alternatehistory.com
Harkin Back To A Better Time
December 11th, 1987
"Mr. Iacocca, Tom Harkin has just endorsed Senator Simon."
"You mean that nerd from Illinois?"
"Yes, it's taken him out of his 'home field' advantage that many have expected from his campaign. He's essentially dead in the water at this point."
"Does Simon have an advantage over us now?"
"No, even with the endorsement he's third behind Hart and you, respectively. A far third at that. It's a two man race here, and in my opinion, a two man race throughout."
"We just need a final push to beat that son-of-a-bitch in Iowa"
"Sir..."
"I have no time for your objections, get me an endorsement!"
"Yes sir..."
-Conversation between an aid and Lee Iacocca
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December 12th, 1987
"Tom?" Tom Harkin's staffer floated his name in the air to get his attention as he walked towards his office. He turned towards her and she said, "There's a... few... calls on your answering machine."
"Okay," Harkin began uncertainly, confused at his staffer's concerned tones, "who are they from?" She replied quickly but cautiously.
"Richard Gephardt."
Damn, Harkin thought to himself while he thanked his staffer and entered his office. He should have figured this was coming, but he had been hoping Gephardt wouldn't hear. Him and Gephardt were great friends, just as he and Simon were, and he hoped that Gephardt wouldn't hold the endorsement against him.
The decision had been purely political. In Harkin's mind, and it seemed to him obvious in the minds of the voters, Simon had a better shot at the Presidency than Gephardt did, even if both of their shots weren't too great at all.
Harkin was a realist. He knew that Gephardt's campaign had been buried when Hart entered the race, and was absolutely killed when Iacocca entered. Gephardt and Iacocca were running on very similar ideas, but Iacocca had name recognition, an outsider appearance, and, as much as it pained him to admit it, more charisma than his friend Gephardt.
Harkin strode to the answering machine and hesitated. He had a feeling, based on the face of his staffer, that what was on the machine was not pretty. But he had been the one to put the situation in to motion, so he pressed the button.
The messages were numerous, and all very similar. They were all very, very loud. Loud enough that Harkin had to close the door to his office. Loud enough that, without Harkin knowing, a couple people stopped momentarily in the hallway outside the room, hearing the yelling and wondering if they should intervene.
The point of most of the messages was an insistent "HOW COULD YOU?!?". There were innumerable curses and a general feeling of betrayal. The move had been a stab in the back - Harkin couldn't disagree with that notion. But he had to let Dick know that it was in everyone's best in the end.
"Hey, Dick, it's Tom. I'm calling to---"
"You SON of a BITCH. You're lucky that I haven't hung up already." Gephardt was practically screaming.
"Look, Dick, I know---" Gephardt cut Harkin off again.
"No, you look! I had a real shot at Iowa, and if I could have won there I could've won the whole thing! And now it's all shit! And it's all your fault!"
"What I did, I did for the party." Harkin said, leaning against his desk. "What. I. Did. I. Did. For. The. Party." There was silence from the other end for a moment.
"You could've stayed out." Gephardt said, suddenly quiet, "You could've just stayed out this time."
"Richard, I know you. I know you know that your candidacy was a long shot. You read the papers. You read the polls. You know Paul has a better shot."
"Me and Paul were even before that endorsement! If it had been me, I could've beat Iacocca. And Hart, for that matter!" Harkin sighed audibly and shook his head.
"Dick, you know I'm your friend, so I'm just gonna be straight with you. No, you wouldn't have. At this point, I would just drop out. You're gonna have a great chance in the next cycle. But if you stay in it's just gonna damage your reputation."
There was a silence on the other end, this time prolonged.
"Dick?" Tom asked. More silence.
Then, the dial tone.
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December 20th, 1987
"Working as Minority Whip in the House of Representatives, I interact on an almost daily basis with the President and the Vice President and those close to them.
Over the last eight years, I have seen a lot of growth in this country due to the vision of President Reagan and Vice President Bush. Their leadership over the past two terms has been inspiring and will be remembered among the most impressive administrations in terms of effectiveness.
There are more jobs in America then there was eight years ago. There is more prosperity. There is more hope.
Why would we want to change that now?
We need continuity in this time of great uncertainty. The best man to continue President Reagan's legacy is George H.W. Bush, the man who knows him best and knows this administration in and out.
That is why I am endorsing him for President of the United States in 1988. Let us not fall for the glow of simple populism, but instead turn to the steadfast leadership of George Bush."
-Richard "Dick" Cheney endorsing George Bush for President in 1988
"Mr. Iacocca, Tom Harkin has just endorsed Senator Simon."
"You mean that nerd from Illinois?"
"Yes, it's taken him out of his 'home field' advantage that many have expected from his campaign. He's essentially dead in the water at this point."
"Does Simon have an advantage over us now?"
"No, even with the endorsement he's third behind Hart and you, respectively. A far third at that. It's a two man race here, and in my opinion, a two man race throughout."
"We just need a final push to beat that son-of-a-bitch in Iowa"
"Sir..."
"I have no time for your objections, get me an endorsement!"
"Yes sir..."
-Conversation between an aid and Lee Iacocca
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
December 12th, 1987
"Tom?" Tom Harkin's staffer floated his name in the air to get his attention as he walked towards his office. He turned towards her and she said, "There's a... few... calls on your answering machine."
"Okay," Harkin began uncertainly, confused at his staffer's concerned tones, "who are they from?" She replied quickly but cautiously.
"Richard Gephardt."
Damn, Harkin thought to himself while he thanked his staffer and entered his office. He should have figured this was coming, but he had been hoping Gephardt wouldn't hear. Him and Gephardt were great friends, just as he and Simon were, and he hoped that Gephardt wouldn't hold the endorsement against him.
The decision had been purely political. In Harkin's mind, and it seemed to him obvious in the minds of the voters, Simon had a better shot at the Presidency than Gephardt did, even if both of their shots weren't too great at all.
Harkin was a realist. He knew that Gephardt's campaign had been buried when Hart entered the race, and was absolutely killed when Iacocca entered. Gephardt and Iacocca were running on very similar ideas, but Iacocca had name recognition, an outsider appearance, and, as much as it pained him to admit it, more charisma than his friend Gephardt.
Harkin strode to the answering machine and hesitated. He had a feeling, based on the face of his staffer, that what was on the machine was not pretty. But he had been the one to put the situation in to motion, so he pressed the button.
The messages were numerous, and all very similar. They were all very, very loud. Loud enough that Harkin had to close the door to his office. Loud enough that, without Harkin knowing, a couple people stopped momentarily in the hallway outside the room, hearing the yelling and wondering if they should intervene.
The point of most of the messages was an insistent "HOW COULD YOU?!?". There were innumerable curses and a general feeling of betrayal. The move had been a stab in the back - Harkin couldn't disagree with that notion. But he had to let Dick know that it was in everyone's best in the end.
"Hey, Dick, it's Tom. I'm calling to---"
"You SON of a BITCH. You're lucky that I haven't hung up already." Gephardt was practically screaming.
"Look, Dick, I know---" Gephardt cut Harkin off again.
"No, you look! I had a real shot at Iowa, and if I could have won there I could've won the whole thing! And now it's all shit! And it's all your fault!"
"What I did, I did for the party." Harkin said, leaning against his desk. "What. I. Did. I. Did. For. The. Party." There was silence from the other end for a moment.
"You could've stayed out." Gephardt said, suddenly quiet, "You could've just stayed out this time."
"Richard, I know you. I know you know that your candidacy was a long shot. You read the papers. You read the polls. You know Paul has a better shot."
"Me and Paul were even before that endorsement! If it had been me, I could've beat Iacocca. And Hart, for that matter!" Harkin sighed audibly and shook his head.
"Dick, you know I'm your friend, so I'm just gonna be straight with you. No, you wouldn't have. At this point, I would just drop out. You're gonna have a great chance in the next cycle. But if you stay in it's just gonna damage your reputation."
There was a silence on the other end, this time prolonged.
"Dick?" Tom asked. More silence.
Then, the dial tone.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
December 20th, 1987
"Working as Minority Whip in the House of Representatives, I interact on an almost daily basis with the President and the Vice President and those close to them.
Over the last eight years, I have seen a lot of growth in this country due to the vision of President Reagan and Vice President Bush. Their leadership over the past two terms has been inspiring and will be remembered among the most impressive administrations in terms of effectiveness.
There are more jobs in America then there was eight years ago. There is more prosperity. There is more hope.
Why would we want to change that now?
We need continuity in this time of great uncertainty. The best man to continue President Reagan's legacy is George H.W. Bush, the man who knows him best and knows this administration in and out.
That is why I am endorsing him for President of the United States in 1988. Let us not fall for the glow of simple populism, but instead turn to the steadfast leadership of George Bush."
-Richard "Dick" Cheney endorsing George Bush for President in 1988
- Gentleman Biaggi
- Word Count: 910