# Who are the least plausible fictional Presidents? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 8, 2013, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-the-least-plausible-fictional-presidents/675858 "2013-12-08T23:48:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-the-least-plausible-fictional-presidents/675858/41 "2013-12-10T01:21:04Z")
Lisa Simpson, the first straight female president. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-the-least-plausible-fictional-presidents/675858/42 "2013-12-10T01:33:33Z")
I never liked the basic premise of **Commander in Chief** ; not that a woman became president, but that any major party candidate would choose an Independent as a running mate. Why didn’t just make Mackenzie Allen a liberal Republican and have her resign from the party after (or shortly before) becoming President? ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-the-least-plausible-fictional-presidents/675858/43 "2013-12-10T01:52:40Z")
Kang. Or Kodos. It makes no difference! ---
**Author:** ![installLSC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/54ee81/32.png) [@installLSC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/installLSC)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-the-least-plausible-fictional-presidents/675858/44 "2013-12-10T02:46:55Z")
In 1967 NBC aired a cartoon called [Super President](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_President), about a POTUS who gained superpowers after a cosmic storm. ---
**Author:** ![the\_diego](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7bcc69/32.png) [@the\_diego](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/the_diego)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-the-least-plausible-fictional-presidents/675858/45 "2013-12-10T03:17:07Z")
Those two former POTUS’ played by Jack Lemmon and James Garner(?) “Hail to the Chief, he’s the Chief so hail like crazy!” The incumbent I think was played by Dan Akroyd. ---
**Author:** ![Quercus\_alba](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quercus_alba/32/4061_2.png) [@Quercus\_alba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quercus_alba)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-the-least-plausible-fictional-presidents/675858/46 "2013-12-10T03:18:32Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > Jack Ryan. My first thought after I read the thread title. ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-the-least-plausible-fictional-presidents/675858/47 "2013-12-10T04:11:59Z")
Like absolutely everything else in it, Bill Pullman was too young, too inexperienced, and all around not believable as the President in ID4. So many more things were such even bigger crap in that piece of shit movie that it didn’t really matter… ---
**Author:** ![Zakalwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zakalwe/32/270_2.png) [@Zakalwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zakalwe)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-the-least-plausible-fictional-presidents/675858/48 "2013-12-10T04:26:16Z")
> [@the\_diego](#): > > Those two former POTUS’ played by Jack Lemmon and James Garner(?) “Hail to the Chief, he’s the Chief so hail like crazy!” The incumbent I think was played by Dan Akroyd. _My Fellow Americans_. John Heard played the VP. “It was all a big faa-cade.” Classic. ---
**Author:** ![Namkcalb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c89c15/32.png) [@Namkcalb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Namkcalb)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-the-least-plausible-fictional-presidents/675858/49 "2013-12-10T05:36:18Z")
> [@davidm](#): > > President Dwayne Elizondo Mountain Dew Herbert Camacho > [Idiocracy - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idiocracy) After the election of Dubya/Obama [delete unapplicable], it wouldn’t surprise me if the Republicans/Democrats[delete unapplicable] would elect someone as bad as Camacho. Seriously though, wasn’t Camacho like the third smartest person in the country of something? I doubt even today’s non retarded electorate could pick someone so relatively good. > [@ricksummon](#): > > The Boss in [Saints Row IV](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3fACvVM_JNs) — not only does he battle aliens in a virtual reality with superpowers, he also signed a bill to “Fuck Cancer”. He’s a just a British puckish rogue, what’s unrealistic about that? Be patient, he gets superpowers in reallife later on in the game ---
**Author:** ![Don\_Draper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b2d939/32.png) [@Don\_Draper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_Draper)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-the-least-plausible-fictional-presidents/675858/50 "2013-12-10T06:05:23Z")
Donald Pleasance in [Escape from New York](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Escape_from_New_York) - the guy has a freakin’ _British accent_ fer crripes! ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 6:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-the-least-plausible-fictional-presidents/675858/51 "2013-12-10T06:11:52Z")
> [@Namkcalb](#): > > Seriously though, wasn’t Camacho like the third smartest person in the country of something? I doubt even today’s non retarded electorate could pick someone so relatively good. I got the impression that he was up at the top in “intelligence,” at least until Joe/Rita’s arrival. Also Hormel Chavez (Ow! My Balls guy) at least sounds quite intelligent from the few words he says. And Obama would be way cooler if he started his speech with “Shit. I know shit’s bad right now…” and his rebuttal to complaints is firing a machine gun (SAW?) into the air. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-the-least-plausible-fictional-presidents/675858/52 "2013-12-10T15:09:24Z")
OK, this one’s gotta win the thread: [_Gabriel Over the White House_](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gabriel_Over_the_White_House) (1933): A corrupt playboy, largely indifferent to the people’s Depression-era suffering, becomes POTUS – so far, so plausible – has a near-fatal auto accident (dumbass insisted on driving himself), and, on recovery, immediately does a political u-turn, purges the business-lackeys from the Cabinet, and ultimately dissolves Congress and rules by martial law, becoming a sort of benevolent socialist-populist-fascist dictator, ushering in a New Deal on steroids. This turns out to be the best thing for America. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-the-least-plausible-fictional-presidents/675858/53 "2013-12-10T15:23:38Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > Jack Ryan. My first thought, too, upon reading the thread. His nomination as VP, then the attack, then his becoming Prez was very convoluted and I’m not too sure how it all worked out w/o a heap of suspicion falling upon Mr. Ryan: … Jack gets sworn in as VP w/o his family watching. One would think his wife would be at his side or something. … Then he goes back into some tunnel to get his family while the Pres is giving a speech (why the Pres didn’t give his speech before, or why the newly-minted VP isn’t sitting there along with the Speaker of the House, etc… that’s never really explained.) … Then, you know, while Jack is missing the MOST PERSONALLY RELEVANT PRESIDENTIAL SPEECH OF HIS ENTIRE LIFE, planeage ensued. … Everybody dies, except for Jack and his family who, again, are not in the audience but are waiting for the President to finish his speech so they can come out again. … Jack emerges from the rubble, there’s a guy there with a Bible who swears Jack in as President. I think the internet would just explode with CTers if something like the above actually happened. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-the-least-plausible-fictional-presidents/675858/54 "2013-12-10T15:43:01Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > My first thought, too, upon reading the thread. His nomination as VP, then the attack, then his becoming Prez was very convoluted and I’m not too sure how it all worked out w/o a heap of suspicion falling upon Mr. Ryan: > > … Jack gets sworn in as VP w/o his family watching. One would think his wife would be at his side or something. > … Then he goes back into some tunnel to get his family while the Pres is giving a speech (why the Pres didn’t give his speech before, or why the newly-minted VP isn’t sitting there along with the Speaker of the House, etc… that’s never really explained.) > … Then, you know, while Jack is missing the MOST PERSONALLY RELEVANT PRESIDENTIAL SPEECH OF HIS ENTIRE LIFE, planeage ensued. > … Everybody dies, except for Jack and his family who, again, are not in the audience but are waiting for the President to finish his speech so they can come out again. > … Jack emerges from the rubble, there’s a guy there with a Bible who swears Jack in as President. > > I think the internet would just explode with CTers if something like the above actually happened. 😉 Holy crap! If that had happened in real life, probably 90% of the public would assume it was a conspiracy. Jack Ryan would be impeached the next day (if not later that same day) just because the idea that he _didn’t_ arrange it all would be so absurdly implausable. ---
**Author:** ![johnspartan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a183cd/32.png) [@johnspartan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnspartan)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-the-least-plausible-fictional-presidents/675858/55 "2013-12-10T15:46:38Z")
> [@Wheelz](#): > > Funny, but before I even opened the thread I decided on Wayne Palmer. A former president’s black-sheep brother with no previous apparent political aspirations is suddenly the president himself with little to no explanation? Gets my vote. I suppose it was supposed to be a bit of a hat tip to Bobby Kennedy, but that falls apart in that, as Lloyd Bentsen’s brother might say “I worked with Bobby Kennedy. Bobby Kennedy was a friend of mine. Mr. Palmer, you’re no Bobby Kennedy.” The implication is that Wayne Palmer gets the big chair because his brother was president and he was vaguely associated with the administration, I think as chief of staff. But he plays the character (before and while in office) as being so milquetoast and vanilla that no one like that could ever get elected. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-the-least-plausible-fictional-presidents/675858/56 "2013-12-10T15:48:47Z")
I forgot to mention: The entire US Congress, Senate, and Supreme Court were in the capital building when this happened. Everybody was killed, except for a few who didn’t make it to DC in time. So essentially, the three branches of government had their heads lopped off, with Jack Ryan as the only guy in charge. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-the-least-plausible-fictional-presidents/675858/57 "2013-12-10T15:48:57Z")
I’ll nominate _GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra_ WARNING !!! SPOLIER ALERT !!! Zartan kills the president and impersonates him. It’s basically the same problem the movie _Dave_ has. Maybe you could impersonate the president well enough to fool people who don’t know him well, but there are far too many people who deal with the president on a daily basis. Some of them would realize that he’s not the same guy, and either leak their suspicions, or blow the whistle on the whole thing. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-the-least-plausible-fictional-presidents/675858/58 "2013-12-10T15:55:08Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > I forgot to mention: > > The entire US Congress, Senate, and Supreme Court were in the capital building when this happened. Everybody was killed, except for a few who didn’t make it to DC in time. So essentially, the three branches of government had their heads lopped off, with Jack Ryan as the only guy in charge. > > 😃 That’s okay, those liberal politician types were just getting in the way of doing what was necessary to protect America. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-the-least-plausible-fictional-presidents/675858/59 "2013-12-10T16:00:39Z")
Those of you into steamy 70s potboilers full of sex and political intrigue (and, really, who among us is _not_ into sex and intrigue?), I present to you the master, Irving Wallace, and one of his minor glories: [The Second Lady](http://www.amazon.com/The-Second-Lady-Irving-Wallace-ebook/dp/B00ALJOIPI) Those crafty Soviets! They’ve hatched a dastardly plot where they are going to kidnap the first lady and replace her with a trained look-alike. Fortunately for the Russian spy, the real first lady just had some operation on her coochie, so she wouldn’t have to sex up the Pres during this period (yes, they planned on doing a double-switch once the President (and the world!) realized how he’s been duped and cuckolded.) Tragically for our heroines, the operation on the First Lady’s coochie was a success, so she and the President can now get intimate much sooner than planned. It then becomes a race for the fake FL’s handler to seduce the real First Lady so he can write a report about how she fucks, so he can pass this report off to the fake First Lady. … You know, this seemed much more plausible when I was reading it at the age of 17… Anyway, I won’t spoil the ending except that, in the traditional 70’s style that we all know and love, much sexin’ was had. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-the-least-plausible-fictional-presidents/675858/60 "2013-12-10T19:38:00Z")
> [@zamboniracer](#): > > While I loved the movie, “Dave” was pretty darn implausible. No one could hide a President incapacitated by a stroke and replaced by a look-a-like. Too many people would know about it and would leak it to the media. Yes, I know Mrs. Wilson hid Woodrow Wilson’s stroke from the public but that was 100 years ago and things and media scrutiny is much heavier now. Well, of course. That’s why, in real life, the fake POTUS is always a clone. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-the-least-plausible-fictional-presidents/675858.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-the-least-plausible-fictional-presidents/675858.md?page=4)