Which Side Are You On? - A Future USPol TL concept page

[Allthekingsmen]

DISCLAIMER: I am new, so if this kind of stuff isn't allowed in the rules I apologize in advance.

Which Side Are You On is essentially my personal take on how US politics might develop in the twenties and thirties (and beyond, too!).

This isn't a formal timeline, more of a concept site - I'll post some concepts that I think would work well within the timeline proper.

With that said:

Which Side Are You On?

[President Punxsutawney Phil]

Welcome to the forum!

[Allthekingsmen]

Welcome to the forum!

Thank you!

[Allthekingsmen]

President Joe Biden of Delaware / Vice President Kamala Harris of California (Democratic) ✓
322 EV; 80,498,144 votes

Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida / Senator Joni Ernst of Iowa (Republican)
216 EV; 71,192,001 votes

U.S. Senate races:

Arizona: Ruben Gallego (D) def. Mark Lamb (R), Kyrsten Sinema (I) [withdrew] [D Gain]
California: Katie Porter (D) def. London Breed (D)
Florida: Rick Scott (R) def. Wayne Messam (D)
Michigan: Elissa Slotkin (D) def. Mark Forton (R)
Missouri: Lucas Kunce (D) def. Josh Hawley (R), John Wood (I/F) [D Gain]
Montana: Jon Tester (D) def. Ryan Zinke (R)
Ohio: Sherrod Brown (D) def. Madison Geisotto (R)
Texas: Colin Allred (D) def. Ted Cruz (R), Don Huffines (I/P) [D Gain]
West Virginia: Alex Mooney (R) def. Joe Manchin, Derrick Evans (I/P) [R Gain]

D: Democratic, R: Republican, I: Independent, P: Patriot, F: Forward

Balance before election: 48+2 Democratic, 49 Republican, 1 Independent
Balance after election: 50+2 Democratic, 48 Republican

[Allthekingsmen]

U.S. Senate races:

Alaska: Dan Sullivan (R) def. Liz Synder (D) [IRV]
Georgia: Jon Ossoff (D) def. P. K. Martin IV (R) [IRV]
Iowa: Joni Ernst (R) def. Cindy Axne (D)
Kentucky: Daniel Cameron (R) def. Jacqueline Coleman (D)
Maine: Jared Golden (D) def. Brent Littlefield (R) [IRV] [D Gain]
Massachusetts: Michelle Wu (D) def. Shiva Ayyadurai (R)
Michigan: Gary Peters (D) def. Matt Maddock (R)
New Hampshire: Chris Pappas (D) def. Laurie Sanborn (R)
New Mexico: Hector Balderas (D) def. Yvette Herrell (R)
North Carolina: Dan Bishop (R) def. Allison Riggs (D)
Ohio: Sherrod Brown (D) def. Madison Geisotto (R)
Texas: Dan Crenshaw (R) def. Julián Castro (D)

D: Democratic, R: Republican

Balance before election: 50+2 Democratic, 48 Republican
Balance after election: 51+2 Democratic, 47 Republican

[Allthekingsmen]

Governor Mike Lawler of New York / Senator Rick Scott of Florida (Republican) ✓
286 EV; 71,717,750 votes

President Kamala Harris of California / Vice President Tim Walz of Minnesota (Democratic)
251 EV; 71,601,491 votes


U.S. Senate races:

Alaska: Josh Revak (R) def. Josiah Patokak (I) [IRV]
Arizona: Mark Kelly (D) def. Jake Hoffman (R)
Florida: Marco Rubio (R) def. Nikki Fried (D)
Georgia: Raphael Warnock (D) def. Chris Carr (R) [IRV]
Iowa: Pat Grassley (R) def. Rob Sand (D)
Kentucky: Rand Paul (R) def. Craig Greenberg (D)
New Hampshire: Marilinda Garcia (R) def. Shannon Chandley (D) [R Gain]
Nevada: Joe Lombardo (R) def. Catherine Cortez Masto (D) [R Gain]
New Mexico: Hector Balderas (D) def. Yvette Herrell (R)
North Carolina: Ted Budd (R) def. Janet Cowell (D)
Ohio: J. D. Vance (R) def. Greg Landsman (D)
Pennsylvania: John Fetterman (D) def. Torren Ecker (R)
Wisconsin: Mandela Barnes (D) def. Sean Duffy (R) [D Gain]

D: Democratic, R: Republican

Balance before election: 51+2 Democratic, 47 Republican
Balance after election: 50+2 Democratic, 48 Republican

[President of the great nation of 🏳️‍⚧️]

North Carolina: Dan Bishop (R) def. Allison Riggs (D)

Hey, we both think Tillis will step down in favor of Climbing Dan!

[Allthekingsmen]

North Carolina: Dan Bishop (R) def. Allison Riggs (D)

Hey, we both think Tillis will step down in favor of Climbing Dan!

Originally I thought it could be Bo Hines, then he lost to Wiley Nickel (a generic Dem with a very ungeneric name) so Bathroom Bill Bastard it is!

[Allthekingsmen]

The 2032 United States presidential election was the 62nd quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 2, 2032.[a] The Democratic ticket of Senator Jon Ossoff from Georgia and Senator Tammy Duckworth from Illinois defeated[20] incumbent Republican president Mike Lawler and vice president Tim Scott. Ossoff became the first Jewish-American person[21] to be elected president, while Duckworth became the first veteran of the Iraq War[22] to be elected vice president. It was the first U.S. presidential election where the presidential nominees of both major parties were millennials. The election saw the highest voter turnout by percentage since 2020, with each of the two main tickets receiving more than 74 million votes. Ossoff received more than 86 million votes[23], at the time the most votes ever cast for a candidate in a presidential election.

Lawler—the incumbent Republican—sought re-election to a second term in office amidst a struggling economy in the aftermath of the Second Great Depression[24] and slumping approval ratings. Despite murmurs of a serious primary challenge against his renomination[25], Lawler would ultimately be renominated by a wide margin against commentator and former Department of Defense official Kash Patel. In the Democratic primaries, 2028 runner-up Jon Ossoff would once again mount a campaign for president, ultimately fending off a fractured field of primary challengers, including Governor London Breed of California and Senator Pete Buttigieg from Maryland[26]. Angela McArdle secured the Libertarian presidential nomination[27] with Jeff Charles as her running mate, and Chase Oliver secured the Green presidential nomination[28] with Cody Hannah as his running mate.

The 2032 election was largely dominated by the Seattle General Strike and a concurrent attempt by a group of international conglomerates[29][30] — including Amazon, Binance, and Tencent — to gain control[31] over the Seattle Interim Administration's policy decisions (the interim administration being established after the city government's bankruptcy in 2031[32]). Ossoff—having already tacked to the progressive left during his 2028 primary bid—continued his leftward drift, promising to restrict corporate power and strengthen workers' protections[33], as well as calling for the audit of the finances of major cryptocurrency firms. Lawler—while promising to investigate the takeover effort—would be criticized for his history of executive action[34] against labor advocates and unionization protests, and major Republicans would frequently make unpopular attacks against unionization efforts[35]. While foreign policy would never become the defining issue of the campaign as it did in 2028[36], the aftermath of the Kashmir War, the South African political crisis, and the collapse of the Tatmadaw junta in Myanmar would contribute to Lawler being perceived as inept and incapable of handling an unstable geopolitical scene[37][38], especially in light of a growing shift towards a "Quiet War" between the United States and China[39]. Other domestic issues subject to debate during the campaign included the rise in civil disorder, historically-high unemployment[40], and the aftermath of Hurricane Imelda[41], which left much of southern Florida devastated[42]. Ossoff would attack Lawler as inept and uncaring, and labeled the Republican incumbent as a corporate crony and someone unwilling to take decisive action. Lawler would campaign on the need for continuity (in turn attacking the Democratic hopeful as a reckless far-left zealot), the slow return of manufacturing jobs to the United States, and the need to "keep the economy free" (owing to the Democratic Party's push for a huge number of corporate regulations). The issue of nuclear power and housing development also became key issues, with Democrats adopting a YIMBY stance, urging widespread zoning law reforms[43] to alleviate the ongoing housing crisis[44].

While polling remained competitive throughout the early election season[45], Ossoff's lead would continuously rise from August onwards as the corporate attempt to "buy" Seattle was leaked[46] and a general strike began. In the final week before the election, Ossoff held an aggregate lead of 6 points as mail-in voting and early voting began across the nation. Notably, this was the first election where more than ten states (Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, Maine, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Wisconsin, and Washington) adopted instant-runoff voting for presidential contests. Ossoff would build up a large lead by winning the key swing states of Georgia, Michigan, and Pennsylvania, all of which had been critical to Joe Biden's victory in 2020 and 2024, as well as flipping the state of Arizona before 11pm. Ossoff would become the first presidential nominee since Barack Obama in 2012[47] to be projected to cross the 270-electoral-vote threshold for victory on Election Day when he was declared the victor in the state of Wisconsin at 11:23 pm[48].

Ossoff ultimately received the majority in the Electoral College by winning 348 electoral votes, while Lawler won 190. Ossoff flipped the states of Alaska, Arizona, Maine, Mississippi, Nebraska's 2nd congressional district, New Jersey, Virginia, and Texas. The Democratic Party would also expand its congressional majorities. Meanwhile, a faithless elector in Nevada would vote for home-state senator Joe Lombardo, lowering Lawler's electoral vote totals to 189. Ossoff became the first Democrat to win the presidential election in Mississippi and Texas since 1976[49]. Ossoff would also become the last presidential candidate to win a congressional district-based electoral vote from Nebraska[50], as the system would be abolished in 2035. It is considered by many to be the start of the Seventh Party System[51] and was the last election held before the statehood of Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico[52].


Senator Jon Ossoff of Georgia / Senator Tammy Duckworth of Illinois (Democratic) ✓
348 EV; 88,356,495 votes

President Mike Lawler of New York / Vice President Tim Scott of South Carolina (Republican)
189 EV; 76,087,181 votes

[President of the great nation of 🏳️‍⚧️]

New Hampshire: Marilinda Garcia (R) def. Julián Castro (D) [R Gain]

Angry New Hampshire women were not interested in offering trans women abortions, I guess. Don't know why Hassan steps down in favor of a Texan, but whatever.

[Allthekingsmen]

New Hampshire: Marilinda Garcia (R) def. Julián Castro (D) [R Gain]

Angry New Hampshire women were not interested in offering trans women abortions, I guess. Don't know why Hassan steps down in favor of a Texan, but whatever.

Whoops I meant to put a random Dem there. Give me a moment.

Unfortunately, Lawler carries New Hampshire by a touch too much for Dems to win NH-Sen via cross-ballot votes.

[CascadianIndy]

Hi ATPM, welcome to Atlas!

[Allthekingsmen]

Thank you very much!

[Allthekingsmen]

I had an idea inspired by True Grit on alternatehistory.com, which was based around America after a two-term Romney presidency.

So here goes.

Presidents of the United States of America

2013-2021: Former Governor Mitt Romney of Massachusetts* (Republican)
-12 (with Paul Ryan) def. Barack Obama / Joe Biden (Democratic)
-16 (with Paul Ryan) def. Hillary Clinton / Terry McAuliffe (Democratic)

2021-2029: Senator Jason Kander of Missouri (Democratic)
-20 (with Tulsi Gabbard) def. Paul Ryan / Kristi Noem (Republican)
-24 (with Tulsi Gabbard) def. Kris Kobach / Dan Bishop (Republican)

2029-2033: Governor Letitia James of New York (Democratic)
-28 (with Tom Perriello) def. Glenn Jacobs / Reince Priebus (Republican)

2033-present: Former Governor Boyd Rutherford of Maryland (Republican)
-32 (with Jeff Coyler) def. Letitia James / Tom Perriello (Democratic); Tulsi Gabbard / Max Blumenthal (Independent)

[Kahane's Grave Is A Gender-Neutral Bathroom]

I had an idea inspired by True Grit on alternatehistory.com, which was based around America after a two-term Romney presidency.

So here goes.

Presidents of the United States of America

2013-2021: Former Governor Mitt Romney of Massachusetts* (Republican)
-12 (with Paul Ryan) def. Barack Obama / Joe Biden (Democratic)
-16 (with Paul Ryan) def. Hillary Clinton / Terry McAuliffe (Democratic)

2021-2029: Senator Jason Kander of Missouri (Democratic)
-20 (with Tulsi Gabbard) def. Paul Ryan / Kristi Noem (Republican)
-24 (with Tulsi Gabbard) def. Kris Kobach / Dan Bishop (Republican)

2029-2033: Governor Letitia James of New York (Democratic)
-28 (with Tom Perriello) def. Glenn Jacobs / Reince Priebus (Republican)

2033-present: Former Governor Boyd Rutherford of Maryland (Republican)
-32 (with Jeff Coyler) def. Letitia James / Tom Perriello (Democratic); Tulsi Gabbard / Max Blumenthal (Independent)

Wasn't this the one you got banned for?

[Allthekingsmen]

I had an idea inspired by True Grit on alternatehistory.com, which was based around America after a two-term Romney presidency.

So here goes.

Presidents of the United States of America

2013-2021: Former Governor Mitt Romney of Massachusetts* (Republican)
-12 (with Paul Ryan) def. Barack Obama / Joe Biden (Democratic)
-16 (with Paul Ryan) def. Hillary Clinton / Terry McAuliffe (Democratic)

2021-2029: Senator Jason Kander of Missouri (Democratic)
-20 (with Tulsi Gabbard) def. Paul Ryan / Kristi Noem (Republican)
-24 (with Tulsi Gabbard) def. Kris Kobach / Dan Bishop (Republican)

2029-2033: Governor Letitia James of New York (Democratic)
-28 (with Tom Perriello) def. Glenn Jacobs / Reince Priebus (Republican)

2033-present: Former Governor Boyd Rutherford of Maryland (Republican)
-32 (with Jeff Coyler) def. Letitia James / Tom Perriello (Democratic); Tulsi Gabbard / Max Blumenthal (Independent)

Wasn't this the one you got banned for?

Even last time I credited TG for the concept and premise, and the outcome is different. Kander stays as POTUS, Letitia James succeeds him, etc.

[Allthekingsmen]

Exactly what it says on the label.

Presidents of the United States of America

2001-2009: Governor George W. Bush of Texas (Republican)
-00 (with Dick Cheney) def. Al Gore / Joe Lieberman (Democratic)
-04 (with Dick Cheney) def. Joe Biden / John Edwards (Democratic)

2009-2017: Senator Barack Obama of Illinois (Democratic)
-08 (with John Kerry) def. John McCain / Sarah Palin (Republican)
-12 (with John Kerry) def. Newt Gingrich / John Thune (Republican)

2017-2021: Businessman Donald Trump of New York* (Republican)
-16 (with Mike Pence) def. Hillary Clinton / Tim Kaine (Democratic)

2021-present: Former Vice President John Kerry of Massachusetts (Democratic)
-20 (with Kamala Harris) def. Donald Trump / Mike Pence (Republican)

[BigVic]

The 2032 United States presidential election was the 62nd quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 2, 2032.[a] The Democratic ticket of Senator Jon Ossoff from Georgia and Senator Tammy Duckworth from Illinois defeated[20] incumbent Republican president Mike Lawler and vice president Tim Scott. Ossoff became the first Jewish-American person[21] to be elected president, while Duckworth became the first veteran of the Iraq War[22] to be elected vice president. It was the first U.S. presidential election where the presidential nominees of both major parties were millennials. The election saw the highest voter turnout by percentage since 2020, with each of the two main tickets receiving more than 74 million votes. Ossoff received more than 86 million votes[23], at the time the most votes ever cast for a candidate in a presidential election.

Lawler—the incumbent Republican—sought re-election to a second term in office amidst a struggling economy in the aftermath of the Second Great Depression[24] and slumping approval ratings. Despite murmurs of a serious primary challenge against his renomination[25], Lawler would ultimately be renominated by a wide margin against commentator and former Department of Defense official Kash Patel. In the Democratic primaries, 2028 runner-up Jon Ossoff would once again mount a campaign for president, ultimately fending off a fractured field of primary challengers, including Governor London Breed of California and Senator Pete Buttigieg from Maryland[26]. Angela McArdle secured the Libertarian presidential nomination[27] with Jeff Charles as her running mate, and Chase Oliver secured the Green presidential nomination[28] with Cody Hannah as his running mate.

The 2032 election was largely dominated by the Seattle General Strike and a concurrent attempt by a group of international conglomerates[29][30] — including Amazon, Binance, and Tencent — to gain control[31] over the Seattle Interim Administration's policy decisions (the interim administration being established after the city government's bankruptcy in 2031[32]). Ossoff—having already tacked to the progressive left during his 2028 primary bid—continued his leftward drift, promising to restrict corporate power and strengthen workers' protections[33], as well as calling for the audit of the finances of major cryptocurrency firms. Lawler—while promising to investigate the takeover effort—would be criticized for his history of executive action[34] against labor advocates and unionization protests, and major Republicans would frequently make unpopular attacks against unionization efforts[35]. While foreign policy would never become the defining issue of the campaign as it did in 2028[36], the aftermath of the Kashmir War, the South African political crisis, and the collapse of the Tatmadaw junta in Myanmar would contribute to Lawler being perceived as inept and incapable of handling an unstable geopolitical scene[37][38], especially in light of a growing shift towards a "Quiet War" between the United States and China[39]. Other domestic issues subject to debate during the campaign included the rise in civil disorder, historically-high unemployment[40], and the aftermath of Hurricane Imelda[41], which left much of southern Florida devastated[42]. Ossoff would attack Lawler as inept and uncaring, and labeled the Republican incumbent as a corporate crony and someone unwilling to take decisive action. Lawler would campaign on the need for continuity (in turn attacking the Democratic hopeful as a reckless far-left zealot), the slow return of manufacturing jobs to the United States, and the need to "keep the economy free" (owing to the Democratic Party's push for a huge number of corporate regulations). The issue of nuclear power and housing development also became key issues, with Democrats adopting a YIMBY stance, urging widespread zoning law reforms[43] to alleviate the ongoing housing crisis[44].

While polling remained competitive throughout the early election season[45], Ossoff's lead would continuously rise from August onwards as the corporate attempt to "buy" Seattle was leaked[46] and a general strike began. In the final week before the election, Ossoff held an aggregate lead of 6 points as mail-in voting and early voting began across the nation. Notably, this was the first election where more than ten states (Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, Maine, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Wisconsin, and Washington) adopted instant-runoff voting for presidential contests. Ossoff would build up a large lead by winning the key swing states of Georgia, Michigan, and Pennsylvania, all of which had been critical to Joe Biden's victory in 2020 and 2024, as well as flipping the state of Arizona before 11pm. Ossoff would become the first presidential nominee since Barack Obama in 2012[47] to be projected to cross the 270-electoral-vote threshold for victory on Election Day when he was declared the victor in the state of Wisconsin at 11:23 pm[48].

Ossoff ultimately received the majority in the Electoral College by winning 348 electoral votes, while Lawler won 190. Ossoff flipped the states of Alaska, Arizona, Maine, Mississippi, Nebraska's 2nd congressional district, New Jersey, Virginia, and Texas. The Democratic Party would also expand its congressional majorities. Meanwhile, a faithless elector in Nevada would vote for home-state senator Joe Lombardo, lowering Lawler's electoral vote totals to 189. Ossoff became the first Democrat to win the presidential election in Mississippi and Texas since 1976[49]. Ossoff would also become the last presidential candidate to win a congressional district-based electoral vote from Nebraska[50], as the system would be abolished in 2035. It is considered by many to be the start of the Seventh Party System[51] and was the last election held before the statehood of Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico[52].


Senator Jon Ossoff of Georgia / Senator Tammy Duckworth of Illinois (Democratic) ✓
348 EV; 88,356,495 votes

President Mike Lawler of New York / Vice President Tim Scott of South Carolina (Republican)
189 EV; 76,087,181 votes

NE and ME reverted to winner-take-all after PR statehood went through

[Allthekingsmen]

Only NE.

[Allthekingsmen]

THERE'S A LESSON to be learned here about liking an idea so much you base an entire mini-TL around it. But here goes.

So a quick TL;DR: basically, the basis of WSAYO is that Ossoff manages to piece together a coalition of progressives and "median voters" to have what is effectively the most effective left-of-center administration in the 21st century.

The question I found myself coming back to is, "How does that even happen? What circumstances allow the Democratic Party to become so incredibly effective at implementing progressive policies*?"

I can get Ossoff as a progressive, sure (he primaries Harris as the theoretical Warren to Hillary's '16 bid, and moves left with the party at-large), but that question remains. So here's the logic of it all.

*Think the 117th Congress, but scaled up to ~260 Reps and ~57 Senators, and also every bill passed is its most ambitious possible version. So Inflation Reduction Act is BBB+ and parts of the GND, etc.

1. Far-right niche politics hijacks the GOP

Not just the American right going completely insane - that's happened already. This is something worse, not just for American democracy but for the GOP's own viability - they sound completely insane.

The problem there is clear - a lot of the GOP's younger "establishment" (read: policy directors, RNC staffers, etc) are all completely batsh**t insane. As they become the people defining the GOP's message and candidate selections, do they choose normal people? No - they pick some school-shooter aspirant (as in, school shooters want to be them) like Blake Masters. People more obsessed about how plastic makes you gay, CRT and drag queen story hour than pocketbook issues. The average American might be more reactionary towards stuff like transgender rights, but they don't care. A good way to put it is this: "you severely overestimate how much the average parent wants to lecture other people on raising their kids." The reality is that rambling about irrelevant issues does not win elections, and putting the most insular, least self-reflectionary crew in charge of messaging can only make this much worse.

2. The politics of persuasion

If I am correct, midterm turnout last year with "traditionally-key" demographics was about the same. Urban and black turnout left much to be desired and Republican turnout was there. So what happened to the GOP in 2022? The answer is independents.
How did Big Gretch cruise to a 10-point win with Detroit turnout low? Independents. How did Josh Shapiro curb-stomp Doug Deli-Sandwich? Independents and moderate Rs / ex-Rs. How did Warnock swoop to a runoff win? Independents, and a good deal of crossover votes from Kemp voters.

You can argue that this cycle was just one-off luck for the Dems considering the fringe extremists and the freaks that were the GOP's candidates, but what happens when those "fringe extremists and freaks" become the ones running the show?

Okay, so so far I've tackled 1) why is the GOP just eating sh**t and 2) why His Grace, Jon Ossoff I The Eternal has built a Permanent Democratic Majority. How does he get it to go along with a radically progressive agenda, then?

3. Radicalization of the "normies"

I recall a quote that goes "the left was radicalized by profound societal injustice, the right was radicalized by getting their feelings hurt." With a Second Depression, a President that makes I Am Not A Crook look like Saint Ronnie to the average suburbanite and an attempted corporate takeover of Seattle fresh in the memory? The question isn't so much "do the wine moms who started voting blue in 2016/20 become full-blown socdems" as "what other outcome could there possibly have been".

The thing is, Ossoff himself is a reflection of this whole trend. His first run in 2017 was as a centrist and got a lot of traditionally-apolitical suburban types - yes, including wine moms, the new silent majority in the Democratic Party - involved and invested in a more visceral sense. His 2020 run for Senate saw him move to the left, and rather than losing 51-49 again he won. Ossoff is similar to Biden in more than one way: not only were they both the youngest U.S. senator at the time of their election, they're both weathervanes of the Democratic Party.

4. Seizing The Moment, and other hits from the inauguration of Jon Ossoff

If you recall, one of the key themes in the inaugural address I wrote for Ossoff was "This is Our Moment", and I suppose I'm going to have to reflect that in policy as well, aren't I? Here's a few examples of "notable" policies the Ossoff admin and the 123rd Congress undertake:

• Universal healthcare - passage of the Medicare For All Act and the National Omnibus Healthcare Reform Act
  

MFA extends Medicare / Medicaid coverage to all residents of the 50 U.S. states, Washington D.C., Puerto Rico, and the U.S. territories

[later amended to include the Douglass Commonwealth after its statehood][/list]

NOHRA establishes a national agency dedicated to providing healthcare services, regulation thereof, and provides provisions for funding based on existing state Medicare allocations, etc.

• Industry nationalization - the U.S. government seized the assets of Starlink, SpaceX and Tesla in February 2033 following the indictment of Elon Musk on charges of providing aid to terrorist groups, violating U.S. sanctions, etc. It also purchased a majority stake in General Motors in May 2033, and Lockheed Martin in April 2034; both following their bankruptcy.
  
• Civil rights - the 123rd Congress passes the Civil Rights Act of 2033, the Gender Self-Recognition Act, and the Federal Human Rights Protections Act.

The CRA2033 grants full recognition to transgender people, etc, etc. It's all the important protections you can think of.The GSRA basically sets federal standards for gender-affirming care; basically, certain procedures are limited until the age of 18 but the rest only needs medical approval. Retroactively overturns a bunch of bans in OK, FL, TN, AL, etc (Moms For Liberty Florida v. U.S. Department of Justice).The FHRPA sets up an entire system to protect minority groups and sets up an FBI/DOJ subbranch dedicated to this kind of stuff.[/list]

• Space exploration - The American Space Infrastructure Act (ASIA) allocates $988 billion to expand the infrastructure of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and increases its annual budget by ~40%.
  
  New bases are set up across the Great Lakes states to ensure the long-term environmental viability of a robust space program.
  
  Over $5 billion is allocated to rebuilding the Kennedy Space Center for "one last hurrah" - the Hermes Program, which aims to beat the People's Republic of China to Mars.
  

A lot of these policies were implemented based on "containing present crises". UHC? Everyone's broke, and people still get sick. Nationalizing Starlink? Musk's been compromized by Prigozhin and Tsargrad, we need to contain any NatSec breaches. GM? You don't want to sell our auto industry to Shanghai, do you? Et cetera.

[TransfemmeGoreVidal]

Following, this is from my perspective a refreshingly hopeful future.

[Allthekingsmen]

God, it's been a minute hasn't it? Sorry to the *checks* negative four people even remotely interested in this mess of mine.

Anyways, I have a weird DBWI going on based on ... recent events, and this is the list of presidents based on it:

Presidents of the United States
2029-2033: Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri (Republican)
'28 (w. Kristi Noem) def. Peggy Flanagan / Jason Kander (Democratic)
'31: Nomination of Florida Governor Jeanette Núñez as Vice President fails
'31: Nomination of Frm. New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu as Vice President succeeds


2033-2039: Senator Jon Ossoff of Georgia (Democratic)
'32 (w. Peggy Flanagan) def. Josh Hawley / Jeanette Núñez (Republican)
'36 (w. Peggy Flanagan) def. Rudyard Lynch / Jim Banks (Republican); Bakari Sellers / Miles Taylor (Forward)
'39: Censure vote of Jon Ossoff fails

2039-2041: Vice President Peggy Flanagan of Minnesota (Democratic)
'39: Nomination of Frm. Veterans Affairs Secretary Jason Kander as Vice President succeeds

2041-2049: Senator Ebo Entsuah of Florida (Republican)
'40 (w. Mike Testa) def. Peggy Flanagan / De'Keither Stamps (Democratic)
'44 (w. Mike Testa) def. Sara Innamorato / Morgan Harper (Democratic); Josh Lafazan / ?? (Independent)


2049-now: Governor Morgan Harper of Ohio (Democratic)
'48 (w. Nabilah Parkes) def. Alek Skalartos / Mitchell Horner (Republican); Josh Hawley / Jamel Holley (Truth)

Just so we're clear, the DBWI isn't actually public yet. But this is kind of how I imagine it going.

As a background: I made this post a while back
https://www.reddit.com/r/imaginaryelections/comments/17953gg/the_gaza_strip_crisis_or_the_making_of_americas/


And the DBWI is on Ossoff not dying at the end.

Since my common go-to future history narrative is "Dems have a golden age in the 2030s", I thought I'd subvert it for once -- the crises of the late 30s drive Ossoff over the cliff, and his fall from grace feels like it would be interesting to pontificate about.

[P. Clodius Pulcher did nothing wrong]

I like the way you explain your thought process. Seems like a promising new posting career here

[Allthekingsmen]

Thank you!

My plan is to just use this as a proof-of-concept thread of random thoughts.

[Allthekingsmen]

A proposed cover for Realign.

Ahh, Realign. My first hapless attempt at a proper "modern" alternate history.

For those out of the loop, Realign is an alternate history where Mitt Romney wins in 2012 before being succeeded by Jason Kander.

So, a bunch of loosely-connected thoughts [some discussion of suicide below]:

• No Apology: Romney's 2012 victory has some...implications for the GOP at large; for one, his defeat of Barack Obama would be a massive morale-boost for the incandescent ball of white-hot rage that is the modern GOP, said rage sphere would quickly grow tired of Romney -- Mitt himself isn't that right-wing, a Democratic Senate would block a repeal of Obamacare and most Tea Party priorities, etc. But Mitt's the incumbent, and as far as the RNC is concerned that's what they'll fight to keep him as. So you could envision a Grand Old Party whose base is constantly chafing under its leader (who himself is beginning to tire of the party).
• Slide To The Right: The GOP's post-Romney shift is almost certainly to the right; it could even kick off in Mitt's second term, especially if he finds himself lame-ducked by a six-year curse. It is almost too easy to imagine Ryan himself running to his boss's right, lamenting the missed chances under the Romney team as a way to re-integrate himself with the hard-right. There is certainly some degree of flexibility with which this shift can occur; an abrupt hijacking akin to Trump's shock victory in 2016 or a tactical co-opting by someone within the establishment makes the most sense. Arguably, though, the most interesting discussion is on the specific ideological tilt this shift takes. Trumpism by its nature is the hijacking of the GOP by one gibbering narcissist, but the pre-requisites that the rise of Trumpism was built upon themselves can make for a range of ideological changes.
• Change Deferred? Now, the Democrats. A post-mortem on Obama's defeat would vary from pessimistic to revisionist; the DNC could reason that Democrats needed to drive up turnout, or needed to expand their suburban appear, or conclude that Obama's style of "hope and change" politics simply don't work. The last one is somewhat depressing, as it could become the pretext for the party swinging rightwards once more, perhaps in a hapless attempt to re-claim the heydays that their party enjoyed in teh 90s (except for the Republican Revolution, but that didn't happen).
• This Isn't Our Fight Song: One can expect Hillary to ride to the nomination in 2016 (though ironically with stronger* opposition -- Elizabeth Warren, perhaps?), but this time without even the vaguest incentive to appeal to young voters and progressives or the DNC platform crafted by Bernie's platform-committee appointees. By timeline fiat, though, she also loses, and 2016 is still a pretty big disappointment for Democrats (bar Jason Kander, also by timeline fiat). And so the existential question remains: What Now?
• Back Inside The Wire: And so, after the new way and the old way both get tossed by the wayside (yep, I'm losing my sense of humor), Democrats go with what I will maintain as the biggest 'missed chance' of this generation -- Jason Kander. A fresh-faced progressive veteran from a red-state who was the king of persuasion politics in 2016 (riding to office because Roy Blunt is going to be just as inept ITTL without the rural turnout to save him) would find himself extraordinarily well-placed in this timeline, especially with the Democrats more in need than ever of an inspiring torchbearer.
• Deconstructing The Storm: But a Kander Presidency isn't going to be all fun and games, though. For those not in the know, Kander withdrew from the KC Mayor race in 2018 due to PTSD, and he's said that there's a reasonable chance he'd have killed himself if he'd "made it". PTSD also led to the development of a few paranoid fantasies at the absolute nadir of his mental health, which themselves could be interesting. Perhaps Kander manages to get help while in office, perhaps the very nature of being president allows him to delay the all-pervading sense of self-loathing and imposter syndrome. And that's probably the optimistic take.
• New Campaign Trail: All the credit in the universe to Kaiserin Ellen (Twitter) for adapting Realign into a NCT Mod. And given that that's the most recognition I've ever gotten for an alternate history work of mine, it's just common decency to keep going somewhat.

So there's my reasoning for refusing to abandon this damned project. I'd add to it if I can think of more.