1994: The Frog Croaks Thrice

The year is 1994 and Massachusetts Democratic Senator Ted Kennedy is running for his sixth full term. However, this is the first year he has a real challenge. Republican challenger Mitt Romney (yes the same Romney who ran for president in 2012) the wealthy CEO of Bain Capital and son of the former governor of Michigan is determined to become the first Republican senator in Massachusetts since 1979. IOTL, Romney falls short paving the way for his future defeats in the presidential election But ITTL, due to a blast from the past and a "mysterious frog noise," Kennedy loses the election in a landslide to Romney. Romney is extremely popular as a senator. In 1999, Romney announces that he will be running for president. Though he comes in third in the Republican nomination (to Bush and McCain), Bush picks him as his running mate. As IOTL, Bush beats gore in 2000 (but ITTL there is no Florida controversy) making Romney the vice president of the United States.
 

DTanza

Banned
I understand you're still upset about Romney losing last year, but really? Kennedy was not losing in a landslide.
 

birdboy2000

Banned
Romney can not both be popular in Massachusetts and a serious candidate for national office as a Republican. In OTL, he chose the latter option. I expect if he won in '94 he'd do likewise.

Also, if Kennedy loses, it's almost certainly to be in a close race.
 
Alright maybe not a landslide but at least 55%-45% Romney. Also, I didn't mention yet that a major reason why Kennedy lost his bid (and also why I named the thread "The Frog Croaks Thrice") was that he made a mysterious croaking noise on live TV in response to some new information about Chappaquiddick that was revealed by the Romney campaign...:D
 
Alright maybe not a landslide but at least 55%-45% Romney. Also, I didn't mention yet that a major reason why Kennedy lost his bid (and also why I named the thread "The Frog Croaks Thrice") was that he made a mysterious croaking noise on live TV in response to some new information about Chappaquiddick that was revealed by the Romney campaign...:D

Still not gonna really go against Kennedy in any big way. He is a one man institution at this time.
 
Still not gonna really go against Kennedy in any big way. He is a one man institution at this time.

I'm telling you. The way Romney's campaign frames the Chapaquiddick story IOTL is just genius. They make combine truth and fiction to make Kennedy into a murderer and a pervert . Also Kennedy is so stunned to learn the new rumors about him on live television that he loses control and makes a weird noise. The public took this noise as a sign that he approved the murders and that he is proving himself guilty. Thefore despite being a member of the greatest American political dynasty of all time, Kennedy loses the election thanks to many funny newspaper headlines about his reaction such as : "Croak of Approval," and "Get the Frog Out!" :D
 

DTanza

Banned
And when the Romney campaign inevitably states making ads about the croaking sound, Kennedy just waves it off by saying he had hoped Romney would be willing to talk about the issues. Seriously, it would be so easy to turn that around on the Romney campaign by making him seem childish and unworthy of going up against an elder statesman.
 
I can't see Romney running for president in 2000 or being selected by Bush as a running mate.

I also can't see a "mysterious croaking noise" in regards to Chappaquiddick eliminating Senator Ted Kennedy from the race by itself. Maybe the 'new information' that causes it could, but we have no idea what that is.

I mean, you'd need some pretty strong POD to get rid of him, like some kind of confirmation his intentions with Mary Jo Kopechne were not wholesome, or even downright villainous in matter. Confirmation is a key word - this is Massachusetts: rumors will not fly.
 
I can't see Romney running for president in 2000 or being selected by Bush as a running mate.

Are you kidding me?! They are like the perfect match for each other! ITTL they have similar stories. Both of thier dads were well known politicians. Also, both of them were dark horse candidates that defeated extrememly popular older and experienced incumbents (Romney defeated Ted Kennedy for Senate ITTL and Bush defeated Governor Ann Richards of Texas). Also, they are the opposite ends of their party. Bush is a conservative Texan (although a New Englander by birth) and Romney is a moderate New Englander (although a Midwesterner by birth). They will attract many voters on a ticket together and will have a much better chance of beating Gore IOTL than Bush did with Cheney, especially with Romney's accomplishment of practically bringing down the Kennedy Dynasty.
 
IMO, the only way Romney would win is in a squeaker. IOTL, the race was pretty much tied per a Boston Globe poll, in the end of Sept. Kennedy then went negative against Romney, pulling off a win.

Maybe if Kennedy didn't go negative, he might lose in a squeaker.
 
Are you kidding me?! They are like the perfect match for each other! ITTL they have similar stories. Both of thier dads were well known politicians. Also, both of them were dark horse candidates that defeated extrememly popular older and experienced incumbents (Romney defeated Ted Kennedy for Senate ITTL and Bush defeated Governor Ann Richards of Texas). Also, they are the opposite ends of their party. Bush is a conservative Texan (although a New Englander by birth) and Romney is a moderate New Englander (although a Midwesterner by birth). They will attract many voters on a ticket together and will have a much better chance of beating Gore IOTL than Bush did with Cheney, especially with Romney's accomplishment of practically bringing down the Kennedy Dynasty.

i'm not saying it would be a bad ticket, per se - I just don't see Bush picking him, based on his personality and well, his OTL choice. Not to say he'd pick Dick Cheney still so much as that I imagine he'd pick someone he felt closer to, rather than a politically convenient Senator he didn't know. That doesn't seem like Bush's style to me.
 
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