Washington 2017: The U.S. Political RP [CLOSED] OOC Pt. XI

[Vaquas]

Brankers... I am having a lot of trouble trying to decide which way he would vote. To him he likes the ADF for its defense of religious liberty but dislikes it due to its opposition to gay marriage and gay adoption, both things that he supports.

Probably leaning towards a grudging "Aye"

He represents Washington state and she hasn't even sat on the bench before

[Sanabel]

Stevenson may give a phone call to Simon.

[Vaquas]

On the topic of Brennan's career I'm pretty curious about how this SecState thing is gonna go w/him

Also on the topic of secstate has no one contacted the admin yet?

Stevenson's gonna send a letter tomorrow

Seems kind of in bad taste to be the first to send in an application after the Secretary of State is all but announced dead

[Vaquas]

Is this woman married like irl? It was 2016 after all.

[Sanabel]

K Stev is also probably the weakest candidate for the position

[Jovuistan]

Is the other Senate seat in Oregon available?

[Sanabel]

Jovu are you still running in the Virginia gubernatorial race

[Vaquas]

Justice Nixon is not retiring until a Dem or Prog takes office at this rate

[Federal States of Xathuecia]

I think my senator will be one from Indiana or North Dakota, conservative/moderate Democrat. Wonky and reserved, bad public speaker.

[Tallahassee News Station]

Justice Nixon is not retiring until a Dem or Prog takes office at this rate

Retirements/deaths were all simmed and sorted beforehand

So Kennedy retiring IRL or something like Ginsburg dying IRL won't necessarily get mirrored in the RP

[Federal States of Xathuecia]

I think my senator will be one from Indiana or North Dakota, conservative/moderate Democrat. Wonky and reserved, bad public speaker.

Or the other Hawaiian one. If that's the case, he'll be more moderate/left leaning.

[Tallahassee News Station]

I think my senator will be one from Indiana or North Dakota, conservative/moderate Democrat. Wonky and reserved, bad public speaker.

Definitely still of the opinion that blandish over eccentric is the better way to go

Staff was eccentric, Arumb eccentric, Beaumont super eccentric, Marlowe's a comedy talk show host, McCroskey's super emotional

The wonkish steady straight man type would be a new dimension for a char.

[Federal States of Xathuecia]

I think my senator will be one from Indiana or North Dakota, conservative/moderate Democrat. Wonky and reserved, bad public speaker.

Definitely still of the opinion that blandish over eccentric is the better way to go

Staff was eccentric, Arumb eccentric, Beaumont super eccentric, Marlowe's a comedy talk show host, McCroskey's super emotional

The wonkish steady straight man type would be a new dimension for a char.

Mondale is normal though. As well as Thatcher.

[Jovuistan]

Jovu are you still running in the Virginia gubernatorial race

No

[Federal States of Xathuecia]

For the Senator:

EDIT:

I suppose I need a state first. Hawaii makes sense for classic Democrat, unsure though if there would be a better fit. I think an older yet still freshman Senate is what I'm going for, introverted and awkward with human interaction.

[Sanabel]

For the Senator:

Young or old?

Attractive or mundane?

Old and mundane

[Federal States of Xathuecia]

For the Senator:

Young or old?

Attractive or mundane?

Old and mundane

Michael Caine, Donald Sutherland, Martin Sheen, or Sam Waterson are current contenders for the character model.

[Sanabel]

Old and mundane

Michael Caine, Donald Sutherland, Martin Sheen, or Sam Waterson are current contenders for the character model.

Sam Waterson

[Federal States of Xathuecia]

Michael Caine, Donald Sutherland, Martin Sheen, or Sam Waterson are current contenders for the character model.

Sam Waterson

A cute old man.

[Vaquas]

Sam Waterson

A cute old man.

[Federal States of Xathuecia]

Rough draft.

---

Character Information Sheet

NS Nation Name: Xath
Character Name: Parker Malstrom
Character Gender: Male
Character Age: 71
Character Height: 6'1''
Character Weight: 138
Character Position/Role/Job: Democratic Senator for Maryland (2013-Present), Professor Emiritus at Johns Hopkins University (2009-2013), Full Professor at Johns Hopkins University (1991-2009)
Appearance:
Character State of Origin: New Jersey
Character State of Residence: Maryland
Character Party Affiliation: Democratic
Main Strengths: Strong scientific background, Very strong yet surprising support among young people and women, Strong campaign infrastructure since 2012
Main Weaknesses: Bad at making personal relationships, Two divorces, Awkward with others, Generally quiet when with stronger personalities, Does not enjoy conflict, Viewed as a moderate Democrat, Lacks major political connections, Dislikes making public appearances
Biography:

[spoiler=Story]Parker was born in New Jersey, near the Trenton suburbs though more on the outskirts of them. He found himself in a family that hardly was special in any way, with his biological father having been an older gentleman and a banker in the city. His mother, on the other hand, had gone to work in the factories, having found the older gentlemen and offering herself as a way to help support Parker's eldest three daughters and two sons. They had been lagging behind in payments and food had become unaffordable for all of them to make ends meet. Still, it was hardly a forgivable or excusable reason, for when her actual husband returned from the war, they promptly split. Though they did not divorce to save face among their families.

She went to be with her far more independent sister in Ohio, taking all but the two eldest sons, which was where Parker was raised. He attended elementary and high school there, gaining a reputation as a quiet boy. Still, he was fairly athletic, having played baseball for the school team and even becoming the captain his senior year. The sports helped him gain a group of friends and helped him avoid loneliness, but his personality was always more introverted. This led him to focus more time on studying and school courses. He was often found working on science projects and doing his own biology observations outside of class. He seemed to exhibit a natural curiosity, something that would follow him throughout his life.

Parker, still remaining in contact with his biological father through secret letters as to not anger his mother, sought his father as a way to be able to gain entrance into college. So with financial support and his smarts, he decided to abandon any potential in baseball. He chose the University of Chicago, studying biology and chemistry to hopefully enrich his interest in the sciences further. There, he became extremely involved with book clubs and came to have a certain tick of always needing to have a book close by, something he would later describe as a way to escape the real world. His bookish attitude combined with his general ability to pick up quickly led him to be a highly sought after lab assistant among professors.

He worked in numerous laboratories in biology and chemistry, even taking a minor in mathematics to offer aid to some biophysics labs that had only recently begun to explore the field. He graduated soon after, and with the help of the connections he made, he moved to work in laboratories in California and began to work on his masters in biochemistry, an emerging field. His work on understanding biological molecules and their role in DNA transcription proved to be a worthy yet lengthy project. Parker at this time also first was exposed to politics, becoming influenced by moderate Republicans and Democrats after being fairly repulsed by the extreme liberal attitudes he saw take many undergraduates on campus.

With his masters complete, he decided to go to Columbia University for his Ph.D. in biochemistry, one of the first schools to offer such a degree. He gained entrance and again continued his study of biological molecules, now expanding to how DNA is replicated and focusing on the way genetic diseases affected them. His time at Columbia was marked by the beginnings of the genetic and genomic revolution, creating rapid interest in many of the topics he had helped pioneer research into, gaining him notoriety in the field. He decided then, after becoming Dr. Malstrom, to go to work at Johns Hopkins University, becoming a visiting professor from Columbia before a full-fledged professor with tenure.

He was regarded as a leading researcher, redirecting his research towards the application of genetic and genomic studies especially to combat cancer. He became an endowed chair for studying new therapies for cancer, including proton therapy and immunotherapies. Still, his greatest accomplishments here was perhaps a sense of reinvolvement in politics and college life. He wrote an anonymous op-ed in a Baltimore paper, later revealing himself as the writer after pressure from the University, which criticized the cost of college as well as the cutthroat attitude at Hopkins. Similarly, he also was one of many professors to offer their support for gay student affinity groups as well as against what was considered a 'hateful' person from speaking on campus.

He became one of the most regarded voices on campus but declined to be the chair of several programs. He did make two exceptions, becoming the faculty advisor to Scientists in Politics, an organization focused on helping young scientists tackle issues from their unqiue perspective, as well as for a program helping Baltimore youth get exposure to the sciences. In 2008, he offered and showed up in support of President Winston's visit to the city and made himself a visible Democratic faculty member. Nonetheless, this was the beginning of his entrance into the spotlight and after his second divorce and retirement from full-time teaching, he sought a distraction.

Democratic leaders in the state along with young liberal groups advocated for recruiting Parker into running for the Senate. The current Senator had announced his intention to not seek reelection, having been a long-standing member of the Senate. So with some interest in seeking to join the fray and friends at his side, he joined the primary race. But he did not expect to win until controversy embroiled his younger opponent due to some campaign fund mismanagement and illegal uses. Overall, it led to his easy victory and a similarly expected victory over the Republican though hardly a landslide. His campaign was strong due to effective party support and a coalition of young voters and women that showed up in strong numbers, especially the former.

His time in the Senate has been marked by a lack of major bills, with a couple smaller ones on helping regulate college costs, transparency, and even requirements for fulfilling student needs such as disabilities. He similarly has authored bills to support funding and grants to colleges and scientific research, hoping to increase the scope of these programs. The NIH and CDC have also seen increases in funding and allowed focuses of study due to his bills, but nothing of major significance such as stem cells due to Republican opposition. He largely votes the party line and rarely contradicted it. He did not comment on the 2016 election after some rumored he would run and later offered a simple line of endorsement for Beaumont though refused to go further.

Votes: Nay for the U.S. Rail System (extremely costly)
Nay for Intelligent Design (as a previous professor, felt this was just wrong and pushing an agenda)
Nay for Balanced Budget (party vote, knows it will crush social programs and military)
Aye for Dudley Tax (necessary tax, good intentions for the environment and against big oil)
Nay for Minuteman (party vote, gun violence w/ Baltimore)
Nay for the Preservation of Marriage Act (Congress is being the Judicial, pro-gay)
Nay for Amendment to Restore Citizen Legislators (with experience and tenure comes better results)

Other Info: Vegan, Often misquotes others/literature/etc.

I have read and accepted the rules of the roleplay: Xathuecia

Do Not Remove: 84721[/spoiler]

[Velahor]

Super out of the loop rn, sorry, I have no home internet until this weekend

[Federal States of Xathuecia]

Super out of the loop rn, sorry, I have no home internet until this weekend

Roberts won.

[Democratic Peoples republic of Kelvinsi]

Super out of the loop rn, sorry, I have no home internet until this weekend

Roberts won a narrow victor against Singh by 3 points.

[Vaquas]

Super out of the loop rn, sorry, I have no home internet until this weekend

Congrats on your win in Connecticut dude!