2018 Presidential Election

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Tim Thomason

Also, I forgot that Hoyt was born on February 29th, meaning he was actually only eight years old at the time and he's 14 now. He's more of a prodigy than we realized.
 

lord caedus

Tim Thomason said:
I wanted to make him amazingly young, to make it more of a naked ploy to put someone on the Supreme Court for decades. Owen Brady was also about 40 when appointed, and was canonically young (52 when he died on the show), so it was already established that Bartlet's predecessor wasn't above appointing young legal minds to the highest court in the land.

I didn't cast William Hurt (who is about ten years older than Hoyt), but maybe the years haven't been kind and he's not in the best of health.
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Honestly, I think he'd look a lot closer to his "current" age if he'd shave his mustache. The only reason I chose that particular pic, rather than one of him clean-shaven, is that it was particularly high quality. Let's chalk the 'stache up to him hitting a midlife crisis after realizing he'd spent nearly 25 years on the Court and decided to shake things up a bit.

Also, while we're talking about casting, Rand was also cast as an actor (Wiest) who was about a decade older than her character. I had to retroactively move age Rand up a bit to make it fit, but she still wasn't extraordinarily old (59) when she was named to the Court.

Tim Thomason said:
The Senate in 1995 was majority Democratic (Senate Majority Leader John Hoynes), but I solved that dilemma by having Hoyt start out as more of a moderate with Blue Dog support and a tough confirmation anyway.
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Yeah, the judicial inclinations were another area that I had to do some retconning in, this time regarding the judicial leanings of Appleton, Rand and Carmine. One source would list them as truly moderate or leaning towards one wing or another, while the other would contradict that. So I settled on Carmine being a liberal-leaning moderate, Appleton a true moderate (with his previously established moderate-conservative views alluded to in the profile) and Rand as a conservative-leaning moderate (a la Anthony Kennedy).

For anyone wondering, the three justices put on the court by Bartlet (Baker Lang, Mendoza, Mulready) plus Hoyt had already been consistently established as being in either the liberal or conservative wings. Weston was said to be more a conservative jurist than most were expecting, so I put him with the conservatives. I purposefully didn't put Quincy down as either conservative or conservative-leaning moderate to give Mark & co. some freedom to decide his exact judicial leanings when another SC story comes up.
 

Marky Bunny

NBS.COM
Wednesday January 16th 2019

Seaborn confirms final three cabinet members

President-Elect Seaborn has confirmed his final three cabinet members via a press release issued early this morning for the posts of Director of National Intelligence, Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers and Administrator of the Small Business Administration.

Sarah Sanchez will be the new DNI. Sanchez has worked in the past for the FBI, the NSA and the CIA. Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers will be former two term Nevada Governor Randy Broughton who left office at the start of the month, whilst the Administrator of the Small Business Administration will be will former Indiana Senator Damon Matteo.
 

lord caedus

With the nominees named, here's the final Seaborn cabinet infobox. Shoutout to Mark and disputed for their hard work assembling a strong cabinet for America's new president.

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Casting
Jack Hunter: Ed Helms
August Adair: Keith Carradine
Meredith Payne: Regina King
Jack Shannon: Daniel von Bargen
George Montgomery: Robert Foxworth
Sean Boone: Hayden Christensen
Karen Kroft: Lucinda Jenney
Shannon Frost: Helen Hunt
Gael Cordova: Benito Martinez
Abigail Bartlet: Stockard Channing
Mark Richardson: Thom Barry
Matt Skinner: Charley Lang
Joan Tanner: Pam Grier
Valeria Quintero: Mercedes Ruehl
Kate Harper: Mary McCormack
Will Bailey: Joshua Malina
Paris Stray: Catherine Bell
Mary-Beth Shotten: Jill Hennessy (new character)
Charlie Young: Dulé Hill
Andrew Delaney: Bill Camp
Sarah Sanchez: Gloria Estefan (new character)
Randy Broughton: Ken Jenkins
Dameon Matteo: Jack Stehlin
 

lord caedus

With the passing of the torch from Walken to Seaborn beginning starting tomorrow with Walken's farewell speech, here's the infoboxes for the two presidential runners-up, an Electoral College dropout and the only old Republican who will be left in the line of succession after Sunday.

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  • Most of Wilkinson's biography is basically copied from Kansas' OTL senior senator Pat Roberts. The only real thing really significant that's being added is that I'm establishing him as chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee- he wasn't named previously as a committee chair or ranking member, which obviously he would be. So picked one where Wilkinson was established as being on and whose last established Republican head either retired or was defeated and made him leader.
  • The only really interesting information about Shallick that I'm adding is that his wife Laura's (the senior senator from Missouri) maiden name was Rogers.
  • For those that don't know, the reason for Straus taking office over a month later than normal is that he was declared the winner after a long recount process a la Al Franken in 2009.

    Straus' first name being spelled different at birth is a wink at the conflicting spellings since he debuted as a character. The headcanon I'm going with was that Straus, as a lifelong radical, adopted "Haydn" as the spelling once he went off to college as a tongue-in-cheek joke after a misprint on his draft card (which he later burned, of course). You'll also notice that he went to two schools with pretty strong anti-war scenes: Ripon (where Harrison Ford briefly attended) before transferring to Kent State (he did not attend the protest on the day of the infamous massacre due to being sick).

Casting (previously established)
Samuel Wilkinson: Paul Collins
Henry Shallick: Corbin Bernsen
Franklin Hollis: Xander Berkeley
Haydn Straus: Harrison Ford
 
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lord caedus

KingCrawa said:
Isn't Hunter now the highest ranking republican in the line of succession?
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He will be after Sunday, yes.

Marky Bunny said:
He is. I think what lord caedus was alluding to is that Wilkerson is the last of the "old guard" Republicans left in the line of succession.
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Actually, I meant that after Sunday, Wilkinson literally the only Republican who is old left in the line of succession since the Republican Cabinet nominees (if/when they get confirmed) are all either about the normal age for a Cabinet official (Skinner, Harper) or younger side (Boone).
 

Marky Bunny

lord caedus said:
Actually, I meant that after Sunday, Wilkinson literally the only Republican who is old left in the line of succession since the Republican Cabinet nominees (if/when they get confirmed) are all either about the normal age for a Cabinet official (Skinner, Harper) or younger side (Boone).
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So I was partly correct:)
 

lord caedus

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Transcript of President Glen Allen Walken's Farewell Address

My fellow citizens,

Tonight, is my last opportunity to address you from this office as your president. As such, it is with a grateful heart that I speak to you, in order to share my thoughts on these past eight years and on the future of our nation.

Two days from now, the world will again witness the vitality of American democracy. In the tradition dating back to our founding, the presidency will pass to a person chosen by you, the American people. I will join all Americans in offering the best wishes to President-elect Seaborn and his wife Lauren.

Tonight, I am filled with gratitude. To Vice President Clark and the members of my administration; to my wife Mary, who has brought love and joy to this house and my life; to our wonderful children, Michael, Claire, Lauren and Stephen; and to our grandchildren. Above all else, I thank you, the American people, for the trust you have given me during my time in this office. I thank you for the prayers that lifted my spirits; for the countless examples of selfless sacrifice, dedication and generosity that have continuously reaffirmed my faith in the people, and fate, of this nation.

This evening, my thoughts turn to the first night I ever addressed you as president – in the morning of May 8th, 2003. The night before, Bahji terrorists had kidnapped Zoey Bartlet, the youngest daughter of President Josiah Bartlet. President Bartlet, in an act of patriotism, handed power over to someone who disagreed with him politically to lead the nation until his daughter was thankfully rescued. I’ll never forget talking to the family of Secret Service Agent Molly O'Connor, who gave her life to protect the First Daughter. Nor will I forget the brave men and women who went into battle against Bahji terror camps in Qumar and meeting them after my three days as acting president.

After Zoey Bartlet was rescued and I returned the presidency to her father, the nation moved on from those dark three days in May 2003. But part of me never did. Before then, I had never dreamed of becoming president. But having briefly occupied that office, I felt that there was more I could do while as president in my own right. Almost 16 years later, I am glad to report to you that many of those things have been accomplished.

In the past eight years, our nation has pursued a strong and vigorous course to protect itself and its allies. We have been lucky to count among our friends many countries of the world, who share our democratic values and our love of freedom. In conjunction with our allies, we have put the so-called Islamic Bahji on their back foot. The nation of Qumar has gone from a nation where women were stoned for adultery or beaten for speaking out of turn to one that is sending its girls to school and who are making strides in towards democracy. The thorny problem of peace in the Holy Land has been solved due to the patience and dedication of the leaders of Israel and Palestine.

There has been plenty of vigorous and healthy debate over our role internationally. But little debate can be had of the results. We have not had a crisis similar in scale to that of May 2003 since those days. This is a tribute to all those who toil day and night to keep us safe – law enforcement, our intelligence officials and the men and women of the United States Armed Forces.

Our nation has been blessed to have citizens who volunteer to defend it in from threats both foreign and abroad. I have spoken to many of these selfless patriots and their families and will cherish those memories long after I leave this office. Our country owes you a profound debt of gratitude. To all those who are serving in uniform who are watching this tonight: there has been no higher honor to have served as your Commander-in-Chief.

With the security you have brought about, domestically, our nation has recovered its prosperity. In these past eight years, 19 million new jobs have been created and we have the lowest unemployment rate in nearly half a century. We have also worked to reform our education system to make schools safer and better for every American child. The average American enjoys a lower income tax rate than he or she has seen in decades. We have increased the funding for every veteran to get the help they need and deserve. The rights of every American, be they to own a gun or to speak freely against their government, have been vigorously defended. And the federal bench includes wise new judges, including Justices Judi Rand, Howard Weston and Joe Quincy.

When challenges rose to our shared prosperity, we arose together to greet them. While we don’t always agree on every issue, we do agree on most of the most important ones; that democracy is better than tyranny, that we are endowed inalienable rights by Our Creator, and that it is a person's character, not their race, religion, nationality, color, or creed upon which we should judge them. Reminding ourselves of these shared bonds, we will continue to meet all our challenges now and in the future.

Like all who have occupied this office before me, I have suffered setbacks. There are many things that I wish I could have done differently during my time here. But, as President Harry Truman said, "the buck stops here" and any missteps or failures during my presidency belong to me alone. While I have made mistakes during my presidency, I have always acted according to my conscience and in what I believed to be the nation's best interest. I hope that regardless of your opinion of me, you do not judge me to have done anything less.

The decades ahead will bring more challenges for this country, and for its future leaders. Tonight, I would like to leave you with my thoughts about our future.

First, we must continue to engage the world abroad with confidence and clear purpose. It is natural, with the rise of large, undemocratic nations and our continued engagement in Qumar to want to retreat from the world stage. But isolationism, and its other half, protectionism, must be fought against. In this century, as it was throughout the last, prosperity and security at home depend on liberty increasing abroad.

Next, that we must not lose sight of the values that have made us great. Our values are not those of many nations across the globe, and there are many who wish we would adopt those from other nations. Many do not like that those who occupy this office cannot force their interpretation of Christianity upon those who do not share it. Others do not like that we value our self-reliance instead of looking to the government at the first sign of trouble. Both these, and more negative reactions to our values, must be guarded against. Our system of democracy, free enterprise and tolerance must be safeguarded from those who would tear it down.

Finally, we must remember that we are one nation under God. Simply put, that which divides us is much less than that what unites us. Together, in this decade we have liberated millions from tyranny and brought prosperity to many more both here and around the globe. We do not always agree on many things; our politics, what creed we espouse, or which god we worship. But we can be sure that most of those who disagree with us share our desire to live freely and to create the best possible nation for our families.

I have great and unshakable faith in America and in its people. Our trials and tribulations are not over, but I do not worry about being able to meet them. Every day, we continue working on making ours the more perfect union envisioned by our founders, building on the gains of those who came before us.

It has been the privilege of a lifetime to have been your president. I have been blessed beyond measure by the kindness and generosity of the people of this nation, and for being able to have been its representative. From the day in 1967 that I walked into an Army induction center, I have accumulated many titles. But the one that I am the proudest of is one that I will retain after I leave this office: citizen of the United States.

Thank you.

God bless you. And God bless the United States of America.
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Marky Bunny

RRusso1982 said:
Is Walken going back to Missouri on Sunday after the private swearing in of will he be at the formal inauguration on Monday?
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On Sunday evening he will stay at Blair House for one evening before attending the formal inauguration on Monday then he will return to Missouri.
 

Marky Bunny

I want to a say big thank you to @lord caedus for President's Walken's farewell address. I mean how good was that people. If you closed your eyes you could almost hear John Goodman's voice.
 
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heatmaster

Nicely constructed speech, I can imagine that Sam Seaborn’s inaugural speech will be a response to Walken’s farewell speech. By the way are Henry Shallick and Walken from the same part of Missouri?
 

lord caedus

heatmaster said:
Nicely constructed speech, I can imagine that Sam Seaborn’s inaugural speech will be a response to Walken’s farewell speech.
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Inaugural addresses aren't ever responses to other speeches, especially since the presidential speech-writing teams spent weeks on them.

heatmaster said:
By the way are Henry Shallick and Walken from the same part of Missouri?
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No. Walken was born and raised in Liberty, which is a suburb of Kansas City and Shallick is originally from St. Louis (on the opposite side of the state). When they served together in Congress, Shallick represented a district in the southwest corner of Missouri while Walken represented one that consisted of northern Missouri, with part of it swooping down to include Liberty.
 
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