2018 Presidential Election

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Friday June 26th 2020

Starting gun fired in Florida gubernatorial race as Congressman Riddle claims State Rep Jessica Gelsey "only got the nomination because of her Mother & looks"

Republican Florida Congressman Tom Riddle and his parties gubernatorial candidate took the opening shots at his opponent State Representative Jessica Gelsey, Gelsey who is the daughter of former House Speaker Carol.

Congressman Riddle made the comments at a Republican fundraiser in Tampa, on Wednesday evening. The comments where captured on a mobile phone and posted on line. "My opponent in this race, only got the Democratic nomination of her Mother, and her good looks, anyone else as Liberal and as inexperienced as she is would not a gotten a look in". Republicans donors are then seen laughing and cheering as Riddle continued "You all know, I know her Mother, we all do in this room, she failed when she ran as Governor in 96, she failed in Congress, she failed as Speaker, and now she wants to pull the strings for her Daughter".

Jessica Gelsey, who is 33, and doesn't turn 34 until after the election in November, is not the political novice, Congressman Riddle attempted to portray in his remarks, she has been a State Representative for the 117th District since being elected six years ago. She combines the job with the running her own internet clothing business.

As spokesman for the Riddle campaign said "Congressman Riddle was a making a private address to donors, but he does feel that his opponent unsuited to be our next Governor, and that he is best to build on the excellent record of Governor Ritchie". The Gelsey campaign has yet to make a formal reply.

All the current polls point to the race being a close race, a NBS poll last weekend had the race: Ridde (R) 47% Gelsey (D) 46% Reid (Southern Rights) 2%, Undecided: 5%
 
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Sunday June 28th 2020

Former Nebraska Governor John Moore heads to New Hampshire to campaign for his Cousin Felix

The former two term Governor of Nebraska, John Moore was a surprise campaigner in New Hampshire on Saturday. Moore is the Cousin of the GOP Republican Senate candidate Felix, who is trying for the second time to unseat Democratic Incumbent Senator George Englemann after narrowly losing in 2014.

Governor Moore had been expected to run for the Republican Presidential nomination in 2018, but to the shock of most pundits and even those in the Republican party, he declined to run just days before he had been expected to announce his candidacy in January 2017. Moore did endorse the eventual nominee Henry Shallick, and was believed to have been on his short-list for Vice-President. This trip which was not announced in advance has many speculating that he is gearing up for a Presidential bid.

The two men appeared at meet and greet in Nashua alongside the State's other Senator, Republican Ellie Wilkins who was a surprise winner four years ago. Despite former First daughter Liz Bartlet presence as Governor, and the fact that the President Seaborn carried the State in 2018 by 6.73%, the state is certainly a battleground, and Felix Moore is a popular local candidate against Senator Englemann "My opponent only turns up in the state when he wants your vote, can you name one thing he has done for the great state of New Hampshire" Felix Moore told a crowd of supporters " I tell you this I am going to work for all of the people of our state when I am elected and go to DC next January".

Governor John Moore endorsed his Cousin calling him "the type of man we need in the Senate to oppose President Seaborn" calling Senator Englemann "a do-nothing". The Moore campaign in New Hampshire is certainly a family affair with John Moore's younger brother Kevin running Felix Moore's campaign, after he had run both of his brother's successful gubernatorial wins in Nebraska in 2008 & 2012.
 
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Monday, June 29th, 2020

House approves DC statehood bill in historic vote

The United States House of Representatives voted in favor of a bill that would make the District of Columbia (DC) into the nation's 51st state today. In a vote almost entirely on partisan lines, the House voted 221-214 to shrink the federal district to areas surrounding the White House, Capitol, Supreme Court building and others around the National Mall while turning the rest into the city of Washington, Douglass Commonwealth (named after abolitionist Frederick Douglass).

The bill would grant D.C. two senators and make their current House delegate into a full representative. Every Republican voted "no", while every Democrat with the exception of Rep. Thom Grunder (D-MN) voted "yes". It marks the first time either chamber of the federal Congress has voted in support of granting the federal district statehood.

"Not only do the people of the District of Columbia not have representation in the Senate, but as their representative, I cannot vote on legislation when it comes to the floor," Delegate Martha Vickers (D-DC) said in a speech in the House. "The federal government can at a whim limit or infringe upon the autonomy of our district government in ways that would be outrageous to people living in one of the fifty states, and do so in a way that threatens the liberties of all Americans. Let's fight back against the idea that we're too black, or too Democratic, to deserve the right to self-determination. Who we elect is our business, and the business of this Congress should be making sure every American is entitled to full representation in the Senate and the House."

Proponents of DC statehood cite the fact that the district's estimated population of 705,000 makes them more populous than the states of Wyoming and Vermont, as a major reason why the district should be granted statehood.

Republicans in the House took several tracks to argue against the statehood bill, including offering a counter-proposal to add the proposed Douglass Commonwealth to the neighboring state of Maryland instead. However, most opposition was based around Republican claims that the plan was "just about adding two Democratic senators" to the Senate, in the words of Rep. Dustin Benedict (R-GA). The District of Columbia has voted overwhelmingly for Democrats in every presidential election since 1964 after the Twenty-third Amendment gave residents the right to vote in presidential elections and has only ever elected Democrats to serve as the city's mayors since the position became popularly-elected in 1970.

President Sam Seaborn has said he would sign a statehood bill for either the District of Columbia or Puerto Rico if it arrived on his desk, but the bill will almost certainly find little traction in the Republican-controlled Senate.
 
If Puerto Rico was also admitted as the 52nd state (with the above action for DC as the 51st state, would that appease the Republicans in the House and Senate? I am not aware of the party affiliation in PR, how many Democrats and Republicans are in PR. I wonder if this idea would this be a feasible addition to your story line?
 
If Puerto Rico was also admitted as the 52nd state (with the above action for DC as the 51st state, would that appease the Republicans in the House and Senate? I am not aware of the party affiliation in PR, how many Democrats and Republicans are in PR. I wonder if this idea would this be a feasible addition to your story line?
We would only go down that the route if it took place in the real world. We have done the DC love story because it followed what took place in the real world last week. Having Puerto Rico as 52nd state only in the story I would not wish to do because it would be a MAJOR change in the United States.
 
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This thread is two years old today which is another achievement. The story itself will turn twelve!! in early December.
Thanks for keeping reading and following us.
Kind regards
Mark
on behalf of the writing team
 
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Thursday, July 2nd, 2020

BREAKING: Supreme Court rules same-sex couples have right to marry, legalizes gay marriage nationwide

In a historic ruling, the United States Supreme Court has ruled, by a 6 to 3 margin, that the Constitution grants same-sex couples the right to marry, requiring them to be able to marry anywhere they may live.

The decision comes after decades of lobbying and legal activism by LGBT rights activists and supporters, culminating in today's decision that has enshrined the ability for same-sex couples to be married as equal to those of opposite-sex couples.

In the majority's ruling for the case of Layton v. Kansas, Chief Justice Evelyn Baker Lang, joined by associate justices Rachel Carmine, Roberto Mendoza, Edward Appleton, Judi Rand and Joe Quincy, wrote that the state of Kansas' prohibition against performing same-sex marriages in the state violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment. Lang's opinion rejected the defendant's arguments that marriage had "been based primarily around procreation" and that the "safeguards and benefits of marriage" had been unfairly denied to same-sex couples with, as the majority found "no compelling scientific or sociological evidence that...would justify restriction of marriage solely to couples of the opposite sex."

Rand and Quincy, two moderate-to-conservative justices appointed by Glen Allen Walken, wrote a concurrence that diverged from the majority opinion, focusing more on the defense's failure to "provide clear and compelling evidence" that the right of same-sex couples to marry could be denied than on Equal Protections Clause grounds.

The court's three other conservative justices, Jackson Hoyt, Christopher Mulready, and Howard Weston, dissented. Mulready, writing the dissent, argued that the bans did not violate the Equal Protection Clause because the government "had a compelling interest in preserving the traditional definition of marriage ('one man, one woman')" and that the majority's opinion was "an overreach...that disregards millions of voters and shows further stretching of the Due Process Clause to include new 'rights' as they appear before the Court."

Supporters of same-sex marriage, including plaintiffs James Layton and Trevor Gideon, celebrated the decision on the steps of the Supreme Court building. "Today's decision reaffirms what we have always believed," the two men said, when asked for a statement. "That in America, all love is equal and that in the end, love wins." President Sam Seaborn called the decision "a victory for America" via social media postings and promised a full statement later today.

Before today's decision, ten states did not perform same-sex marriages, although they were obligated by the Court's finding in the 2019 case Wilson v. Levin to recognize same-sex marriages performed in states where it was legal. A recent Gallup poll shows that two-thirds (67%) of Americans support the right of same-sex couples to marry.

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Supporters celebrate the announcement that same-sex couples have a right to marry nationwide outside the Supreme Court
 
OOC: Its interesting reading the dissent here, because it fits perfectly with what we are told about Mulredy in show. I mean he would be, but when we meet him in the Supremes, we're told he doesn't love the idea of gay marriage, but he'd have an easy time knocking back DOMA because of the enumerated powers issue. Which fits in with the dissent here.

However I would have thought he'd use the States rights argument.
 
OOC: Its interesting reading the dissent here, because it fits perfectly with what we are told about Mulredy in show. I mean he would be, but when we meet him in the Supremes, we're told he doesn't love the idea of gay marriage, but he'd have an easy time knocking back DOMA because of the enumerated powers issue. Which fits in with the dissent here.

However I would have thought he'd use the States rights argument.

He kind of did with the "disregarding millions of voters" part.

It's just that, with good reason, openly using "state's rights" to deny rights to a minority group would be seen as too on-the-nose, so he has instead to go after the central idea (that denying same-sex couples the right to marry, while at the same time allowing straight couples to marry, is a violation of the Equal Protections and Due Process clauses) in the majority opinion.
 
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Friday July 3rd 2020
Who will be President Seaborn’s Running-mate in 2022?

So, this search is unique in that President Seaborn will be looking for both a Vice President and possible successor, as well as a current running mate. Keeping both in mind, the finest political minds at NBS have gotten together to complain this list. Everyone listed below we believe, is either a serious contender and/or will be on the shortlist out of respect for their current office.

We have split the list into five parts, Governors, Senators, members of Congress, current members of the Seaborn administration and others.


Governors

Gov. Jarrod Daniels-Minnesota


To say that President Seaborn and his administration need to make nice with the DFL (Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, the state's Democratic affiliate) would be an understatement. Putting one of their own on the ticket would go a long way to doing that. Also, it would help lock down Minnesota which went twice for President Walken, and only narrowly for the President in 2018. It would also probably give a boost to the President’s poll numbers in Wisconsin and Iowa as well. However he isn’t all that remarkable and would not necessarily be a stellar pick. He's bland, and a bit boring. He is also seeking re-election this year in which looks like a very right race. He also doesn’t have that "elder statesmen" vibe that has allowed past bland nominees such as Leo McGarry, August Adair to be picked.

Gov. Elizabeth Bartlet-New Hampshire

She's a governor that's mostly well-known for being the daughter of a former two-term President. Political handicappers would note that she's got some good characteristics of a potential running mate: female, roughly same age range, from a swing state, but also a few demerits; would cement the perception that there's a "Bartlet clique" in the Democratic leadership and invite attacks on President Seaborn in that it could be spun that the selection would be a slap in the face of moderate Democrats, with her a divorcée, from a small state.

Gov. Kelly Hoffman-New Jersey

Long regarded as a rising star in the Democratic party, the former Mayor of Newark is up for re-election in 2021, and her re-election is by no-means an odds on certain, after all she only won in 2017 against Jack Fowler by a mere 365 votes. If she wins a comfortable re-election she will be on the short-list.

Gov. Bobby Tyler-Virginia

He certainly ticks a lot of boxes, an African-American Governor of Virginia, former Mayor of Richmond and proclaimed “moderate progressive”. Virginia has become a real battleground state in recent years and now trends Democrat, with President Seaborn winning the state for the time for the Democrats in 2018 since LBJ in 1964. Virginia Governors can only serve one term and that ends in January 2022, so he will be available. The downside would be only four years as Governor, and six years as Mayor, means he is clearly lacking in any foreign policy experience.

Gov. Janet Lorton-Vermont

Now in her fourth term, and she could run for a fifth term in 2023, she is a strong campaigner, and has a good record as Governor but is regarded by many as an inferior version of what Governor Bartlet would offer (female, liberal New England Governor).

Gov. Will Diego- New Mexico

A former Congressman who was elected in 2018 after a close fight with his fellow Congressman Henry Riker (he won by only 0.81%) in a state that actually voted for Henry Shallick in the Presidential election. Indeed New Mexico is a battleground state; including 1998 it has gone Republican three times (98, 14, 18) and Democrat three times (02, 06, 10), as we have seen in close elections as the last four Presidential elections have been, even five electoral votes can matter.

Gov. Alan Fisk-Mississippi

President Bartlet’s second AG, and former Congressman. He caused an upset by winning in 2015 and then winning re-election last year. He is certainly to the right of most of the Democratic Party (he has to be to win in the state), but no-one could deny he could step up to the job of President if required, and has proved he can attract Republican voters.

Senators

Sen. Andrew Thorn- New York


A serious contender, and would be a great way to unify the party. But the major problem is he and the President hate each other, even though he was under serious contention for Secretary of State last year, if he was Vice-President it would likely lead to a second term of a contentious relationship between POTUS and the VPOTUS, something the administration would be keen to avoid.

Sen. Louise Thornton- Virginia

As a running mate, she'd be the pit-bull that President Seaborn will need during the general election campaign and as mentioned above with Governor Tyler Virginia is a key battleground state. She could also be that pit-bull as a key surrogate, but it wouldn’t have the same punch. As Vice-President it is not quite sure how well she'd fit into the role.

Sen. Ben Newell-Colorado

Regarded as probably the best safe pick. A former one term Governor as well so he has the governing experience as well as the Senate experience. He is up for re-election in November against Congressman Matthew Garner but he should win. He also has support within the party nationwide following his very credible showing in the 2014 primary campaign (he won Iowa). Basically low risk, low reward.

Sen. Stephen Wilson-Maine

For much of 2013 he was regarded as a front-runner for the Democratic Presidential nomination, then it all went wrong. Despite his experience, he was not a force on the campaign trail, he was just plain boring, his “heir to Bartlett” claims didn’t go down well with many including Liz Bartlett back in 2013. He does of course, tick the boxes on experience, but he showed he wasn’t really up to campaigning and it would hard to see he as a “pit-bull”. He was vetted for Secretary of State with Andrew Thorn before August Adair got the job. He is also fighting for re-election in November, having only narrowly held on six years ago.

Sen. Rudi Robinson-Indiana

During the 2006 election, it was noted by many in the Democratic Party that many black voters resented the fact that a Hispanic was the nominee before a black man. Fast forward sixteen years by 2022 and those sentiments haven't gone away. Many wanted Robinson as Seaborn’s running-mate in 2018, and he was the bookies favourite prior to the shock of the Hollis pick, so this would go a long way to make up for this and it would also make him the clear front runner for 2026. The downside is it that he won’t deliver Indiana (President Bartlet carried it twice but it hasn’t been in play since) and it will be a slap in the face to Thorn supporters who viewed Robinson as playing spoiler in 2018.

Sen. Becky Reeseman-Michigan

It is easy to forget but she has been in Washington for a quarter of a century, first in Congress, and then elected to the Senate in 2012. Michigan Is a battleground state, it has voted Republican five times since the election year change in 1986, and Democrat four times (including 2018 by just 2.10%). She is a strong campaigner, but her being chosen would be a gamble because if the Democrats don't win Michigan's Governorship in 2022, Republican Ben Laurion's successor will appoint a Republican to the seat.

Sen. Alicia DeSantos-Florida

Another strong women candidate and a serious contender, and one with her interesting backstory when she replaced her husband Congressman Daniel, who was killed during the Congressional fact finding mission to Gaza in 2005. After over a decade in the House she successfully unseated incumbent Republican Senator Seth Randall in 2018 by just 0.70%, and this despite Henry Shallick winning the state at the Presidential level by 4.17%.

Sen. Andrew Howard-Washington

From the liberal wing of the Democratic Party, and is certainly beloved by many party activists from that wing. Elected to the Senate in 2010 aged only 32, he would be a good pick if the choice was to be please the liberal wing of the party and set up Howard as President Seaborn’s younger successor in 2026, when he would only be 48. The problem is Howard’s more left wing ideas, such as a “wealth tax” and “the Green New deal” would likely scare away independents and moderate Republicans. He also doesn’t bring anything to the table regards the electoral map.

Congressmen/women

Congresswomen. Josie Bail-Ohio


Many pundits including us, believe that she will be near the top of President Seaborn’s shortlist. She was vetted by Jimmy Fitzsimmons in 2014, and her name was being mentioned strongly in 2018, prior to the Hollis debacle. She's well known and liked in Ohio (even by Republicans), the “swingiest” of “swing states”, her backstory is remarkable. A trained nurse, before working in the Healthcare industry and then elected as Governor of Ohio in 1994 aged only 31 (she was 32 when sworn into Office) but she was narrowly defeated for re-election in 1998, before being elected to Congress in 2000, she also has a good record working with Republicans. Despite her obvious strong points, she does have some weaknesses, her gubernatorial re-election defeat, her loss to Haydn Strauss for the 2010 Senate nomination, and her less than stellar run for the 2014 Presidential nomination. But even when you take the weakness into account, she clearly is still a very strong candidate.

Congresswomen. Carol Gelsey-Florida

The experience level is obvious as a former Speaker of the House. Now a backbencher, but she still does have a loyal following in the party. She was on the short-list for Vice-President twice, widely regarded as second choice after Eric Baker in 2007, and on the shortlist of the final three in 2009 (with Tripplehorn and Tilman). But it should not be forgotten she has plenty of enemies both in the party and an outside as a result as her time as Speaker.

Congressman. Drake Headley-Wisconsin

A moderate, likable Congressman, and one who has been prepared to work with Republicans. Indeed he was liked and respected by President Walken after his dealings over the Walken budgets. He is regarded know as a bit of a “numbers man” and it would be hard to see him in the “attack dog” role as a running-mate.

Members of the Seaborn Administration

Vice-President. Jack Hunter-Minnesota


Yes, it is possible. Yes tensions between him and President Seaborn have become strained over recent weeks, but some in the Democratic party actually want him to be offered the job, because it would put the Republicans in an awful situation, and believe they could work around the abortion issue the same way Arnold Vinick did with Ray Sullivan in 2006 “agree to disagree, and not bring it up on the campaign trail”, and also on many issues there is not actually much disagreement between the two men. It is not likely but many in the Seaborn administration believe he should be considered out of respect for the Vice-President and his office.

Ambassador to the United Nations. Paris Stray-Maine

A former two term Governor of Maine, she was considered as a possible running-mate by the media in 2018 before Hollis. Getting the UN job was down much to her performance in the 2018 primaries, which she performed better than expected before dropping out, and her UN Performances have impressed many. She is known as a fiery campaigner and debater so she would help on that level no end.

Secretary to the Treasury. Meredith Payne-Michigan

Despite the downturn in the economy, she has been regarded as a success of the administration so far, especially her media performances. The former Congresswomen is a women of color, comes from a battleground state and is good performer on TV. Although it will probably be thought that she better serves the administration in a second term carrying on in her job as Treasury Secretary.

White House Chief of Staff. Will Bailey-Oregon

He certainly has the experience having been a Congressman for a decade, and did make a name for himself. His name was being pushed for Jimmy Fitzsimmons running-mate in 2014 by Bob Russell, but nothing came of it in the end. He is certainly a shrewd operator, Oregon is a state which seems to narrowly vote Democrat at the Presidential level, but does currently have a popular Republican Governor and one Republican Senator. Being COS does clearly give you the experience and the contacts to be Vice-President it after all it was the main reason Leo McGarry got the place on the Santos ticket in 2006.

Others

Former Secretary of Education. Lawrence Lessig-Born in South Dakota, resides in Massachusetts


One of the more “out of the box choices” and again after the Hollis debacle, President Seaborn is not that likely to make such a risky choice, but he does have a lot going for him. He is former member of the Cabinet, he is universally respected at home across both major parties, and also oversees where he has helped with the framing of several nations constitutions including Belarus, Palestine, Syria, and of course Qumar. On the domestic side he is a strong advocate for campaign finance reform and reform of the Electoral College. He does however do little to help electorally, and would not be a “campaign attack dog” but if its experience and respect, he does have it in spades.

Former Governor. Kurt Carner-Montana

A moderate Democrat who won twice in a mostly Republican state (Henry Shallick carried that state in 2018 by 20. 02%). He didn’t do as well as was predicted during his Presidential run in 2018, but he clearly raised his profile, and was interviewed for the Post of Secretary of the Interior in December 2018, he seemed to make it clear he was fixed on a Senate run if Robert Starkey declined to seek re-election which he did do. Carner looks like he could win in November, so it seems it he would want to leave the Senate for the Vice-Presidency after such a small time. Montana’s four electoral votes would not be swung even with him on the ticket.

Former Governor. Rachel de Boer-Delaware

Elected twice as Delaware Governor in 2008 and 2012, her first victory coming when she was only 37 years old, she was floated strongly by the Fitzsimmons campaign in June 2014 as his running-mate, but some in his campaign saw her as a major mistake and the named was leaked to the press which caused it to end her hopes of the Vice-Presidency. Since leaving office in 2017, she has kept a low profile and works for a DC law firm.

Former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs. Nicholas Alexander- Virginia

He publicly resigned after a disagreement with President Santos in 2007, failed in a run for the Republican nomination and then had a very messy third-party campaign attempt in 2010 which failed to make it to Election Day. He's both old (at 74, he'd be the oldest person to become vice president, and become the oldest-ever VP during his term) and do nothing to assure parts of the party that are looking for either a successor or a "safe pair of hands" for the 2023-2027 term in the event should something should happen to the President. Despite this he does have the independent image which could help the claim the centre ground during the general, especially if the Republican’s move to the right. After the Hollis fiasco, it seems unlikely that the President would really want to rock the boat a second time by picking another very risky non-politician as his running mate.

Former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs. Raymond M. Hegland-New York

Another former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, although a far more recent one, and one with more pluses than Alexander. He is African-American, and served under two Presidents, one Republican and one Democrat. He has the connections having served in the Pentagon during the Bartlet Administration and commanded the US forces in Kazakhstan and was praised by both Democrats and Republicans for his handling of the entire intervention. On the down side no-one is really sure of his politics, and is currently on his fourth Wife which could lead to some nasty surprises from his private life.

(Written and edited by @Marky Bunny based on contributions and suggestions from @lord caedus @MountainDew17 and @disputed)
 
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If I were the Seaborn campaign team and selection committee in 2022, I'd whittle it down to any of Bail, Newell, Payne, Robinson, Stray, Thornton or Tyler - all good candidates with their own strengths
 
When was Lessig Secretary of Education?
Under President Santos for the full four years. (2007 to 2011)
Full links to all the Cabinets and breakdowns here: (Scroll down on this page) Page 113 on the current thread.
 
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Daniels is the favorite but we'll see what happens to the Minnesotan governor as he may have issues in the near future. Who knows what will happen.
 
Daniels is the favorite but we'll see what happens to the Minnesotan governor as he may have issues in the near future. Who knows what will happen.
No one is the favourite, as people have pointed out as does the article, some candidates are slightly ahead (Bail, Newell) etc, Daniels is in the mix, but I wouldn't say he was the favourite.
Also from a storytelling perspective we have not made a decision on who it will be yet, especially two years out, but it is almost certainly going to be someone in the article.
 
No one is the favourite, as people have pointed out as does the article, some candidates are slightly ahead (Bail, Newell) etc, Daniels is in the mix, but I wouldn't say he was the favourite.
Also from a storytelling perspective we have not made a decision on who it will be yet, especially two years out, but it is almost certainly going to be someone in the article.

This is a lie, its obviously going to be Dr. Abigail Bartlet
 
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