So in OTL HRC ran to be a senator from NY during Bill Clinton's last term. Is there any way to get Bill to run to be a Senator from Arkansas at the same time or later? I know typically Presidents do not run for office after their Presidency has ended but I think Bill would have been popular enough to win a senate seat if he so chose. Do you think Arkansas would have been doable?
AHC/WI: Senator Bill Clinton Post Presidency ?
- Thread starter Sevarics
- Start date
Or they see at as a way of getting HRC one more ally in the Senate come her presidency?
Accurateworldwar
Banned
Former President, incumbent Senator and First Gentleman William Jefferson Clinton.
I think you missed that I meant we have two Senator Clintons. Bill runs for Arkansas and Hillary runs for New York.
Sorry, I misread the original post. But there was no Senate election in Arkansas in 2000. And it would be awkward for WJC to run against Tim Hutchinson in 2002 with HRC as senator from New York.. What is he going to say--"I'm not separated from Hillary but we live in different states"?! True, Martha Keys and Andy Jacobs tried it but she barely won in 1976 and lost in 1978. http://themoderatevoice.com/jacobs-and-keys-first-congressional-couple-to-marry/
"We will live together in DC. During off session months, we will split our time between NY and Arkansas." ?
nbcman
Donor
HRC gets elected in 2000 as OTL. HRC and WJC divorce after she is elected and WJC moves back to Arkansas. Best bet is that WJC runs for the Arkansas Senate in 2002 instead of Mark Pryor and defeats unpopular Republican incumbent Senator Tim Hutchinson (as Mr. Pryor did easily IOTL). Otherwise WJC would have to wait until 2008 or 2004 to run against an incumbent Democratic Senator - which is not likely.
Legally, members of congress "live" in their home states, not in Washington, DC.
Whooosh. I meant if questioned about them being separated he could just say that when the senate is in session, they will be sharing the same D.C. home and then when the senate is not in session they will be flying back and forth between Arkansas and NY
One reason Hutchinson was unpopular:
"During his term as U.S. Senator, Hutchinson had divorced his wife of almost three decades, Donna, a former Arkansas state representative, and married an aide in 2000" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Hutchinson
Somehow, I don't think a divorced Bill Clinton would be the best person to take advantage of that...
nbcman
Donor
While I agree that putting Mr. Clinton up against Senator Hutchinson would be problematic, it is the only time in over a decade when Mr. Clinton could run for Senate in Arkansas without having to challenge a Democratic incumbent senator. Otherwise, I don't see a way for Mr. Clinton to become a Senator from Arkansas.
nbcman
Donor
Unless Mr. Clinton is going to reside in NY along with Mrs. Clinton during the election and then become 'an inhabitant' of AR after he is elected to meet the Constitutional requirements, they could separate prior to the election. The divorce would be a driver for the two Clintons to reside in different states. However, it is not necessary as there have been multiple people who have been elected as representatives of a state in Congress that do not have a full time residence in the district or the state they are representing.