Presidential Deathmatch

If Congress is the Spanish Armada of American politics: too large to be nimble and mostly irrelevant today, then the presidency is certainly the pirates of American politics: we like them even though they're riddled with scurvy.

Dennis and Aaron compare the romantic western explorer John Frémont and the luxoriating, big spender James G. Blaine in which failed Republican candidate would be the most likely to plunder booty should they be given the chance. 

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The Prohibition Party is America’s oldest non-major party fielding a candidate every year without fail since 1876. The party lived to see their main goal be enacted into law, then rescinded as its unintended consequences wrecked the law, order, and stability the party ostensibly fought for, and it did this all without ever gaining major electoral success.

Dennis and Aaron dive into the history of the Prohibition Party and a number of its presidential candidates through 2020.

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We had so many mediocre presidential candidates they had to spill over into the new year! 

As we take a bit of time off from research please enjoy the lifes and travails of Pat Paulsen, James Iredell, and Henry Krajeski, truly the three amigos of people who ran for president faceitiously and weren't ever in the same room together.

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Dennis is back and he's Dennisier than ever! We're taking things a little easy this week and bringing you a few short profiles on lesser known Presidential Candidates through history. 

In which we discover exactly how little Aaron brings to the table.

Dennis is still on his honeymoon which means it’s time to plot his eventual removal from the program and which failed candidate would best replace him. After a longwinded retractions segment Aaron tucks in for a discussion of Dennis’ childhood with Al and Nancy Budde, then Aaron takes the time to lay out a little bit more than we conventionally do for his chosen candidate.

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My grandma always used to say "When there's a Dennis sized hole in your heart, only a Jacob Godbey can fill it," and never is that more true than today's very special episode. 

While Dennis is away on his honeymoon the only debates that matter continue as Jacob and Aaron ponder who would lead better during the Robocalypse: the last of the Whigs Winfield Scott, or noted tank-fancier Michael Dukakis.

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We bring in some big guns because Aaron has lost his voice: Jessica and Carolyn rejoin the program to talk about wedding planning and whether it's better to lead with the stick or the carrot as we muse on whether the charismatic militant Aaron Burr or the aloof, but organized Thomas Dewey would serve better in that role.  

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We ran out of time and bachelorhood this week, so you're in for a short profile of the most obscure man to run for president: Alton Parker. 

This holiday we're giving thanks for disillusionment! 

Ideally we'd celebrate people for updating their beliefs and opinons based on new information, but our human biases often get in the way. This goes doubly for politicians who can be seen as spurning the voters who got them into office or not being team players. 

Julia Galef's book The Scout Mindset offers a compelling argument for why we'd not only be healthier, but also happier if we make truth-finding our central goal instead of view-defending. Aaron and Dennis discuss this as well go deeper (too deep) on the Scopes Monkey Trial and Presidential Musicals. 

You can vote for the best scout at: https://www.strawpoll.me/45862919 

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It’s a battle of the hat trick losers as Henry “The American” Clay takes on William “The Silver Bullet” Bryan in the most sedate debate yet!

Aubrey Langston joins us to talk about card collecting and why you sometimes get a rooster in your baseball cards.

Vote with your fingers at: www.strawpoll.me/45853629

Support the show through Pronoiatheater.com/store or through donation at paypal.me/Pronoiatheater or Venmo: @pronoia

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