FLAMES OF LIBERTY (1960 Alt-History American Political RP)

[The Rio Grande River Basin]

Obviously. After all, this isnt Long vs Disney. Its Long vs Disney vs everyone else.

Yep. Long outright threatening Congress's lives isn't making him too many friends in there. But Long is deputy whip, if only because of King Kong tactics and political machinations. And Gary is outright Minority Leader. So you have establishment (Gary, Roosevelt, etc.), You have Dixie (Joyner, Forrest, etc.), then you have Long and Disney, two sides of the same coin.

[Union Princes]

Long and Disney would probably find a lot in common if they sat together and talked. Both men are ideologically driven after all. Maybe they would admire the passion in each other

[The Rio Grande River Basin]

Long and Disney would probably find a lot in common if they sat together and talked. Both men are ideologically driven after all. Maybe they would admire the passion in each other

In a similar way to Goldwater and Kennedy. But probably a lot more hostile considering both of their uncompromising personalities.

[Union Princes]

Most likely, their politics and party are both diametrically opposed to each other, even if they are both anti communist

[Sao Nova Europa]

When holding a press conference (like Jackson is doing now), other players are free to ask questions to your character.

So, now, you are free to ask questions to Jackson. Remember that A) the questions must be serious, B) you are asking questions as a reporter (nameless or not), not as your character(s).

[Azekopolaltion]

Any GOP governor characters should feel free to reach out to the Veep, either IC or OOC, if they wish to join the new Republican Governors Association. Could be a good means of boosting national profile.

[Sao Nova Europa]

Any GOP governor characters should feel free to reach out to the Veep, either IC or OOC, if they wish to join the new Republican Governors Association. Could be a good means of boosting national profile.

Some NPC Republican Governors will probably join.

[Turkducken]

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Character Application and Information Sheet

NS Nation Name: Turkducken
Character Name: Orville Wood Anderson, "The Tin Man" by Detractors
Character Gender: M
Character Age: 80
Character Date of Birth: March 3rd, 1880
Character Position/Role/Job: Representing Montana's First District since 1912, Currently Speaker of the House
Character Country/State of Birth: Gravity, Iowa
Character State of Residence: Butte, Montana
Character Party Affiliation: Currently Democrat, formerly Republican and before that Progressive
Faceclaim: Henry A. Wallace (but if he went to the Beach that makes you Old)
Main Strengths:

The Old Man of Congress: Speaker Anderson has been in Congress for a very long time, longer than most anyone else. If there's a way to send a bill through obscure Parliamentary procedures or former precedent, he knows it. No matter what your political affiliation Anderson is the man to talk to, he has connections, he has friends, and he has rivals. All of these weave one of the most important social webs through the Halls of Congress. This is something born of sheer experience and age, not of strict charisma. You might be able to learn of obscure procedures, but he will know it, you might have a convincing argument to a holdout in Congress, but he will know them, and you might try to pass a bill without him, and you will fail.

Old Sod: The Speaker doesn't have a broad base of appeal or rapid supporters for a national run, and this suits him just fine. What he does have, what he's intentionally cultivated over the years, is the trust and commitment of the Farmers of America. It was he who fought for the key agrarian policies of the New Deal, it was he who they remember fighting for the right to coin Free Silver long after the crusade had ended, and it was he who they remember sticking it to the President over the agrarian crisis that occurred in 58.

Something about the Country Air: The Speaker is an old man, everyone knows that, but you'd be surprised at his relatively youthful energy and disposition. In spite of his advanced age, the only skill or aptitude that has declined is his ability to make fiery speeches, albeitly this is a self admitted loss of passion for the old school progressive. As one of the oldest men in elected office in America, older even than the President, you'd expect him to perhaps be in poor health or reducing his schedule. You'd be wrong, the Speaker is like a machine in motion as he goes about his day and appears to be in excellent health. Young buck politicians may think they'd be ready to succeed him, but good luck on staying in office long enough to see him die in it.

Main Weaknesses:

Political Chameleon: Anderson is an Old School Progressive, having crossed the lines to support and vote for Robert La Follette's ill fated, but historic, 1924 presidential campaign. He was a Republican, and then a Progressive, and then a Republican again, and finally crossed the line once more as a Democrat to support the Agrarian side of the New Deal. While this is all perfectly consistent to his own beliefs, this makes him an uncomfortable leader in the National Democratic Party. If, god forbid, the Speaker finds himself nominated for a national campaign its possible this waffling on party affiliation will read as indecisive to voters. Worse, this may turn off the reliable partisan Democratic Voters, if they somehow get the feeling they might just be voting for a Republican.

The Last 'Silver Knight': Free Silver was the dominating issue of Rural America in the late 19th century. Now it's just a dead issue long expired. Problem is, the Speaker still cares deeply about it. He's spoken to every President he could about the issue of the bimetallic system. Every single one has disregarded or laughed in his face for beating a dead horse. But its his Horse dammit, and he'll continue to beat it.

Frankly, Just Boring: The Speaker used to have a fire. He used to have passion in his voice. There was a time when his warbling sermons riled up large amounts of voters. Those times have passed. The fire has burned out. Although there are embers dimly glowing that flare up time to time, the old man just doesn't have it any more. Americans know this, especially after his national speech at the convention of 52 and 56 which both landed with a thud on the convention floor. He's not going to be doing any grandiose speeches and he's not going to get the masses fired up.

Biography: Orville W. Anderson was born in a one room farmhouse in middle of nowhere Iowa. Growing up the son of a poor, but well connected, farmer he had the opportunity to read and write from a younger than average age. At the age of ten his grandfather, who his parents had been tenant farmers on his land, passed unexpectedly. Orville's father in response to this, sold off most of his property and the family relocated to Montana to Homestead parts of the newly railed land.

Life was poor on his grandfather's land, and somehow it was worse in the great lands of Montana. Farmers had to contend with some of most arid and most wet land in all of the farm belt, often at the same time. Pests were exceedingly difficult to manage, and the general unspoiled wilderness of Montana led to a significant amount of rural workers to disappear. Tried as the Andersons might, that rocky Montana soil would not yield to their passion and sweat. Unlike many, the Andersons wealth enabled them to relocate to one of the larger settlements in Western Montana. Establishing a general store in eighteen-ninety-four, the Andersons found great success with their relative over education compared to many other would be Homesteaders.

It was while living and traveling between Butte and other large towns in Montana that the young Orville would become entranced by the cause of Free Silver. In eighteen-ninety-six long time nominee William Jennings Bryan raised a great amount of hell across the West campaigning on a platform of 'Free Silver'. His fiery words and religious oration would leave a permanent mark on the young Orville, and he became an impassioned progressive and true believer in the Bimetallic system from a young age.

Orville's Father, still well connected back East in Iowa, could wrangle enough influence to have his sons college educated. Orville was sent back east in eighteen-ninety-seven and began his tertiary education at Iowa State. While maybe a year or so before Orville would've set out on an agricultural education, with his new found passion for silver he instead entered as a Financier. He excelled at his studies and was recommended for transfer to the emerging University of Chicago's Finance program.

It was while in Chicago he met Robert M. Harriman. The two became more than friends, and would live together at several different points of their lives, although this is a rather obscured fact. Eventually Orville would graduate with a PhD from the Chicago program and found his way back home to Butte. Invigorated by his education and newfound ability to help the poor farmers of Montana, he helped to establish 'West Montana's First Agricultural Credit Union' in nineteen-eight, which turned into a great investment vehicle and otherwise savior for the debt ridden farmers and agricultural workers of West Montana. Energized by his successful venture in helping the small people of Montana, Orville would then turn his passion and intellect to a lofty project.

His drive, passion, and true empathy to the plight of agricultural workers in Montana proved key to launching a successful campaign into the United States Congress. He promised that he would never betray or disappoint his constituents, and he never has.

Candidate Orville expected to enter Congress along side the incumbent President Taft, but was dashed by the brokered election of Woodrow Wilson. Orville himself was anti-war but still a Republican, and it was a hard pill to swallow. Doubly so when the Democrat Wilson entered the Great War regardless. The dissatisfaction he felt with the compromise candidate of Taft, combined with losing the Presidency to Wilson twice, and then immediately flowing into the corruption riddled Harding Administration was enough to drive the Representative into the arms of the new Progressive movement. Although Robert La Follette's campaign was doomed to fail, Orville still recalls the slapdash attempt at the presidency as one of the best moments of his life.

The Post War Gilded Age led to the Great Depression, worse than that, poor farming practices created one of the worst ecological disasters in American History with the Dust Bowl. Massive dust storms tore through the country and ravaged the Farm Belt. Thousands of poor farmers either packed up and left their homes in a biblical exodus, or attempted to live out what existence they could in the midst of what must've felt like the end of days. Orville's initial optimism of the competent Hoover administration turned to ash in his mouth as Hoover's economic and political theory left millions of Americans exhausted in mind, body, and soul. When the incumbent governor of New York, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, announced his candidacy Orville thought little of it. However he was convinced by the fierce recovery that FDR's policies as governor instilled in the farm workers of New York. After the election of FDR in nineteen-thirty-two Representative Orville Anderson made a big show of crossing party lines and later affiliation in support of the New Deal.

Orville first secured the Speakership in nineteen-forty-eight, after being offered it by party insiders to reconsider his plan to run for Senator. He would be a crucial supporter of Truman in the Democratic Party, as his absolute refusal to touch the issue of Civil Rights proved a sound strategy in appeasing both Northern and Southern Democrats. Although this would not last, it proved to be enough to hold the fragile coalition together. Orville became Minority Leader of the House during the first of the Jackson terms, and proved to the incumbent President to be a surprise ally in the passing of parts of his domestic policy. Keyly, Orville proved instrumental in supporting the Republican efforts to enshrine the Civil Rights Act of 1957.

Now the aging statesman lies at a great crossroad for his fraying Democratic Party, many say he's the wrong man in the wrong time, and he would agree.

Nevertheless, it is his inescapable responsibility, and it weighs heavily on him.


Other Info: Lifelong Bachelor

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

Do Not Remove: COLDWAR

[The Rio Grande River Basin]

Everyone enjoying Long’s bullshit grandstanding? Yeah, that’s gonna be a common theme.

[Newne Carriebean7]

Everyone enjoying Long’s bullshit grandstanding? Yeah, that’s gonna be a common theme.

Sparks wants to give this man the 'johnson treatment'.

[The Rio Grande River Basin]

Everyone enjoying Long’s bullshit grandstanding? Yeah, that’s gonna be a common theme.

Sparks wants to give this man the 'johnson treatment'.

What, swing around his “Crown Jewels” in front of him, or physical assault?
To be fair, Long also wants to tear Sparks’ guts out.

[Newne Carriebean7]

god damnit this is why we need the PPT to get his ass in here.

[Sao Nova Europa]

NS Nation Name: Turkducken
Character Name: Orville Wood Anderson, "The Tin Man" by Detractors

ACCEPTED

[Fukuyamist America]

A good leader is to his nation what a father is to his son.

[Sao Nova Europa]

A good leader is to his nation what a father is to his son.

Welcome

[Lic]

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Character Application and Information Sheet

NS Nation Name: Lic
Character Name: Hector E. Schmidt
Character Gender: Male
Character Age: 51
Character Date of Birth: December 12, 1908
Character Position/Role/Job: Senate Majority Whip (1958-), U.S. Senator from Massachusetts (1949-), Governor of Massachusetts (1945-1947), Mayor of Boston (1941-1945), Member of the Massachusetts Senate from the 4th Suffolk District (1937-1941), Member of the Boston School Committee (1933-1937), Teacher at Boston Latin School (1932-1933)
Character Country/State of Birth: Massachusetts
Character State of Residence: Massachusetts
Character Party Affiliation: Democratic
Faceclaim: Herman Mankiewicz
Main Strengths:

Bipartisan Experience: As a former Democrat governor who had to deal with a Republican legislature, Schmidt is used to horse trading and playing nice with the opposition. He is by no means a hated figure on Capitol Hill—although it does mean that he sometimes plays too nice and can get rolled over in negotiations.

Master of the Comeback: A detail-oriented control freak at heart, Schmidt is very good at coming out on top in tight elections because of his ground-level strategy. Most of his victories have been won by very tiny margins—even in times when he received bad press from the media and was generally viewed unfavorably by a large chunk of voters—and this skill has been recognized by Senate leadership, who have recently appointed him Senate Majority Whip to rally Democratic votes on polarizing legislation.

Safe Pair of Hands: Though he’s disliked by some for a perceived lack of firm ideals other than a vague liberalism, as well as an ineffective track record as governor, Schmidt is generally regarded as non-controversial and a “safe” option in tumultuous times. Even if he fails to implement transformative changes, he is by no means an incompetent leader, and can steer through hairy situations with a responsible, moderate pair of hands.

Main Weaknesses:

Politically Ambitious: Senator Schmidt is often seen as someone who is more interested in winning elections and furthering is own career rather than making meaningful progress for his constituents. The way he was quickly changed positions in his career—from State Senator to Mayor to Governor—has left a bad taste in the mouth of some voters.

Poor Gubernatorial Record: Though he remained in close contact with the Republican-dominated legislature during his governorship, Schmidt’s tenure at the top of the Massachusetts state executive was undoubtedly stymied by the opposition of the conservative majority. Most of his campaign promises—rent control, new laws to prevent racial discrimination in hiring, and expanded unemployment benefits—were either rejected outright or severely watered down. He was thus voted out of office after a single two-year term.

Not Sufficiently Opinionated: Schmidt has learned from his gubernatorial tenure not to make big promises. Though he is generally regarded as a modern American liberal, he makes few firm statements on policy unless he has directions to do so from the majority leader. He is generally in support of Civil Rights, generally in support of containing the fascist threat, and generally in support of anti-poverty legislation, though he rarely elaborates on specifics unprompted. He has also been noticeably quiet on the War in West Africa, attracting criticism from New Left activists who expect Northern liberals to take a stand.

German Heritage: Schmidt’s paternal grandparents lived in Germany until 1942, and he still has some extended family in the fascist state. Though he’s been relatively clear about his opposition to fascism—and his mild-mannered politics have stylistically separated from the authoritarianism of fascist regimes—his German last name does him no favors during this time of paranoia.

Biography:

Hector Edwin Schmidt was born in 1908 to a relatively wealthy Boston family of local publishers. He was an average student at public school and grew up somewhat sheltered from the world’s real problems; he was always more interested in making things with his hands than discussing abstract ideas. His father was somewhat politically involved in local elections, ensuring that he donated to mayoral candidates, state legislators, and helped install his own buddies on the Boston School Committee. Schmidt enrolled in Boston University in 1926, graduating with a degree in civil engineering four years later. Soon after he got a job as a schoolteacher at a public Boston high school, where he taught mathematics for a year. However, his father wanted his son to rise to a more important position in society, and so he pushed him to run for the Boston School Committee and enter politics. He won the election and sat on the school board from 1933 until 1937.

While a member of the school board, Schmidt had the opportunity to rub elbows with several influential individuals in politics—particularly members of the Boston Democratic Party political machine who had their hands in every part of the city’s government. He was taken under the wing of a couple of Democrat mentors, and soon he was set up to quietly launch a State Senate bid with their political support and his father’s financial support. He ran for State Senate on a platform of continuing to improve public education and create an intelligent, capable workforce—which was an effective message in middle-class Boston during the Depression. Once he was elected to the seat in 1937, Schmidt used the position less for legislating and more for developing connections with other politicians and with voters on the ground. He was known for barnstorming not only his district but the wider state as well, and began to slowly build a fairly strong ground operation in Massachusetts.

When the Boston mayoral seat opened up after the sitting mayor died in office, Schmidt entered the race as one of the top two candidates and a particularly strong campaign infrastructure. Though the newspapers saw his victory as an upset, it shouldn’t have come as much of a surprise; he had spent years carefully rallying the resources, networks, and staff to eke out a small victory in the mayoral race (a pattern that he would follow in every successive election for the rest of his career). When he entered office, the relationship between the city and the federal government was icy due to disagreements over New Deal relief money allocations. Schmidt decided not to get the city government deeper into such disputes, and instead chose to govern as a quiet fiscal conservative: his administration inherited infrastructure projects from the previous government, such as the Huntington subway project and the segregated housing development on West Broadway, but beyond the completion of those projects he chose to tighten the municipal government’s belt.

His first term as mayor was boring enough that Schmidt was neither seen with adoration nor vitriol by the voters. If anything, his image was as a steady hand in uncertain times. When the Republican governor of Massachusetts chose not to seek a fourth term, Schmidt was quick to throw his hat in the ring. Being the mayor of Boston was always an advantage in any Massachusetts statewide election, and though a significant portion of voters were skeptical that a first-term mayor could steer the entire state in a positive direction, Schmidt followed his grassroots electoral strategy to another tight-margin victory against the Republican Lieutenant Governor.

His political career had been fairly successful and easy so far, with Schmidt becoming deeply ingrained in Boston politics. But his time in the Governor’s Mansion complicated things. Republicans had entire control of the legislature, making it difficult for him to carry through on campaign promises like increasing unemployment benefits and supplementing Social Security payments. He developed strong personal relationships with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, but this didn’t translate into effective governance—despite his best efforts in lengthy negotiations with Republicans. In the end, he failed to convince voters to re-elect him, and was voted out for a Republican challenger in 1947. It was his first electoral loss—a margin of slightly over 1.5 percentage points.

He took two years off working closely with other Democratic campaigns around the state, hoping to help pick up seats at the national level. In 1949 when he launched his Senate campaign, he’d curried enough goodwill with Democratic politicians and voters in Massachusetts to fairly easily win the nomination. The general election was a nail biter and ended up being the closest victory he won in his entire career.

He has since surpassed expectations by remaining in the Senate for a decade, steadily rising the ranks of Democratic leadership. Pundits expected him to handily lose reelection after his first term, having made no significant legislative accomplishments. Instead his personal attention to his constituents and likable, grassroots style led him to expand his vote share in the following election, and remain a relatively safe seat after that. In his second term he also began to take slightly stronger positions on some issues, such as fascism—perhaps to compensate for his German last name. He sponsored a bill in 1954 proposing to make membership in any American National Socialist Party or other fascist party a felony. Though he has been mostly quiet on hot-button issues like the African Campaign and Civil Rights, his personable demeanor and steady image have awarded him with the Senate Majority Whip position. It will be his job to keep Democrat upstarts in line while pushing through the legislative agenda of the Majority Leader—while quietly pushing through his own, less bold bills (such as a proposal to establish a global ‘Peace Corps’).

Other Info: He has been married to Linda, his high school sweetheart, since 1933. They have two daughters.

I have read and accepted the rules of the roleplay: Lic
Do Not Remove: COLDWAR

[Lic]

^ partially based on Hubert Humphrey.

[The Rio Grande River Basin]

Jesus Christ, I can’t wait for Long to meets/scream obscenities at his ostensible boss.

[The Rio Grande River Basin]

^ partially based on Hubert Humphrey.

He was pretty outspoken though. Like, really outspoken. Like, banned from the south outspoken.

[Sao Nova Europa]

NS Nation Name: Lic
Character Name: Hector E. Schmidt

ACCEPTED

[Newne Carriebean7]

God-damnit, Long is growing on me ngl.

I'm starting to enjoy his uh... personality. Very King-fish like.

[Catalaonia]

God-damnit, Long is growing on me ngl.

I'm starting to enjoy his uh... personality. Very King-fish like.

That's a populist for ya!

[The Rio Grande River Basin]

God-damnit, Long is growing on me ngl.

I'm starting to enjoy his uh... personality. Very King-fish like.

That's a populist for ya!

He’s more wild than Sparks is. He’s literally threatening the lives of everyone in Congress and calling a woman a eunuch. There’s only room for one southern Senator here…
Let’s just say whoever is in charge of the Democrats is gonna get an earful from both of them.

[Lic]

That's a populist for ya!

He’s more wild than Sparks is. He’s literally threatening the lives of everyone in Congress and calling a woman a eunuch. There’s only room for one southern Senator here…
Let’s just say whoever is in charge of the Democrats is gonna get an earful from both of them.

Friendly ol’ Hector’s ready for it

[The Rio Grande River Basin]

He’s more wild than Sparks is. He’s literally threatening the lives of everyone in Congress and calling a woman a eunuch. There’s only room for one southern Senator here…
Let’s just say whoever is in charge of the Democrats is gonna get an earful from both of them.

Friendly ol’ Hector’s ready for it

Long is willing to talk. But he isn’t really backing down, considering the fact that the senate is in the process of overriding the filibuster.