Wilson '96 : An Upcoming Western Storm

[Ragnaroni]

NOTE THIS IS MY FIRST EVER TIMELINE, I MIGHT SCREW UP IN PARTS. ALSO IF THIS IS THE WRONG BOARD ALSO MESSAGE ME SO I DONT THINK ITS BEEN NUKED. ALSO ADVICE IS ENCOURAGED, I WOULD LOVE SOME ADVICE!



It is March 27th 1996, Pete Wilson is sitting at his desk, cup of coffee in hand and is admiring the headline of the Sacramento Bee : "WILSON WINS GOP NOMINATION!". It was a hard won fight and had taken every bit of political stamina and skill to defeat Bob Dole. The primary had been bitterly fought and unpleasant to say the least. He had been repeatedly attacked for his more socially liberal views and was called a Republican In Name Only on so many occasions that he had lost count.  As he sat at his desk, he pondered the results of the primary election and noted the path taken to win. It wasn't a path a Republican could win on the federal level anymore, he depended too much on states firmly in Democratic hands and practically lost the entire South to Dole with a few exceptions. It was miraculous that he had even managed to get Buchanan's endorsement of all things, mainly thanks to a discussion over immigration on which both men had agreed on most points. However, Wilson had to make some promises to Buchanan, concessions Wilson thought of them as concessions, mainly on social issues. This was the price he had to pay in order to win the primary. Pundits were still scratching their heads over how Wilson won, will this be a continuing trend?  This would be a troublesome reality and he needed to correct this. Clinton had swept the South in 1992 and looked set to do it again this November. He needed to win or at least take back some Southern states to have a chance at victory. The sheer magnitude of what was to come hadn't dawned on Wilson yet, as he still rejoiced from his victory the day before.

It was only 7:30 am and his landline was constantly buzzing with calls from strategists offering their services, lobbyists representing special interests and members of Congress seeking to be his Vice-Presidential pick. With a growing hint of annoyance, he politely replied with the truth, he wasn't yet going to make this decision and he wanted to wait until the Republican National Convention in San Diego to make his choice. He looked at the calendar, flipping through the months until he reached August of 1996. 5 months he noted, well actually less than 5 months. He had a lot on his plate, he needed to unite the party behind him and make sure the base actually wanted to vote for him, defeating incumbent president Clinton was going to be a Herculean task for Wilson and he was aware of this. He had a general idea of how to compete with Clinton but deep down, he knew the odds were strongly in favor of Clinton.

A more pressing issue was whether or not he should resign the governorship of California. Many California Republicans were vehemently opposed to this decision. Resignation would lead to a special election and an almost certain Democratic victory in the Golden State. This had happened with his Senate seat in the 1992 special election.Unfortunately, he had burned a lot of bridges with Proposition 187 which killed his chances with Hispanics, even the legal ones that had nothing to worry about. It wasn't even law yet as it was stuck in the courts. This was the point in agreement he had with Buchanan even if the men disagreed on many other things. For now, however, Wilson will remain as Governor of California, the largest state in the Union, this would be strongly benefitial to him as a key strength in the general election.

But for now, he will finish his coffee, continue reading his newspaper and get to work. He'll maybe write an electronic mail to some pollsters and consultants on what his strengths and weaknesses are, which states to tackle and all that stuff. It's becoming time to gear up for November 1996!

[Ragnaroni]

 It is April 22nd 1996, Pete Wilson had spent the previous week discussing various topics with consultants on what his 1996 strategy should be. Surrounded by these very consultants, Wilson admired the hefty, and expensive, document in front of him. The several dozen page long document in front of him was the summary of a week's worth of suggestions on who to pick as a Vice-President, what Wilson should campaign on and what Wilson's key weaknesses would be against President Clinton. Skipping past the fancy cover page and getting into the real subject of the document. A consultant, a balding man with a well-fitting Italian suit began explaining the contents and Wilson's mind dirfted to the document.

The first key chapter was related to his Vice-President. Wilson already had a few ideas about who he wanted to pick but the document, and the people who wrote it, gave weight to his instincts. Firstly, the Vice-President should be someone popular with the American people which made Wilson smirk a little on how obvious this statement was. He didn't need to pay large amounts to "learn" this fact. It was considered best to avoid anyone in the Republican congressional leadership due to the unpopularity of the shutdowns that occured. President Clinton may not have backed down on his ambitious, and liberal, healthcare plan but the American people were fed up and frankly worried about the shutdown. Wilson jotted a note down on a blank paper : "No Newt Gingrich". The consultant continued, Wilson was a moderate Republican and while this helped him everywhere outside of the South, the path to victory while conceding the South to Clinton was nearly impossible. He needed a Vice-President with conservative credentials to balance him out. Someone who represented the views of the South very well. Preferably someone from a swing state. Wilson nodded, noting that Arkansas would be a long shot win. As Wilson was paying these men by the house, he suggested to tackle the next chapter.

Weaknesses. Of which they mentioned plenty. Firstly, Wilson had some odd stances for a Republican, being more on the pro-choice side of the abortion debate, something that was herecy to a large portion of the Republican base. He had also committed the same cardinal sin that sunk former President Bush in 1992, he raised taxes. Clinton was also more charismatic than Wilson but then again, Clinton oozed charisma. Another consultant interjected, stating that Wilson's weaknesses could in fact be a strength if he played his cards right. Maybe a run for New England or the Pacific Northwest perhaps? Suddenly a large amount of different voices shouted but Wilson wasn't able to understand any of it. Another consultant ignored his colleagues and started on the last chapter, Wilson's strengths.

Strengths. Wilson had been in politics for a significant amount of time at the local level as assemblyman and mayor of San Diego, in Congress as a Senator and finally in his current position as Governor of California. Being so involved in the politics of the US' largest state was undoutedly a massive boon to his skill and knowledge. The nineteen nineties are all about crime, everyone cares about it, everyone wants to be tough on crime. Wilson's handling of the disasterous 1992 Los Angeles riots was swift and ended the rioting then and there. He might have to jump around the inevitable question of use of federal and state troops to put down a riot but it did help his tough on crime stances. One key point that might benefit Wilson is the efforts he has expended on trying to reduce the state deficit, a far harder task than expected.

The head consultant, who hadn't spoken once during the meeting finally said something. He noted that these reports tend to be quite vague so early on and that they'll get better polling and strategies once the RNC has been concluded. But, he added with a hint of cynicism, it is clear that Wilson's chances of victory were slim at best and he would need a recession or a miracle to win this November. He arose and walked over to shake Wilson's hand and wished him luck in his campaign. The room slowly emptied but Wilson noticed one man, far younger than his colleagues. The man told him that he had an idea. During the 1996 Republican primary, Wilson had gotten the endorsement of Admiral James Stockdale, Ross Perot's VP pick for 1992. He had heard from a friend of a friend who knows Stockdale that Perot preferred Wilson over Dole. He added that it might be worth a shot getting Perot on board. He gestured at the phone in front of Wilson.

[OSR stands with Israel]

Great TL so far . Wilson would definitely be an interesting leader for the gop given his unorthodox views on quite a few issues (Taxes , abortion , guns , environment).

So definitely interested in this TL

[Steve from Lambeth]

ALSO IF THIS IS THE WRONG BOARD ALSO MESSAGE ME

It's the right board. Welcome to the EWI family! (I should be adopted by one of you one of these days...)

I wouldn't exactly describe a nomination contest that ends in March as a slog. Donald Trump was nominated in March and, no matter how Haley and company might spin it, it was nothing other than a stroll for The Donald with a couple of inconvenient obstacles in his way.

By any chance, were you influenced by the End of History 1996 mod on the New Campaign Trail? That's Wofford on Team Red vs Wilson on Team Blue.

[President Punxsutawney Phil]

Nice work so far!

[Ragnaroni]

ALSO IF THIS IS THE WRONG BOARD ALSO MESSAGE ME

It's the right board. Welcome to the EWI family! (I should be adopted by one of you one of these days...)

I wouldn't exactly describe a nomination contest that ends in March as a slog. Donald Trump was nominated in March and, no matter how Haley and company might spin it, it was nothing other than a stroll for The Donald with a couple of inconvenient obstacles in his way.

By any chance, were you influenced by the End of History 1996 mod on the New Campaign Trail? That's Wofford on Team Red vs Wilson on Team Blue.

Originally, I wanted to into massive detail about the constant back and forth between Dole and Wilson. With Wilson's home state of California being the last needed for him to win. In the end, I thought it would be too hectic.

I've played that mod once but this was an idea floating around in my head for a decent while before seeing the mod.

[Ragnaroni]

Nice work so far!

Thanks

[Ragnaroni]

It was May 6th 1996, the intense negotations with Perot's side were undergoing their final stage. It had been a few weeks since he had called Ross Perot in order to salvage his campaign, the atmosphere at the Wilson campaign was one of doom and gloom, how could they possibly beat Clinton in November? Many had told him that the smartest thing to do is go on the defense and try to salvage what he could in November.

Wilson was pleasantly surprised at how well he and Perot got along, they had agreed on most if not all key points : the budget, social issues, they were both moderate Republicans however, Wilson's support of NAFTA, marked by a November 1993 speech in Burbank, threw a slight wrench into the talks. Despite this, the two men got along incredibly well, as made evident by the fact that the phone call was three hours long. They had agreed on two meetings, one in Sacramento, California and the other in Dallas, Texas. The schedule was tight, the California meeting was on Monday, April 29th and the Texas meeting was today.

In California, Wilson had assembled a team of important Republican party members, including his primary-contender Bob Dole, who was going to retire after the election, former President George Bush, though Wilson had wished he could've convinced Ronald Reagan to come instead, Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, about half a dozen Senators and Congressmen from key swing states and a few consultants like the young man from before, now identified as Zachary Comstock. For his part, Perot had brought Admiral Stockdale and several members of his 1992 campaign. They had discussed the viability of working together, the possible effect on the Republican party and how it could change how the party would function. Most of these allegations were foundationless in the eyes of Wilson. He deemed the Monday meeting to be vastly less important than the Friday meeting, the one-on-one meeting at Perot's private residence where they would discuss in more fine detail the conditions of the endorsement. Perot had a few important ones, all of which were reasonable to Wilson, granted Wilson was desperate for his endorsement.

         1. - A promise to balance the United States budget, preferably before fiscal year 2000 and possibly with the re-introduction and successful passing of a Balanced Budget Amendment, however both men knew this was unlikely.

         2. - Increased protections towards American industry affected by NAFTA and a possible renegotiation of NAFTA as a whole.

         3. - Keynote speakership at the Republican National Convention in San Diego. With a request to go before Pat Buchanan. Wilson had promised a several slots to Buchanan and other right-wingers at the RNC when Buchanan endorsed him.

         4. - A Vice-President picked from the state of Texas with Perot's backing and/or approval.

         5. - An active position in Wilson's cabinet to be determined at a later date. Probably Secretary of the Treasury or Secretary of Energy.

After deliberating with his team, Wilson accepted these terms with one minor objection, Wilson had barely any control over who spoke at the RNC and while Perot would surely be somewhere at the top.
For his part, Perot promised to endorse Wilson during the RNC and rally his voters behind Wilson. Some early internals had shown that while Perot's 1992 voters split 50-50 for Dole, the split was closer to 70-30 for Wilson, a massive advantage for someone trailing President Clinton. The two men shook hands and said they'll keep in touch, little did both men know but Perot was going to be a key asset for Wilson's campaign.

[Ragnaroni]

It is June 11th 1996,  the past week was stressful to say the least. Pete Wilson was rehearsing his speech, an important speech, the nomination of his Vice-President. The amount of deliberation with his team and with Ross Perot, whose endorsement centered on this was plenty. Why is he even nervous, this isn't his first speech he thought himself, wiping sweat off his brow. He walked up the stairs and on to the stage as the the crowd began to go silent. Positioning himself behind the stage he noticed the crowd. It was bigger than any crowd he had seen during his entire political career, this was real. Swallowing his saliva and clearing his throat, he began.



"Ladies and Gentlemen,

Tonight, it is with great honor and pride that I stand before you all, the Republican Party's nominee for President. After much waiting, I am proud to announce to you my pick. A man who throughout his distinguished career in the Senate, has been a tireless advocate for fiscal responsibility, economic prosperity, and individual liberty. His steadfast commitment to the very values that define our nation is something we very much need these days. I introduce to you, Phil Gramm.

Round of applause

Senator Gramm's unwavering dedication to the American people, his steadfast belief in the power of the free market, and his proven track record of effective leadership make him an invaluable asset to our campaign and our country. With him by my side, we will work hard to restore the American Dream lost these past years, restore the confidence and trust in our government and bring back the Reagan-Bush era of prosperity for every American!

Senator Gramm is a man of principle, of integrity and sincerity. His expertise in matters of finance and the economy make him invaluable to our cause. His distinguished service on the Hill, his commitments to what's best for the American people and his support of good, sound policies earn him the respect and admiration of colleagues from both parties!

Please join me in welcoming Senator Gramm as my partner in this historic endeavor. Together, we will make America stronger, more prosperous and more united than ever before.

Thank you and God bless the United States of America!"

Thunderous applause

Wilson looked at the crowd, his pick of a Vice-President seemed to be have been a good one. The crowd was fired up and full of energy. This was good, this was very good! He glanced over at Gramm and gave him a thumbs-up, Gramm smiled back. As he walked off the stage after replying to the mass of reporters, he noticed that the mood of his team was changing. That somber, almost gothic tone had disappeared in favor of an aggressive, optimistic attitude.

[OSR stands with Israel]

A Californian and and Texan on the same ticket facing an Democratic President from the Deep South. Hmmm when have we seen this before