2018 Presidential Election

I did establish that he did guest present a few episodes of the show when he wasn't on the Conservative front bench in the noughties. (Not as silly as it sounds as Boris Johnson, Neil Kinnock & William Hague all presented episodes in OTL).
Well that would be an interesting episode ;)
 
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Saturday May 22nd, 2021

Duggan declares in Conservative leadership race, but Wallace, Grimes & Cameron are sitting the election out


Following the surprise announcement yesterday that Prime-Minister Richard Samuels was standing down after over six years at Number Ten once the Conservative party elects a new leader, Westminster has been awash with rumours and excitement.

At 9am this morning, Home Secretary Michael Duggan who was the beaten for the leadership by Richard Samuels in 2015 was the first to declare, announcing to reporters outside his home in Holland Park "Yes, I will be a contender for the leadership. I cannot praise high enough the contribution of the Prime-Minister to this country, and I would generally humbled if I was elected to succeed him and build on this government's amazing record".

Within in-minutes, the three other senior members of the cabinet, Foreign Secretary Fiona Wallace, Chancellor of the Exchequer Kevin Grimes and Deputy Prime-Minister Frank Cameron all declared jointly on College Green together that none of them would be running.
 
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Sunday, May 23rd, 2021

Seaborn says hello to Martin, farewell to Samuels at G20 summit

In his third Group of 20 (G20) meeting, President Sam Seaborn formally met newly-elected French President Benoît Martin and met outgoing British Prime Minister Richard Samuels for the final time.

The summit, held in Rome this year, saw leaders of the world's 20 largest economies, as well as several world leaders invited as guests, discuss several issues affecting the world. Among the topics under discussion yesterday and today are climate change, technological innovation, empowering women, and improving health around the world.

"I'm greatly relieved that the French people chose the path of inclusion and acceptance, and not one of xenophobia and isolation," Seaborn said when asked about Martin, whom the president had previously spoken to only by phone. "I look forward to continuing the strong relationship that has always existed between the United States and France."

The president similarly praised Samuels, who announced Friday that he was stepping down as prime minister after six years in office.

"The United Kingdom has been lucky to have Prime Minister Samuels as its leader," Seaborn said. "During my presidency, I've come to appreciate his dedication to public service, and steady nerves and dry wit even in precarious circumstances."

Samuels, who will remain as prime minister until the new leader of his Conservative Party is elected in mid-July, downplayed the praise from Seaborn and other party leaders.

"I told [Seaborn] I've still got two bloody months to make them take back everything nice they've said about me." Samuels quipped.

After the G20 summit concludes later today, President Seaborn will visit Pope Clement XV at the Vatican before returning to the United States.
 
Here are all the leaders who are at the G20 summit this year:
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Samuli Edelmann as Marti Hakinnen, previously named. Cecilia Roth as Elena Martinez de Medina, the only new character here. Everyone else has already been fully established.
 
Hmmm... I am suspicious. Three top contenders not running for top spot.

I assume behind the scenes tit-for-tat
Nothing to be suspicious about. Wallace herself is getting on in age (68, 2 years younger than the actress who plays her) and Frank Cameron is 60, but he just doesn't want the top job. Kevin Grimes again is younger 45, but again just doesn't want the job.
I saw an interview with Alan Johnson the former Labour Home Secretary and Health Secretary about why he never ran for the top job or wanted it he replied "You have to want it, you have to have an ego, and believe you could do the job. I didn't feel that way". Not every top Cabinet Minister wants to be PM.
 
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Nothing to be suspicious about. Wallace herself is getting on in age (68, 2 years younger than the actress who plays her) and Frank Cameron is 60, but he just doesn't want the top job. Kevin Grimes again is younger 45, but again just doesn't want the job.
I saw an interview with Alan Johnson the former Labour Home Secretary and Health Secretary about why he never ran for the top job or wanted it he replied "You have to want it, you have to an ego, and believe you could do the job. I didn't feel that way". Not every top Cabinet Minister wants to be PM.
It is three out of the top four are not running is what is odd. I mean as of today (tomorrow who knows) it is all but assured Duggan is the next PM of the UK. Duggan is the big name and there will be your no hopers, Either minor cabinet members or MPs that run. They can’t compete against a sitting Home Secretary. The only way his chances go away are actual scandal like money issues not he plagiarized a speech in 1993 when he was young. But since since I find it unlikely he has any surprising scandal he’ll get elected easily maybe first ballot. He certainly will win the party ballot.

Though we won’t know until July 20th for certain. But the Irish political betting websites will have the odds favoring Duggan. There will be long shots but I think Duggan wins as it isn’t going to be a huge jostle in the party and I haven’t seen (or at least remember) any major internal squabbles he had in the party.

But the major networks in the UK are probably testing graphics declaring Duggan the next PM currently and they get graphics for others ready too but Duggan’s is the one that they’ll have at the ready first. Probably next few weeks making sure the graphics go off without a hitch.

Now what will be interesting is how Duggan reshuffles the cabinet for his government. Who goes where, who rises and who falls,
 
he’ll get elected easily maybe first ballot
Cannot happen. If just two candidates got nominated those two would go straight through to the party membership ballot.
Duggan is the favourite but it isn't a shoo-in by any means. We are going to see other members of the cabinet get into the race in the coming days.
 
Cannot happen. If just two candidates got nominated those two would go straight through to the party membership ballot.
Duggan is the favourite but it isn't a shoo-in by any means. We are going to see other members of the cabinet get into the race in the coming days.
Yeah but I mean if the other two holders of the great offices of state aren’t running and the deputy PM ain’t running well the only person that might not be a second rate candidate is Secretary of State for Defence. But I forget who that is (sorry not being mean lots of stuff to keep track of)

But I haven’t really seen any evidence of a scandal or huge in party dislike towards Duggan. I figured I was wrong on first ballot but I’d be surprised if it goes beyond the third ballot. For Duggan to get torpedoed it would have to be something awful.

The Tories though will be watched by the rest of the country and more importantly the private and corporate donors whom they rely on for campaign money.

I think the leadership will want a boring election. Will they get that? Don’t know.
 
Politics is an odd game

Yes Duggan is the clear favourite right now. But that doesn't mean he'll continue to be. Maybe there's a group of Hang em and Flog em Shire Tories, dissatisfied with the direction Samuels is taking the party and concerned about a resurgent and confident NPP and they'll rope some backbench hangover from the Graty days into running. Maybe Ed Barker will make a return. Who knows.
 
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Three Big Jobs:

DIRECTORS OF CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE (1981-present)
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  • Congressman Herbert Walker was appointed by Ronald Reagan in 1980. He served as Director of Central Intelligence during the entire Reagan-Bush term and was a major ally to Acting President Bush during the crisis period. During this time, Walker was one of the names swirling around the Contra scandal, but nothing stuck to him. After leaving this office, Walker became Chair of the RNC.​
  • Upon taking office, President Newman appointed Ambassador Lewis Berryhill to be the new Director. Although Newman hoped Berryhill would be able to reform the CIA to make it a more transparent and law abiding agency, he found that the CIA was highly resistant to change, and that Berryhill was not the man for the job. Berryhill was shuffled off to be Ambassador to the United Nations in 1990.​
  • Berryhill was replaced by retired General and then-Deputy Secretary of Defense Michael Mullally, also known as "Mad Mike." Mullally proved to be more to Newman's liking, running the CIA with a no-nonsense attitude and absolute control of the intelligence community from his office. Mullally conducted several rounds of mass firings in CIA and removed anyone leftover from the Nixon administration. He was also one of the chief cheerleaders of the Gulf War and advised Presidents Newman to initiate the war.​
  • Augustus Sorenson, Owen Lassiter's foreign policy advisor during the campaign, was appointed as the director in the new administration. He reversed nearly all of Mullally's reforms and restored a culture of opaqueness and unaccountability. Sorenson's tenure was abbreviated when the president wanted to bring him into the White House on a permanent basis as a senior advisor, eventually rising to become Chief of Staff. He was replaced by his deputy, Dwight Mothman. Mothman was a career CIA officer who was also a supporter of the old ways, directing more funding to covert operations. A classified investigation into CIA practices under Mothman was conducted during the Bartlet administration, which determined that Mothman's tenure was one of the most corrupt and illegal in history.​
  • Mothman didn't stick around for long once the 1998 election was over. His deputy, George Rollie, took over as Acting Director. Bartlet's first nominee for Director was rejected. Rollie remained as Acting Director until Rob Konrad, a federal prosecutor and former Army Intelligence officer, was confirmed. Konrad's tenure coincided with numerous international crises and intelligence failures such as a Haitian coup, the Golden Gate Bridge plot, and the rise of Bahji. President Bartlet had a bad relationship with Konrad and the CIA. The only reason Konrad was not fired was to avoid another confirmation rigmarole for his successor. Konrad was completely sidelined for most of his time as director, being restricted to Langley, while other officials such as Rollie and military intelligence officers briefed and advised the presidency. The final straw was the Zoey Bartlet kidnapping crisis. Konrad was placed on administrative leave by Acting President Walken and then fired by Bartlet when he resumed office.​
  • Instead of searching for a new director, Bartlet opted to nominate Rollie to be the permanent director. Rollie lasted for the remainder of Bartlet's presidency. Deputy Tom Clift succeeded him as Acting Director until Matt Santos's pick, former federal prosecutor William Dresden was confirmed. Dresden served Santos until he left office was succeeded by Walken's nominee Robert Bennett. Bennett served under Walken and Sam Seaborn until his death in 2019. His deputy Sharon Tabor was nominated to succeed him and was confirmed after three months.​
Cast:
Herbert Walker: Bob Newhart (new)
Lewis Berryhill: William Devane (show)
Michael Mullally (new): Kevin Conway
Augustus Sorenson: Kurtwood Smith (old thread)
Dwight Mothman (show): Peter Bonerz
George Rollie: Ryan Cutrona (show)
Rob Konrad: M.G. Mills (show)
Tom Clift: Kurt Fuller (show)*
William Dresden: Harris Yulin (old thread)
Robert Bennett: Rutger Hauer (old thread)
Sharon Tabor: Robin Wright (this thread)

Walker and Berryhill were established as directors in the old thread. I invented Mullally to succeed Berryhill when he went to the UN. Sorenson was established in the old thread as one of Lassiter's many chiefs of staff. I gave him a position in the administration before that. Mothman was one of Lassiter's old ghouls Toby named as they boarded the plane in The Stormy Present. He was the only one of the group not to be given a position until now. Then we get to the Bartlet administration.
The actor who played Rollie was credited in Lord John Marbury and the India-Pakistan episodes. He had no name at that time. Then Rob Konrad is the Director as part of the group to strongarm Barry Haskell of the FEC. This guy was only in one episode and I couldn't find a single trace of the actor on the internet. Pay no attention to his portrait! Then Rollie returned in the later seasons, but he was sometimes known as George Sliger at that time. And there was also a guy named Tom in the Situation Room who appeared in the early seasons, apparently multiple times, and one page on the wiki says he was the Director. But I couldn't find anything on this guy or his actor either. So I decided to go with what was established in the old thread: Rollie was acting director, then Konrad was confirmed, then Rollie succeeded him as acting and then full director again.
Tom Clift was named in Bennett's infobox as one of his deputies. Kurt Fuller played an unnamed guy in the Situation Room in the show a few times, so I paired him with the name and job. Dresden was established in the old thread as Santos's DCI and we all know Bennett and Tabor.
UNITED STATES AMBASSADORS TO THE UNITED NATIONS (1981-present)
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  • Former Nixon and Ford advisor Carl Renkowski was appointed for Reagan's second term. His tenure ended with the end of that presidency. He was later Lassiter's Secretary of State.​
  • Newman appointed civil rights leader, close friend, and major ally Artie Wilson, who served until he retired to run for Mayor of the District of Columbia. He was succeeded by Lewis Berryhill, who came in from the CIA.​
  • Lassiter appointed Congressman Samuel Partridge, a moderate Republican, who was one of the few Lassiter supporters with foreign policy credentials who did not share his disdain for the UN. Partridge served him well and was selected to be chief of staff for Lassiter's second term.​
  • He was replaced by former Transportation Secretary and then-Ambassador to Israel Liz Bodine.​
  • President Bartlet nominated one of his primary opponents, former Nebraska Governor Harris Norman. Norman was a very successful and popular diplomat, but he decided to leave during Bartlet's second term, planning to re-enter electoral politics in preparation for a future presidential bid, which all fell apart.​
  • Norman was replaced by career diplomat Marie Courayou. Courayou initially expected to stay on under Santos, but he appointed her as Ambassador to Japan in order to make way for Nancy McNally. McNally briefly served under Walken, as the confirmation process for William Villegas was controversial and drawn out. Villegas retired at the end of Walken's first term and was succeeded by Rebecca Donovan, Undersecretary of State for Public Affairs and Public Diplomacy.​
  • In 2019, Seaborn nominated Maine Governor Paris Stray.​
Earl Rankowsky: Eli Wallach (old thread)
Artie Wilson (new): Ossie Davis
Lewis Berryhill: William Devane
Samuel Partridge: James Garner
Liz Bodine: Diane Baker (new)
Harris Norman: Vijay Amritraj (old thread)
Marie Courayou: Alfre Woodard (new)
Nancy McNally: Anna Deavere Smith
William Villegas: Dan Lauria
Rebecca Donovan: Martha Plimpton (new)
Paris Stray: Catherine Bell

Rankowsky is another of Lassiter's old men. I gave him a job to pad out his career. Wilson is a new creation of mine to precede Berryhill. Partridge was mentioned as another of Lassiter's chiefs of staff who I have given a prior job. I previously named Bodine as a kind of Liz Dole expy. After debating whether or not to use the actual Liz Dole I decided to cast her as Diane Baker, who played a character married to Bobby Bodine's actor in another show.
Harris Norman is a character I found in the old thread, a very interesting man. Democratic governor of Nebraska played by an Indian tennis star. I've wanted to include him in something for a while now. Since he was one of Bartlet's primary opponents and potential running mates, I figured he would be a good choice for a job like this. He later ran for Senate from Nebraska again, as mentioned in the old thread, but lost.
Courayou was named in McNally's infobox. The Villegas nomination and retirement are all from the old thread. I casted Donovan, who was named in the Villegas retirement announcement.

DIRECTORS OF THE FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION
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  • Tom Connelly was appointed by Newman to succeed Webster, whose term expired. After serving a full ten year term, President Lassiter extended his term due to a highly successful run, easily confirmed by the Senate. Bartlet kept him on for two years before he retired. He was succeeded by federal judge George Arnold. Arnold had a much more eventful time with the rise of terrorism, foreign and domestic. He served a full 10 year term and was not asked to stay on. His deputy, Tom Connolly (no relation to Connelly), took over as acting director. President Santos nominated him to be the permanent director, but the Senate rejected the nomination as they viewed Connolly, a former State Attorney General, as too political. Yet they would then go on to confirm Marcus Blakemore, a politician's politician, Governor of Michigan, and erstwhile presidential candidate. Blakemore's term ended when his deputy Mike Casper, a career FBI agent, was nominated to succeed him and confirmed by the Senate.​
Tom Connelly: Lane Smith (new)
George Arnold: Michael Kagan (show)
Tom Connolly: Cary Elwes (old thread)
Marcus Blakemore: Chi McBride
Mike Casper: Phil Coulson

This one was a bit tricky. Tom Connolly (Cary Elwes) was mentioned in the old thread as the acting director who was succeeded by Blakemore, whose nomination remains a true "WTF" moment in U.S. history. He was later a prosecutor in a corruption trial. George Arnold was apparently in the show, from the episode Access (you know which one that is), and NSF Thurmont. He was mentioned in the thread as being Connolly's predecessor. However, Tom Connolly or Connelly was ALSO a name used in the show in season 1. When Charlie was hired, President Bartlet told him he had spoken to FBI Director Tom Connelly about the cop-killer bullets that killed Charlie's mom. So I decided to have Tom Connelly's tenure catch the beginning of the Bartlet administration, then have the Arnold-Connolly sequence outlined in the old thread.
 
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Monday May 24th, 2021

Purvis enters Conservative leadership race


Health Secretary Karen Purvis announced this afternoon, that she would be seeking the leadership of the party. The 50 year old Wimbledon MP, would become the nations third female Prime-Minister if elected.

"I think I am the best placed candidate to build on our record in office over this past decade, and the best person to make sure the Labour party can never return to government and ruin our country once again". Purvis is the second candidate to enter the race behind Home Secretary Michael Duggan who declared on Saturday.
 
His deputy, Tom Connolly (no relation to Connelly), took over as acting director. President Santos nominated him to be the permanent director, but the Senate rejected the nomination as they viewed Connolly, a former State Attorney General, as too political. Yet they would then go on to confirm Marcus Blakemore, a politician's politician, Governor of Michigan, and erstwhile presidential candidate.​

Wait, you're saying that a Republican-led Senate rejected a nonwhite Democratic president's nominee on certain grounds, then turned around and quickly approved a white Republican's nominee for the same position despite the circumstances being almost exactly the same?

I know we have fun here, but let's try to keep things in the realm of plausibility in the future.

/s of course
 
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Tuesday May 25th, 2021

London Mayor Nigel Jay will not seek a second term and is taking a leave of absence due to cancer diagnoses


London Mayor Nigel Jay will not be seeking a second term at City Hall after being diagnosed with prostrate cancer. He said the news came as "an enormous shock".

He also announced that he was not resigning from the post, but instead would be taking up to six months of a leave of absence "While receiving a cancer diagnosis at the age of 44 has come as an enormous shock, the good news is because the cancer has been caught early, my prognosis is very good, and I should make a full recovery" adding " "But it does mean I have to take time off work for treatment." He said that he Statuary Deputy Mayor, Clive Hurst would carry out his "day to day duties".

"My family have made it very clear that I will not be returning until I have made a full recovery, but even so I have decided that because of the strain of any re-election campaign next year could have on my health, I have decided that I will not be a candidate for Mayor in 2022 and have told the party earlier today of my decision".

Jay had been expected to face Labour's Dominic Eames once again in the contest for the post of Mayor, after their titanic battle in 2018. Mr Eames who is running for the Labour nomination unopposed said upon hearing the news of Mr Jay's diagnoses and decision not to run next year said " "everyone wishes you the very best and knows you will come back even stronger". While his Liberal Democrat opponent from 2018 Daniel Halsey tweeted: "I am thinking of you and wish you and your family all the strength you need."
 
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Wednesday May 26th, 2021

Two more candidates join Conservative leadership race

John Freeman and James Hawthorne doubled the field this morning in the race to be the next leader of the Conservative Party and the next Prime-Minister. Freeman who ran in 2015, but was beaten by Michael Duggan for second place for the right to face Richard Samuels in the party ballot, announced this morning via Twitter. Since 2017 he has been Secretary of State for Constitutional Reform & Local Government whilst Hawthorne is Secretary of State for Transport, a job previously held by Mr Freeman under the Andrew Carter Government. Hawthorne announced via an e-mail to fellow Conservative MP's and the press.

Freeman is of course, the son in law to former Prime-Minister Maureen Graty, and this was seen as a hinderance to him in 2015, but the former Prime-Minister is no longer in the House of the Commons (having retired at the 2018 General Election), this could help him. He is regarded by most political commentators as a "steady pair of hands", one-unnamed MP told the BBC "He has done well the last six years, he was loyal to the PM and the party, he has just got on with his job and he is does have a loyal following in the parliamentary party, but it remains to be seen if he has enough support to get to the party membership ballot".

Hawthorne is not seen by most political commentators as a serious contender for the leadership "Yes we have a transport system regarded as the safest and the most reliable in Europe, but much of that is down to the work done by the Graty and Green Governments in the mid noughties" the Vicki Young, BBC's Deputy Political Editor said this morning. "Many Conservative MP's don't see him (Hawthorne) as Prime-Minister".
 
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Thursday May 27th, 2021

George Tamm declares for Conservative leadership


Former Conservative Party Chairman, Chancellor of the Exchequer and Justice Secretary, George Tamm today became the fifth candidate to join the race for the Conservative Leadership.

Tamm, 56, left the Cabinet after the 2018 general election, with many of his supporters believing that he had been made a scapegoat for the party disappointing performance. despite the majority of twenty they lost net 65 seats. As Campaign co-ordinator he took the blame and was not offered a post in the cabinet after the election.

An MP since 1996, the former Lawyer has represented the seat of Harwich and it's replacement seat of Harwich and North Essex. He has a compelling life story having been brought up by a single Mum on a North London Council Estate. He has spoken of the racism he faced growing up in the 1970's. As Chancellor of the first two years of the Carter Government, he is now widely regarded for having laid the groundwork for the current strength of the economy.

He joins Michael Duggan, Karen Purvis, John Freeman and James Hawthorne in the fight for the leadership. Each candidate is required to be nominated by two MP's when nominations formally open on Monday June 7th.
 
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