R.I.P. Ross Perot

[Caliga]

Dead at 89.

[Barrister]

Dead at 89.

Spring-summer of 1992 I was quite taken with the man.  Turned out to be a loon, of course.

[Caliga]

My dad voted for him.

[The Brain]

RIP

[Valmy]

My dad voted for him.

Mine to!

[Barrister]

It's still crazy to think that for awhile in 1992 Perot was leading both Bush and Clinton in the polls.  There've been lots of 3rd party candidates over the years, but none were ever a threat to win the darn thing besides Perot.

[Valmy]

It's still crazy to think that for awhile in 1992 Perot was leading both Bush and Clinton in the polls.  There've been lots of 3rd party candidates over the years, but none were ever a threat to win the darn thing besides Perot.

The Cold War was ending and we were eager for a big shift in politics and a return to the good old pre-WWII days. People were really nervous about Bush wanting to take the opportunity to preserve the international system and make us continue to be responsible for everything. Perot promised a balanced budget and peaceful future...but then turned out to be a nut.

I sure wish Bush had won that election. Ah well.

[Caliga]

But Bush didn't feel our pain.

[The Larch]

I sure wish Bush had won that election. Ah well.

Really? Rather than Clinton?

[Valmy]

I sure wish Bush had won that election. Ah well.

Really? Rather than Clinton?

Yes. I may be wrong about this but I feel like most of the things Clinton did that I liked Bush would have done something similar. Clinton's downsides were pretty bad. He is kind of like if Donald Trump was a good statesman.

[Barrister]

I sure wish Bush had won that election. Ah well.

Really? Rather than Clinton?

Yes. I may be wrong about this but I feel like most of the things Clinton did that I liked Bush would have done something similar. Clinton's downsides were pretty bad. He is kind of like if Donald Trump was a good statesman.

The good thing that Clinton did was to help (briefly) balance the budget.  On that point I'm not as sure if Bush41 would have been able to do the same.  A democrat trying to balance the budget had a way of helping to silence opposition on the left that Bush wouldn't have had.

I would like to think however that Bush wouldn't have dithered over Bosnia for so many years and we might have seen a faster resolution to that problem.

It's an interesting what if though... if Clinton had lost in '92 he would go back to being an obscure regional politician (much like Dukakis), but then so would his wife, and the history of the next 25+ years in US politics would have been so different.

And after 8 years of Bush41, it seems impossible to imagine his son running for President just 4 years later.

[Valmy]

Bush's tax increase helped Clinton balance the budget and was a big reason he lost in 1992. So he still might have balanced it. Who knows?

I thought at the time 1992 was a very depressing year politically, but then 2016 made it seem like a happy memory.

[Threviel]

It's still crazy to think that for awhile in 1992 Perot was leading both Bush and Clinton in the polls.  There've been lots of 3rd party candidates over the years, but none were ever a threat to win the darn thing besides Perot.

Roosevelt?

[Barrister]

It's still crazy to think that for awhile in 1992 Perot was leading both Bush and Clinton in the polls.  There've been lots of 3rd party candidates over the years, but none were ever a threat to win the darn thing besides Perot.

Roosevelt?

Well I don't think they had public opinion polls in 1912, but I don't think Roosevelt ever had much chance of winning back then.  He just split the GOP vote and allowed Wilson the easy victory.

[Threviel]

It's still crazy to think that for awhile in 1992 Perot was leading both Bush and Clinton in the polls.  There've been lots of 3rd party candidates over the years, but none were ever a threat to win the darn thing besides Perot.

Roosevelt?

Well I don't think they had public opinion polls in 1912, but I don't think Roosevelt ever had much chance of winning back then.  He just split the GOP vote and allowed Wilson the easy victory.

Sounds familiar.