History UsefulNotes / RossPerot

Henry Ross Perot (June 27, 1930 – July 9, 2019) was an American businessman, political activist, and former Lieutenant in the Navy. He is best known for being the most influential independent presidential candidate in recent memory, running two well-known, albeit unsuccessful, presidential campaigns in the 1990s.

Ross Perot was born in Texarkana, UsefulNotes/{{Texas}} to a cotton commodities broker. After graduating from high school in 1947, he entered the U.S. Naval Academy in 1949, helping to create its honor system, and left the Navy in 1961 with the rank of Lieutenant.

On February 20, 1992, he announced on ''[[Creator/LarryKing Larry King Live]]'' that he would launch his own independent bid for the Presidency, focusing on balancing the federal budget and opposing free trade agreements. With a weak economy and George Bush Sr. losing his allure after the end of the Cold War made his foreign policy expertise irrelevant, Perot quickly gained popularity for his populist positions. Despite at one point being in the lead, he promptly turned himself into a punchline with numerous antics: shouting "you people" at an NAACP meeting, his ControlFreak tendencies, disregarding his campaign advisors, and accusing the Republicans of wanting to sabotage his daughter's wedding. On July 16, he withdrew from the race but then re-entered on October 11 and was allowed to participate in the Presidential debates, where his performance allowed regaining some of his popularity. Although his running mate, Vice Admiral James Stockdale, became a laughingstock after his seemingly confused introduction, "Who am I? Why am I here?" led to the public perception that he was senile.

While he failed to win any states, Perot managed to win 18.9% of the vote in the 1992 election and came in second in UsefulNotes/{{Maine}} and UsefulNotes/{{Utah}}. There are accusations that he acted as a spoiler for the Bush campaign, although polls showed he drew equally from Bush and Clinton voters.

Despite his loss, he remained in the public eye, appearing on ''Larry King Live'' to debate with UsefulNotes/AlGore over the effects of NAFTA.[[note]]The North American Free Trade Agreement, a pact between the US, Canada, and Mexico. It has since been superseded by the US–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA).[[/note]] In 1995, he founded the Reform Party and launched another Presidential campaign with economist Pat Choate as his running mate. Partly because he was excluded from the 1996 Presidential debates, he only received 8% of the vote.

After a brief stint as a salesman for [=IBM=], where he met his sales quota in ''two weeks'', he went on to found Electronic Data Services, or [=EDS=]), where he made a large fortune processing Medicare records for the federal government. The [=IPO=] for [=EDS=] in 1968 led him to amass one of the quickest fortunes in the business world. In 1984 he sold an interest in [=EDS=] to General Motors for $2.4 billion and funded Steve Jobs' [=NeXT=], a business venture Jobs started after his temporary departure from Apple. In 1988, he founded Perot Systems, an information technology provider which was sold to Dell in 2009 for $3.9 billion by Perot's son.

Perot had been a Republican Party insider, but his relationship with UsefulNotes/RonaldReagan and [[UsefulNotes/GeorgeHWBush Bush Sr.]] broke down over his belief that the government was not doing enough to bring American [=POW=]s home, as well as his opposition to the Gulf War.

On February 20, 1992, he announced on ''[[Creator/LarryKing Larry King Live]]'' that he would launch his own independent bid for the Presidency, focusing on balancing the federal budget and opposing free trade agreements. With a weak economy and George Bush Sr. losing his allure after the end of the Cold War made his foreign policy expertise irrelevant, Perot quickly gained popularity for his populist positions. Despite at one point being in the lead, he promptly turned himself into a punchline with numerous antics: shouting "you people" at an [=NAACP=] meeting, his ControlFreak tendencies, disregarding his campaign advisors, and accusing the Republicans of wanting to sabotage his daughter's wedding. On July 16, he withdrew from the race but then re-entered on October 11 and was allowed to participate in the Presidential debates, where his performance allowed regaining some of his popularity. Although his running mate, Vice Admiral James Stockdale, became a laughingstock after his seemingly confused introduction, "Who am I? Why am I here?" led to the public perception that he was senile.

Despite his loss, he remained in the public eye, appearing on ''Larry King Live'' to debate with UsefulNotes/AlGore over the effects of [=NAFTA=]. In 1995, he founded the Reform Party and launched another Presidential campaign with economist Pat Choate as his running mate. Partly because he was excluded from the 1996 Presidential debates, he only received 8% of the vote.

The Reform Party briefly had a chance at becoming a major force, even electing Wrestling/JesseVentura governor of Minnesota and attracting high profile candidates like Colorado Governor Richard Lamm and UsefulNotes/DonaldTrump. But quickly the party became a battleground for various fringe interests and Perot was accused of wanting to create a vehicle for himself rather than a viable political party.

* ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'': He was portrayed by Creator/DanaCarvey during his 1992 campaign.[[note]]Creator/DavidSpade also acted as a stand-in for Perot in the "Debate 92" cold opening during distant shots, as Carvey [[ActingForTwo also played George H. W. Bush]].[[/note]] After Carvey left the show, he was played by Creator/CheriOteri. Perot himself apparently [[ApprovalOfGod approved of Carvey's portrayal]] enough that [[https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/tv/la-et-st-ross-perot-dana-carvey-snl-20190709-story.html he asked Carvey to play his parody on Perot's headquarters]] during the 1992 election night.

Ross Perot was born in Texarkana, Texas to a cotton commodities broker. After graduating from high school in 1947, he entered the U.S. Naval Academy in 1949, helping to create its honor system, and left the Navy in 1961 with the rank of Lieutenant.

While he failed to win any states, Perot managed to win 18.9% of the vote in the 1992 election and came in second in Maine and Utah. There are accusations that he acted as a spoiler for the Bush campaign, although polls showed he drew equally from Bush and Clinton voters.

Of course, Perot isn't as well known for these ventures as known for his quixotic political career.

Perot had once been a Republican Party insider, but his relationship with UsefulNotes/RonaldReagan and [[UsefulNotes/GeorgeHWBush Bush Sr.]] broke down over his belief that the government was not doing enough to bring American [=POW=]s home, as well as his opposition to the Gulf War.

On February 20, 1992, he announced on ''[[Creator/LarryKing Larry King Live]]'' that he would launch his own independent bid for the Presidency, with a focus on balancing the federal budget and opposing free trade agreements. With a weak economy and George Bush Sr. losing his allure after the end of the Cold War made his foreign policy expertise irrelevant, Perot quickly gained popularity for his populist positions. Despite at one point being in the lead, he quickly turned himself into a punchline with numerous antics: shouting "you people" at an [=NAACP=] meeting, his ControlFreak tendencies, disregarding his campaign advisors, and accusing the Republicans of wanting to sabotage his daughter's wedding. On July 16, he withdrew from the race, but then re-entered on October 11, and was allowed to participate in the Presidential debates, where his performance allowed to regain some of his popularity. Although his running mate, Vice Admiral James Stockdale, became a laughingstock after his seemingly confused introduction "Who am I? Why am I here?" led to the public perception that he was senile.

While he failed to win any states, Perot managed to win 18.9% of the vote in the 1992 election and managed to come in second in Maine and Utah. There are accusations that he acted as a spoiler for the Bush campaign, although polls showed he drew equally from Bush and Clinton voters.

By 2000, Perot left the party he founded and endorsed UsefulNotes/GeorgeWBush. By the TurnOfTheMillennium he'd become a non-entity, only giving the occasional interview and endorsement.

Henry Ross Perot (June 27, 1930 – July 9, 2019) was an American businessman, political activist, and former Lieutenant in the Navy. He is best known for being the most influential independent politician in recent memory, running two well-known, albeit unsuccessful, presidential campaigns in the 1990s.

* ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'': He was portrayed by Creator/DanaCarvey during his 1992 campaign.[[note]]Creator/DavidSpade also acted as a stand-in for Perot in the "Debate 92" cold opening during distant shots, as Carvey also played George H. W. Bush.[[/note]] After Carvey left the show, he was played by Creator/CheriOteri. Perot himself apparently [[ApprovalOfGod approved of Carvey's portrayal]] enough that [[https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/tv/la-et-st-ross-perot-dana-carvey-snl-20190709-story.html he asked Carvey to play his parody on Perot's headquarters]] during the 1992 election night.

He married Margot Johnson in 1956 and had five children. He succumbed to leukemia in 2019 at the age of 89.

Henry Ross Perot (June 27, 1930 – July 9, 2019) was an American businessman, politician, activist, and former Lieutenant in the Navy. He is best known for being the most influential independent politician in recent memory, running two well-known, albeit ill-fated, presidential campaigns in the 1990s.

->''"War has rules, mud wrestling has rules - politics has no rules."''
-->-- Ross Perot

Henry Ross Perot (June 27, 1930-July 9, 2019) was an American businessman, politician, activist, and former Lieutenant in the Navy. He is best known for being the most influential independent politician in recent memory, running two well-known, albeit ill-fated, presidential campaigns in the 1990s.

After a brief stint as a salesman for [=IBM=], where he met his sales quota in ''two weeks'', he went on to found Electronic Data Services, or [=EDS=]), where he made a large fortune processing Medicare records for the federal government. The [=IPO=] for [=EDS=] in 1968 led him to amass one of the quickest fortunes in the business world. In 1984 he sold an interest in [=EDS=] to General Motors for $2.4 billion and funded Steve Jobs' NeXT, a business venture Jobs started after his temporary departure from Apple. In 1988, he founded Perot Systems, an information technology provider which was sold to Dell in 2009 for $3.9 billion by Perot's son.

The Reform Party briefly had a chance at becoming a major force, even electing UsefulNotes/JesseVentura governor of Minnesota and attracting high profile candidates like Colorado Governor Richard Lamm and UsefulNotes/DonaldTrump. But quickly the party became a battleground for various fringe interests and Perot was accused of wanting to create a vehicle for himself rather than a viable political party.

By 2000, Perot left the party he founded and endorsed UsefulNotes/GeorgeWBush. By the TurnOfTheMillennium he'd become a non-entity, only giving the occasional interview and endorsement.

On February 20, 1992, he announced on ''[[Creator/LarryKing Larry King Live]]'' that he would launch his own independent bid for the Presidency, with a focus on balancing the federal budget and opposing free trade agreements. With a weak economy and George Bush Sr. losing his allure after the end of the Cold War made his foreign policy expertise irrelevant, Perot quickly gained popularity for his populist positions. Despite at one point being in the lead, he quickly turned himself into a punchline with numerous antics: shouting "you people" at an [=NAACP=] meeting, his ControlFreak tendencies, disregarding his campaign advisors, and accusing the Republicans of wanting to sabotage his daughter's wedding. On July 16, he withdrew from the race, but then re-entered on October 11, and was allowed to participate in the Presidential debates, where his performance allowed to regain some of his popularity.

While he failed to win any states, Perot managed to win 18.9% of the vote in the 1992 election and managed to come in second in Maine and Utah. There are accusations that he acted as a spoiler for the Bush campaign, although polls showed he drew equally from Bush and Clinton voters.

Perot had once been a Republican Party insider, but his relationship with Ronald Reagan and Bush Sr. broke down over his belief that the government was not doing enough to bring American [=POW=]s home, as well as opposition to the Gulf War.

On February 20, 1992, he announced on ''[[Creator/LarryKing Larry King Live]]'' that he would launch his own independent bid for the Presidency, with a focus on balancing the federal budget and opposing free trade agreements. With a weak economy and George Bush Sr. losing his allure after the end of the Cold War made his foreign policy expertise irrelevant, Perot quickly gained popularity for his populist antics.

Of course, Perot isn't as well known for these ventures as known for his quixotic political career.

Ross Perot was born in Texarkana, Texas to a cotton commodities broker. After graduating from high school in 1947, he entered the U.S.