Mention Clinton too? Despite the Lewinsky scandal the House Dems won a swing TO them in 1998. (Unless it didn't happen in TTL of course)
Lazarus, Icarus, and Canadian Politics: An Infobox Timeline
- Thread starter CanadianTory
- Start date
Mention Clinton too? Despite the Lewinsky scandal the House Dems won a swing TO them in 1998. (Unless it didn't happen in TTL of course)
But recall, Edwards was elected partially because he promised to be a clean-cut, no skeletons-in-the-closet President.
Never say never! JEB! might find the Senate boring and pull an Obama.
By the way, any readers from the UK willing to offer their assistance on something I'm working on?
This is the same guy who likes turtles so much he carries around toy versions of them to give to children.
Trust me, he wouldn't get bored with the pace of the Senate.
I mean if you're desperate, I guess I'd be a good last resort.
Well, now we'll know who to blame when the next UK update has Peter Hitchens seize power in a bloodless coup.
Well, now we'll know who to blame when the next UK update has Peter Hitchens seize power in a bloodless coup.
Now that's not fair. I suggested a bloody coup.
Update #82: Oldham East and Saddleworth by-election, 2011
Just FYI, Jeb Bush has yet to receive even a single vote in that online poll. Anyways, I'm going to be incredibly busy this weekend, so I likely won't have much time to post the update tomorrow. So, I'm going to post it now. Here's the first update of the 2011 block.
Only weeks after their deal was reached and the coalition formed, the Labour-Liberal Democrat government of Prime Minister Gordon Brown, and not long after David Miliband, faced their share of difficulties. Labour MP Stephen Timms was stabbed in his East Ham constituency, meaning he would be away from the House of Commons in order to recover. Liberal Democrat MP David Lewis resigned from his position within the Treasury as the result of an expenses scandal. Gordon Brown was little more than a listless leader while he waited for Labour to pick his successor, the economy continued to appear weak, the death toll of British troops had continued to rise in Afghanistan, deep cuts to spending increasingly began to appear as a necessity as opposed to one of a multitude of strategies, and polling showed the government trailing their opponents by as much as six points. Having come second to the Tories in both seats and votes, right-leaning newspapers across the United Kingdom shrieked that the deal effectively served as a coup de ta against the legitimate winners of the election; David Davis and the Conservatives. The Daily Mail in particular suggested that the deal between the two Centre-left political parties wouldn’t last long, and would either be torn up by conflicting personalities within the coalition, or by the inevitable by-elections that would occur before the next election, tentatively scheduled for mid-2015. Although Labour and Lib Dem politicians and activists were quick to dismiss anything from the Daily Mail, no one could deny that the new government was on delicate footing. With only 332 seats in the House of Commons, a six-seat majority, the coalition could ill-afford to lose any of their seats, lest they fall into Hung Parliament territory, which would likely lead to an election sooner than when Prime Minister Miliband was prepared for. Unfortunately for the Prime Minister and his Liberal Democrat Deputy, the first by-election of the new parliament would be born of the tensions and animosity that existed between the two parties.
Labour had only narrowly won Oldham East and Saddleworth over the Tories in the May election. An election court consisting of two High Court judges fond that Labour MP Phil Woolas was guilty of knowingly making false statements about both his Conservative and Liberal Democrat opponents, Lawyer Kashif Ali and Rochdale councilor Elwyn Watkins, respectively, and as such rendered the election in his constituency null-and-void. Despite his attempts to appeal the decision, Woolas would concede defeat in early December of 2010, setting the stage for a by-election that all three major parties hoped would be theirs to win. Labour hoped that by winning the by-election, they could continue the momentum started by the election of David Miliband as Prime Minister. A loss in a traditionally Labour seat would no doubt cut Labour’s number’s down even further, and embarrass Miliband when he couldn’t afford it. Although Prime Minister Miliband discussed the possibility of running only a single Labour candidate to represent the coalition, Deputy Prime Minister Huhne disagreed. The Liberal Democrats, angered by the fact that Woolas had effectively defamed the integrity of one of their members, envisioned further concessions to their demands if they could capture the seat. The total standings of the coalition would remain the same, but momentum, which had begun to shift away from the party, would reaffirm their influence in government. As for David Davis and the Conservatives, winning the by-election meant only one thing; cutting the coalition’s standings in the House down, and moving one step closer to bringing about another election campaign.
Ultimately, the Liberal Democrats would see their share of the vote collapse as left-wing voters, worried about splitting the vote, abandoned Watkins in favour of Labour’s candidate, Afzal Khan, who enjoyed what appeared to be limitless resources from the government. It wouldn’t prove enough, however, to overcome voter displeasure at the coalition’s handling of the financial crisis, as by a narrow result they would elect Conservative Kashif Ali. Ali would be the first Conservative to represent the constituency since Geoffrey Dickson, who represented the precursor seat of Littleborough and Saddleworth from 1983 until 1995. The win for the Conservatives in a traditionally safe Labour seat also silenced the emerging, albeit few in number, whispers that the party would replace David Davis before the next campaign with someone more electable.
David Miliband and Chris Huhne had been dealt an embarrassing blow, and some members of their respective parties privately blamed the other for the by-election defeat. Still, a five-seat majority was still a majority, just so long as they didn’t lose any more by-elections between now and 2015. Plus, the coalition could always rely on the support of the SDLP and the Alliance should the unthinkable happen. So, everything would be alright.
Right?
Only weeks after their deal was reached and the coalition formed, the Labour-Liberal Democrat government of Prime Minister Gordon Brown, and not long after David Miliband, faced their share of difficulties. Labour MP Stephen Timms was stabbed in his East Ham constituency, meaning he would be away from the House of Commons in order to recover. Liberal Democrat MP David Lewis resigned from his position within the Treasury as the result of an expenses scandal. Gordon Brown was little more than a listless leader while he waited for Labour to pick his successor, the economy continued to appear weak, the death toll of British troops had continued to rise in Afghanistan, deep cuts to spending increasingly began to appear as a necessity as opposed to one of a multitude of strategies, and polling showed the government trailing their opponents by as much as six points. Having come second to the Tories in both seats and votes, right-leaning newspapers across the United Kingdom shrieked that the deal effectively served as a coup de ta against the legitimate winners of the election; David Davis and the Conservatives. The Daily Mail in particular suggested that the deal between the two Centre-left political parties wouldn’t last long, and would either be torn up by conflicting personalities within the coalition, or by the inevitable by-elections that would occur before the next election, tentatively scheduled for mid-2015. Although Labour and Lib Dem politicians and activists were quick to dismiss anything from the Daily Mail, no one could deny that the new government was on delicate footing. With only 332 seats in the House of Commons, a six-seat majority, the coalition could ill-afford to lose any of their seats, lest they fall into Hung Parliament territory, which would likely lead to an election sooner than when Prime Minister Miliband was prepared for. Unfortunately for the Prime Minister and his Liberal Democrat Deputy, the first by-election of the new parliament would be born of the tensions and animosity that existed between the two parties.
Labour had only narrowly won Oldham East and Saddleworth over the Tories in the May election. An election court consisting of two High Court judges fond that Labour MP Phil Woolas was guilty of knowingly making false statements about both his Conservative and Liberal Democrat opponents, Lawyer Kashif Ali and Rochdale councilor Elwyn Watkins, respectively, and as such rendered the election in his constituency null-and-void. Despite his attempts to appeal the decision, Woolas would concede defeat in early December of 2010, setting the stage for a by-election that all three major parties hoped would be theirs to win. Labour hoped that by winning the by-election, they could continue the momentum started by the election of David Miliband as Prime Minister. A loss in a traditionally Labour seat would no doubt cut Labour’s number’s down even further, and embarrass Miliband when he couldn’t afford it. Although Prime Minister Miliband discussed the possibility of running only a single Labour candidate to represent the coalition, Deputy Prime Minister Huhne disagreed. The Liberal Democrats, angered by the fact that Woolas had effectively defamed the integrity of one of their members, envisioned further concessions to their demands if they could capture the seat. The total standings of the coalition would remain the same, but momentum, which had begun to shift away from the party, would reaffirm their influence in government. As for David Davis and the Conservatives, winning the by-election meant only one thing; cutting the coalition’s standings in the House down, and moving one step closer to bringing about another election campaign.
Ultimately, the Liberal Democrats would see their share of the vote collapse as left-wing voters, worried about splitting the vote, abandoned Watkins in favour of Labour’s candidate, Afzal Khan, who enjoyed what appeared to be limitless resources from the government. It wouldn’t prove enough, however, to overcome voter displeasure at the coalition’s handling of the financial crisis, as by a narrow result they would elect Conservative Kashif Ali. Ali would be the first Conservative to represent the constituency since Geoffrey Dickson, who represented the precursor seat of Littleborough and Saddleworth from 1983 until 1995. The win for the Conservatives in a traditionally safe Labour seat also silenced the emerging, albeit few in number, whispers that the party would replace David Davis before the next campaign with someone more electable.
David Miliband and Chris Huhne had been dealt an embarrassing blow, and some members of their respective parties privately blamed the other for the by-election defeat. Still, a five-seat majority was still a majority, just so long as they didn’t lose any more by-elections between now and 2015. Plus, the coalition could always rely on the support of the SDLP and the Alliance should the unthinkable happen. So, everything would be alright.
Right?
Just a little question that has been in my head for quite some time: does TQS (a Quebec TV channel) still exists?