Alternate Wikipedia Infoboxes V (Do Not Post Current Politics Here)

[canadian902]

I couldn't possibly comment.

 

[The British Empire]

(WIP Made in collaboration with @Accurateworldwar)

Mark Hoffman - The Jigsaw Killer

Description WIP​

 

[Zhukov]

Do you plan to make real TL about his. even if quasi-ASB I like the idea.

Thanks! I would really like to at some point, but it would be a pretty big undertaking. I haven't attempted a complete timeline on this site yet and feel like it would better to start out with something a bit less ambitious.

 

[Airesien]

The 1991 United Kingdom general election took place on 2 May 1991, the same day as local elections in England and Wales. The election resulted in a fourth consecutive Conservative majority, although it was a vastly reduced majority and the closeness of the result surprised many, given the popularity of the incumbent Prime Minister Henry Collingridge. Collingridge had called the election a year before it was due to seek a mandate of his own and dispel critics who said he was governing with the victory won by his predecessor, Margaret Thatcher. He had become Prime Minister after winning a bitter leadership contest in the autumn of 1990. The opposition Labour Party, led by Neil Kinnock, won fifty-three seats and achieved a swing of almost four percent nationally against the Conservatives but it was not enough to deprive them of a majority and Kinnock subsequently resigned.

Collingridge would only remain as Prime Minister for less than a year, before resigning following an insider trading scandal. He would be replaced by his Chief Whip, Francis Urquhart, who would call an election in 1993 to capitalise on his own post-leadership poll bounce and try and increase the Conservatives' majority.

 

[The Professor]

@JDuggan interesting. Does need a few "House of Lords" mentions edited out though.

 

[jyxz7]

@JDuggan interesting. Does need a few "House of Lords" mentions edited out though.

Thanks for letting me know about the mentions of the "House of lords," I was quite tired when editing the text.

 

[Gentleman Biaggi]

@20thCenturyBoy (and all my twists and turns fans)

 

[leecannon_]

Roosevelt and His brother Roosevelt

Holy nepotism Batman!

 

[Gentleman Biaggi]

Broke: Hillary Clinton marries Barry Goldwater Jr., thus making her conservative
W O K E : Bill Clinton marries Barry Goldwater Jr., thus making HIM conservative

 

[Kermode]

Broke: Hillary Clinton marries Barry Goldwater Jr., thus making her conservative
W O K E : Bill Clinton marries Barry Goldwater Jr., thus making HIM conservative

Brilliant. Would that I could like this more than once.

 

[Zioneer]

Technically, this is what happens every six months in Mormonism:

 

[leecannon_]

Technically, this is what happens every six months in Mormonism:

Non-Mormon here, can you explain?

 

[Zioneer]

Non-Mormon here, can you explain?

Essentially, at our biannual General Conference (in April and October), Mormons participate in a "sustaining vote" on our leadership. We basically go "do we sustain Russell M Nelson as prophet, seer, and relevator, and president of the church" then "do we sustain the members of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles as apostles", and so on.

While in the early days of the Church it was an actual vote, and occasionally people were removed from office (never a prophet or apostle though), it's morphed into simply a way to demonstrate loyalty to the leadership of the Church, and there are very, very few people actively voting opposed to the sustaining.

 

[Bulldoggus]

Essentially, at our biannual General Conference (in April and October), Mormons participate in a "sustaining vote" on our leadership. We basically go "do we sustain Russell M Nelson as prophet, seer, and relevator, and president of the church" then "do we sustain the members of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles as apostles", and so on.

While in the early days of the Church it was an actual vote, and occasionally people were removed from office (never a prophet or apostle though), it's morphed into simply a way to demonstrate loyalty to the leadership of the Church, and there are very, very few people actively voting opposed to the sustaining.

@Zioneer for Prophet 2020

 

[Amateur Psephologist]

View attachment 410703

Tbh this is a whole lot to read, and was even more to write, so while it doesn't cover the Wolff Presidency (merely the run-up to it), I'll probably leave it as is. If there's some serious interest in what comes next, I'll continue it at a later date. But for now, I give you this.

Spoiler: Long Ass Bio

John Parker Wolff (born August 15, 1956) is an American journalist, activist, and politician who served as the 44th President of the United States from January 20, 2001, to January 20, 2009. A political Independent, Wolff was the first President since George Washington to serve the entirety of his presidency outside of a political party. Wolff previously served as Mayor of New York City (1993-1996) and a Senator from New York (1996-2001), always as an Independent. During his time as President, Wolff was instrumental in the early creation of the American Progressive Party, of which he has been a member since 2009. He is also the first President of Jewish descent, having been raised in the faith by his mother who was of German-Jewish heritage.

Wolff was born in Chicago, Illinois, to Annette Wolff as the illegitimate son of then-Senator John F. Kennedy. Raised solely by his mother, in the Greenwood suburb on the south side of Chicago, Wolff was unaware of his paternal heritage until 2000. There is no father listed on his birth certificate, and Wolff alleges that his mother never identified him beyond being "a young Irishman from her hometown of Boston." Working off of little more than speculation regarding his middle name, Parker, journalists uncovered his parentage after discovering that his mother had worked as a maid at the Omni-Parker House during the same period that Kennedy had frequented the establishment. Further investigation uncovered an unusually large payment to Annette by Kennedy's father, Joseph Kennedy Sr., for her family home in Lynn, MA, which was subsequently bulldozed. Following suggestions that the senior Kennedy had made the payment in a successful attempt to encourage Wolff to leave town (out of fear that his recently married son's infidelities would ruin his political career), Ted Kennedy, for whom John had served as an intern during his days at Harvard, agreed to an avuncular DNA test to settle the matter. Upon confirmation of their familial relationship, Wolff commented "My connection with the Kennedy clan has been long and, at times, complicated...to which this revelation certainly adds another layer of complication. I have a great respect for all of them, and despite those complications, they are my family. But when it comes down to it, I am, and always have been, a Wolff." Since the discovery, a number of individuals have claimed similar connections, however Wolff is the only confirmed illegitimate child of any Kennedy.

Wolff entered Harvard University in 1974, where he began his professional career as a journalist for The Harvard Crimson. As a committed Democrat from his high school years, much of his early writing focused on political commentary, typically in support of the Hoffa administration's aggressive anti-Communist policies. However, in early 1977, Wolff's opinions regarding US anti-Communism began to shift; he criticized the continued American involvement in Cuba and Vietnam, arguing that the military, economic and political pressure exerted on these countries was not only a drain on domestic resources, but an impediment to their own development and, in his words, "the realization of their destinies as sovereign, Democratic nations which had long sought the same freedoms that Americans hold as central to our everyday lives." Wolff also became critical of the federal government's curbing of civil rights in the fight against homegrown Communist terrorism, believing it to be "antithetical to core American values, ineffective in defending our homeland, and productive only in the direction of suppressing free speech." It was during this same period that Wolff began working with an anonymous source then known only as "The Dawn", a Chicago-based vigilante who would go on to gain national attention for their various efforts in exposing government corruption. Wolff also worked, briefly, as an intern for Senator Ted Kennedy (who he would later discover to be his uncle) in his Boston office. Graduating in 1978, Wolff began working as a reporter for The Washington Post. Primarily responsible for covering events on Capitol Hill, Wolff quickly became disillusioned with the institutions of the US government that he had once admired. The refusal of various members of Congress to discuss policy at length with him, his inability to gain access to substantive and meaningful information, and the negative attitudes of the public towards the press stunned Wolff repeatedly. But in late 1978, following the sudden death of Vice President Robert F. Kennedy, Wolff would begin working on the story that would change his career forever.

At approximately 11 PM on November 22nd, 1978, on the 15th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy's assassination, the Secret Service reported that Vice President Kennedy had been found dead in his bedroom in the Naval Observatory. At the time, his wife Ethel and their children were in Massachusetts, visiting family. The following morning, the White House press briefing informed the public and stated that the official cause of death was found to be an intracranial aneurysm. The autopsy report, however, was kept confidential, purportedly as a matter of national security and requests from the press for its release were denied. Despite outcry from various members of the press, including Wolff himself, a statement from the Kennedy family asking for privacy and respect during their grieving process seemed to settle the matter; the public was content with the White House's version of events, and further demands from the press would likely be met with outrage. However, Wolff did not so readily accept the story coming from the Hoffa administration. Working alongside The Dawn, and a still unknown source within the Secret Service, he was ultimately able to obtain a copy of the official autopsy report. Its contents flatly refuted the claim that Kennedy died from a sudden and unavoidable brain aneurysm, and rather showed that the Vice President had suffered a drug overdose. In addition to an astonishing 0.32 blood alcohol content, the report showed that Kennedy had a multitude of legal and illegal drugs in his system at the time of death, including cocaine, Bromazepam, and cannabis. Alongside the autopsy report, numerous pages of Kennedy's private journal were also leaked to Wolff, which indicated a growing sense of depression, anxiety, and fear in the Vice President's mind in the months leading up to his death; the final entry, believed to have been written on the night of his death, was perhaps the most astonishing. Though clearly written in a state of intoxication and therefore, for much of its contents, incoherent, it ends on a particularly cryptic and terrifying note which has been the subject of much debate (and, some would say, conspiracy theory) over the years. The line, initially quoting from the Greek playwright Aeschylus, says "We claim to be just and upright. No wrath from us will come to the one who holds out clean hands, and he will go through life unharmed; but whoever sins, as this man has, and hides his blood-stained hands, as avengers of bloodshed we appear against him to the end, presenting ourselves as upright witnesses for the dead.

The enemy....is within."

The publication of this information, in February 1979, was a bombshell for the nation. Immediately, President Hoffa issued a statement condemning Wolff for his "inconsiderate, disrespectful, subversive, and quite possibly treasonous actions." The administration denied any wrongdoing, claiming that the information given to the public was done out of consideration for the Kennedy family and as a means of protecting their image, and the legacy of the late Vice President. Despite repeated requests for comment, Ethel Kennedy declined. Following the publication of these documents, Wolff was subpoenaed to testify before Congress. Despite complying with the subpoena, Wolff refused to divulge the identity of The Dawn, insisting that he did not know their true name. He also refused to name any of his other sources, and in particular, that of the Secret Service agent who had originally leaked the documents to The Dawn. Public opinion on the issue was bitterly divided. On one side, many felt that Wolff had crossed the line in leaking such sensitive documents, and only did harm to the nation at large, and Kennedy's legacy in particular. However, many others felt that the cover-up of Kennedy's death by the Hoffa administration was inexcusable and represented an attempt to obstruct justice, and that the scapegoating of Wolff was merely a convenient excuse and a means by which they would implement further suppression of the free press. In any case, for his refusal to comply with subpoenas for "all documents, writings and recordings related to the identities or activities of sources responsible for leaking confidential documents", Wolff was held in contempt of Congress, and subsequently jailed. The Hoffa administration, unrelenting in their attacks on Wolff, attempted to paint him as a Communist sympathizer bent on taking down the US government, a contention which was plainly rejected by all those who knew him, and was further contradicted by his multitude of early writings in support of Hoffa's policies. Despite the split public opinion regarding Wolff's actions, opinion polls also showed that a majority of Americans believed Hoffa's attacks served no purpose, and only worsened the partisan divide over the issue. As time went on, and his imprisonment continued, support for Wolff increased dramatically, and protests around the country began to attract thousands of sympathizers. College students in particular made up the bulk of Wolff's supporters, demonstrating in colleges throughout the nation, including at his own Alma mater of Harvard University where student protesters shut down classes for a full week in defense of Wolff. By November, 1979, more than 250 days into Wolff's imprisonment, following numerous additional journalistic investigations into corruption within the Hoffa White House, hundreds of protesters had gathered on Capitol Hill to demand his release. President Hoffa, in coordination with the Mayor of Washington, D.C., ordered mass arrests of the protesters. In the midst of the chaos, approximately 30 protesters had been seriously wounded by police officers, hundreds more treated for tear gas inhalation, and several dozen were arrested. The handling of these protests did little to help the President, and only increased support for Wolff in the general public. Less than one full week after this event, hundreds more returned to D.C. to protest in front of the White House; although, at the time, President Hoffa was in Vietnam delivering remarks on the anniversary of the re-unification of Vietnam under a democratic, capitalist government. It would take a dramatic turn of events before Wolff was ultimately freed from jail.

On December 1, 1979, the world was rocked by yet another major, unprecedented scandal from the US; President Jimmy Hoffa was declared missing. As official reports stated, Air Force One left from Saigon the day before, and all had appeared normal with the craft's functioning. However, sometime between 5 AM and 6 AM, EST, contact with Air Force One mysteriously cut out over the North Pacific Ocean. The plane never landed at its scheduled refueling stop in Honolulu, and as this news reached the mainland US, the White House was once again in complete disarray. Vice President Henry Jackson, sworn in the previous year following Kennedy's death, took on the role of Acting-President and ordered the largest manhunt in recorded history; yet, neither the plane, nor the President or any of its other occupants (including the pilot, co-pilot, and two Secret Service agents traveling with Hoffa) were ever found. A full 24 hours after the President's disappearance, the cabinet convened and transmitted a message to Congress fully stating that, being absent, President Hoffa was clearly unable to fulfill his duties. As a result, Vice President Jackson was sworn in as the 37th President of the United States on the 1st of December. Following his address to the nation, informing the people that the search, while it was to continue for the foreseeable future, had so far borne no fruits, President Jackson was faced with the question of what to do with Wolff. In discussion with Congressional leadership, and deliberation with Wolff's legal counsel, an agreement was reached wherein Wolff would agree to divulge additional documents relating to corruption within the federal government in exchange for his release. After weeks of finalizing which documents would and would not be turned over, Wolff was officially released from jail on Christmas Day, 1979. He had spent a total of 313 days in jail, the longest for any journalist in US history. Following his release, Wolff became a national icon, and after several weeks' leave, he returned to The Washington Post. He would only remain in this post for another few months, during which time he directed much of his focus to writing about the conditions inside the US criminal justice system; he would later point to his experience as a major point of inspiration for his activism regarding prison reform. The aftermath of this scandal would also cause Wolff to officially leave the Democratic Party in 1980, and become a registered Independent, which he would remain as until 2009.

Following his departure from The Washington Post, Wolff spent the majority of his time as an independent journalist, traveling across the world to cover a myriad of stories relating to corruption within the federal government, and the military, many members of which had been discovered to be involved in drug smuggling in both Cuba and Vietnam. During this period he would also write a number of travel journals, recounting his experiences with local people from all different walks of life, which sold hundreds of thousands of copies due to Wolff's unique style of writing, which successfully blended a romantic view of foreign cultures with a gritty, straightforward realism about their various pros and cons. Published in 1985, he received a Pulitzer Prize for these writings the following year. In 1982, at the age of only 26, Wolff became a nightly news anchor for CBS News, a position in which he would remain until 1991 when he departed the station to focus on other projects. This position would mark the beginning of his friendship with fellow news icon Dan Rather, and his apparent tutelage at the feet of Walter Cronkite, who Wolff often cites as one of his major influences. Also in 1985, Wolff married future-First Lady Sara "Sunny" Okamura-Wolff, with whom he has two children; Robert (b.1988) and Michiko (b.1994). In 1990, Wolff received the first-ever Profiles in Courage Award for his work; this would later be raised as an issue upon the discovery of his paternity, with critics claiming that it represented nepotism on part of the Kennedy family. However, no evidence has proven that Wolff, nor any member of the Kennedy family involved in the awarding process was aware of the connection before 2000. In the early 90s, Wolff worked primarily as a social justice activist in New York City, his adopted home since his days as a Columbia Law School student. Living in the Bedford Park suburb of the Bronx, he wrote at length about police brutality, wealth inequality, and racial discrimination. This work would become the basis of his Mayoral campaign in 1993.

Though an active political commentator, Wolff had long expressed a lack of interest in entering electoral politics himself. Considered as a potential running mate for Ross Perot's campaign in 1992, he declined on the basis that Perot had not taken stances on many social issues important to Wolff. Fellow author and activist Ralph Nader was chosen instead. However, following the 1992 Presidential election in which former Mayor of New York City Donald J. Trump became the Vice President on the McCain-Trump ticket, Wolff was drafted by a number of liberal activists to run against Acting Mayor Rudy Giuliani in a special election. Despite having the backing of no major party, and with Giuliani running on both the Republican and Democratic lines, Wolff achieved an upset victory and became Mayor. He credited his victory to the hundreds of grassroots volunteers working for his campaign, and in the following regular 1993 Mayoral Election Wolff utilized this same infrastructure to widen his margin of victory in a rematch with Giuliani. During his tenure as Mayor, Wolff pursued a number of anti-corruption reforms, as well as focusing on criminal justice reform and revitalizing the city's underfunded public services, including welfare, education, and transportation. Due to his work, crime rates in New York City saw a dramatic decline after nearly 20 years of upwards trends, and this decline continued well after his time in office. Wolff also established the position of Public Advocate, an elected office that serves as an ombudsman for the electorate, and is first in the line of succession for the Mayoralty; upon Wolff's departure from office, Public Advocate David Dinkins became Mayor. Dinkins expanded many of the programs established by Wolff and was responsible for establishing a number of now-NYC traditions such as Fashion Week, Broadway on Broadway, and numerous others. Wolff's transparency and commitment to government reform earned him the reputation as "America's Most Trusted Mayor", a reference to TV anchor Walter Cronkite, and a play on former Mayor Trump's self-created title, "America's Favorite Mayor."

Following the 1996 Presidential Election, New York Senator Geraldine Ferraro was elected as Vice President, creating an impending vacancy in the Senate. Wolff was initially offered the appointment by Governor Carl McCall, who believed that it would effectively halt his political rise by making him appear as a lone, fringe voice for liberal causes in the Senate. When Wolff countered by calling on the Governor to order a special election be held to fill the vacancy, the Governor was happy to accept, believing that the race would do even more damage to Wolff's image and dampen his popularity throughout the state. However, this was a serious miscalculation. Wolff held the lead in polls from the very beginning, as an Independent, and even managed to win the Democratic primary as a result of a divisive race between State Assemblyman Andrew Cuomo and Congressman Chuck Schumer. Wolff declined the party's nomination, on the condition that they not run any candidate in the race. Begrudgingly, DNC leaders accepted, and Wolff went on to defeat his Republican opponent George Pataki in a landslide, 62%-38%. Ironically, analysts credited this victory in part to Wolff's lack of ties to the Democratic Party, which had seen a recent decline in popularity throughout the state (as did the Republican party, though to a lesser extent). Wolff's blunt messaging, his public speaking skills, and image as a reformer also helped him overcome ideological differences with many voters, and became the only Independent in the Senate until Bernie Sanders' victory in the 2000 Vermont Senate Race. Wolff was appointed to the Senate on December 2, 1996, and was elected outright in 1998. In his time in the Senate, Wolff did indeed become the champion of many "fringe" causes including the legalization of same-sex marriage, campaign finance reform, universal healthcare, and statehood for Puerto Rico among others. He also came to be highly respected by many of his colleagues in the Senate, and was one of the most popular US Senators in the country. During President Bill Clinton's time in office, Senator Wolff worked with the President on healthcare initiatives and was instrumental in writing legislation that provided health insurance to low-income children across the nation. However, when President Clinton came under fire for the Lewinsky Scandal in 1998, in which he was alleged to have impregnated a 26-year-old White House aide by the name of Monica Lewinsky, Wolff soon became one of his most vocal critics. Following a DNA test which proved Clinton to be the child's father, his vehement denials that there had ever even been a relationship between himself and Lewinsky became the focus of the conversation. In a statement, Wolff derided the President less for his extramarital activities, and more for his lies to the American people; Wolff also became the first non-Republican Senator to call for Clinton's resignation. After the President had been impeached by the House of Representatives, however, and the trial moved to the Senate, Wolff voted against the charge of Obstruction of Justice, while voting in favor of the charge of Perjury. Ultimately, Clinton narrowly avoided removal from office, but not without having his public image seriously stained. As a result, many anticipated that Clinton would be primaried and replaced with a candidate with significantly less baggage; however, utilizing party machinery, the President also narrowly defeated a crowded field of challengers and secured renomination.

Ahead of the 2000 Presidential Election, House Speaker Newt Gingrich (who had spearheaded the cause of impeachment against Clinton) declared his intention to seek the Republican nomination. With minimal opposition from fellow Republicans, Gingrich ultimately sailed through the primaries and secured the nomination handily. President Clinton's increasing unpopularity stemming from the Lewisnky scandal, as well as his inability to identify the terrorists responsible for a package-bomb campaign conducted by white supremacists, combined with a slowing economy nearly guaranteed that Gingrich would defeat him in November. The Clinton camp was further handicapped by Vice President Ferraro's announcement that she would not accept renomination for the office of the Vice Presidency; ostensibly, this was related to what she termed "a witch hunt" into her and her husband's financial dealings. However, sources close to the White House indicated that the Vice President was enraged by President Clinton's using her as a distraction from his own scandals. Florida Governor Bob Graham, highly respected in his home state, was chosen as the new Vice Presidential nominee. Additionally, a stunning upset within the rising Reform Party saw controversial political commentator Pat Buchanan steal the nomination after several more left-wing candidates (among them Ralph Nader, Jerry Brown, and Jesse Ventura) split the vote. Given the party's impressive performance in the 1996 election, in which Ross Perot had won an unprecedented 103 Electoral Votes, Buchanan now had access to a well established infrastructure, and federal matching funds in the tens of millions. This gave Buchanan an incredible advantage, and by late 1999 several polls had declared the election a tossup. Former supporters of President Clinton, and American liberals at large were desperate to find an opposition candidate capable of preventing President Gingrich, or worse, President Buchanan; Wolff, as a hugely admired rising star, was the obvious choice.

Consistent with his character, Wolff was initially extremely reluctant to accept the call to higher office. Having been in the Senate only a short time, and previously having left the Mayoralty for that position, he feared being seen as a political opportunist; the fact that he had only been appointed to the Senate due to the incumbent President's VP vacating the seat made this all the worse. However, a combination of massive public support for a Wolff candidacy, support (albeit rather quiet) from VP Ferraro herself, Wolff's own stern opposition to both Gingrich and Buchanan, and a rightful fear that Clinton was far too vulnerable to win reelection pushed him into the race. On August 12th, 2000, approximately four months before the general election, Wolff formally announced his candidacy for President of the United States in his adopted hometown of Bedford Park, New York. "Several years ago, the people of this city broke ground on what would become a more powerful campaign than I could have ever imagined. White and black, rich and poor, Republicans, Democrats, and Independents united in the cause of bringing government back to the people. Today, with even more at stake than ever before, I make the same call to Americans across the country that I made to the people of New York all those years ago; let us join together, with a dream of hope, and of progress, to do more together than we could ever do alone. Today, I am formally announcing my intentions to seek the Presidency of the United States of America, in defense of just that dream." With his candidacy, his team also launched the Wolff PAC, which would become one of the most influential political bodies of the 2000s. Through a long and difficult process, Wolff ultimately chose former Secretary of State Colin Powell as his running mate, a choice which stunned many of his more liberal supporters. Commenting on the choice, Wolff stated "I don't agree with Mr. Powell on every issue. There are many in which, quite frankly, I don't think we could disagree more. But when it comes to matters of integrity, when it comes to a matter of setting aside partisan divide and finding a solution, I could think of no one better to work with. Win or lose this election, the message I hope to send is that, as Americans, we must always seek out a way to work with those with whom we disagree. Colin Powell has proven time and time again to be a man of integrity, and a man full of solutions. He is my running mate, and with perhaps as much luck as hard work, he will be the next Vice President of the United States." The selection was expected to melt away a sizable number of Wolff's left wing supporters, yet in the long run, had the effect of pulling a number of right-leaning Independents to his campaign, in addition to exciting the African-American vote throughout the country.

With a four way race now underway, polls from virtually all sources were thrown into disarray. The majority continued to predict, as they had before, that Gingrich would win easily; the potential of the leftist vote now being split between Clinton and Wolff made this all the more apparent. However, as the election drew closer and closer, the polls began to fluctuate. A number suggested that, though unlikely, Buchanan would siphon off enough votes from Gingrich to deadlock the Electoral College, though with his being Speaker of the House, this was considered likely to result in a victory for him regardless. A small few held that Wolff's candidacy, although a longshot, would resonate with the largest number of political independents and swing voters. This outcome was far from guaranteed, however, as many saw Wolff and Buchanan both as protest votes, likely to split the independent vote. Put simply, the 2000 election appeared as though it would be little more than a crapshoot. It wasn't until early October, upon the publication of Wolff's alleged parentage, followed by the confirmation via DNA test conducted with the assistance of Senator Ted Kennedy, that polls shifted dramatically; confirmed as the son of a slain President, John Wolff now had an advantage that none of his competitors could claim. This revelation caused Wolff to rise dramatically in nationwide polls, likely due to the increased media attention surrounding him, and by November 1st he had become the front runner, although few believed that this national lead would translate into wins in key states needed to secure an electoral victory. Wolff himself, however, dissuaded voters from focusing on this piece of information, and to instead focus on the issues of the day. His opponents, frustrated by the commanding lead that Wolff now held, took various different stances on the news. President Clinton and Speaker Gingrich issued separate statements that echoed much of what Wolff himself had said, encouraging voters to look past what was considered "an irrelevant piece of pop culture" and focus on Wolff's apparently radically liberal views. Buchanan, on the other hand, took a hard line stance, suggesting that the results had been fabricated to provide Wolff with a boost in the polls. Ultimately, this strategy backfired, and many undecided voters grew tired of his repeated attacks on Wolff, to which the candidate himself responded with only coy remarks.

Come election day, not even the most savvy of political analysts could have predicted the results; Wolff carried the day, taking only the bare minimum 270 electoral votes, while winning a plurality of the popular vote. Many of the states carried by Wolff were no surprise; New York (his political home state), Illinois (his birth state), California, and Hawaii were among the least surprising. In total, Wolff took 19 states. Counting those above, he also took Washington, New Mexico, Colorado, Montana, Minnesota, Iowa, Ohio, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, South Carolina and Florida, in addition to receiving 2 electoral votes from Nebraska. This gave Wolff the bare minimum number of EC votes, and stunned the world as a result. Buchanan, pulling out surprising wins in Wisconsin, Michigan, and New Hampshire, also took Alaska, Wyoming, Missouri, Virginia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana (a total of 85 EC votes). Gingrich took the remainder, excluding Arkansas (which was only narrowly won by President Clinton, as his only winning state apart from D.C.), totaling 174 EC votes, leaving incumbent President Clinton with a measly 9. Longtime friend and colleague Dan Rather commented, in the aftermath of this election, "Whether this is the beginning of a new political order, or merely an electoral fluke resulting from circumstances no one could have imagined four years ago, remains to be seen. What can be said for sure, however, is that for the first time since the founding of our Republic, an Independent will occupy the Oval Office. What is yet to come is uncertain, but I for one, am both incredibly excited, and stunned at the outcome. To my dear friend and colleague, and our President-Elect; Courage."

I think you may have created my dream politician.

 

[Gonzo]

The next three installments in my American Churchill infobox series. In this, post-war Churchill is dethroned by the Democrats, but after four years of failed policies, the former President returns to office promising to bring peace to Korea and stop Soviet expansionism worldwide. Finally, after years in the political wilderness, the Democrats under Olin Johnston win a convincing victory as Churchill steps down.

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These are great, I especially like the choice of Johnson there, a peculiarity in the south due to his contrarian positions compared to others in the region.

 

[Chapman]

I think you may have created my dream politician.

Basically same. He's a character involved in a larger alternate history story I've been cooking up for a while now, so with luck, you'll see some more about J.P. Wolff in the future.

 

[Deleted member 82118]

[From the same world, where Teuton order state was created in Transylvania, not in Prussia]


After Chervonorussian King Daniil allied with Teutons in 1253, and started a war against Tatars, Ruthennian principaties of the Northern Ruthenia support him, and too rebelled against Kagan Sartaq rule. But destinies of the South and the North were completely different. While Chervonorussian could stay against the Tatars, and even reconquered Kiev in 1269, the Nothern Rebellion, lead by the Novgorodian prince Andrey, was brutally crushed by the Tatar armies. In 1258, Novgorod itself was burned by Tatars, and Novgorodian republic history was ended. Later, Novgorod was rebuilt by Lithuanians as border fortress, but the city’s glory was never restored. And, when in 1300 Swedes built port of Landskrona in the Neva estuary – that city became the main European trading port with the East. Novgorodian empire of the North died, and Swedish one rise.

 

[LordRedVine]

Based on a concept I will inevitably abandon without a second thought, a Libertarian Socialist enclave election in New England after some horrible event that I assume would make For All Time look like a utopia:

Spoiler: County Map

 

[CanadianTory]

Yet another cross-post from my TL
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Janet Napolitano didn’t really spend her life wanting to be President. Sure, the idea was appealing, but once she accepted John Edwards’ offer to become his running-mate, she thought she’d be relegated to the usual job of Vice Presidents; funerals and travelling. The new President didn’t seem eager to establish the type of relationship that defined the administration of Bill Clinton and Al Gore, or Gore and Shaheen. Edwards was the boss, and Napolitano, ever the loyal foot soldier, would do all in her power to help her Democratic colleagues and her President succeed while they owned the White House. Besides, 2016 seemed a long time away, and Napolitano wasn’t even sure if she’d get the chance to run. There were plenty of younger or more ambitious Democrats waiting in the wings. She was the uncharismatic former Governor of a state that her party had little hope of winning, and within the next four, let alone eight years, voters in her state would forget of her achievements as they further embraced the Republican Party. She would be defined by the Vice Presidency, and it seemed that in the current administration, that meant a noble end to her political ambitions rather than a partnership or springboard to the top job. While disappointing, it didn’t appear Napolitano had much of a choice. She didn’t think she was going to get offered the Vice Presidency in the first place, but jumped at the chance to play an influential role in the future of the Democratic Party. Friends and donors from Arizona encouraged her to keep the option of running viable, to avoid looking like she was closing the door completely, should Clinton or one of the other potential Democratic heavyweights not run. She owed it to herself and the country, they argued.

But then came 2010. A sex scandal involving the President. An increasingly frail First Lady. A shellacking in the midterms. A sizable defeat not witnessed since the 1930s. Investigations, rumours of investigations, Edwards losing his mind, withdrawing from public, abandoning his office, discussions with members of the Cabinet concerning the implementation of the 25th Amendment. In the span of less than a year, the Vice President found herself effectively the Acting President of the United States, travelling the country and the globe, trying in vein to paint a picture of normalcy and business-as-usual while the White House was engulfed in crisis. Napolitano had privately confided to friends that she worried that the country was about to enter a constitutional crisis not seen since Watergate – and that the situation could become all the worse if the President opted to try and keep hold of his office. But in May 2011 Edwards decided that he didn’t have either the capital or the interest of waging such a fight, and resigned, throwing Napolitano into the office she didn’t believe she’d ever hold. Over the years her name had been floated as a possible candidate to become the first woman to hold the office of President, but it had been low on most experts lists. Shaheen, Clinton, and Dole were usually named as more likely eventualities. And yet, here she was; Janet Napolitano, the 46th President of the United States, the first woman to hold the office in the nation’s history. Upon hearing that Edwards had decided to resign, the incoming President had uttered to her chief of staff only two words.

“Well, fuck.”

As to who would make up her campaign team, Napolitano was left with little option other than adopting some of her predecessor’s orphaned staff. With only a little over six months before the Iowa Caucus, the President needed experienced campaigners who had gone through the process before. Besides, her success meant they’d continue to enjoy the trappings of power, and it wasn’t like anyone else was clamoring for Joe Trippi, David Bonoir, or Eric Shultz. Unless they redeemed themselves with their new Commander-in-Chief, they’d be forever connected with Edwards.

Within the newly set-up NapolitanoVille, headed by former DNC Chair Steve Grossman and Napolitano’s former gubernatorial campaign manager Mario Diaz, they faced three questions. First, who would Napolitano pick to be her Vice President? Second, who would challenge the President for the nomination? Finally, depending on who their challenger was, how would they run their campaign? Play to her centrist tendencies or move to the left? After weeks of humming and hawing, the President and her team settled on former Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen. Moderate with some conservative-leanings, experienced and respected by Republicans in congress, Bredesen was a mixed pick for the most part and allowed the President a variety of options. Sure, the “Professional Left” as the President liked to call them were upset that one of their own had been passed over, but as Napolitano saw it she could use him as cover if she needed to tact more to the left herself. There was also the possibility of picking someone else at the convention if circumstances called for it, and besides, Bredesen supplied her with an ample number of southern donors, which would be needed if she were survive a competitive primary. As to who would challenge her for the nomination, it wouldn’t be long before it became clear that New York Senator Hillary Clinton would be her main competition. The President liked and respected Clinton, and had recommended her for State during the early weeks of John Edwards’ transition. But she knew Hillary was still upset about having missed out on 2008, and that challenging her for the nomination was likely her last shot at the office. That didn’t stop the President from repeatedly referring to Clinton as a “spoiled bitch”, however.

Hillary and her supporters would no doubt prove to be formidable opponents in the short-term. But Napolitano was confident that enough Democrats wouldn’t be able to stomach the idea of denying a sitting President, someone who had answered the call to serve in a time of crisis, the nomination, especially when alternatives were the Clintons. They acted like they fucking owned the party. It was just so unseemly. Embarrassing really. If Hillary really was for progressing women’s issue, she should be trying to help the first woman President, not trying to tear her down.

Napolitano knew she wasn’t perfect. But compared to Clinton? It’d be over by March at the latest.

If the 2012 Democratic presidential primaries were being held today, for whom of the following would you vote?​