Episode 6: Candidate of the Apocalypse

Flashback: September 2010

Charles' campaign manager was cautiously optimistic. While things were going pretty well so far-the numbers told him they were still way behind. There was simply no way that Charles could speak to enough people face to face and pull it off. But all was not lost. He did have a couple of ideas about using social networks and other means to spread the word. This helped a lot. There must be some (future) point of critical mass when everything they were working toward must explode or else simply fade away. The problem was he didn't know when, or if, this point could be reached. But they must go on. At every meeting Charles gave him some time to talk about the importance of networking and how this could become something which had never happend before in history, an online campaign made up entirely of like-minded people whose reach could be more pervasive than either, or both parties together. He was driven to see if this could be accomplished and was constantly busy looking for the best and most efficient ways to communicate between them and their supporters.

It was the middle of the afternoon and Charles was in a radio interview. He had already spoken to two groups this morning and would have another before flying back late tonight.

The radio host asked, "And what do you say when people ask about your qualifications?"
"Well, I am over the age of 35. I am a natural born citizen and have lived here continuously for over 14 years. So I do meet the minimum requirements to run. But what people usually mean by this kind of questions is; do you have the right educational credentials, or do you have some kind of experience in government. I do have a University degree. Not from Yale or Harvard like some of our Presidents have. On the other hand, aren't these the very ones who have put us in the mess we're in? OK, so having an education at the right school isn't enough. Secondly, I owned a business for some 15 years. I was good at it. I negotiated prices, delivery schedules and all kinds of other things in the course of running that company. I had to know when to delegate and when the decision fell on me. Every decision was made with care because they affected my people and their jobs. How is this different from negotiating for a particular bill, or some kind of trade agreement? It's only a matter of scale. Also: One great advantage the President has is access to the best and brightest in the country. They can provide expertise that he may lack. That's what the cabinet and advisors are for. I plan on tapping into that knowledge pool when it comes to makinig decisions." Last of all, we hear a lot of people saying that we need to send some kind of message to Washington. Wouldn't electing someone like me be the biggest message of all?"

"And that's why you are running what is truly a grassroots campaign."

"Exactly. I've set things up so that I must be invited to come and speak. If my message does not resonate with them, then the offers will simply go away."

"And on that note, how many speaking engagements do you have right now?"

"More than I can handle. As a matter of fact we've had to up our minimum crowd request from fifty people to a hundred. And we still have more calls every single day."

Outside the studio Charles found several reporters assembled and waiting. This was a first and he politely held another question and answer session. Soon he felt his campaign manager pulling on his sleeve. They were going to be late. Time to go.

The next place happend to be at a gym. Charles found himself at the center of a friendly and supportive crowd. He wound up exercising between questions and comments. Some were political but a lot them were about his workout routine. His personality really meshed with them. Toward the end one guy said, "You know at some gyms they have a time when you can some in and workout naked!" "I would never workout naked," Charles replied with a twinkle in his eye, "For two reasons. First it's too distracting. Second, I don't want to draw a crowd." Everyone laughed and Charles had to move on.

However, someone in the crowd recorded that little quip and in a few days it became a minor YouTube hit. Rather than hurting Charles' campaign there was an upswing in numbers. His manager just shook his head. "Who is this guy?" he thought.

That very afternoon Charles received an invitation to appear on a local morning talk show. The topic of discussion they said would be the economy and how to address it. Charles agreed.

But it was a trick.