Ross Perot
Contrary to popular belief among the punditry, politicians do take Ross Perot seriously. He certainly had the undivided attention of almost all the GOP hopefuls, who remember the number Perot did on Bush in '92; hence the excellent turnout for Perot's United We Stand America conference in Dallas this past August. All the major Republican candidates showed, aware that if they don't address the issues of concern to the Perot voters, the man himself could step in.Apparently Dole wasn't quite doing the job that Ross was hoping for; after Bob neared the GOP nomination by winning four states in the industrial midwest, Ross stepped in to announce that he was allowing his name to be placed on the ballot of the Reform Party, which he started in the aftermath of his 1992 run. Ross claims that he'll only step in until an official Reform candidate is chosen, but let's not kid ourselves: nobody loves the spotlight more than Ross, and if the public starts showing the least support, there's no way he'll budge.
Another odd phenomenon of the "Ross Effect" is the "copy-cat" candidate. Perot's success in 1992 had other businessmen such as Morry Taylor and Steve Forbes entering the political arena. Their failures, however, are a sobering reminder that while money does talk, it often doesn't say much. But there are hints that Ross is taking his role of public servant pretender seriously: his UWSA organization is amplifiying the call for the creation of a third party. During that August conference, many UWSA leaders had their own meeting to discuss doing just that.
Internet Resources:
- Reform Party Official WWW Site
- Just as flashy as Bob Dole's official site but much more informative, the Reform Party's site provides info on issues, platforms, petition drives and, most importantly, Ross' most recent doings.
- United We Stand America
- The Internet headquarters for the group Perot founded during his 1992 independent presidential bid. UWSA newsletters, schedules of events, and news about the founding father can be found here.
- Charlotte's Web UWSA Page
- This "unofficial" page has action alerts and legislative updates. Plus you'll find a good set of reports on the USWA Conference in Dallas.