R.I.P. H. Ross Perot at 89

[Ar-Pharazon]

To be honest, I thought the guy left us years ago.

The idea of a businessman as President may not have started with Perot, but he certainly made a decent showing at 19% in the 1992 election. I voted for him in that election.

Would he have done better or worse than our current CEO-in chief do you think (honest question)?

 

[Random_Spock]

RIP sir.

 

[feek61]

WOW!!! I had no idea he was still alive up until now, RIP

 

[Lord Garth]

I have a few older friends who voted for Perot in 1992.

Would he have done better or worse than our current CEO-in chief do you think (honest question)?

I think anyone would've done better.

The next President will be better pretty much by default, because it won't be Trump.

 

[Ar-Pharazon]

I have a few older friends who voted for Perot in 1992.

I think anyone would've done better.

The next President will be better pretty much by default, because it won't be Trump.

I'm really just asking from a businessman POV. Would Perot have been able to keep from running his mouth as much? Probably.

Unfortunately, it seems like it will be Trump again. I don't know if the Libertarians have another name in mind with Gary Johnson not running again AFAIK.

 

[Armus]

I voted for Ross Perot in my 7th grade mock election in '92. R.I.P.

 

[Lord Garth]

I'm really just asking from a businessman POV.

Perot never filed for bankruptcy and he successfully started, ran, and grew Electronic Data Systems (EDS) right up through the time it was bought out by General Motors. And he was in the Navy. So I'd say he was more savvy as a businessman, more focused, and on a side-note, he actually served. So all those things make him seem better, starting right off, without even going into the duties and responsibilities of actually running government.

Most importantly, as a businessman, you want to charm everyone. Trump only charms the people whose ids he appeals to the most and repels everyone else. Perot never struck me as repulsive. Eccentric, yes. But he was someone where you kind of liked him because of his eccentricity.

 

[BillJ]

RIP. Definitely made the 1992 election interesting.

 

[Ar-Pharazon]

Perot never filed for bankruptcy and he successfully started, ran, and grew Electronic Data Systems (EDS) right up through the time it was bought out by General Motors. And he was in the Navy. So I'd say he was more savvy as a businessman, more focused, and on a side-note, he actually served. So all those things make him seem better, starting right off, without even going into the duties and responsibilities of actually running government.

Most importantly, as a businessman, you want to charm everyone. Trump only charms the people whose ids he appeals to the most and repels everyone else. Perot never struck me as repulsive. Eccentric, yes. But he was someone where you kind of liked him because of his eccentricity.

Good points. A shame we never got to find out for sure.

 

[BillJ]

I'm really just asking from a businessman POV. Would Perot have been able to keep from running his mouth as much? Probably.

I think a chimp would be a more impressive POTUS than Trump.

 

[Ar-Pharazon]

I think a chimp would be a more impressive POTUS than Trump.

If you're comparing apples to apples, it would be an orangutan

"Right turn Clyde"

 

[Kor]

A kid in my class had the last name Ross. We would give him some good-natured teasing by saying his whole name and adding Perot to the end.

Kor

 

[StarCruiser]

There's little doubt that H. Ross Perot would have been better than the Drumpster (fire). He was eccentric but, basically honest and clearly talented. Trump is everything Perot would never even want to be...

 

[Lord Garth]

I voted for Ross Perot in my 7th grade mock election in '92. R.I.P.

Funny thing is, I voted for Bush Sr. in my mock election.

 

[J.T.B.]

The second presidential election I voted in (voted for Clinton). It was a strange campaign for sure. He quit in the summer (when he said there was a plot to disrupt his daughter's wedding) and got back in in October, which was kind of an odd strategy.

People made fun of Perot's charts and graphs and his alligator voodoo pointer stick. But he was talking about real policy ideas, that were thought out with numbers and everything. While Trump ran a basically policy-content-free campaign, and still can only speak in the vaguest of terms about administration policy.

I did not agree with all of Perot's policy ideas, but as a person he was basically admirable. He used his wealth to try and make a positive difference, and his philanthropy was very quiet, not a means to gain attention for himself.