2018 Presidential Election

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Tim Thomason

Prometheus_2300 said:
I would also like to point out that back when this series of threads got started the forum was on vBulletin. Also image hosting places like imgur weren't even up yet. vBulletin itself was particularly infuriating as it had a limited 30 day edit limit, and no threadmarking capability. In fact the only reason we have some of the earliest infoboxes is because I had saved the hard copy, and it was in a folder that missed a data purge so I could play GTA V. imagebucket, or photobucket, which we used to host all of our images in the early days shut down free accounts after a certain time period. Many things were lost. Like Tim Thomason's flags off all nations, full wikiboxes of sessions of congresses, supreme court justices back to Staub and many others.

In short research is required because quite literally we have to contend with 600 pages full of text and infoposts, scattered memories of photobucket blocked images, over the the better part of 10 years. It's hard enough keeping track of the ACTUAL congress, let alone a fictional one.
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My images of flags still seem to be in existence. They were uploaded in individual posts to the forum. I have lost alot of images, though (thanks, ImageShack), and most were made three or four computers ago and I made very few attempts at saving them.

I lost my mind once trying to compile a full list of all Senators of all time, because it is a Gordian knot of epic proportions (it was in 2013) requiring a very large amount of retconning and ignoring old posts (New York insanity) and the TV show (which had three long-term Illinois Senators) and trying to keep the statistics on point with party leadership changes and then the thread suddenly dropped in another Virginia Senator when I had everything almost locked down and...

Sometimes its best to take a step back and not put everything under a microscope. Like the show did. I usually view the casting as a side bit of fun we were engaged in, and not really canonical to the storyline at large. I may have started the whole trend with my abortive cast lists in the first few pages in early 2009, although they didn't pick up steam until January 2010, mostly between Jay Cruger and Mark (and then much more when I began doing wiki images).
 
Prometheus_2300

Prometheus_2300

Tim Thomason said:
My images of flags still seem to be in existence. They were uploaded in individual posts to the forum. I have lost alot of images, though (thanks, ImageShack), and most were made three or four computers ago and I made very few attempts at saving them.

I lost my mind once trying to compile a full list of all Senators of all time, because it is a Gordian knot of epic proportions (it was in 2013) requiring a very large amount of retconning and ignoring old posts (New York insanity) and the TV show (which had three long-term Illinois Senators) and trying to keep the statistics on point with party leadership changes and then the thread suddenly dropped in another Virginia Senator when I had everything almost locked down and...

Sometimes its best to take a step back and not put everything under a microscope. Like the show did. I usually view the casting as a side bit of fun we were engaged in, and not really canonical to the storyline at large. I may have started the whole trend with my abortive cast lists in the first few pages in early 2009, although they didn't pick up steam until January 2010, mostly between Jay Cruger and Mark (and then much more when I began doing wiki images).
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Out of curiosity do you have anything left of that Senate project, I was recently thinking about trying to get together a definitive list and set it up on Google doc? Any help would be appreciated even if it from a snapshot in 2013. We can all stand taller on the shoulders of giants after all, and you were definitely a giant in those matters back then. But I think we should move to a private conversation to discuss in further detail
 

lord caedus

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Wednesday, September 16th, 2020

High marks for Franklin after Senate questioning

Ahead of her final day of testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Supreme Court nominee Olivia Emmett Franklin has earned high marks across most of the political spectrum for her responses to tough questions from the various committee members. Franklin, chief judge of the United States District Court for South Carolina, handled tough questions from the committee on several hot button political issues—abortion, affirmative action, gun control and presidential powers—in a way that displayed her impressive command of legal precedent and jurisprudence. Senator Barbara Layton (R-NC), one of the staunchest conservatives on the committee who took the lead in questioning Franklin on her views on abortion, grudgingly admitted that Franklin was "doing okay" when asked for a statement.

"She has a very deep and thorough understanding of the law," Franklin told NBS, "She is very measured and shows a good view of legal reasoning."

"I think she has done tremendously well," Senator Dante Jenkins (D-NJ) said, "She's shown a tremendous ability to remember key facts, findings and keep her resolve under pressure...She shows the same characteristics I would expect for someone sitting on the nation's highest court."

On abortion, Franklin stated that Roe v. Wade "has been the settled law of the land for nearly 50 years" and stated that she would not speculate "on whether [conditions] have changed enough for the Court to revisit its ruling." She was more open about affirmative action, saying that she "found more support" in the arguments in support of "careful, narrowly-tailored" affirmative action programs to support members of racial and ethnic minorities opposed to those against, but said that she did not consider the use of these programs to "always be appropriate or necessary."

Senator Mark Cumberland (R-TX) asked Franklin about the Second Amendment, saying that his constituents "couldn't forgive me" if he let "someone who makes it easier for the government to get their guns" on the Supreme Court.

Franklin said she had not seen existing cases that would "make it easier for the government to 'get' people's guns" and said that she would not comment on any such cases without "having all the facts before [her]." She did say, however, that she supported the right to bear arms "within the confines previously laid down by the Court."

Republicans have a narrow majority in the Senate, but Franklin's performance and status as the first African-American nominee to the Supreme Court in over two decades has made it difficult for several senators, particularly those in blue or swing states, to contemplate voting against the president's nominee. Curtis Ryan (R-OR), the most embattled Republican senator up for re-election this year, has said he would "be open" to voting in favor of Franklin if she passed through the committee.

If confirmed, Franklin would be the 116th justice to sit on the Supreme Court, as well as become the first female African-American justice.
 

lord caedus

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Guess 2020 thought things weren't chaotic enough.

Here some infoboxes instead:

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Cast
Peter Outerbridge as Leslie Van Merhalls
Adrian Dunbar as Seamus Flynn
Ruth Madoc as Bronwyn Williams (new casting)
Igal Naor as Rashim Khalid al-Faruq

  • A lot of Van Merhalls' career is based off of the late Jim Flaherty's, since he was established as (like Flaherty) being the longtime finance minister to the then-current Conservative PM when he was introduced.

    Besides Gardner and Liz No. 2, most of the other people in his infobox are new. The only one that really matters is the Governor-General, Luc Doucette, who my headcanon has started the same time (October 2017) as the OTL incumbent, Julie Payette.

  • Like Trudeau IOTL, Van Merhalls is residing in another official residence while the Canadian PM's traditional residence (24 Sussex Drive) undergoes renovation.

  • Flynn's career is a mix of OTL Northern Ireland First Minister Arlene Foster and her deputy Nigel Dodds'. McIntyre was established as the previous DUP leader, but I'm establishing him as having been Northern Ireland's First Minister from 2007 to 2015, when he was replaced by Flynn.

  • A note on Northern Ireland: because of the history of sectarian violence, Northern Ireland's executive needs to be made up of both unionist (parties that NI want to stay within the UK, typically Protestant and right-wing) and republican (parties that want NI to join the Republic of Ireland, typically Catholic and left-wing). Changes since the Good Friday Agreement (which ended the Troubles both IOTL & ITTL) also made it so that the top two executive positions—the First Minister and deputy First Minister (no, that's not a typo; it really is "deputy First Minister", not "Deputy First Minister")—must be held by leaders of the largest unionist and largest republican parties.

    There also exists a mechanism in case no government can be formed, or if it falls apart and can't reconstitute itself: the devolution of powers to the NI Assembly is suspended and Northern Ireland is ruled directly from London. IOTL, it's happened for an extended period twice (2002 to 2017 and recently from 2017 to January of this year), while *here* it only happened once (the 2002-2007 period).

  • That is why Flynn is being listed as "serving with Katherine O'Neill" [the leader of Sinn Féin] as First Minister, and why the DPM (capitalized because Wikipedia) is listed in each of his earlier ministerial positions.

  • Williams was established, but almost everyone else (sans the Labour leaders and of course Elizabeth II) is new. Since Wales was established as having elected a Labour-Liberal Democrat government in the previous election (2016), I figured it would have extended backwards to the election before that (2011), and that before then, Welsh Labour had a majority by itself.

    The box gives away who her predecessors as Welsh First Minister were (Bushell and Morgan). It's not explicitly stated, but Bushell was also a Labourite, meaning (like OTL), Wales has never had a non-Labour First Minister as of 2020.

  • Since Williams has led the Welsh Labour Party for over a decade, she's also on her fifth Labour leader, which has got to be some kind of record.

    Speaking of a decade, Williams is ten years younger than her actress, thanks to good living and Hollywood (or Cardiff?) magic.

  • Khalid's biography, as mentioned before, is based off of Hussein Kamel al-Majid.

    If you're counting, yes that's five different titles that Saddam (IOTL & ITTL) consolidated for himself and that Khalid took upon seizing power. Aren't autocracies run by paranoid, bloodthirsty tyrants fun?
 

Marky Bunny

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Monday September 21st 2020

Ross: "No electoral pacts" & "no more blank cheques to the EU"

Liberal Democrat Leader Logan Ross speaking to his party conference in his key note address in Brighton this afternoon ruled out any muted "electoral pact" with minor parties such as the Green Party, the nationalists in Wales and Scotland and the Socialist Alliance ahead of the County gubernatorial elections next May.

Some party members had been pushing for the party not field candidates in certain elections and endorse others in return for a clear run at others. Ross, the MP for Edinburgh West and leader since winning the leadership last July has been under pressure on the back of disappointing by-election performances and a poor showing in the local elections in May.

Ross, decided to go in-formal , he was positioned on a small stage, with party members around him on all sides and he started with a cheerful "well, hello " which seemed to break the ice. "I have been advised that we as a party should enter to pacts with our parties, the answer to that is no. We will not sell out our principles to others, if others wish to back us and withdraw fair enough, but there will be no tit for tat reply from us", he added "we are in a difficult place but we have lots to be positive about".

In his biggest surprise, he indicated a clear of policy regards the European Union "we are all good European's in this party, we believe in a strong Europe, but today I say, we as a party will no longer back the UK to join the Euro, and will appose any attempt at an European Army". "We still stand as proud defenders of UK's membership of the European union, and will continue to do so, but our Liberal beliefs in free movement and open trade could be put at risk by further economic and political integration, the days of our party giving the EU a blank cheque are at an end, in all my heart I cannot back a move towards an European Empire, which many in the EU seem to be moving towards in the coming years".

This is a clear change in the Liberal Democrats European Policy, and one that is clearly calculated to prevent further support for a second UK, EU Referendum, which is building in the country.

Spoiler

Yes a nod to Ewan McGregor as Obi-Wan in the post.
Politically wise, the Liberal Democrats have had to move on the EU and the Euro (which they in our world they no longer support). The Lib Dems have always been opposed to further Federalism. The 2013 referendum campaign to stay in the EU said that the EU would not move towards further federalism, but as we said in the story in 2017, the EU is still moving towards a Federal superstrate. Because of this the National Peoples Party (along with much of the Conservative Party) is pushing for a second referendum, which is a nice turn on the events of the real world.
 

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Marky Bunny

A newly found picture of a retired President Owen Lassiter on his tour of American Battlefields. Here he is pictured on Hagushi beach on Okinawa Island in 2002.
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Prometheus_2300

Prometheus_2300

Marky Bunny said:
A newly found picture of a retired President Owen Lassiter on his tour of American Battlefields. Here he is pictured on Hagushi beach on Okinawa Island in 2002.
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There has always been one story I really wish I could write about Lassiter. In the episode about Lassiter’s funeral, we see these jars of soil. One of these jars is labeled ‘San Juan Hill’, which is in Cuba. So this means a former president sometime during Bartlet’s years, Went to Cuba. A popular former Republican President went to Cuba. How did such a trip Transpire, when and why did Bartlet never mention it, or had no impact on US-Cuban relations. I’ve had ideas but I’ve been able to figure out the right framing device. Why would a jar of dirt from 1997 make news in 2020
 
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lord caedus

Prometheus_2300 said:
There has always been one story I really wish I could write about Lassiter. In the episode about Lassiter’s funeral, we see these jars of soil. One of these jars is labeled ‘San Juan Hill’, which is in Cuba. So this means a former president sometime during Bartlet’s years, Went to Cuba. A popular former Republican President went to Cuba. How did such a trip Transpire, when and why did Bartlet never mention it, or had no impact on US-Cuban relations. I’ve had ideas but I’ve been able to figure out the right framing device. Why would a jar of dirt from 1997 make news in 2020
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No one:
Nobody from either Cuba or the United States:
Not a single human being who was alive on the planet Earth in 1997:
Owen Lassiter:
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But seriously if you ever do find a way to make the story work, PM MD17.
 

WestWingNut

Prometheus_2300 said:
There has always been one story I really wish I could write about Lassiter. In the episode about Lassiter’s funeral, we see these jars of soil. One of these jars is labeled ‘San Juan Hill’, which is in Cuba. So this means a former president sometime during Bartlet’s years, Went to Cuba. A popular former Republican President went to Cuba. How did such a trip Transpire, when and why did Bartlet never mention it, or had no impact on US-Cuban relations. I’ve had ideas but I’ve been able to figure out the right framing device. Why would a jar of dirt from 1997 make news in 2020
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Does the U.S still have a navel base at Guantanamo Bay ITTL?
 

MHurtado09

If someone were to make a story about President Lassiter visiting Cuba, wouldn't it have to be from 1999 on? He'd still be the incumbent in 1997.
 

lord caedus

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Wednesday, September 23rd 2020

Conservative group pulls ads after backlash

An ad campaign by the conservative group People For Equal Justice targeted at voters in several swing states to pressure their senators to vote against Olivia Emmett Franklin for the Supreme Court has been scrapped after a widespread backlash to its "Judgement" ad, which has been widely condemned as racist.

In the advertisement, a voice-over shows videos of Franklin testifying to the Senate Judiciary Committee, and questions her decision in the trial of Dwayne Oscar Marion, who was accused of murdering his girlfriend Sandra Joyce in 2008 after she fled to South Carolina from the couple's home in Georgia after he allegedly threatened and assaulted her. Franklin ruled several pieces of evidence against Marion inadmissible because police failure to obtain a search warrant prior to searching the couple's home, where the evidence was discovered. The result was that prosecutors were forced to drop the charges of first-degree murder and instead convict Marion on lesser charges, including terroristic threats and possession of a firearm by a (previously-)convicted felon.

Marion was subsequently re-tried and convicted of Joyce's murder in a separate trial in 2012 after an informant tipped police off to where Marion had disposed of a pistol that was later confirmed via ballistics analysis to be the weapon that was used to kill Joyce.

Both Franklin and Marion are African-American and Joyce was white, and the ad purports that Franklin, who it also shows speaking of the institutional legacy of racism in the law, "had a reason for letting this violent black man off after his white girlfriend was mysteriously killed."

The aid aired in several media markets simultaneously on Monday and drew immediate backlash. Several of Franklin's current and former colleagues on the U.S. District Court of South Carolina criticized the ad's assertion that Franklin had acted improperly in the Marion case, and Franklin's predecessor as chief judge, Malcolm Barnwell, called the idea that Franklin was anti-white "ridiculous and disgusting." Former vice president Bob Russell called the ad "racist filth" after he saw it at his Colorado home, and publicly supported Franklin's confirmation.

A spokeswoman for People For Equal Justice (PFEJ) said that the ad "was meant to raise valid questions about Judge Franklin's judgment", but that "we failed to thread the needle of political correctness" in doing so. According to Federal Election Commission (FEC) filings, PFEJ was first formed in 2019 and has not previously produced any television advertisements. Three of the people listed on the group's FEC filings, including Larry Claypool, a former lawyer for the State Department during the Lassiter administration, have publicly made or supported debunked racist claims and conspiracy theories.
 
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lord caedus

OOC: First follow-up to this post.

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The United States presidential election, 2010 was the 57th presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 2, 2010. The Republican ticket of congressman and former Acting President Glen Allen Walken of Missouri and his running mate, senator Elizabeth Clark of Texas, defeated the Democratic ticket of incumbent President Matthew Santos of Texas and Vice President Wendell Tripplehorn of South Dakota.

Santos was re-nominated without incident by the Democratic Party, with Tripplehorn, appointed in 2009 after the resignation of Eric Baker, becoming the first vice president appointed under the terms of the Twenty-Fifth Amendment to be nominated by his party for a full term in office. Numerous candidates entered the Republican primaries, although Walken and former West Virginia governor Ray Sullivan (the party's 2006 vice presidential nominee) quickly emerged as the frontrunners. Walken pulled ahead of Sullivan in early in the primaries and clinched the nomination in March 2010. He made history by selecting Clark as his running mate, marking the first time that a woman was named to the Republican presidential ticket.

The economy and jobs was the most dominant issue in the election, largely a result of the economic downturn that had begun in 2008. Other issues, such as the country's foreign policy and its involvement in Kazakhstan and Gaza, were also debated.

From his post-inauguration high approval ratings of nearly 80 percent, Santos' approval ratings had fallen as he had struggled with Congress, made little progress in either Kazakhstan or Gaza until late in his term, and was blamed in part for the economic collapse and sluggish recovery. On the campaign trail, he struggled to articulate a consistent vision for what a second term would entail, focusing largely on defending his record and conduct in responding to the financial crisis. In contrast, Walken campaigned on a more hardline response against the United States' geopolitical opponents abroad and for economic deregulation to spur domestic economic growth, while also contrasting his performance during the Zoey Bartlet kidnapping crisis to Santos' response to the economic meltdown.

Walken won the Electoral College by a 310 to 228 margin, and took 51.4% of the popular vote. He won several swing states that Santos had won in 2006, including Colorado, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey and Texas, breaking a streak of three straight Democratic victories. Walken became the first acting president to win a term in his own right, and the second consecutive (and third overall) sitting member of the House of Representatives to be elected president. Clark made history as the first female vice president.

Alongside Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter and D. Wire Newman, Santos became only the fourth post-World War II president to lose his bid for re-election, as well as the first sitting president to lose his home state since Herbert Hoover in 1932. As of 2020, this is the earliest election in which all members of both major party tickets are still alive.
 
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