Election 2016: The Era of Rand Paul

[PaleoPaul]

All right, this timeline will be depicting the Presidency of Rand Paul, as well as all other major historical events that happen during this time (such as major crises, the stock market, the death of major figures, midterm elections, riots, some international events, etc.). I will give some depictions of the primaries/caucuses, conventions, and fall campaigns before I give a rundown of the election.

NOTE: Some names in this timeline are made up. They are completely fictional characters and are only used for story's sake. So, if you don't recognize the name or can't look it up, it's more likely than not that person is fictional.

Think of this thread as those types of political fanfics you see on AH and Election Atlas. I hope you enjoy and that my creative writing skills were put to good use.

The Republican Primary:
The Republican primary was bloody, bitter, and ugly. Senator Rand Paul’s campaign, which was once pronounced DOA during August and September 2015, made a miraculous comeback. He was also presumed to be the frontrunner in Iowa. However, come caucus night, he barely came in second place there, just 525 votes shy of Ted Cruz. Despite this loss, Rand vowed to press on, stating that his campaign was going all the way. (Rand would also manage to secure the majority of Iowa delegates.) Senator Paul then made a comeback in New Hampshire, beating establishment Republican Marco Rubio by 5 percentage points and placing himself in a decisive first place. He was hailed as The Comeback Kid, a title that was given to former President Bill Clinton in 1992 when his campaign was resurrected amidst pundits declaring his chances for the Presidency were hopeless. Paul split the vote in South Carolina. He won in Nevada. Afterward, his other rivals (Cruz and Rubio) split primary and caucus victories with him. Each man won enough states and delegates to contest at the convention in Cleveland.

The Democratic Primary:
The Democratic primaries and caucuses, which were once thought to be mere formalities before the inevitable coronation of Hillary Clinton, turned out to be just as bitterly fought as the races on the Republican side. Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden, and Bernie Sanders were the cemented frontrunners going into Iowa. Hillary managed to lose both Iowa and New Hampshire (Biden won Iowa; Sanders won New Hampshire). Despite these humiliating losses for the once-inevitable Democratic nominee, she wasn’t going to take them lying down. She barely won South Carolina, but it was a virtual tie with Biden, similar to Santorum and Romney in the Iowa caucus back in 2012. The contests after that could best be described as each candidate taking turns winning. After a hard-fought primary battle, each candidate won enough states to be able to fight for the nomination at the convention in Philadelphia.

TBC...

[PaleoPaul]

The Republican Convention:

Candidates on the ballot:


Senator Rand Paul (R-KY)


Senator Rafael "Ted" Cruz (R-TX)


Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL)

Rand Paul gave what many consider to be one of the most convincing nomination speeches ever given at a brokered convention, and he secured his nomination on the second ballot. Many Cruz delegates flocked to Paul, believing him to be the most plausible and unifying candidate to beat either Biden, Clinton, or Sanders, who would also be facing a brokered convention in Philadelphia the following week. They were afraid that Ted Cruz’s view on the culture wars, as well as his role in the 2013 government shutdown, would come back to haunt him and alienate moderates, independents, and disaffected Democrats in the process. Rand Paul announced that he would be nominating New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez as his running mate, citing her accomplishments as Governor of New Mexico, as well as his chance to build a broad and diverse coalition for a new GOP.


Congressman Justin Amash (R-MI)

Congressman Justin Amash delivered the keynote address to the convention. It touched on themes such as his father’s being a Palestinian refugee and making it to America, his life growing up, the cause of liberty, and the American Dream. Amash would be the first Palestinian in American history to deliver a keynote address to the convention of a major party. Many pundits compared his keynote address to that of Barack Obama’s in 2004 and predicted that he would be an important figure in the Republican Party in years to come.


Governor and Vice Presidential Nominee Susana Martinez (R-NM)

Governor Susana Martinez’s speech accepting her nomination as Vice President touched briefly on her life growing up, but mostly emphasized how she had turned around New Mexico and how she was able to work with a Democratic state legislature. Her speech was well-received.


Former Congressman Ron Paul (R-TX)

Former Congressman Ron Paul, who was given a primetime slot, gave a short speech commending his son for his fight for liberty and how everyone, whether they be Republican, Democrat, or Independent, must be ever-vigilant in the fight against tyranny. Surprisingly, FOX News did not cut away from his speech for once, and the crowd applauded him!



Now-Presidential Nominee Rand Paul then addressed the convention, talking about how he was a “New Republican,” who would fight for fiscal responsibility, limited government, criminal justice reform, a restrained foreign policy, a strong military, and respect for the civil liberties of all Americans. This speech energized the convention crowd, which gave him uproarious applause.

Over at FOX News, establishment Beltway pundits Brit Hume, Charles Krauthammer, and Bill Kristol were practically gritting their teeth as they admitted that this had to be one of the most energetic conventions they ever witnessed and that the speeches they heard were great. Despite this admission, it was evident from their body language, facial expressions, and tones of voice that they were bitter that the Republican Party they once knew was starting to slip away from their fingers.

[PaleoPaul]

The Democratic Convention:

Candidates on the Ballot:


Former First Lady of Arkansas, First Lady of the United States, Senator, and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (D-NY)


Vice President Joe Biden (D-DE)


Senator Bernie Sanders (D-VT)

After what turned out to be the first brokered convention since Adlai Stevenson in 1952, Vice President Joe Biden barely managed to win the nomination. Some of Hillary’s delegates defected to Biden, with many secretly fearing Hillary Clinton facing an irreversible health crisis during her potential time in office.



Once Biden won on the second ballot, it was all over for Hillary. Her hopes and dreams of becoming America’s Empress were forever shattered. It was established that although Bill and Hillary would always be viewed as treasures in the national party, the Democrats rejected the concept of political dynasties, at least in this election anyway. The Era of the Clintons was officially over.


Congressman Jared Polis (D-CO)

To counter the Republican Party’s efforts to reclaim the Mountain West, a once GOP stronghold trending blue, Congressman Jared Polis delivered the keynote address to the convention, touching on the party’s major bread-and-butter issues, the success of Barack Obama’s Presidency, and how the country has changed so much for the better. Polis delivered the speech with numerous Western themes, showing off his Coloradan roots. Polis would be the first openly gay person in US history to deliver a keynote address to a major party’s convention. The speech was received with thunderous applause.


Former President Bill Clinton (D-AR), along with Hillary Clinton (D-NY)

The Clintons also gave speeches supporting the Democratic candidate, although it was evident that bitterness, resentment, and anger were running through their veins. The Democrats were moving on from them, and apparently, so was America.


Senator and Vice Presidential Nominee Elizabeth Warren (D-MA)

Biden picked Senator Elizabeth Warren from Massachusetts as his running mate. Now former Democratic Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders gave a fiery speech nominating her, warming up the crowd to listen to her populist message. And boy did she deliver. Elizabeth Warren gave one of the most populist speeches ever given at a Democratic convention in recent decades, touching on themes such as the middle class, soaking the rich, equal pay for women, climate change, gay rights, student loan debt, income inequality, and every single progressive pet cause you can think of. Many compared this speech to Mario Cuomo’s "A Tale of Two Cities" speech at the Democratic National Convention in 1984. At the end of her speech, she received boisterous cheers and applause that went on nonstop for ten minutes. Shouts of “PRESIDENT WARREN! PRESIDENT WARREN! PRESIDENT WARREN!” were also chanted. It was official. The Democratic Party had now taken its most leftward turn in decades.


President Barack Obama (D-IL)

President Barack Obama gave a speech nominating Vice President Biden, reminding Americans about “how far we’ve come” and how he and Biden have “moved us forward, just as we promised you in 2008 and 2012.” He continued that we “cannot revert to the policies of the past,” before adding in the very cheap and petty quip “even if it shows up wearing a libertarian costume.”



Biden then delivered his speech, touching on how he would continue Obama’s legacy and the ideas he had to further move the country forward. Although he received applause, his reception was nowhere near as energetic as Warren’s was. With memories of the energy and momentum of the Warren speech, including the “PRESIDENT WARREN!” chant, still fresh in pundits’ minds, many of them questioned whether it was Biden or Warren that was running for President. This seemingly miniscule optical mistake would later prove to be costly to the Biden/Warren campaign.

Over at MSNBC, Chris Matthews, who was covering the convention along with Rachel Maddow, Al Sharpton, Lawrence O’Donnell, and Chris Hayes (believed to be Rachel Maddow's long-lost twin), commented “I told you guys it wouldn’t be a coronation!” Al Sharpton said “Well, we all thought that the Paul campaign last week would be populist, but it turns out that Biden and Warren have pulled that rug from under their feet.” Rachel Maddow, in her typical condescending college professor tone, pontificated “You know, there’s really something to say about Elizabeth Warren. She goes up and gives this rousing, fiery speech about populism and the middle class and whatnot, stealing all the energy from the one who REALLY IS running for President. If she doesn’t restrain herself, she might become the Sarah Palin of the 2016 Democratic Presidential race, where she goes rogue and tries to adopt her own identity apart from being the running mate of the one who’s actually running. Well…Sarah Palin with a brain, that is.” Little did Rachel know that her words would prove to be prophetic. O’Donnell and Hayes just nodded and said “uh huh” in their typical brainless yes-man fashion.

After the Democratic Convention, it was noted that this would be the first time in American history that the running mates of both major party Presidential candidates were women, and that no matter who was elected President on November 8, 2016, America would elect its first female Vice President.

[jaymur]

This seems over the top - "The Republican primary was bloody, bitter, and ugly."

Not really. More like "was less than friendly and at times, even bitter".

"I'll never forgive you!" exclaimed Carly Fiorina to Donald Trump. "You've severed Mike Huckabee's artery!"
See? Bitter and bloody.

-- You see the difference?

[LawnWake]

If there's one person the liberty movement should push into the limelight and draft in the future, it's Justin Amash. He would have tremendous cross party appeal. Even moreso than either Rand Paul or his father.

[PaleoPaul]

If there's one person the liberty movement should push into the limelight and draft in the future, it's Justin Amash. He would have tremendous cross party appeal. Even moreso than either Rand Paul or his father.

I actually like Amash better than Ron or Rand.

(Please forgive me Ron and Rand!)

[PaleoPaul]

The Fall Campaign:

With the conventions over, the fun would now begin! The energy of the Republican National Convention gave the Paul/Martinez ticket the biggest post-convention bounce the party had seen since Ronald Reagan’s candidacies in the 1980s. However, the fiery and populist speech delivered by Senator Warren managed to give the Biden/Warren ticket a post-convention boost as well, putting the Republican and Democratic candidates neck-and-neck.

RCP National Average Post-DNC:

Paul: 49
Biden: 47
Other: 1
Undecided: 3

Virginia:
Paul: 48
Biden: 46
Other: 2
Undecided: 4

Ohio:
Paul: 48
Biden: 47
Other: 1
Undecided: 4

Pennsylvania:
Paul: 42
Biden: 47
Other: 1
Undecided: 10

New Hampshire:
Paul: 48
Biden: 46
Other: 1
Undecided: 5

North Carolina:
Paul: 50
Biden: 47
Other: 1
Undecided: 2

Florida:
Paul: 48
Biden: 47
Other: 1
Undecided: 4

New Mexico:
Paul: 44
Biden: 44
Other: 2
Undecided: 10

Colorado:
Paul: 49
Biden: 46
Other: 1
Undecided: 4

Nevada:
Paul: 47
Biden: 47
Other: 1
Undecided: 5

Iowa:
Paul: 46
Biden: 45
Other: 1
Undecided: 8

Wisconsin:
Paul: 46
Biden: 47
Other: 1
Undecided: 6

Michigan:
Paul: 43
Biden: 47
Other: 1
Undecided: 9

August:
Throughout August, the campaigns seemed to be quite uneventful, with no gaffes, attack ads, or surprises. The most visited states that month were Florida, Ohio, Virginia, Colorado, Iowa, and Nevada. Unlike McCain/Palin and Romney/Ryan, the Paul/Martinez campaign invested heavily in the NoVA region of Virginia, hoping to win at least one of the counties there, or if that didn’t happen, to thin the Democratic margin there.

In mid-August, Senator Paul took a few days off campaigning to do his annual charity eye surgery. This year, he would be performing free surgeries in India. Governor Martinez covered the campaign work for him, campaigning in Colorado and Nevada, as well as the major cities in her home state of New Mexico.

TBC...

[LawnWake]

I actually like Amash better than Ron or Rand.

(Please forgive me Ron and Rand!)

In terms of appeal and language, I do too! The overal effect Ron has had on the liberty movement is immeasurable, however. And there's a certain fire in his words, however clunky that they may have been spoken, that is unmatched by either Rand or Amash.

But who knows what Amash will accomplish in the future? I really want him to run for president as soon as possible. His potential outreach is amazing.

[PaleoPaul]

In terms of appeal and language, I do too! The overal effect Ron has had on the liberty movement is immeasurable, however. And there's a certain fire in his words, however clunky that they may have been spoken, that is unmatched by either Rand or Amash.

But who knows what Amash will accomplish in the future? I really want him to run for president as soon as possible. His potential outreach is amazing.

Agreed. If you have any comments about my "timeline," feel free!