" from the high peak that the markets had experienced.
•   February 5 : The Gore administration expands programs and creates 20,000 new bureaucrats, which increases the size of government 3 times bigger than Bill Clinton's proposal eight years earlier.
•   February 19 : President Al Gore cuts the budget dedicated to FBI and Intelligence programs in order to balance the budget and reduce the national debt. These cuts are followed by cuts in defense budget.
•   March 4 : President Gore ratifies the Kyoto Protocol, an amendment to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change which seeks to impose mandatory targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The treaty requires spending tens of billions of dollars per year for renewable energies. This procedure received praise from Canadian Prime minister Jean Chretien.
•   March 5 : Gore increases gas and oil taxes in order to encourage production of renewable energy rather than fossil energy production. The Republicans oppose this measure, stating that it will increase the United States much more dependent on foreign oil and will make the country unable to control and produce its own energy.
•   March 23 : Washington announces increasing funding in nuclear and wind energy development to create green jobs. In longer term, that contributed, in long-term, to the creation of 300,000 jobs.
•   April 1 : April opened with the Hainan Island Incident, in which a US spy plane that collided with a Chinese craft in air is forced to land in China. The US crew is detained by the Chinese. In a White House Press Conference, President Gore explained, "The actions of the Chinese are truly disturbing." The US Government eventually sent a letter of apology to the Chinese Government and after ten days of interrogation, the US crew was released.
•   April 8 : The National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) declared in March that the United States had undergone a peak of business in March, signaling the end of business growth and the beginning of an economic depression.
•   April 22 : President Gore submitted the Education Reform Bill to Congress for approval. The Bill, if approved, would require all public schools to administer testing and, if the school fails the testing, students would be given the option to transfer to another regional public school. Additionally, the Bill would create more jobs for teachers and fund the renovation and improvement of schools in need, as well as the addition of programs that have been cut. Funding for the Bill would come from taxes and the surplus. Republicans criticized the bill which, according to them, is too wasteful and implicates too much government intrusion.
•   May : During a travel in Latin America, President Gore talks about accomplishing his predecessor's work (with the creation of NAFTA in 1994) by proposing free trade between NAFTA and Latin America in order to open new markets to "spur innovation, speed the growth of new industries, and make [American] businesses more competitive", but also stressed the need to "negotiate worker rights, human rights and environmental protections", stating: "we should use trade to lift up standards around the world not drag down standards here at home. However, these trade negotiations will later be scrapped by 9/11 attacks.
•   June 26 : For the first time as president, Gore meets Russian President Vladimir Putin. Together, they discuss how the United States and Russia can cooperate, including on how to maintain peace in the Balkans.
•   June 27 : The United States and Russia launch the objective of reducing their nuclear arsenal from 2200 to 1000 by 2012.
•   June 30 : Affirming his opposition to any anti-missile shield, President Gore plans to abolish Ronald Reagan's Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI), stating that it's unrealistic and too expensive. The Congress shared between Republicans and Democrats is divided on this issue, particularly in the Senate, which the half is controlled by the Republicans who oppose such a measure as well as a few Democratic Senators. Some hawkish senators like John McCain claim that such a measure would weaken America's defense against eventual enemies. The bill to abolish the SDI eventually failed in the Senate (44-56).
•   September 4 : The Electronic Bill of Rights put in place by the Gore administration is adopted by the Congress. This bill includes connection of every school to the Internet, protection of personal information, Internet self-regulation, privacy policy on all web sites and regulation of Internet privacy and child access, but not content.
•   September 9 : Afghan resistance leader against the Taliban regime Ahmad Shah Massoud is assassinated by two Algerian nationals, posing as Belgian journalists.
•   September 11 : The jihadist group of Al Qaïda led by Osama Bin Laden uses planes to orchestrate terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, in New York City, and on the Pentagon, in Washington D.C. A third plane controlled by terrorists crashed in Pennsylvania before hitting its target (apparently the White House). The 9/11 attacks killed approximately 3000 people. On the night of September 11 2001, President Gore declares war on terror.
•   The attacks had a significant economic impact on United States and world markets. The stock exchanges did not open on September 11 and remained closed until September 17. Reopening, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 684 points, or 7.1%, to 8921, a record-setting one-day point decline By the end of the week, the DJIA had fallen 1,369.7 points (14.3%), at the time its largest one-week point drop in history. In 2001 dollars, U.S. stocks lost $1.4 trillion in valuation for the week. In New York City, about 430,000 job-months and $2.8 billion dollars in wages were lost in the three months after the attacks. The economic effects were mainly on the economy's export sectors. North American air space was closed for several days after the attacks and air travel decreased upon its reopening, leading to a nearly 20% cutback in air travel capacity, and exacerbating financial problems in the struggling U.S. airline industry. Oil prices also spiked upwards. Gas prices in the United States also briefly shot up, though the spike in prices lasted only about one week. Closing borders post-9/11 dealt a crushing blow to trade and to the global economy.
•   September 17 : Gore speaks once again before a joint session of Congress, in which he receives the permission from both the Senate and House of Representatives to invade Afghanistan, in order to topple the Taliban regime and eliminate the terrorist organization al Qaeda. Gore also issues an ultimatum demanding that the Taliban government of Afghanistan deliver Al Qaeda leaders located in Afghanistan to the United States authorities, or else they would share their fate.
•   October 1 : Operation Enduring Liberty when U.S., NATO and Australian forces initiates bombing campaigns on Taliban and al Qaeda forces, while U.S special forces units begin slipping into Afghanistan, with the objective of convincing and bribing local chieftains to resist the Taliban regime. The main goals of the invasion is to defeat the Taliban, eradicate Al Qaeda in Afghanistan, and capture or kill key Al Qaeda leaders.
•   October 7 : U.S. and UK special forces supported by the Afghan Northern Alliance captures Mazār-e Sharīf, thus opening supply routes and providing an important airstrip for U.S. planes and helicopters.
•   October 10 : 100,000 U.S soldiers begin the ground campaign, most of them by the captured airport in Mazār-e Sharīf.
•   October 22: U.S. forces, supported by the Afghan Northern Alliance, secure the Afghan capital Kabul.
•   November 2 : Kunduz is freed by the Northern Alliance.
•   November 6: Jalalabad is captured by the U.S. forces and men of the Northern Alliance.
•   November 11 : Kandahar is captured by the U.S. forces and men of the Northern Alliance. The head of the Taliban regime, Mullah Omar, manages to escape, but the Taliban is severely crippled with over 60 % of its former combat strength reduced.
•   December 6-17 : The Coalition orchestrates a military offensive in Tora Bora to kill or capture Osama Bin Laden. But the coalition didn't have enough troops and arsenal to surround Tora Bora, which allowed Bin Laden to escape.
•   December 22 : A new government is established in Kabul, with Hamid Karzai as the interim-leader. On the same day, American Airlines Flight 63, enroute from Paris to Miami, is forced to land in Boston after a man attempts to blow up the plane with explosives in his shoe.

[Goldeneye]

Timeline from December 2000 to April 2003, Part 2

2002
•   January 2002: In the beginning week of January, several Republicans in Congress pressed President Gore to withdraw from the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, in an effort to secure the protection of the United States. President Gore stated that he felt there was no reason for a withdrawal from the treaty, and did not feel it necessary. Republicans began exploiting the President's decision not to withdraw to ask Americans if the United States was truly safe from another attack.
•   January 15 : The Senate passes a bill known as the Afghan Reconstruction Act. The bill helps build modern infrastructure throughout Afghanistan and helps bulk up the Afghan military. The bill also invests billions in agriculture and education for the Afghan people.
•   January 21 : the UN Security Council announced the establishment of an arms embargo and freezes Taliban and Al-Qaeda assets. The move is widely praised by Americans, yet some wonder why such a move took so long. Fighting in Afghanistan raged on nonetheless, as United States soldiers attempted to further destabilize Taliban and Al-Qaeda forces.
•   January 31 : A bus in San Antonio, Texas, was hijacked by a terrorist who had explosives strapped to his chest. Police and federal agents quickly surrounded the stopped bus and attempted to negotiate with the terrorist. The terrorist called to Allah and detonated the explosives, however, killing himself and all fifty-six passengers. He was later identified as a member of Al-Qaeda. Only a few months after the September 11th attacks,  the United States had been hit again.
•   February : As Taliban forces regrouped in Afghanistan, the fighting decreased and the solidification of Coalition forces increased.
•   February 8 : the Winter Olympics, hosted in Salt Lake City, began. Under orders from President Gore, security there was extremely tight, with an article from the New York Times saying that Salt Lake City had become just as safe as Washington, D.C.
•   March : The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 co-sponsored by Senators John McCain and Russ Feingold passed both houses of the Congress and is signed into law by President Gore.
•   April : The success of Operation Anaconda drove many of the Al-Qaeda forces out of Afghanistan and into Pakistan. The Taliban, however, for the most part remained in Afghanistan and moved their operations to mountainous southern provinces. British Royal Marines were called in to chase Taliban forces throughout the mountains.
•   April 13 : Hugo Chavez takes power in Venezuela through a coup d'État.
•   May : Jacques Chirac is re-elected President of France with 82 % of the vote against over far-right leader of National Front Jean-Marie Le Pen
•   June 24 : Congressman Dick Armey (TX-R) introduced a bill aimed at establishing the Department of Homeland Security in order to reinforce America's national security in this context of growing terrorist threat.
•   July 4 : On Independence Day 2002, an Al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya jihadist from Egypt called Heshman Mohamed Hadayet committed a terrorist attack at the Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles, California, killing 2 people and injuring 4 others before being shot dead by a security officer.

July 26 : Dick Armey's bill aimed at establishing the Department of Homeland Security passed in the House of Representatives with 295 YEA votes and 132 NAY votes. The bill has yet to pass in the Senate and to be signed into law by President Gore to ensure the creation of the Department of Homeland Security.
•   August : A terror plot to destroy the US Bank Tower in Los Angeles is uncovered and five men with connections to Al-Qaeda are arrested in San Diego. President Gore in response praised the men and women of the FBI as well as the effects of the Advanced Intelligence Tools and Systems Act.
•   August 12 : US Airways declared bankruptcy.
•   September 6 : September started with chaos in Afghanistan. A car bomb killed 25 people in Kabul, with many more wounded. Seven hours later, an assassination attempt was made on interim-leader Hamid Karzai, but it failed. Both events are embodied by Al-Qaeda's declaration of a "new Jihad" against the United States and its allies.
•   September 14 : Following several bombing raids of the Helmand province, US Special Forces were deployed into the province in an attempt to drive Al-Qaeda and Taliban forces over into Zabul, which was mostly occupied by the United States. The offensive was quite successful, however Al-Qaeda and the Taliban retreated into a vast network of caves, some of which led across the border to Pakistan. Once again, the US Military was forced to give up its pursuit of the enemy since it could not cross the border.
•   September 15 : Back in the United States, several Republicans, including Senators John McCain, Fred Thompson, and Don Nickles began pushing for intervention in Pakistan. They even suggested that Pakistan housed more Al-Qaeda targets than Afghanistan, and CIA intelligence did not deny this either. They claimed that if the United States had military access through Pakistan, Al-Qaeda would have a tough time and it would be easier to combat the terrorist organization.
•   September 21 : After a speech declaring there was no reason to intervene in Pakistan, Al Gore was widely criticized for being « too weak » on foreign policy and on antiterrorism fight. Polls showed President Gore's approval rating steadily decreasing as the President attempted to determine the next step in the War in Afghanistan.
•   October 4 : Unemployment rate raises to 5.9 %. Many economic analysts affirmed that recent job losses are due to the US Airways' bankruptcy, to the delay of free trade negotiations with America's allies as well as to Al Gore's high taxes on the American people, on energy industry and on businesses.
•   November 5 : November was an eventful month between the 2002 Senate elections, growing pressure to take action in Pakistan, and developing problems in the nation of Iraq. Both the Senate and Gubernatorial elections happened on November 5th.

Senate Election Results, 2002 :
Alabama - Jeff Sessions (R) is re-elected over Susan Parker (D)
Alaska - Ted Stevens (R) is re-elected over Frank J. Vondersaar (D)
Arkansas - Mark Pryor (D) is elected over Tim Hutchinson (R) (Pickup)
Colorado - Wayne Allard (R) is re-elected over Tom Strickland (D)
Delaware - Joe Biden (D) is re-elected over Raymond J. Clatworthy (R)
Georgia - Saxby Chambliss (R) is elected over Max Cleland (D) (Pickup)
Idaho - Larry Craig (R) is re-elected over Alan Blinken (D)
Illinois - Dick Durbin (D) is re-elected over Jim Durkin (R)
Iowa - Tom Harkin (D) is re-elected over Greg Ganske (R)
Kansas - Pat Roberts (R) is re-elected over Steven Rosile (L)
Kentucky - Mitch McConnell (R) is re-elected over Lois Combs Weinberg (D)
Louisiana - Suzanne Haik Terrell (R) defeats Mary Landrieu (D) (Pickup)
Maine - Susan Collins (R) is re-elected over Chellie Pingree (D)
Massachusetts - John Kerry (D) is re-elected over Michael E. Cloud (L)
Michigan - Carl Levin (D) is re-elected over Andrew Raczkowski (R)
Minnesota - Norm Coleman (R) defeats Walter Mondale (D) (Pickup)
Mississippi - Thad Cochran (R) is re-elected over Shawn O'Hara (Re.)
Missouri - Jim Talent (R) defeats Jen Carnahan (D) (Pickup)
Montana - Max Baucus (D) is re-elected over Mike Taylor (R)
Nebraska - Chuck Hagel (R) is re-elected over Charlie Matulka (D)
New Hampshire - John Sununu (R) defeats Jeanne Shaheen (D)
New Jersey - Frank Lautenberg (D) defeats Doug Forrester (R)
New Mexico - Pete Domenici (R) is re-elected over Gloria Tristani (D)
North Carolina - Elizabeth Dole (R) defeats Erskine Bowles
Oklahoma - Jim Inhofe (R) is re-elected over David Walters (D)
Oregon - Gordon Smith (R) is re-elcted over Bill Bradbury (D)
Rhode Island - Jack Reed (D) is re-elected over Robert Tingle (R)
South Carolina - Lindsey Graham (R) defeats Alex Sanders (D)
South Dakota - John Thune (R) is defeats Tim Johnson (D) (Pickup)
Tennessee - Lamar Alexander (R) defeats Bob Clement (D)
Texas - John Cornyn (R) defeats Ron Kirk (D)
Virginia - John Warner (R) is re-elected over Nancy Spannaus (I)
West Virginia - Jay Rockefeller (D) is re-elected over Jay Wolfe (R)
Wyoming - Mike Enzi (R) is re-elected over Joyce Jansa Corcoran (D)

TOTAL SEATS
Republicans-54
Democrats- 46

Gubernatorial Election key results :
California - Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) is elected over Cruz Bustamante (D)
Vermont - Jim Douglas (R) is elected over Doug Racine (D)

•   November 8 : The UN Security Council votes unanimously to allow arms inspectors into Iraq.
•   November 11 : Saddam Hussein issued a statement claiming that Iraq would not permit the entry to arms inspectors. The refusal of entry created a great amount of speculation that Iraq had the ability to obtain weapons of mass destruction, and could furthermore be harboring terrorists. Conservatives used the global opinion of Iraq in an attempt to once again question the safety of Americans.
•   November 19 : The Senate approves the establishment of the Department of Homeland Security with 90 YEA votes and 10 NAY votes, which would override a possible presidential veto.
•   November 25 : President Gore approves the establishment of the Department of Homeland Security and signs the bill into law, thus creating the Department of Homeland Security. Some lawmakers like Democratic Senator Russ Feingold and Independent Congressman Bernie Sanders criticized Gore on this decision to approve the establishment of the Department of Homeland Security instead of vetoing it, claiming that it will « diminish the individual freedoms in this country just like in 1984 (George Orwell's novel) ».
•   December 3 : On December 3rd, the UN passed a resolution that proclaimed the right of a team of UN weapons inspectors, led by Hans Blix, to enter Iraq in order to determine the status of Iraq's weapon development.

[Goldeneye]

Timeline from December 2000 to April 2003, Part 3

2003
•   February 1 : Trajedy as the Space Shuttle 'Columbia' disentigrated upon reentry into Earth's atmosphere on February 1st. The disaster killed all 7 of the crew and scattered debris across the Southwestern United States.
•   February 5 : The U.N. reports that Saddam Hussein gave sanctuary to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, a Jama'at al-Tawhid wal-Jihad terrorist who was involved in the millennium plot, a terrorist attempt to commit bombing attacks against tourist sites in Jordan as well as against the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and the USS The Sullivans in the context of millennium celebrations in addition of training jihadists in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Republicans started using it as an argument in favor of intervening militarily in Iraq, claiming that Saddam Hussein's Iraq is a safe haven for terrorism.
•   February 23 : The United States launched 2 U-2 spy planes over Iraq in an attempt to gain intelligence about the country's weapon programs. While the planes were unable to find any weapons of mass destruction,' several weapons and missile depots are located.
•   February 28 : Republican cries for increased intervention in the Middle East became louder. There was a lot of tension along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border and Al-Qaeda and Taliban forces were using Pakistan as a means of escape from US troops. President Gore, however, remained firm on his stance of no US intervention in the country, which angered the majority of Republicans.
•   March 7 : After intelligence operations claiming that Iraq developed its capacity of developing weapons of mass destruction, the United States and their allies decided to increase their diplomatic and economic sanctions against Iraq.
•   March 8 : In reaction to the increased international sanctions against Iraq, Saddam Hussein decided to impose an embargo on American oil, which hurts the U.S. Economy and increased America's dependence on foreign oil. The Iraqi embargo triggers a Third Oil Crisis.
•   March 10 : In response to the increased international sanctions against Iraq, Saddam Hussein decided to invade Kuwait in order to claim this small country's oil. These events increased pressure on the Gore administration to intervene militarily in Iraq, which President Gore remains reluctant about.
•   April 9 : Violence erupted in India as a Pakistani jihadist organization affiliated with Al-Qaeda attacks Connaught Place one of the largest financial, commercial and business centres in New Delhi, which killed 28 people.
•   April 23 : The terrible economic situation as well the Third Oil Crisis not only raised the unemployment rate at 6,8 % but considerably increased the debt. As a consequence, in order to balance the budget, the Gore administration cuts military and defense spending, which deprives the American troops in Afghanistan of additional reinforcements and arsenal. Most of the American people is worried about this decision due to the potential that terrorists would benefit from this measure to increase their forces and commit more terrorist attacks. This decision is widely criticized by the Republicans.

Al Gore's presidential job approval

•   Approve : 41 %
•   Disapprove : 47 %
•   Unsure : 12 %

U.S. unemployment rate : 6.8 %

[UWS]

I'll play as John McCain.

[Huey Long is a Republican]

If Possible, I'll play as Governor Phil Bredesen of Tennessee

[Goldeneye]

If Possible, I'll play as Governor Phil Bredesen of Tennessee

Okay.

[Jaguar4life]

I will be a in better health Jack Kemp.

[UWS]

John McCain's announcement speech in Portsmouth, New Hampshire - April 28th 2003

Thank you my friends. Thank you very much.
   
We are living dark times. While we made the right decision to send troops in Afghanistan in order to fight Al Qaida, we're struggling to find Osama Bin Laden and bring him to justice. This is due to President Gore's weak leadership on foreign policy as well as to his decision, even after 9/11 (the worst attack that America has suffered in its history), to cut military spending, a decision that put many more American lives and innocent lives in danger around the world and that gave us further terrorist attacks committed here in the United States, especially in San Antonio and Los Angeles last year.

[Crowd boos]

We’re in a global struggle with violent extremists who despise us, our values and modernity itself. If we are to succeed, we must rethink and rebuild the structure and mission of our military; the capabilities of our intelligence and law enforcement agencies; the purposes of our alliances; the reach and scope of our diplomacy; the capacity of all branches of government to defend us. We need to increase our military spending and to modernize our military as well as our intelligence programs if we want to have all the necessary troops and arsenal to destroy Al Qaida, to find and kill or capture Bin Laden and to restore integrity, security, stability, freedom and democracy in Afghanistan. We need to intervene militarily in Iraq if we want to stop Saddam Hussein from getting weapons of mass destruction and to restore security and freedom in Iraq. We need to strengthen our alliances and build support in other nations, especially Pakistan and India in order to prevent the Middle East from becoming a terrorist haven and to save American lives as well as innocent lives all around the world.

We must also prepare, far better than we have, to respond quickly and effectively to another radical Islamic terrorist attack or natural calamity. When Americans confront a catastrophe, natural or man-made, they have a right to expect basic competence from their government. They won’t accept that firemen and policemen are unable to communicate with each other in an emergency because they don’t have the same radio frequency. They won’t accept government’s failure to deliver bottled water to dehydrated babies or rescue the infirm from a hospital with no electricity. They won’t accept substandard care and indifference for wounded veterans.

Government spends more money today than ever before. Wasteful spending on things that are not the business of government indebts us to other nations; deprives you of the fruits of your labor; fuels inflation; raises interest rates; and encourages irresponsibility.

No government program is the object of more political posturing than Social Security and Medicare. Here’s the plain truth : there are too few workers supporting too many retirees, and if we don’t make some tough choices today, Social Security and Medicare will go bankrupt or we’ll have to raise taxes so drastically we’ll crush the prosperity of average Americans. Too many politicians want to ignore the problem, and run for re-election by threatening anyone who wants to fix it.

Our tax code is used to game the system for some at the expense of the many instead of encouraging the thrift, investment, innovation and industry of all Americans. It’s complexity and waste costs Americans $140 billion in preparation and compliance costs each year.

Our dependence on foreign sources of energy not only harms our economy, it endangers our security. So much of the oil we import comes from countries in volatile regions of the world where our values aren’t shared and our interests aren’t a priority. We have to increase oil drilling by doubling permits on federal lands, multiplying the number of oil wells, exploiting oil resources, especially in ANWR and in the Arctic, and building more pipelines. That way, we will reinforce our energy independence, bring massive job creation, and help us getting important revenues, which a part will be invested into the development of renewable energies, which will pursue job creation without hurting the environment.

We’re not a country that prefers nostalgia to optimism. We’re not a country that would rather go back than forward. We’re the world’s leader, and leaders don’t pine for the past and dread the future. We make the future better than the past. Opening new markets to American goods and services is indispensable to our future prosperity. Lowering trade barriers creates more and better jobs; keeps inflation under control; keeps interest rates low; and makes more goods affordable to more Americans. We won’t compete successfully by using old technology to produce old goods. We’ll succeed by knowing what to produce and inventing new technologies to produce it.

Al Gore's big government policies and high taxes and regulations on businesses offshored some of American businesses overseas. If these policies keep going, our future business owners will decide that America is not the best place in the world to open a new business. We have to reverse this tendency by cutting taxes on all the American people, including for the middle class, and on businesses in order to ensure the implementation of new businesses here in America and to make sure that our businesses will be able to produce, sell and hire people.

Our prosperity is not based on big government intrusion but on the ingenuity and entrepreneurship and hard work of the American people. The American people have always been the source of our nation's strength and they always will be.

By accomplishing this agenda, we will finally balance our budget and ensure prosperity for all.

[Crowd cheers and applauds]

That's why, in order to accomplish this agenda that will lead America to prosperity, security and national unity, I came here in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, to announce my candidacy for President of the United States.

[Crowd loudly cheers and applauds]

When I’m President I’ll offer common sense, conservative and comprehensive solutions to these challenges. Congress will have other ideas, and I’ll listen to them. I’ll work with anyone who is serious and sincere about solving these problems. I expect us to argue over principle, but when a compromise consistent with our principles is within reach, I expect us to seize it. Americans expect us to disagree, but not just to win the next election. They want us to serve the same goal: to ensure that a country blessed with our matchless prosperity, ingenuity, and strength can meet any challenge we confront.

I won’t judge myself by how many elections I’ve won, but by how well I keep my promises to you. To keep those promises, I can’t just win this election by a few votes in a few counties in a few states. I need a mandate from you big enough to convince Congress that Americans want this election to be different. You want to change the politics of selfishness, stalemate and delay; move this country forward and stake our claim on this century as we did in the last. Then I ask you for the opportunity to devote every day of my presidency to making this government work for you, and for a mandate big enough to get the job done.

I’ll challenge myself and each member of Congress to wake up each morning and ask ourselves : will we remember today as the finest day of our public life; the day we worked just for you, not for us? And I’ll challenge the American people to reject phony soundbite solutions that have failed us in the past, and hold us accountable for the work you have given us.

We face formidable challenges, but I’m not afraid of them. I’m prepared for them. I’m not the youngest candidate. But I am the most experienced. I know how the military works, what it can do, what it can do better, and what it should not do. I know how Congress works, and how to make it work for the country and not just the re-election of its members. I know how the world works. I know the good and the evil in it. I know how to work with leaders who share our dreams of a freer, safer and more prosperous world, and how to stand up to those who don’t. I know how to fight and how to make peace. I know who I am and what I want to do.

I don’t seek the office out of a sense of entitlement. I owe America more than she has ever owed me. Thirty years ago, I came home from an extended absence abroad. While I was away, I fell in love with my country. I learned that what’s good for America, is good enough for me. I have been an imperfect servant of my country ever since, in uniform and in office, in war and peace. I have never lived a single day, in good times or in bad, that I haven’t thanked God for the privilege.

You can’t sell me on hopelessness. You can’t convince me our problems are insurmountable. Our challenges are an opportunity to write another chapter of American greatness. We must seize it, and those of us privileged to lead America must remember the principles that made us great, have the faith to stand by them, the integrity to honor our public trust, and the courage to keep our promise to put the nation’s interests before our own. Don’t tell me what we can’t do. Don’t tell me we can’t make our country stronger, and the world safer. We can. We must. And when I’m President we will.

[Crowd cheers and applauds]

I’m not running for President to be somebody, but to do something; to do the hard but necessary things not the easy and needless things. I’m running for President to protect our country from harm and defeat its enemies. I’m running for President to make the government do its job, not your job; to do it with less and to do it better. I’m not running to leave our biggest problems to an unluckier generation of leaders, but to fix them now, and fix them well. I’m running for President to make sure America maintains its place as the political and economic leader of the world; the country that doesn’t fear change, but makes change work for us; the country that doesn’t long for the good old days, but aspires to even better days. I’m running for President of the United States; not yesterday’s country; not a defeated country; not a bankrupt country; not a timid and frightened country; not a country fragmented into bickering interest groups with no sense of the national interest; not a country with a bloated, irresponsible and incompetent government. I’m running for President of the United States, a blessed country, a proud country, a hopeful country, the most powerful and prosperous country and the greatest force for good on earth. And when I’m President, I intend to keep it so.

Thank you, God bless you and God bless the United States of America.

[Crowd loudly cheers and applauds]

[Grassroots]

I'll be Huckabee

[Huey Long is a Republican]

Governor Phil Bredesen Announcement in Nashville, TN (July 5th, 2003)

"Hello, Nashville. I want to thank you for letting me governor of Tennessee for a year already. It's been an honor to hold this position and I want to thank each and every one of you for entrusting me with this job. Already, Tennessee has shown great progress. If there is ever an Economic recession in the Nation, our state will be ready thanks for what all of us have worked for. Now, I want to talk about our President. He has failed in a majority of the things he has done so far and unemployment is at an all-time high. That doesn't sound like something America needs for it's leader. That's why I'm announcing that I'll be running for the Democratic Nomination of 2004 against Current President Al Gore. I hope to meet every one of you on the Campaign trail and if you ever want to ask me something, my phone number is always open.

[Jaguar4life]

April 25th 2003 in Buffalo New York

Greetings fellow citizens of Buffalo. I come here with a very important message. I bring you news that you wanted to hear!

I have visited with my doctor  *He and the crowd laughs* And I officially say that I am officially running for President Of the United States *Crowd cheers*

I may be old but I am not slow!! *he laughs and the crowd cheers*

Folks it’s been 10 years since we have a Republican in the White House and that is 10 years too long!

We have had ten years of tax increases,  more government spending, failed attempts to protect our Nation’s security. A deficit that is about to blow up and are running out of our supplies to run out of foreign oil and on our way to a very big recession!

Now this isn’t my first time running However me and a lot of people agree that Third Luck is a charm.

And with that I feel I am the best man to defeat President Gore!

As Congressman I help write out one of the biggest tax cuts in history in 1981 along with the great Senator William Roth and of course President Reagan!!

As President I will embrace free market and free enterprise values. We will reform education to make the next generation of kids smarter and brighter. We will make a Amercian a pro life nation once again.

We will build our military to help finish our mission in Afghanistan and take out Osama Bin Laden and the rest of Al Qaeda.

We will reform and make Medicare and Social Security better!

And most of all we will get our economy back on track by establishing a balence budget amendment and cut wasteful spending and of course cut taxes for every single Amercian.  

I want government to be the smallest it ever can be!
*Crowd cheers*

[Huey Long is a Republican]

When is the first turn?

[Goldeneye]

When is the first turn?

It will start at 10 pm or 11 pm on Thursday, that way we'll give enough time for more players to select their candidates and enter the game.

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

I might take a gander as Jeb!

[Grassroots]

Who is going to be Gore?

[Huey Long is a Republican]

Who is going to be Gore?

TBH, I don't think anyone should. Gore would've taken a lesson from George H.W. Bush and stay away from a Republican landslide.

[Goldeneye]

JacksonHitchcock has told me his interest about playing Gore. So I think he's the one who will play Gore.

[Grassroots]

Who is going to be Gore?

TBH, I don't think anyone should. Gore would've taken a lesson from George H.W. Bush and stay away from a Republican landslide.

Nah, we need Gore. His scenario right now is like a Obama 2012 scenario.
Besides, don't you want some competition?

[Huey Long is a Republican]

Who is going to be Gore?

TBH, I don't think anyone should. Gore would've taken a lesson from George H.W. Bush and stay away from a Republican landslide.

Nah, we need Gore. His scenario right now is like a Obama 2012 scenario.
Besides, don't you want some competition?

Maybe Sanders. A Conservative v A Socialist, that's a war for the party there

[Goldeneye]

Who is going to be Gore?

TBH, I don't think anyone should. Gore would've taken a lesson from George H.W. Bush and stay away from a Republican landslide.

Nah, we need Gore. His scenario right now is like a Obama 2012 scenario.
Besides, don't you want some competition?

Maybe Sanders. A Conservative v A Socialist, that's a war for the party there

Yes I want some competition so we have to make this game fair for all players of all parties in order to make this game interesting enough to make the 2004 presidential race wide-open and competitive.

So I'm looking not only for more progressive players but also for more Republican Atlas members in order to make the race for the 2004 Republican presidential nomination wide-open after 3 consecutive defeats.

[MycroftCZ]

Can I sign on as Feingold?

[Goldeneye]

Can I sign on as Feingold?

Yes of course.

[MycroftCZ]

[cheers and applause]
Thank you, thank you! Hello Green Bay!
[cheers]
It is so great to be here with all of you on this beautiful Wisconsin day. I am so fortunate to be with good friends and my loving family.
[applause]
Over the past 12 years, we have seen our country prosper. Under Presidents Bill Clinton and Al Gore, we have seen our country come back with more force than ever before. But much work is ahead.
 
Many Americans are still out of work. We can fix that.
[cheers]

Many children are suffering under a broken public school system. We can fix that.
[cheers]

Many women still are not granted full reproductive rights. We can fix that.
[more cheers]

Americans are fighting overseas, and losing their lives, to defeat terrorism. We can fix that.
[even more cheers]

Washington is in need for a serious wake up call. We are going to be that wakeup call.
[a lot of cheers and applause]
 
Over the past 11 years I have served as your United States Senator in Washington. I have seen the bickering and the divisiveness that that Capitol Dome holds. I know what needs to be done and I’ve done it. I have rolled up my sleeves and reached across partisan lines.
I will work with anyone, anywhere to get something done for the people of Wisconsin. And I intend to do just that as President for every American.
[cheers and applause]
  
I believe that America’s best days are ahead. I believe that we can do what’s right and just and fair if we just listen to one another. I believe that America is the greatest country on the face of this earth and will do anything for it.
[a lot of cheers and applause]

My name is Russ Feingold. I’m a father, a husband, a Senator and a doer and I’m running for President of the United States!
[deafening cheers and applause]

Let’s get Washington working again! Let’s get to work, win this nomination and win the White House for every American who feels down but not out! Thank you, God Bless you and may God bless the United States of America!
[a lot of cheers and applause]

[Grassroots]

Bump for more players.