Ross Perot#Early political activities

{{Short description|American businessman and politician (1930–2019)}}

{{Infobox person

| name = Ross Perot

| image = RossPerotColor.jpg

| caption = Perot in 1986

| birth_name = Henry Ross Perot

| birth_date = {{birth date|1930|06|27}}

| birth_place = Texarkana, Texas, U.S.

| death_date = {{death date and age|2019|07|09|1930|06|27}}

| death_place = Dallas, Texas, U.S.

| resting_place = Sparkman-Hillcrest Memorial Park Cemetery, Dallas

| party = {{plainlist|

Independent (before 1995)
Reform (1995–2000)
Republican (2000–2019)

}}

| spouse = {{marriage|Margot Birmingham|1956}}

| children = 5, including Ross Jr.

| education = {{plainlist|

}}

| website = {{Official website|www.rossperot.com}}

| signature = Ross Perot Signature.png

| module = {{Infobox military person | embed=yes

| branch = United States Navy

| serviceyears = 1953–1957

| rank = Lieutenant

| module = {{Listen|pos=center|embed=yes|filename=|title=Ross Perot's voice|type=speech|description=Ross Perot speaks on American Competitiveness and the protection of American Jobs
Recorded October 15, 1992}}

}}

Henry Ross Perot ({{IPAc-en|p|ə|ˈ|r|oʊ|audio=En-us-Perot.oga}} {{respelling|pə|ROH}}; June 27, 1930 – July 9, 2019) was an American businessman, politician, and philanthropist. He was the founder and chief executive officer of Electronic Data Systems and Perot Systems. He ran an independent campaign in the 1992 U.S. presidential election and a third-party campaign in the 1996 U.S. presidential election as the nominee of the Reform Party, which was formed by grassroots supporters of Perot's 1992 campaign. Although he failed to carry a single state in either election, both campaigns were among the stronger presidential showings by a third party or independent candidate in U.S. history.

Born and raised in Texarkana, Texas, Perot became a salesman for IBM after serving in the United States Navy. In 1962, he founded Electronic Data Systems, a data processing service company. In 1984, General Motors bought a controlling interest in the company for $2.4 billion (${{Inflation|index=US-GDP|value=2.4|start_year=1984|r=1|fmt=c}} billion in {{Inflation/year|US-GDP}}). Perot established Perot Systems in 1988 and was an angel investor for NeXT, a computer company founded by Steve Jobs after he left Apple. Perot also became heavily involved in the Vietnam War POW/MIA issue, arguing that hundreds of American servicemen were left behind in Southeast Asia after the Vietnam War. During the presidency of George H. W. Bush, Perot became increasingly active in politics and strongly opposed both the Gulf War and the ratification of the North American Free Trade Agreement.

In 1992, Perot announced his intention to run for president and advocated a balanced budget, an end to the outsourcing of jobs, and the enactment of electronic direct democracy. A June 1992 Gallup poll showed Perot leading a three-way race against President Bush and presumptive Democratic nominee Bill Clinton. Perot withdrew from the race in July, but re-entered the race in early October after he qualified for all 50 state ballots. He chose Admiral James Stockdale as his running mate and appeared in the 1992 debates with Bush and Clinton. In the election, Perot did not win any electoral votes, but won over 19.7 million votes for an 18.9% share of the popular vote. He won support from across the ideological and partisan spectrum, but performed best among self-described moderates. Perot ran for president again in 1996, establishing the Reform Party as a vehicle for his campaign. He won 8.4 percent of the popular vote against President Clinton and Republican nominee Bob Dole.

Perot did not seek public office again after 1996. He endorsed Republican George W. Bush over Reform nominee Pat Buchanan in the 2000 election and supported Republican Mitt Romney in 2008 and 2012. In 2009, Dell acquired Perot Systems for $3.9 billion (${{Inflation|index=US-GDP|value=3.9|start_year=2009|r=1|fmt=c}} billion in {{Inflation/year|US-GDP}}). According to Forbes, Perot was the 167th richest person in the United States as of 2016."Forbes 400: 2017 Ranking". Forbes. October 2017. Retrieved October 17, 2017. Perot died from leukemia in Dallas, Texas, on July 9, 2019. He was 89 years old.

Early life, education, and military career

Ross Perot was born in Texarkana, Texas in 1930, the son of Lula May (née Ray) and Gabriel Ross Perot,{{Cite web |url=http://www.wargs.com/political/perot.html |title=The Ancestors of Ross Perot |publisher=Wargs.com |access-date=June 13, 2010}} a commodity broker specializing in cotton contracts. He had an older brother, Gabriel Perot Jr., who died as a toddler.{{Cite news |last=Hall |first=Cheryl |date=July 9, 2019 |title=Ross Perot, self-made billionaire, patriot and philanthropist, dies at 89 |url=https://www.dallasnews.com/business/business/2019/07/09/ross-perot-self-made-billionaire-patriot-philanthropist-dies-89 |access-date=July 9, 2019 |work=The Dallas Morning News}} His patrilineal line traces back to a French-Canadian immigrant to the colony of Louisiana in the 1740s.{{Cite book |page=8 |first=Gerald |last=Posner |title=Citizen Perot |publisher=Random House |location=New York City |year=1996}}{{Cite web |first=Danny |last=Reagan |url=http://web.reporternews.com/dannyreagan/perot.html |title=The Perot/Bordelon Branches |access-date=February 18, 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090718221004/http://web.reporternews.com/dannyreagan/perot.html |archive-date=July 18, 2009}}

Perot attended a local private school, Patty Hill, before graduating from Texas High School in Texarkana in 1947.{{Cite web|url=https://www.newsweek.com/deep-heart-texarkana-199530|title=Deep In The Heart Of Texarkana|date=June 28, 1992|website=Newsweek|language=en|access-date=August 20, 2019}}{{Cite web |url=http://www.txkisd.net/headlines/2009-2010/9%2016%2009%20Texarkana%20Independent%20School%20District%20Names%20H%20%20Ross%20Perot%20as%202009%20Distinguished%20Alumni.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221010/http://www.txkisd.net/headlines/2009-2010/9%2016%2009%20Texarkana%20Independent%20School%20District%20Names%20H%20%20Ross%20Perot%20as%202009%20Distinguished%20Alumni.pdf |archive-date=October 10, 2022 |url-status=live |publisher=Texarkana Independent School District |title=Texarkana Independent School District Names H. Ross Perot as 2009 Distinguished Alumni |date=September 17, 2009 |access-date=October 6, 2012}} His first job, at eight years old, was helping to distribute the Texarkana Gazette as a paperboy. He joined the Boy Scouts of America and made Eagle Scout in 1942, after 13 months in the program, and was a recipient of the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award.{{Cite book |last=Townley |first=Alvin |url=http://www.thomasdunnebooks.com/TD_TitleDetail.aspx?ISBN=0312366531 |title=Legacy of Honor: The Values and Influence of America's Eagle Scouts |date=December 26, 2006 |publisher=St. Martin's Press |isbn=978-0-312-36653-7 |location=New York |pages=89–100, 108, 187, 194, 249, 260, 265 |access-date=December 29, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061219180428/http://www.thomasdunnebooks.com/TD_TitleDetail.aspx?ISBN=0312366531 |archive-date=December 19, 2006 |url-status=dead}}{{Cite web |last=Ray |first=Mark |year=2007 |title=What It Means to Be an Eagle Scout |url=http://www.scoutingmagazine.org/issues/0701/a-what.html |access-date=January 5, 2007 |work=Scouting Magazine |publisher=Boy Scouts of America}} One of Perot's childhood friends was Hayes McClerkin, who later became the Speaker of the Arkansas House of Representatives and a prominent lawyer in Texarkana, Arkansas.{{Cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-06-10-mn-173-story.html|title=Perot as Hometown Hero: Just Don't Get in His Way|work=Los Angeles Times|access-date=June 26, 2010 |first=Tom |last=Furlong |date=June 10, 1992}}

From 1947 to 1949, he attended Texarkana Junior College, then entered the United States Naval Academy in 1949 and helped establish its honor system.{{Cite web|agency=Associated Press|title=Ross Perot Gives $1 Million to Texarkana College|url=http://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2012/mar/23/ross-perot-gives-1-million-million-texarkana-colle/|access-date=April 7, 2012|work=Arkansas Democrat-Gazette|date=March 23, 2012}} Perot claimed his appointment notice to the academy—sent by telegram—was sent by W. Lee "Pappy" O'Daniel, Texas's 34th governor and former senator.{{Cite web |last=Martin |first=Marie Murray |url= http://www.texarkanagazette.com/news/2012/03/25/native-son-355425.php |work=Texarkana Gazette |title= Native Son: TC benefactor Ross Perot reflects on growing up in Texarkana |date= March 25, 2012 |access-date=March 25, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130609112812/http://www.texarkanagazette.com/news/2012/03/25/native-son-355425.php |archive-date= June 9, 2013 }} Perot served as a junior officer on a destroyer, and later, an aircraft carrier from 1953 to 1957.{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/jul/09/ross-perot-obituary|newspaper=The Guardian|date=July 9, 2019|title=Ross Perot obituary |last=Jackson|first=Harold|access-date=July 10, 2019}} Perot, who had only ever owned one pair of shoes at a time, was shocked to find that he was issued multiple pairs of shoes in the navy, which he would later point to as "possibly my first example of government waste". Perot then went to the Naval Reserve, which he left on June 30, 1961, with the rank of lieutenant.{{cite web|title=Henry Ross Perot|url=http://veterantributes.org/TributeDetail.php?recordID=103|website=veterantributes.org|access-date=February 8, 2021}} His father died when Perot was 25 years old.

In 1956, Perot married Margot Birmingham, whom he met on a blind date as a midshipman docked in Baltimore.

Business

After he left the Navy in 1957, Perot became a salesman for IBM. He quickly became a top employee (one year, he fulfilled his annual sales quota in two weeks)Sam Wyly, 1000 Dollars & an Idea, Publisher: Newmarket, {{ISBN|978-1-55704-803-5}} and tried to pitch his ideas to supervisors, who largely ignored him.{{Cite book|last1=Landrum|first1=Gene N.|title=Entrepreneurial Genius: The Power of Passion|date=2004|publisher=Brendan Kelly Publishing Inc.|location=Naples, FL|isbn=978-1-895997-23-1|page=174|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fRdwUrLj2rgC&pg=PP1|access-date=December 27, 2015}} He left IBM in 1962 to found Electronic Data Systems (EDS) in Dallas, Texas, and courted large corporations for his data processing services. Perot was denied bids for contracts 77 times before receiving his first contract. EDS received lucrative contracts from the US government in the 1960s, computerizing Medicare records. EDS went public in 1968, and the stock price rose from $16 a share to $160 within days. Fortune called Perot the "fastest, richest Texan" in a 1968 cover story.{{Cite web|title=Ross Perot|url=http://www.famous-entrepreneurs.com/ross-perot|website=Famous Entrepreneurs|access-date=December 28, 2015}} In December 1969, his shares in EDS were briefly worth $1 billion.{{cite book|title=Guinness Book of Records 1982|last1=McWhiter|first1=Norris|author-link=Norris McWhirter|publisher=Guinness Superlatives Ltd|year=1981|isbn=0-85112-232-9|page=112}} Perot gained some press attention for being "the biggest individual loser ever on the New York Stock Exchange" when his EDS shares dropped $445 million (${{Inflation|index=US-GDP|value=.45|start_year=1970|r=1|fmt=c}} billion in today's money) in value in a single day in April 1970.Henry Moscow, "An Astonishment of New York Superlatives: Biggest, Smallest, Longest, Shortest, Oldest, First, Last, Most, Etc." New York vol. 7, no. 1 (31 December 1973/7 January 1974) p. 53.{{cite news|newspaper=The New York Times|page=55|date=April 23, 1970|title=Perot's stock falls $445-Million in Day|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1970/04/23/archives/perots-stock-falls-445million-in-day-perots-stock-hit-by-sharp.html?searchResultPosition=10|access-date=May 6, 2024}} While EDS boasted strong earnings in 1970, its exceptionally high price-to-earnings ratio, reaching 118 times earnings at its initial public offering in 1968,{{cite book |last=Brooks |first=John |title=The Go-Go Years: The Drama and Crashing Finale of Wall Street’s Bullish 60s |year=1999 |publisher=Wiley |location=New York |chapter=Climax}} made it a prime target for a bear raid. The stock's vulnerability was compounded by the fact that a significant portion of the publicly traded shares were "weakly held" by fast-performance mutual funds prone to rapid selling at the first sign of trouble. When the stock price began to decline on April 22nd, likely due to large-scale short selling, these institutional investors quickly unloaded their holdings, triggering a panic sell-off and a precipitous drop in the share price. This dramatic single-day decline in EDS stock was part of a broader collapse in the technology sector during the second quarter of 1970. The average computer stock plummeted 80% from its peak in late 1968.{{cite web |last=Navellier |first=Louis |title=(Back to) Earth-Day - The Tech-Stock Crash of 1970 |url=https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/back-earth-day-tech-stock-crash-1970-2010-04-23-0 |date=2010-04-23 |website=Nasdaq |access-date=2024-12-30}} University Computing, for instance, suffered a devastating 93% loss in value. The overall market downturn, reflected in a 19% drop in the S&P 500 during that quarter, was further fueled by a recessionary environment, growing sociopolitical unrest related to the Vietnam War and events like the Kent State shootings, and a general loss of confidence in the market after a period of exuberant speculation.{{cite news |last=TIME |title=WALL STREET: Perot’s Orderly Retreat |url=https://time.com/archive/6842290/wall-street-perots-orderly-retreat/ |date=1974-02-04 |access-date=2024-12-30}} Coincidentally, the EDS crash occurred on the first Earth Day, adding to the symbolic significance of the event.

In 1984, General Motors bought a controlling interest in EDS for $2.4 billion (${{Inflation|index=US-GDP|value=2.4|start_year=1984|r=1|fmt=c}} billion). In 1985, Perot sold EDS to General Motors with the idea that he and EDS would have a leadership role within the company. However, Perot's plan was ignored by the management of General Motors, prompting Perot to leave and later found Perot Systems. Perot's experience with GM contributed to him becoming an outspoken critic of corporate America.{{cite book |title=The Populist Explosion: How the Great Recession Transformed American and European Politics |first=John B. |last=Judis |author-link=John Judis |year=2016 |publisher=Columbia Global Reports |isbn=978-0997126440 |location=New York |page=47}}

In the same year, Perot became the second-richest man in the United States, only behind Sam Moore Walton, with a fortune estimated at $1.8 billion (${{Inflation|index=US-GDP|value=1.8|start_year=1985|r=1|fmt=c}} billion), according to the Forbes 400 list of the wealthiest people in the United States.{{Cite news |title=Delorean Wins Damages in Suit Against Him |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1985-10-15-fi-16339-story.html |access-date=October 26, 2024 |date=October 15, 1985 |work=Los Angeles Times}}

File:Ross Perot on 13 January 1983, from- Reagan Contact Sheet C12397 (cropped).jpg

Just before the 1979 Iranian Revolution, the government of Iran imprisoned two EDS employees in a contract dispute. Perot organized and sponsored their rescue. The rescue team was led by retired United States Army Special Forces Colonel Arthur D. "Bull" Simons. When the team was unable to find a way to extract the two prisoners, they decided to wait for a group of revolutionaries to storm the jail and free all 10,000 inmates, many of whom were political prisoners. The two prisoners then connected with the rescue team, which led them out of Iran through a border crossing into Turkey. The exploit was recounted in the book On Wings of Eagles by Ken Follett.{{Cite web|url=http://www.ken-follett.com/|title=Ken Follett {{!}} Welcome|website=Ken Follett|language=en|access-date=August 27, 2019}} In 1986 this was turned into a two-part television mini-series (alternatively titled "Teheran") with the actor Burt Lancaster playing the role of Colonel Simons and Richard Crenna as Perot.

In 1984, Perot's Perot Foundation bought a very early copy of Magna Carta, one of only a few to leave the United Kingdom. The foundation lent it to the National Archives in Washington, D.C., where it was displayed alongside the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States. In 2007, the foundation sold it to David Rubenstein, managing director of The Carlyle Group for $21.3 million (${{Inflation|index=US-GDP|value=21.3|start_year=2007|r=1|fmt=c}} million) to be used "for medical research, for improving public education and for assisting wounded soldiers and their families".{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/25/nyregion/25magna.html|title=Magna Carta Is Going on the Auction Block|last=Barron|first=James|date=September 25, 2007|work=The New York Times|access-date=August 27, 2019|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}} It remains on display at the National Archives.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/19/nyregion/19magna.html|title=Magna Carta Copy Sold|newspaper=The New York Times|date=December 19, 2007 |access-date=April 1, 2016}}

After Steve Jobs lost the power struggle at Apple and left to found NeXT, his angel investor was Perot, who invested over $20 million. Perot believed in Jobs and did not want to miss out, as he had with his chance to invest in Bill Gates's fledgling Microsoft.{{Cite book|last=Isaacson|first=Walter|title=Steve Jobs|year=2011|publisher=Simon & Schuster|location=New York|isbn=978-1-4516-4853-9}}

In 1988, he founded Perot Systems in Plano, Texas. His son, Ross Perot Jr., eventually succeeded him as CEO. In September 2009, Perot Systems was acquired by Dell for $3.9 billion (${{Inflation|index=US-GDP|value=3.9|start_year=2009|r=1|fmt=c}} billion).{{Cite news|first1=Connie|last1=Guglielmo|first2=Katie|last2=Hoffmann|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid%3D20601103%26sid%3DaMCNzaTRa9oQ|title=Dell Pays 68% Premium for Perot's Health Technology (Update3)|date=September 22, 2009|access-date=September 22, 2009|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120603050643/http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aMCNzaTRa9oQ |archive-date=June 3, 2012}}

Political activities

= Early political activities =

File:Ross Perot Allan Warren.jpg in his office in 1986]]

After a visit to Laos in 1969, made at the request of the White House, in which he met with senior North Vietnamese officials, Perot became heavily involved in the Vietnam War POW/MIA issue. He believed that hundreds of American servicemen were left behind in Southeast Asia at the end of the U.S. involvement in the war,{{Cite news |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F0CE1DC133FF933A15755C0A964958260 |title=Perot and Senators Seem Headed for a Fight on P.O.W.'s-M.I.A.'s |author=Patrick E. Tyler |work=The New York Times |date=June 20, 1992 |access-date=January 5, 2008}} and that government officials were covering up POW/MIA investigations to avoid revealing a drug-smuggling operation used to finance a secret war in Laos.{{Cite magazine |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,975891-6,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080214004511/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,975891-6,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 14, 2008 |title=The Other Side of Perot |author=George J. Church |magazine=Time |date=June 29, 1992 |access-date=January 24, 2008}} Perot engaged in unauthorized back-channel discussions with Vietnamese officials in the late 1980s, which led to fractured relations between Perot and the Reagan and George H. W. Bush administrations. In 1990, Perot reached an agreement with Vietnam's Foreign Ministry to become its business agent if diplomatic relations were normalized.{{Cite news |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E0CE7DC1F31F936A35755C0A964958260 |title=Perot to Testify in Senate on Americans Missing in Southeast Asia |author=Patrick E. Tyler |work=The New York Times |date=June 5, 1992 |access-date=January 24, 2008}} Perot also launched private investigations of, and attacks upon, United States Department of Defense official Richard Armitage.

In Florida in 1990, retired financial planner Jack Gargan, employing a famous quotation from the 1976 movie Network, funded a series of "I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore" newspaper advertisements denouncing Congress for voting to give legislators pay raises at a time when average wages nationwide were not increasing. Gargan later founded "Throw the Hypocritical Rascals Out" (THRO), which Perot supported.{{Cite news|last1=Isikoff|first1=Michael|title=Unlikely Suitors Pushed Perot Bid|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/pb/archive/politics/1992/05/31/unlikely-suitors-pushed-perot-bid/bc22e3e3-16b5-4d87-a852-2277c6d26952/?resType=accessibility&nid=menu_nav_accessibilityforscreenreader|access-date=December 28, 2015|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=May 31, 1992}}

Perot did not support President George H. W. Bush, and vigorously opposed the United States' involvement in the 1990–1991 Persian Gulf War. He unsuccessfully urged Senators to vote against the war resolution, and began to consider a presidential run.{{Cite web |title=The 1992 Run For The Presidency |url=http://cgi.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/1996/conventions/long.beach/perot/political.fray.shtml |publisher=Reform Party |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140131132826/http://cgi.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/1996/conventions/long.beach/perot/political.fray.shtml |archive-date=January 31, 2014}}{{Cite news |last=Quindlen |first=Anna |title=Public & Private; Waiting for Perot |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/06/03/opinion/public-private-waiting-for-perot.html |newspaper=The New York Times|access-date=November 13, 2012 |date=June 3, 1992}}

= {{Anchor|1992_campaign}}1992 presidential campaign =

File:Third debate 3267.jpg and George H. W. Bush at the third presidential debate at Michigan State University, October 19, 1992.]]

On February 20, 1992, Perot appeared on CNN's Larry King Live and announced his intention to run as an independent if his supporters could get his name on the ballot in all 50 states. With such declared policies as balancing the federal budget, favoring certain types of gun control, ending the outsourcing of jobs and enacting electronic direct democracy via "electronic town halls", he became a potential candidate and soon polled roughly even with the two major-party candidates.{{Cite web | url=http://people-press.org/report/19920616/year-of-the-outsider |title= Year of the Outsider |website=Pew Research Center |date=June 16, 1992 |access-date=October 5, 2010}}

Perot denounced Congress for its inaction in a speech at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., on March 18, 1992; he said:

{{Blockquote | style=font-size:100% |This city has become a town filled with sound bites, shell games, handlers, media stuntmen who posture, create images, talk, shoot off Roman candles, but don't ever accomplish anything. We need deeds, not words, in this city.{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/rossperotspeakso00pero|url-access=registration|title=Ross Perot Speaks Out: Issue by Issue, what He Says about Our Nation : Its Problems and Its Promise|last1=Perot|first1=Ross|date=1992|publisher=Prima Pub.|isbn=978-1-55958-274-2|language=en|page=[https://archive.org/details/rossperotspeakso00pero/page/55 55]}}}}

Perot's candidacy received increasing media attention when the competitive phase of the primary season ended for the two major parties. With the insurgent candidacies of Republican Pat Buchanan and Democrat Jerry Brown winding down, Perot was the natural beneficiary of populist resentment toward establishment politicians. On May 25, 1992, he was featured on the cover of Time with the title "Waiting for Perot", an allusion to Samuel Beckett's play Waiting for Godot.{{Cite news |url=http://www.time.com/time/covers/0,16641,19920525,00.html |website=TIME Archives |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060627205758/http://www.time.com/time/covers/0,16641,19920525,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=June 27, 2006 |title=Time magazine cover: H. Ross Perot|date=May 25, 1992|access-date=May 22, 2010}}

Several months before the Democratic and Republican conventions, Perot filled the vacuum of election news, as his supporters began petition drives to get him on the ballot in all 50 states. This sense of momentum was reinforced when Perot employed two savvy campaign managers in Democrat Hamilton Jordan and Republican Ed Rollins. While Perot was pondering whether to run for office, his supporters established a campaign organization United We Stand America. Perot was late in making formal policy proposals, but most of what he did call for was intended to reduce the deficit, such as a fuel tax increase and cutbacks to Social Security.{{Cite web|url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/os-xpm-1992-10-14-9210140963-story.html |date=October 14, 1992|title=Ross Perots' plan to tax gasoline primes the pump |author=Mike Royko |work=Orlando Sentinel |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220513194033/https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/os-xpm-1992-10-14-9210140963-story.html |archive-date= May 13, 2022 }} In June, Perot led a Gallup poll with 39% of the vote.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/06/11/us/the-1992-campaign-on-the-trail-poll-gives-perot-a-clear-lead.html |url-access=subscription |title=The 1992 Campaign: On the Trail – Poll Gives Perot a Clear Lead|date=June 11, 1992|work=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|access-date=October 24, 2016}}

In July, the Perot campaign fell into disarray and his polls fell sharply. The 1992 Democratic National Convention was held on Monday, July 13 through Thursday, July 16, during which time there was increased media coverage of the general election. The Milwaukee Sentinel reported that Perot's campaign managers were becoming increasingly disillusioned by Perot's unwillingness to follow their advice to be more specific on issues, and his need to be in full control of operations.{{Cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=Jd8VAAAAIBAJ&pg=5420,3383510&dq=ross-perot&hl=en|title=Perot advisers reportedly at odds|date=July 14, 1992|work=The Milwaukee Sentinel|page=2A|access-date=May 27, 2010}}{{Dead link|date=January 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} The St. Petersburg Times reported such tactics as forcing volunteers to sign loyalty oaths.{{Cite news|title=Perot asks volunteers to sign loyalty oaths|date=July 14, 1992|work=Tampa Bay Times|agency=Associated Press|url=https://www.tampabay.com/archive/1992/07/14/perot-asks-volunteers-to-sign-loyalty-oaths/}} Perot's poll numbers had slipped to 25%, and his advisers warned that if he continued to ignore them, he would fall into single digits. Hamilton Jordan (a high-ranking manager in the Perot campaign) allegedly threatened to quit, but senior campaign officials denied this.{{Cite news|last=Holmes|first=Steven A.|date=July 14, 1992|title=Perot Adviser Threatens to Quit Over Frustrations With Campaign|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/07/14/news/opposition-independent-perot-adviser-threatens-quit-over-frustrations-with.html|access-date=October 24, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}

On July 15, Ed Rollins resigned after Perot fired advertisement specialist Hal Riney, who had worked with Rollins on the Reagan campaign. Rollins would later claim that a member of the campaign accused him of being a Bush plant with ties to the Central Intelligence Agency.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/10/02/opinion/abroad-at-home-why-perot.html?pagewanted=1|title=Abroad at Home; Why Perot?|last=Lewis|first=Anthony|date=October 2, 1992|work=The New York Times|page=31|access-date=May 27, 2010}} Amid the chaos, Perot's support fell to 20%.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/07/16/news/campaign-ross-perot-rollins-quits-perot-s-campaign-asserts-his-advice-was.html|title=Rollins Quits Perot's Campaign; Asserts His Advice Was Ignored|last=Holmes|first=Steven A|date=July 16, 1992|work=The New York Times|page=1|access-date=May 27, 2010}} The next day, Perot announced on Larry King Live that he would not seek the presidency. He explained that he did not want the House of Representatives to decide the election if the result caused the electoral college to be split. Perot eventually stated the reason was that he received threats that digitally altered photographs would be released by the Bush campaign to sabotage his daughter's wedding.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/10/26/us/1992-campaign-overview-perot-says-he-quit-july-thwart-gop-dirty-tricks.html|title=The 1992 Campaign: The Overview – Perot Says He Quit in July to Thwart G.O.P. 'Dirty Tricks'|last=Berke|first=Richard L.|date=October 26, 1992|work=The New York Times|access-date=August 27, 2019|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}} Whatever his reasons for withdrawing, his reputation was badly damaged. Many of his supporters felt betrayed, and public opinion polls subsequently showed a largely negative view of Perot that was absent before his decision to end the campaign.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/09/19/us/1992-campaign-ross-perot-perot-says-he-may-rejoin-race-publicize-his-economic.html|title=The 1992 Campaign: Ross Perot – Perot Says He May Rejoin Race To Publicize His Economic Plan|last=Berke|first=Richard L.|date=September 19, 1992|work=The New York Times|access-date=August 27, 2019|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}

In September, he qualified for all 50 state ballots. On October 1, he announced his intention to re-enter the presidential race. He campaigned in 16 states and spent an estimated $12.3 million of his own money.{{Cite news |last=Clymer |first=Adam |title=The 1992 Campaign: Perot Gave $12 Million to Aborted Campaign |work=The New York Times |date=August 25, 1992 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/08/25/us/the-1992-campaign-ross-perot-perot-gave-12-million-to-aborted-campaign.html}} Perot employed the innovative strategy of purchasing half-hour blocks of time on major networks for infomercial-type campaign advertisements; this advertising garnered more viewership than many sitcoms, with one Friday night program in October attracting 10.5 million viewers.{{Cite news |title=The 1992 Campaign: The Media – Perot's 30-Minute TV Ads Defy the Experts, Again |page=A.19 |last=Kolbert |first= Elizabeth |work=The New York Times |date=October 27, 1992 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/10/27/nyregion/the-1992-campaign-the-media-perot-s-30-minute-tv-ads-defy-the-experts-again.html}}

At one point in June, Perot led the polls with 39% (versus 31% for Bush and 25% for Clinton). Just prior to the debates, Perot received 7–9% support in nationwide polls.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/06/11/us/the-1992-campaign-on-the-trail-poll-gives-perot-a-clear-lead.html|title=The 1992 Campaign: On the Trail – Poll Gives Perot a Clear Lead|date=June 11, 1992|work=The New York Times|access-date=August 27, 2019|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}} The debates likely played a significant role in his ultimate receipt of almost 19% of the popular vote. Although his answers during the debates were often general, Frank Newport of Gallup concluded that Perot "convincingly won the first debate, coming in significantly ahead of both the Democratic challenger Clinton and incumbent President George H.W. Bush".{{Cite web|url=https://news.gallup.com/poll/13525/What-History-Tells-About-Second-Third-Debates.aspx|title=What History Tells Us About Second and Third Debates|website=Gallup.com|date=October 7, 2004}} In the debate, he remarked:

{{Blockquote | style=font-size:100% |Keep in mind our Constitution predates the Industrial Revolution. Our founders did not know about electricity, the train, telephones, radio, television, automobiles, airplanes, rockets, nuclear weapons, satellites, or space exploration. There's a lot they didn't know about. It would be interesting to see what kind of document they'd draft today. Just keeping it frozen in time won't hack it.{{Cite web|last=Sumner |first=Mark |url=http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2009/4/19/720644/-All-This-Has-Happened-Before |title=All This Has Happened Before |work=Daily Kos |date=April 19, 2009 |access-date=June 13, 2010}}}}

In the 1992 election, he received 18.9% of the popular vote, about 19,741,065 votes, but no electoral college votes, making him the most successful non-major-party presidential candidate in terms of share of the popular vote since Theodore Roosevelt in the 1912 election.{{Cite web|url=http://www.270towin.com/1912_Election/ |title=Presidential Election of 1912 |work=270towin.com |access-date=April 1, 2016}} Unlike Perot, however, multiple third-party candidates since Roosevelt had won electoral college votes: Robert La Follette in 1924, Strom Thurmond in 1948, and George Wallace in 1968. Compared with Thurmond and Wallace, who polled very strongly in a small number of states, Perot's vote was more evenly spread across the country. Perot managed to finish second in two states: in Maine, Perot received 30.44% of the vote—ahead of part-time resident Bush's 30.39% (Clinton won Maine with 38.77%); and in Utah, Perot received 27.34% of the vote—ahead of Clinton's 24.65% (Bush won Utah with 43.36%). Although Perot did not win a state, he received a plurality of votes in some counties.{{Cite web|url=https://mustreadalaska.com/ross-perot-has-passed-he-placed-3rd-in-alaska-presidential-election-in-1992/|title=Ross Perot, 89, has passed: He placed 3rd in Alaska presidential election in 1992|last=Downing|first=Suzanne|date=July 9, 2019|website=Must Read Alaska|language=en-US|access-date=July 10, 2019}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.latimes.com/projects/la-pol-ca-california-voting-history/|title=After decades of Republican victories, here's how California became a blue state again|last1=Krishnakumar|first1=Priya|last2=Arm|website=Los Angeles Times|language=en|access-date=July 10, 2019|last3=Emamdjomeh|last4=Moore|first4=Maloy|date=October 31, 2016 }} His popular vote total is still by far the most ever garnered for a non-major-party candidate, almost double the previous record set by Wallace in 1968.

A detailed analysis of voting demographics revealed that Perot's support drew heavily from across the political spectrum, with 20% of his votes coming from self-described liberals, 27% from self-described conservatives, and 53% coming from self-described moderates. Economically, however, the majority of Perot voters (57%) were middle class, earning between $15,000 and $49,000 annually, with the bulk of the remainder drawing from the upper-middle class (29% earning more than $50,000 annually).{{Cite journal|title=Politics: Who Cares|author1=Peirce Lewis|author2=Casey McCracken|author3=Roger Hunt|journal=American Demographics|date=October 1994|volume=16|page=23|url=http://www.hks.harvard.edu/case/3pt/perot_vote.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080321084623/http://www.hks.harvard.edu/case/3pt/perot_vote.html|archive-date=March 21, 2008}} Exit polls also showed that 38% of Perot voters would have otherwise voted for Bush, and 38% would have voted for Clinton.{{Cite news| url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E0CE0DB1F3FF936A35752C1A964958260 |work=The New York Times |title=The 1992 Election: Disappointment – News Analysis – An Eccentric but No Joke; Perot's Strong Showing Raises Questions On What Might Have Been, and Might Be |first=Steven A. |last=Holmes |date=November 5, 1992 |access-date=May 22, 2010}} Though there were widespread claims that Perot acted as a "spoiler", post-election analysis suggested that his presence in the race likely did not affect the outcome.{{Cite web|url=https://fivethirtyeight.com/videos/the-ross-perot-myth/|title=The Ross Perot Myth|date=October 6, 2016|website=FiveThirtyEight|language=en-US|access-date=August 27, 2019}} According to Seymour Martin Lipset, the 1992 election had several unique characteristics. Voters felt that economic conditions were worse than they actually were, which harmed Bush. A strong third-party candidate was a rare event. Liberals launched a backlash against 12 years of a conservative White House. The chief factor was Clinton's uniting his party, and winning over a number of heterogeneous groups.Seymour Martin Lipset, "The significance of the 1992 election." PS: Political Science and Politics 26.1 (1993): 7-16 [https://www.jstor.org/stable/419496 online] In 2016, FiveThirtyEight described the theory that Perot was a spoiler as "unlikely".{{cite news|url=https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/long-before-trump-there-was-ross-perot/|title=Long Before Trump, There Was Ross Perot|first=Galen|last=Druke|publisher=FiveThirtyEight|date=October 24, 2016|access-date=May 9, 2021}}

Based on his performance in the popular vote in 1992, Perot was entitled to receive federal election funding for 1996. Perot remained in the public eye after the election and championed opposition to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). During the campaign, he had urged voters to listen for the "giant sucking sound" of American jobs heading south to Mexico should NAFTA be ratified.{{Cite web|url=https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/specials/issues/world/wordepth/0916perot-infomercial.html|title=Perot TV Ad Assails U.S. Trade Policies|website=The New York Times|access-date=July 10, 2019}}

= {{Anchor|1996_campaign}}Reform Party and 1996 presidential campaign =

= {{Anchor|1996_campaign}}1996 presidential campaign =

File:Perot Choate 1996 campaign logo.svg

Perot tried to keep his movement alive through the mid-1990s, continuing to speak about the increasing national debt. He was a prominent campaigner against NAFTA, and frequently claimed that American manufacturing jobs would go to Mexico. On November 10, 1993, Perot debated with then-Vice President Al Gore on the issue on Larry King Live with an audience of 16 million viewers.{{Cite magazine|last=Tharoor|first=Ishaan|date=December 15, 2010|title=Al Gore and Ross Perot Debate NAFTA|language=en-US|magazine=Time|url=https://entertainment.time.com/2010/12/16/top-10-larry-king-moments/slide/al-gore-and-ross-perot-debate-nafta/|access-date=July 9, 2021|issn=0040-781X}} Perot's behavior during the debate was a source of mirth thereafter, including his repeated pleas to "let me finish" in his southern drawl. The debate was seen by many as effectively ending Perot's political career.{{Cite news|url=http://archives.cnn.com/2000/ALLPOLITICS/stories/10/03/debate.games.tm/index.html|title=Bush plays off expectations; Gore learns from mistakes|access-date=August 14, 2008|last=Reaves|first=Jessica|author2=Frank Pelligrini|date=October 3, 2000|publisher=CNN#Online|quote=Gore's decisive victory was the saving of NAFTA and the beginning of the end of Perot as even a semi-serious public figure.|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080915033715/http://archives.cnn.com/2000/ALLPOLITICS/stories/10/03/debate.games.tm/index.html|archive-date=September 15, 2008}} Support for NAFTA went from 34% to 57%.{{Cite magazine |url=https://entertainment.time.com/2010/12/16/top-10-larry-king-moments/slide/al-gore-and-ross-perot-debate-nafta/ |title=Al Gore and Ross Perot Debate NAFTA |last=Tharoor |first=Ishaan|date=December 15, 2010|magazine=Time}}

In 1995, he founded the Reform Party and won their presidential nomination for the 1996 United States presidential election. His vice presidential running mate was Pat Choate. Because of the ballot access laws, he had to run as an independent on many state ballots. Perot received 8% of the popular vote in 1996, lower than in the 1992 race, but still an unusually successful third-party showing by U.S. standards. He spent much less of his own money in this race than he had four years prior, and he also allowed other people to contribute to his campaign, unlike his prior race. One common explanation for the decline was Perot's exclusion from the presidential debates, based on the preferences of the Democratic and Republican party candidates. Law professor Jamie Raskin filed a lawsuit over Perot's exclusion years later.{{Cite web|title=Open Debates: Board of Directors|url=http://www.opendebates.org/aboutus/boardofdirectors.html|publisher=Opendebates.org|access-date=November 13, 2012|url-status=usurped|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921053730/http://www.opendebates.org/aboutus/boardofdirectors.html|archive-date=September 21, 2013}}{{Cite web|last=Richards|first=Paul J.|title=Do the debates unfairly shut out third parties?|date=October 15, 2012 |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/do-the-debates-unfairly-shut-out-third-parties/|publisher=CBS news|access-date=November 13, 2012|archive-date=November 18, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121118042547/http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-250_162-57531685/do-the-debates-unfairly-shut-out-third-parties/|url-status=live}}

= Later activities =

File:Ross Perot addresses the audience at the “A Time of Remembrance” ceremony.jpg

In the 2000 presidential election, Perot refused to become openly involved with the internal Reform Party dispute between supporters of Pat Buchanan and John Hagelin. Perot was reportedly unhappy with what he saw as the disintegration of the party, as well as his own portrayal in the press; thus, he chose to remain quiet. He appeared on Larry King Live four days before the election and endorsed George W. Bush for president. Despite his earlier opposition to NAFTA, Perot remained largely silent about expanded use of guest-worker visas in the United States, with Buchanan supporters attributing this silence to his corporate reliance on foreign workers.{{Cite web|url=http://www.buchanan.org/db00-0524.html|title=Perot: H1Bs and PNTR – The Giant Silence|publisher=Buchanan.org|date=May 24, 2000|access-date=October 20, 2004|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20000816031327/http://www.buchanan.org/db00-0524.html|archive-date=August 16, 2000}}

In 2005, Perot was asked to testify before the Texas Legislature in support of proposals to extend access to technology to students, including making laptops available to them. He supported changing the process of buying textbooks by making e-books available and by allowing schools to purchase books at the local level instead of going through the state. In an April 2005 interview, Perot expressed concern about the state of progress on issues that he had raised in his presidential runs.{{Cite news|url=http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/opinion/points/stories/042405dnediperot.3af4b33e.html |title=Point of Contact: H. Ross Perot|work=The Dallas Morning News|date=April 23, 2005|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070515001849/http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/opinion/points/stories/042405dnediperot.3af4b33e.html|archive-date=May 15, 2007}}

In January 2008, Perot publicly came out against Republican candidate John McCain and endorsed Mitt Romney for president. He also announced that he would soon be launching a new website with updated economic graphs and charts.{{Cite web|url=http://www.newsweek.com/id/94827 |title=Ross Perot Slams McCain|work=Newsweek|date=January 16, 2008 |access-date=June 13, 2010}} In June 2008, his blog launched, focusing on entitlements (Medicare, Medicaid, Social security), the U.S. national debt, and related issues.{{Cite news| url =http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/06/19/perot.charts/|title=Ross Perot wants more focus on national debt|author=Jason Carroll|publisher=CNN|date = June 19, 2008}} In 2012, Perot endorsed Romney for president again.{{Cite web|last=Dinan|first=Stephen|title=Ross Perot endorses Mitt Romney|url=http://www.washingtontimes.com/blog/inside-politics/2012/oct/16/ross-perot-endorses-mitt-romney/|work=The Washington Times|access-date=October 16, 2012}} Perot did not give any endorsements for the 2016 election.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/09/us/politics/ross-perot-death.html|title=Ross Perot, Brash Texas Billionaire Who Ran for President, Dies at 89|last=McFadden|first=Robert D.|date=July 9, 2019|work=The New York Times|access-date=July 10, 2019|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}

Political views

Perot did not fit the usual political stereotypes; his views were seen as either pragmatic or populist, depending on the observer, and usually focused on his economic policy, such as balancing the budget, to gain support from both Democratic and Republican voters. Perot supported stricter gun control such as an assault weapons ban and supported increased research in AIDS.{{Cite web|url=http://www.ontheissues.org/Celeb/Ross_Perot_Gun_Control.htm|title=Ross Perot on Gun Control|website=ontheissues.org|access-date=June 16, 2017}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.ontheissues.org/Celeb/Ross_Perot_Health_Care.htm|title=Ross Perot on Health Care|website=OnTheIssues}} Perot was hesitant on covering the issue of gay rights during his 1992 campaign, but openly supported gay rights in 1996.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/07/10/us/the-1992-campaign-undeclared-candidate-perot-shifts-on-homosexuals-in-military.html?pagewanted=1|title=Undeclared Candidate; Perot Shifts on Homosexuals in Military|last=Kelly|first=Michael|date=July 10, 1992|work=The New York Times|page=18|access-date=May 27, 2010|location=New York|archive-date=April 19, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150419154926/http://www.nytimes.com/1992/07/10/us/the-1992-campaign-undeclared-candidate-perot-shifts-on-homosexuals-in-military.html?pagewanted=1|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.ontheissues.org/Celeb/Ross_Perot_Civil_Rights.htm|title=Ross Perot on Civil Rights|website=OnTheIssues}}

Perot spoke in favor of "comprehensive national health care plan — one that would be akin to Medicare but for all Americans, not just the needy". He also became known for his opposition to NAFTA; Perot believed that the power of corporations must be curbed, and saw the transfer of jobs to other countries as a symbol of corruption and inequality. He argued that such trade agreements only benefited the companies while robbing the US of its tax base and blue-collar jobs.{{cite book |title=The Populist Explosion: How the Great Recession Transformed American and European Politics |first=John B. |last=Judis |author-link=John Judis |year=2016 |publisher=Columbia Global Reports |isbn=978-0997126440 |location=New York |page=48}} Perot famously stated during the October 15 debate that NAFTA would create a "giant sucking sound" on American jobs.

The populism of Ross Perot is hard to define and is a contested topic amongst political scientists. Perot was described as a "classical populist",{{cite thesis |url=https://tesi.luiss.it/23934/1/631682_PASSIGLI_MATTEO.pdf |title=The Evolution of the Interpretation of Populism from the 1950s to Present: An Historical Excursus |page=65 |first=Matteo |last=Passigli |year=2017 |publisher=Libera Università Internazionale degli Studi Sociali Guido Carli |access-date=November 26, 2023 |archive-date=November 26, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231126135611/https://tesi.luiss.it/23934/1/631682_PASSIGLI_MATTEO.pdf |url-status=dead }} liberal populist, "telepopulist" and also a "third way" populist.{{cite journal |url=https://www.cairn-int.info/article-E_VING_P1997_56N1_0004--populismand-political-science.htm |title=Populism and Political Science: From Conceptual Illusions to Real Problems |last=Taguieff |first=Pierre-André |volume=56 |journal=Vingtième Siècle. Revue d'histoire |year=1997 |issue=4 |pages=4–33 |doi=10.3406/xxs.1997.4489 |translator=Cadenza Academic Translations|url-access=subscription }} Neal Allen and Brian J. Brox argue that Perot was neither left nor right-wing ideologically, and focused first and foremost on promoting reforms of the political process and grassroots democracy; despite this, they also found some notable similarities between Perot and the left-wing populism of Ralph Nader, and an average Perot voter had liberal leanings.{{cite journal |title=The Roots of Third Party Voting: The 2000 Nader Campaign in Historical Perspective |first1=Neal |last1=Allen |first2=Brian J. |last2=Brox |journal=Party Politics |publisher=SAGE Publications |year=2005 |volume=11 |issue=5 |url=https://www2.tulane.edu/~bbrox/Allen%26Brox.pdf |pages=623–637 |doi=10.1177/1354068805054983|s2cid=5516722 }}

Anton Pelinka described Perot's ideology as the "populism of the centre", presenting a distinct form of populism that significantly differed from left-wing and right-wing populist movements that appeared in the USA.{{cite journal |title=Right-Wing Populism: Concept and Typology |first=Anton |last=Pelinka |author-link=Anton Pelinka |journal=Bloombsbury Academic |publisher=Bloomsbury Collections |department=Right-Wing Populism in Europe: Politics and Discourse |date=27 April 2019 |doi=10.5040/9781472544940.ch-001 |page=9|doi-access=free }} Matthijs Rooduijn argues that Perot was an example of a liberal populist with centre-left leanings, noting his hostility to Reaganomics - in the 1992 election, Perot stated that USA was in crisis caused by "the decade of greed, the era of trickle-down economics".{{cite journal |title=The Nucleus of Populism: In Search of the Lowest Common Denominator |last=Rooduijn |first=Matthijs |journal=Government and Opposition |volume=49 |issue=4 |date=11 September 2013 |doi=10.1017/gov.2013.30 |pages=573–599 |doi-access=free }} In his famous The Populist Explosion: How the Great Recession Transformed American and European Politics publication, John Judis wrote that "Perot represented a left and center-left populism",{{cite book |title=The Populist Explosion: How the Great Recession Transformed American and European Politics |first=John B. |last=Judis |author-link=John Judis |year=2016 |publisher=Columbia Global Reports |isbn=978-0997126440 |location=New York |page=46}} in tradition of the Populist Party and Huey Long.{{cite book |title=The Populist Explosion: How the Great Recession Transformed American and European Politics |first=John B. |last=Judis |author-link=John Judis |year=2016 |publisher=Columbia Global Reports |isbn=978-0997126440 |location=New York |page=50}} According to Judis, Perot "represented the first clear repudiation of the neoliberal agenda."

Regarding foreign policy, Perot was an outspoken opponent of the Gulf War and condemned Bush for the military intervention against Iraq. He instead promoted a more isolationist foreign policy, arguing that USA should focus on rebuilding its economy. In his 1992 presidential campaign, Perot stated that his "highest foreign policy priority is to get our house in order and make America work again".{{cite book |title=The Populist Explosion: How the Great Recession Transformed American and European Politics |first=John B. |last=Judis |author-link=John Judis |year=2016 |publisher=Columbia Global Reports |isbn=978-0997126440 |location=New York |page=49}} He attacked Bush for his ties to Saddam Hussein prior to the invasion of Kuwait - according to Perot, the Bush administration covertly aided Hussein's chemical weapons programs and turned a blind eye to Iraqi plans against Kuwait, instructing April Glaspie to greenlight Hussein's invasion on assumption that he would only seize Kuwait's northern oil fields. Perot claimed that Bush invaded Iraq because its actions threatened Bush's "manhood", and stated: "off we go into the wild blue yonder with the lives of our servicemen at risk because of 10 years of stupid mistakes".{{cite web |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-06-12-mn-236-story.html |title=Perot Attacks Bush's Links to Iraq Before Gulf War : Politics: On TV show, undeclared candidate criticizes President for sending delegations to 'burp and diaper and pamper' Hussein. |date=12 June 1992 |website=Los Angeles Times |first1=John M. |last1=Broder}}

Perot also focused on anti-lobbying and political reform proposals - he favored a presidential line item veto against "pork barrel spending and waste", elimination of political action committees (PACs) to curb the influence of special interest groups, replacement of the Gramm–Rudman–Hollings Balanced Budget Act with a different balanced budget apparatus that would focus on limiting "tricks, loopholes, and improper accounting procedures" and a ban on exit polling during elections. He also postulated a ban on lobbying.{{cite book |title=Perot: The Populist Appeal of Strong-Man Politics |first1=George |last1=Grant |first2=Susan |last2=Alder |year=1992 |publisher=Adroit Press |location=Franklin, Tennessee |isbn=0-89107-692-1 |page=88}}

From 1992, Perot was a pro-choice activist, and a strong supporter of Planned Parenthood. He stated that poorer women in particular should have access to abortions via federal funding. From 2000, he was pro-choice reluctantly.{{Cite web|url=http://www.ontheissues.org/Celeb/Ross_Perot_Abortion.htm|title=Ross Perot on Abortion|website=ontheissues.org|access-date=June 16, 2017}}

=Economic policy=

Perot believed taxes should be increased on the wealthy, while spending should be cut to help pay off the national debt. Perot also believed the capital gains tax should be increased, while giving tax breaks to those starting new businesses.

{{Blockquote | style=font-size:100% |text="We cut the capital gains tax rate from a maximum rate of 35% to a maximum rate that got as low as 20% during the 1980s. Who got the benefit? The rich did, of course, because that's who owns most of the capital assets."|source=Not For Sale at Any Price}}

Together with increased taxes on the wealthy, Perot also supported curbing entitlement payments and tax rebates to the affluent, and spoke in favor of eliminating the government's air fleet and other Washington perks for legislators, mocking the privileges that the US legislators enjoyed. He also argued that the government should protect the job base through intervention in the market. He spoke in support of creating a national industrial ministry based on the Japanese Ministry of International Trade and Industry, which would increase state control over large businesses and direct their investment. Perot stressed that the government should ensure that both public and private investments would target the "industries of the future". When asked about objections to his plans from free-market advocates, Perot said: "Don’t they realize that the biogenetics industry is the result

of our federally funded research universities and the National Institutes of Health?"

Perot was strongly opposed to neoliberalism, and was credited with marking the "first clear repudiation" of the neoliberal economic policies pursued by Ronald Reagan:{{cite book |title=The Populist Explosion: How the Great Recession Transformed American and European Politics |first=John B. |last=Judis |author-link=John Judis |year=2016 |publisher=Columbia Global Reports |isbn=978-0997126440 |location=New York |page=51}}

{{blockquote|style=font-size:100% |text="A disturbing trend has emerged from the decade of greed, the era of trickle-down economics and the period of capital gains tax manipulation. We are headed for a two-class society."|source=Pox Populi: Ross Perot and the corruption of populism. The New Republic. Sean Wilentz. August 9, 1993. Retrieved August 14, 2024.}}

In his 1993 book Not For Sale at Any Price,{{cite book |last1=Perot |first1=Ross |title=Not for Sale At Any Price: How We Can Save America for Our Children |url=https://archive.org/details/notforsaleatanyp00pero |url-access=registration |publisher=Hyperion |access-date=July 10, 2019|isbn=978-1-56282-723-6 |date=April 1993 }} Perot expressed support for giving tax cuts for small and medium-sized enterprises, as opposed to larger corporations.{{Cite web|url=http://www.ontheissues.org/At_Any_Price.htm|title=Not For Sale at Any Price, by Ross Perot|website=ontheissues.org|access-date=June 16, 2017}} Additionally, Perot supported a balanced budget amendment, stating, "spending should not exceed revenue for 27 consecutive years." On trade, Perot stated that NAFTA caused the trade deficit between Mexico and the United States and a loss of manufacturing jobs.{{Cite web|url=http://www.ontheissues.org/Celeb/Ross_Perot_Free_Trade.htm|title=Ross Perot on Free Trade|website=OnTheIssues}} His position on free trade and NAFTA became his defining campaign principle of both the 1992 and 1996 presidential elections. Perot argued: "We have got to stop sending jobs overseas. It's pretty simple: If you're paying $12, $13, $14 an hour for factory workers and you can move your factory south of the border, pay a dollar an hour for labor, ... have no health care—that's the most expensive single element in making a car—have no environmental controls, no pollution controls and no retirement, and you don't care about anything but making money, there will be a giant sucking sound going south."

{{Blockquote | style=font-size:100% |text=... when [Mexico's] jobs come up from a dollar an hour to six dollars an hour, and ours go down to six dollars an hour, and then it's leveled again. But in the meantime, you've wrecked the country with these kinds of deals.|source=The 1992 Campaign: Transcript of 2nd TV Debate Between Bush, Clinton and Perot". The New York Times. New York Times Company. October 16, 1992. Retrieved May 16, 2016.}}

For the 1992 election, Perot unveiled an ambitious budget program that would balance the budget through redistributive policies. The most prominent element of the plan was Perot's proposal to raise the income tax bracket of 4% wealthiest households from 31 to 33 percent, and to raise it further to 35 percent in the future. Other points included increasing the taxable portion of Social Security benefits from 50 to 85 percent for recipients with income of $25,000 or more, as well as implementing a tax on hitherto tax-free employer-paid health insurance, with Perot arguing that a tax-free workplace insurance creates an unfair advantage for those who receive health insurance through their job. The plan also called for doubling cigarette tax and increasing gasoline tax by 50 cents a gallon; Perot explained that higher gasoline tax would help conserve energy and reduce pollution, but also advocated the creation of a special allowance for the workers disproportionately affected by the higher gasoline price. The plan also included massive cuts in military spending and scrapping the proposed space station project, which Perot derided as "a vacation home in space".{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/07/26/us/1992-campaign-economy-perot-s-bitter-budget-pill-higher-taxes-cure-deficit.html |last=Greenhouse |first=Steven |date=26 July 1992 |title=The 1992 Campaign: The Economy; Perot's Bitter Budget Pill: Higher Taxes to Cure Deficit |website=The New York Times}}

Personal life and death

File:(L-R) Larry Hagman, Ross Perot, Margot Perot and Suzanne Perot at the Rosewood Crescent Club (8392304697).jpg with Ross Perot and family in 1988]]

Perot and his wife Margot (née Birmingham; born November 15, 1933),[https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-1992-05-04-1992125174-story.html Margot Birmingham Perot biodata], BaltimoreSun.com. Accessed May 24, 2023. a graduate of Goucher College, had five children including Ross Jr., and 19 grandchildren.

Perot was raised in the Methodist faith, but he converted to Presbyterianism and became a member of the Highland Park Presbyterian Church in late 1960s.{{cite web |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-10-31-me-821-story.html |title=Contenders From Mainstream Faiths : Religion: Statistics give Bush, an Episcopalian, the best chance, followed by Perot, a Presbyterian. Only 2 Presidents have been Southern Baptists, Clinton's denomination. |date=31 October 1992 |website=Los Angeles Times}} He was described as very faithful in church attendance.{{cite web |url=https://www.christianitytoday.com/1992/06/candidate-update-perot-prays-bush-and-clinton-address-gay/ |title=Candidate Update: Perot Prays; Bush and Clinton Address Gay Issues |date=22 June 1992 |website=Christianity Today}}

Perot died from leukemia in Dallas, Texas, on July 9, 2019, less than two weeks after his 89th birthday. At the time of his death, he had an estimated net worth of about $4.1 billion (${{Inflation|index=US-GDP|value=4.1||r=1|start_year=2019|fmt=c}} billion in {{Inflation/year|US-GDP}}),{{Cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-people-ross-perot-idUSKCN1U41PL|title=U.S. billionaire Ross Perot, who shook up 1990s presidential politics, dead at 89|agency=Reuters|date=July 9, 2019|work=Reuters.com}} and was ranked by Forbes as the 167th-richest person in the United States.{{cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/forbes-400/list/#version:static |work=Forbes|title=Forbes 400: 2017 Ranking|date=October 2017 |access-date=October 17, 2017}} He was buried at the Sparkman-Hillcrest Memorial Park Cemetery and a memorial service was held at Highland Park United Methodist Church, with 1,300 guests.{{cite news |last1=Fink |first1=Jack |title=Dallas Icon Ross Perot Remembered as Visionary, Philanthropist, Family Man |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/dfw/news/dallas-icon-ross-perot-remembered-visionary-philanthropist-family-man/ |access-date=July 17, 2019 |publisher=CBS |date=July 16, 2019}}

Honors and achievements

In 1970, he was the recipient of the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement.{{cite web|title= Golden Plate Awardees of the American Academy of Achievement |website=achievement.org|publisher=American Academy of Achievement|url=https://achievement.org/our-history/golden-plate-awards/#business}}
In 1985, he was inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners of the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum.{{cite web |title=Hall of Great Westerners |url=https://nationalcowboymuseum.org/hall-of-great-westerners/ |website=National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum |access-date=November 22, 2019}}
In 1986, Perot became the third American to receive the Winston Churchill Award for his efforts on behalf of American POWs in Vietnam in the 1960s and for organizing the rescue of two EDS employees from a prison in Iran.{{Cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_SKea7Veeaw | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200224183714/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_SKea7Veeaw&gl=US&hl=en| archive-date=February 24, 2020 | url-status=dead|title=The Winston Churchill Foundation Honors Ross Perot - 1986 |date=January 18, 2017 |via=YouTube}}
In 1980, he received the Oak Cliff Lions Clubs' "Humanitarian Award".{{Cite web|url=https://www.focusdailynews.com/oak-cliff-lions-club-humanitarian-award/|title=Oak Cliff Lions Club Presents 40th Annual Humanitarian Award|last=Holt|first=Jo Ann|date=February 12, 2018|website=Focus Daily News|language=en-US|access-date=September 27, 2019}}
In 1986, Perot received the S. Roger Horchow Award for Greatest Public Service by a Private Citizen, an award given out annually by Jefferson Awards.{{Cite web |url=http://www.jeffersonawards.org/pastwinners/national |title=Jefferson Awards FoundationNational – Jefferson Awards Foundation |website=Jeffersonawards.org |access-date=April 1, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101124043935/http://jeffersonawards.org/pastwinners/national |archive-date=November 24, 2010 |url-status=dead }}
Perot was inducted into the Junior Achievement U.S. Business Hall of Fame in 1988.{{Cite web|url=https://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/1988/03/14/70301/index.htm|title=The U.S. Business Hall of Fame |date=March 14, 1988|publisher=CNN|access-date=August 20, 2019}}
On April 22, 2009, Ross Perot was made an honorary Green Beret at the John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.{{Cite web |url=https://www.military.com/daily-news/2019/07/09/h-ross-perot-billionaire-navy-vet-and-honorary-marine-dies-89.html |title=H. Ross Perot, Billionaire Navy Vet and Honorary Marine, Green Beret, Dies at 89 |last=Koenig |first=David |date=July 9, 2019 |website=Military.com |language=en |access-date=July 10, 2019}}
In May 2009, he was appointed an honorary chairman of the OSS Society.{{Cite web |url=http://www.faoa.org/Resources/Documents/OSS_Invite_2010.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221010/http://www.faoa.org/Resources/Documents/OSS_Invite_2010.pdf |archive-date=October 10, 2022 |url-status=live |title=The OSS Society |year=2010 |website=Foreign Area Officer Association |access-date=August 20, 2019}}
On September 18, 2009, the Texarkana Independent School District named him (1947 graduate of Texas High School) as a 2009 Distinguished Alumnus.{{Cite news |last=Martin |first=Marie Murray |url=http://www.texarkanagazette.com/news/localnews/2009/09/19/perot-receives-distinguished-alumni-awar-11.php |work=Texarkana Gazette |title=Perot receives TISD Distinguished Alumni Award |date=September 19, 2009 |access-date=June 9, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090924013230/http://www.texarkanagazette.com/news/localnews/2009/09/19/perot-receives-distinguished-alumni-awar-11.php |archive-date=September 24, 2009}}
On October 15, 2009, the United States Military Academy at West Point awarded him with the distinguished Sylvanus Thayer Award.{{Cite web |url=http://www.westpointaog.org/NetCommunity/Page.aspx?pid=444 |publisher=West Point AOG |title=List of Thayer Award Recipients |date=October 10, 2009 |access-date=October 14, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101201232914/http://westpointaog.org/netcommunity/page.aspx?pid=444 |archive-date=December 1, 2010 |url-status=dead}}
On April 20, 2010, Perot was presented with the Distinguished Leadership Award from the Command and General Staff College Foundation, Inc., Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.{{Cite web |title=CGSC Foundation presents Ross Perot with 2010 Distinguished Leadership Award |date=April 21, 2010 |url=http://www.cgscfoundation.org/cgsc-foundation-presents-ross-perot-with-2010-distinguished-leadership-award/ |publisher=The Command and General Staff College Foundation, Inc |access-date=July 27, 2014}}
In honor of Perot's 80th birthday, the bridge connecting Walton and University drives in Texarkana, Texas, was named the H. Ross Perot Bridge.{{Cite news |last=Martin |first=Marie Murray |url=http://www.texarkanagazette.com/news/localnews/2010/06/09/native-son-perot-gets-a-birthday-surpris-46.php |work=Texarkana Gazette |title=Native Son gets birthday surprise |date=June 9, 2010 |access-date=June 9, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100612101123/http://www.texarkanagazette.com/news/localnews/2010/06/09/native-son-perot-gets-a-birthday-surpris-46.php |archive-date=June 12, 2010}}
On October 2, 2010, Perot was given the William J. Donovan Award from the OSS Society at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Washington, D.C. He is the 26th recipient of the award.{{Cite press release|url=https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ross-perot-to-receive-the-william-j-donovan-award-102612214.html|title=Ross Perot to Receive the William J. Donovan Award®|agency=PR Newswire|publisher=The OSS Society|language=en|access-date=August 27, 2019}}
In September 2011, Perot accepted the Army Heritage Center Foundation's Boots on the Ground Award.{{Cite news |last=Martin |first=Marie Murray |url=http://www.texarkanagazette.com/news/2011/07/07/ross-perot-will-be-presented-with-award-610224.php |work=Texarkana Gazette |title=Ross Perot will be presented with award |date=July 7, 2011 |access-date=September 16, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130609122047/http://www.texarkanagazette.com/news/2011/07/07/ross-perot-will-be-presented-with-award-610224.php |archive-date=June 9, 2013}}
On October 28, 2011, the Perot Museum of Nature and Science announced it was naming a new species of the dinosaur genus Pachyrhinosaurus after the Perot family. The new species is named Pachyrhinosaurus perotorum.{{Cite news |url=http://www.statesman.com/news/texas/new-dinosaur-species-named-for-perot-family-1939266.html |title=New dinosaur species named for Perot family |publisher=statesman.com |agency=Associated Press |date=October 28, 2011 |access-date=October 30, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111101232751/http://www.statesman.com/news/texas/new-dinosaur-species-named-for-perot-family-1939266.html |archive-date=November 1, 2011}}

Electoral history

{{Election box begin no change

| title = 1992 United States Presidential Election{{cite web|url=http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/data.php?year=1992&datatype=national&def=1&f=0&off=0&elect=0|title=1992 Presidential General Election Data – National|website=Uselectionatlas.org|access-date=February 11, 2012}}

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change

| candidate = Bill Clinton/Al Gore

| party = Democratic Party (United States)

| votes = 44,909,806

| percentage = 43.0%

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change

| candidate = George H. W. Bush (incumbent)/ Dan Quayle (incumbent)

| party = Republican Party (United States)

| votes = 39,104,550

| percentage = 37.4%

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change

| candidate = Ross Perot/James Stockdale

| party = Independent (United States)

| votes = 19,743,821

| percentage = 18.9%

}}

{{Election box begin no change

| title = 1996 Reform Party presidential primaries

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change

| candidate = Ross Perot

| party = Reform Party of the United States of America

| votes = 32,145

| percentage = 65.2%

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change

| candidate = Richard Lamm

| party = Reform Party of the United States of America

| votes = 17,121

| percentage = 34.8%

}}

{{Election box begin no change

| title = 1996 United States Presidential Election[http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/data.php?year=1996&datatype=national&def=1&f=0&off=0&elect=0 1996 Presidential General Election Data - National], Uselectionatlas.org.

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change

| candidate = Bill Clinton (incumbent)/Al Gore (incumbent)

| party = Democratic Party (United States)

| votes = 47,401,185

| percentage = 49.2%

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change

| candidate = Bob Dole/Jack Kemp

| party = Republican Party (United States)

| votes = 39,197,469

| percentage = 40.7%

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change

| candidate = Ross Perot/Pat Choate

| party = Reform Party (United States)

| votes = 8,085,294

| percentage = 8.4%

}}

References

=Primary sources=

Clinton, Bill. My Life. (Vintage, 2005). {{ISBN|978-1-4000-3003-3}}.
Perot, Ross. United We Stand: How We Can Take Back Our Country (1992) [https://archive.org/details/unitedwestandhow00pero online].
Schulte-Sasse, Linda. "Meet Ross Perot: The Lasting Legacy of Capraesque Populism." Cultural Critique 25 (1993): 91–119. [https://www.jstor.org/stable/1354562 online]
{{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20001209140400/http://www.uwsa.com/books/Uwsabook.html |date=December 9, 2000 |title=United We Stand, H. Ross Perot }}; text of the book published by Perot in 1992 to mark the launch of his presidential campaign, complete with charts. The text is hosted by the site of the organization he created that year United We Stand America, as saved by The Internet Archive.

External links

{{Cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/lists/2006/54/biz_06rich400_Henry-Ross-Perot_C6KA.html|title=#57 Henry Ross Perot |website=Forbes|access-date=August 20, 2019}}
{{C-SPAN|1073}}
[https://www.c-span.org/video/?53808-1/perot-people Booknotes interview with Carolyn Barta on Perot and His People: Disrupting the Balance of Political Power, January 16, 1994.]
[https://www.c-span.org/video/?301281-1/contenders-ross-perot-1992-1996 "Ross Perot, Presidential Contender"] from C-SPAN's The Contenders
{{Find a Grave|200978511}}
{{TARO|utarl|02106|H. Ross Perot Political Collection}}
[https://www.cnn.com/videos/tv/2016/04/04/clinton-bush-heavyweight-orig.cnn 1992 election episode in CNN's Race for the White House]