The Boomers Roll Into Washington

The Soviet Union collapsed, Iraq had been expelled from Kuwait, Panama declared war on America and was trounced, and the US economy had slightly slowed down. The incumbent president was George HW Bush. History looks at him more favorably today than in 1992. In 1992, he was the man that went against his "No New Taxes" pledge, oversaw a ballooning deficit, and ignored problems at home. With voter discontent high, Bush was challenged by commentator Pat Buchanan for the Republican nomination. Although Bush defeated Buchanan, the right wing populist had wounded the incumbent President much like Reagan hurt Ford in 1976 and Kennedy hurt Carter in 1980.
The Democratic field was a mess. In 1991, no one wanted to challenge Bush. The President's approval rating was over 90%. The Democratic field narrowed to three. Governor Jerry Brown of California (aka Governor Moonbeam), Massachusetts Senator Paul Tsongas (whom many wondered why he was not a Republican), and Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton. The Arkansas Governor was plagued by stories of womanizing and draft dodging. On top of this, his wife annoyed many people and scared others. The couple talked about a "two for one" deal. Vote for Bill and get Hillary too.
The Governor was accused of a decade long affair with a lounge singer. Clinton went on 60 Minutes and diffused the Gennifer Flowers scandal. Her credibility was hurt when it was revealed she received money for her story. In New Hampshire, Clinton finished second to Paul Tsongas and declared victory. All of a sudden, he was the "comeback kid" and had the momentum. He sailed to victory in the Democratic primaries.
Then came Perot. Businessman and all around strange person Ross Perot decided to attack the deficit and both parties. He never really gave specifics, but he was quick with the one liners and his graphs and charts. At one point, he led both Bush and Clinton in the polls. Then, he pulled out claiming something about a Republican hit squad and his daughter's wedding. To this day, no one is sure what Perot was talking about. For some reason, he re-entered the race, but his momentum, and novelty, was gone. Perot's most amusing mistake was his selection of Admiral James Stockdale as vice president. During the Vice Presidential Debate, he uttered the classic, "who am I? Why am I here?" Senator Gore and Vice President Quayle looked even more stupefied than the two of them normally do.
During the general election, Clinton hit hard. He blamed Bush for "the worst economy in fifty years." (In reality, the worst since Carter). James Carville coined the term "It's the economy stupid!" Clinton had to deal with stories of womanizing and drug use ("I didn't inhale"). The Democrats ran on the economy. Ross Perot ran on the deficit. Bush ran on experience.
The media played a major role in 1992 by contrasting the candidates and attacking the economy. They tended to portray Bush as old and out of touch while showing Clinton as young and vigorous. Also, they withheld good economic news until after the election. They also played up some suspiciously timed Iran-Contra indictments that came right before the election.
Despite this tide, Bush remained even in the polls with Clinton going into election day. However, when the final count was done, Clinton won with 43% of the vote. Ross Perot siphoned votes away from Bush and got Clinton elected.
Four years later, Clinton cruised to the nomination. The Republicans nominated Senator Bob Dole of Kansas. Dole ran a dreadful campaign. At the eleventh hour, he decided to campaign for 24 straight hours to show he was physically fit. Clinton spent the better part of 1995 and 1996 attacking Dole and the Republicans and had created a narrative that was hard to defeat. Additionally, Dole ran out of money prior to the convention and could not fight back adequately. On the other hand, Clinton was a fund raising machine. Clinton won re-election, but Americans were wary of him. He could not break the 50% mark in the popular vote.
George H.W. Bush went into retirement, jumped out of airplanes, and watched his son be elected president in 2000. Bill Clinton ran the most scandal ridden administration ever, was impeached, rebuilt his reputation through charitable work (some done with Bush 41), and then watched it all unravel during the 2008 primaries. Pat Buchanan is now a MSDNC commentator. Paul Tsongas died of cancer. No one is sure what became of Jerry Brown. Bob Dole went on to do Viagra commercials. Ross Perot ran for president in 1996, formed the Reform Party, and then returned to his home planet. Had he not mucked things up in 1992, then no Bill Clinton, no impeachment, no high gas prices, and probably no 911.
Tags: Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush, Politics, Presidential Election, 1992, 1996