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This year is another election year in America, if you haven't noticed, to fill in just a single post, that of the President of the United Status (or POTUS), a.k.a. "the most powerful man in the world" (not to be confused with movie villains). As is traditional, the two big parties first hold their own candidate selection in the first half of the year, a.k.a. the Primaries. Since it's a re-election year, that process is usually swift and short for the ruling party (the Republican party), but long and drawn out for the opposition party (the Democratic party). And so it was this year, until Corona interfered and cut the process short. But just a few weeks before that happened, on February 25 in Charleston SC, there had been one final television debate with all of the remaining candidates. And just by coincidence, that field which at one point had over 20 people, had been reduced to seven. The exact number needed for a game of Diplomacy.
The cast
Here are the candidates in the same order as they appeared on the stage, along with their highest elected office.
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Michael Bloomberg
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Pete Buttigieg
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Elizabeth Warren
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Bernie Sanders
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Joe Biden
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Amy Klobuchar
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Tom Steyer
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Former Mayor of New York
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Former Mayor of Southbend
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Senator of Massachusetts
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Senator of Vermont
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Former US Vice-President
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Senator of Minnesota
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No office
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Caricatures by Mike Thompson (cartoonist for USA Today a.o.)
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The power assignments
Watching the South-Carolina debate on TV, I started to see certain traits that would make each a perfect fit for a different power. Read the explanations below and see if you agree.
Michael Bloomberg: Italy
Michael Bloomberg had not yet put himself on the ballot in any of the early contests (of which South-Carolina would be the last) and was only participating in his second debate after a massive advertisement campaign geared at Super Tuesday and paid out of his own pocket. A billionaire with his own media empire, just like Berlusconi, the Italian media tycoon who was Prime Minister several times just to stay out of prison.
Pete Buttigieg: France
As mayor of a small town Pete Buttigieg had somehow succeeded in propelling himself onto the national stage. Mr. Perfect, as Fox anchor Laura Ingram labeled him, was pointing to himself as the more eligible candidate. Young in a field where most are past the retirement age, moderate instead of progressive (considered by Americans as representing the far left), and diverse in the sense that he's gay. This might win him some LGBTQ votes, but how this was going to convince Evangelicals to change party is an open question. There are some parallels there with Macron, the French President, who himself came from obscurity and positioned himself as the most eligible candidate to beat the candidate from the extreme right. Plus the French are already considered by Americans as being the gayest people in the world.
Elizabeth Warren: England
Elizabeth Warren was the other face of the progressive movement, next to Sanders. She had already won many of the debates, but not yet turned that into contest victories. There she was again, attacking Bloomberg on his misogyny and recounting her humble beginnings, and the public loved it. The Queen of Boston, Massachussets, was ready to go up in the national elections against the new Tea Party (a Republican movement, not as radical as the original Boston Tea Party that started the American Revolution). An Iron Lady, in the tradition of British Prime Ministers Margaret Thatcher and Theresa May, with a solid action plan to fix America's myriad of social problems.
Bernie Sanders: Russia
Bernie Sanders had emerged as the frontrunner after his clear victory in Nevada, but had come under fire for defending the Castro regime's education and healthcare implementations. Not a smart move in a country that already has severe problems distinguishing democratic socialism from communism. With Russia still on everyone's mind after their interference in the 2016 election, anyone who sings the praises of the oldest communist regime should tread very carefully.
Joe Biden: Austria
Joe Biden, the favorite before the start of the contests, had not won a single one, but was likely to win South-Carolina, due to its large black vote. Maybe they're hoping that he'll make Obama (husband or wife) his vice-president? He played the gentleman, letting himself get interrupted by the debate MC's and chalking it up to his Catholic upbringing. It brings to mind the Austrian Archduke, pretender to the throne, but destined to be murdered, plunging the world into the horrors of WWI. Let's hope this is not too prescient.
Amy Klobuchar: Germany
The "butcher", pardon me the pun. With a name like that it's not too hard to portrait her as a hard working woman in a male dominated world. And indeed, she worked hard, producing lots of relevant bills with her name on it, from gun check laws to healthcare, which were just piling up dust on Mitch McConnell's desk. Industrious, with not an ounce of glamour, just like Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor. The Midwest meets Mitteleuropa (Central Europe).
Tom Steyer: Turkey
Tom Steyer is a billionaire businessman, a trust fund manager and philantropist. The only one in the pack with no elected mandate yet, it made him the odd man out. Ignored for most of the evening, he's best remembered for trying to gain black votes by promising to compensate descendants of slaves to right the wrongs of the past. Some appeared to take that pretty literally and asked for an advance check which, alas, they didn't receive. His odd man out status made him a natural fit for the role of Turkey, the Sick Man of Europe. Add to that his pale complexion, a remarkable feat in an all-white field, and one wondered if he truly was sick. Sick of the pressure, perhaps?
The opening
I asked Luiz Neto, who regularly writes on openings and is a keen user of the Openings Library, to suggest openings for each of the candidates that would suit their style. Luckily for me he duly obliged.
Michael Bloomberg: Italy
The little that I heard of Bloomberg's campaign translates best with Italy's Western Lepanto/French Attack (F NAP-TYN, A VEN-PIE, A ROM-TUS): a flamboyant effort that looks awe-inspiring yet most likely will achieve very little, with a high likelihood of disaster after major (tactical) expenses.
Pete Buttigieg: France
Buttigieg would think ahead: as France, the use of the Manche Opening (F BRE-ENG, A PAR-BUR, A MAR-SPA) would keep those nasty conservative monarchists in England and Germany from making any fancy gambits, while the move to Spain shows one's attention to the national rearguard.
Elizabeth Warren: England
Warren would lead England to action: a Welsh Opening (F LON-ENG, F EDI-NTH, A LVP-WAL) would most likely scare French and German lobbyists across all diplomatic circles to its fullest... and finish with a supported convoy to Belgium just for the heck of it.
Bernie Sanders: Russia
If Sanders had Russia he would play the Octopus (F SEV-BLA, F STP-BOT, A MOS-STP, A WAR-GAL), no doubt. Like a proper national healthcare system, the arms of mother Russia would seek to embrace the whole of the map as quickly as possible.
Joe Biden: Austria
Biden as Austria? That one would, above anything else, play cool with the Hungarian Houseboat Opening (F TRI H, A VIE-GAL, A BUD-SER). Why mess up with the political status quo of the board if the establishment already works wonders?
Amy Klobuchar: Germany
Klobuchar plays safe, perhaps too safe: a Danish Blitzkrieg (F KIE-DEN, A BER-KIE, A MUN-RUH) secures the right spots, doesn't annoy anyone else, and keeps Germany in the race... for a while, at least. The biggest downside is that the opening is conventionally boring and might drive supporters to sleep.
Tom Steyer: Turkey
I never heard of Steyer in my life. Perhaps the Astonishingly Arrogant Ankara Assault (A CON-ANK, F ANK-BLA, A SMY-ARM) would interrogatively raise the same eyebrows as it did mine when I saw that name. Seriously, who's that?
The homework
That's it. You may have by now considered a few other alternatives for the power assignments or the game openings. Or maybe you noticed some other group of seven who might make a terrific target. If you do, don't hesitate to contact me using the e-mail address below or through our Facebook group, also called The Diplomatic Pouch.
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