Why Captain America Turned Down a Chance to be President

Why Captain America Turned Down a Chance to be President

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Captain America appears to be the ideal choice for President, so why did he turn down a chance to take office when it was offered to him?

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Why Captain America Turned Down a Chance to be President

Of all the Marvel superheroes, Captain America appears tailor-made for politics. Steve Rogers began his superhero career as a propaganda figure for World War II, after all, and since that time he’s worked closely with the U.S. government through several presidential administrations. His tireless service as a soldier and Avenger make him an honored patriot and most people instinctively feel he represents everything good and decent about America.

So, it might come as a surprise that when Captain America was offered a chance to be the U.S. President… he turned it down. His decision was met with surprise and more than a little disappointment by his fans and supporters, but Steve Rogers didn’t reach this choice lightly, and had solid reasons for feeling he shouldn’t run the country he loves.

Cap for Prez?

Why Captain America Turned Down a Chance to be President

Cap’s unexpected brush with the presidency occurred in Captain America #250 in a story by Roger Stern and John Byrne, back when Steve Rogers’ identity wasn’t public knowledge yet. After foiling a terrorist plot, Cap was approached by Samuel T. Underwood, the Convention Chairman for the New Populist Party, who invited Captain America to meet his co-workers.

During the meeting, the question of Cap becoming a presidential candidate for their party comes up and Underwood eagerly seizes on the idea. Cap doesn’t particularly care for their plan but politely says he’ll think about it. Underwood and his team, however, are more than willing to start printing up buttons and campaign materials, feeling Cap’s sense of duty will force him to run.

Back home, Steve Rogers reflects on Underwood’s offer noting, “I still can’t believe that they’d consider running a candidate who has no experience in government!” Later, while hanging out with some friends (who don’t know he’s really Captain America), Steve admits he doesn’t know who his congressman is and implies his knowledge of foreign affairs, energy, and inflation are shaky as well.

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Unfortunately, Steve finds he might need to brush up on these skills when he sees a headline in The Daily Globe indicating Captain America will run as a third-party candidate. Shocked that Underwood would move this fast, Steve is later even more surprised to learn that his friends would happily vote for Cap, even though he’s an anonymous figure who wears a mask. Later, at Avengers Mansion, Cap finds himself hounded by reporters who want to get his opinions of foreign affairs and gets a call from the White House asking if he’ll need Secret Service protection.

Everyone Wants Captain America to be President…

Why Captain America Turned Down a Chance to be President

Feeling the whole affair is getting out of hand, Cap later finds that both the Republicans and Democrats want him to be their candidates as well. Meanwhile, former X-Men member Beast (who was an Avenger at the time) offers to campaign for Cap, and promises he’ll be able to get him the mutant vote and the state of New York. Cap also gets several earfuls from Iron Man, the Wasp, and Vision, who all have their opinions on why he should (or shouldn’t) run for president.

News of Cap’s (possible) presidential run continues to spread, with civilians and other superheroes questioning Captain America’s qualifications and motivations. The Daily Bugle even considers endorsing Cap until J. Jonah Jameson realizes this could mean other superheroes – including Spider-Man – might use this as a precedent to run for public office too.

Meanwhile, Captain America finds himself increasingly troubled by all the attention. While he’s flattered that so many people think he’d be a good candidate, Steve fears that if he did become president, he’d have to sacrifice both of his identities as Captain America and Steve Rogers in favor of the U.S. President. As he muses to himself, he comes across the old school he attended as a boy and remembers his teacher’s words about duty to your country. Finding inspiration in her teachings, Steve calls Underwood to make a speech at the first New Populist Party’s National Convention.

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Captain America Refuses the Presidential Nomination

At the convention, Steve tells his supporters that the Presidency is one of the most important jobs in the world, as the President must be willing to preserve the republic at all costs. Steve’s job as Captain America, however, is to preserve, promote, and grow the American Dream – to stay true to an ideal – something he feels he cannot do within the framework of the current U.S. government. Stating he cannot abandon the American Dream while it remains unfulfilled, Cap announces he cannot be a presidential candidate. Instead, he encourages his supporters to look to themselves and find the men and women needed to keep the nation strong and make the American Dream come true.

People often forget that Steve Rogers – although undeniably brilliant, moral, and generous – became Captain America out of a personal desire to serve others in the way he wanted to – as a soldier, team leader, and inspirational figure. While duty to country undoubtedly played a big part in his choices, Steve knew where his strengths were, and he chose to nurture them rather than be all things for all people. Having been used as a propaganda figure, it would be easy to make Captain America seem like the ideal political figure – but as Steve candidly admitted to himself, he isn’t well-versed enough in the political world to be the President. It takes a great deal of strength to admit one’s shortcomings and desires – yet being able to do this led Cap to make the best decision for everyone.

That being said, the idea of Captain America as a politician has intrigued many comic creators, and some alternate worlds such as Marvel’s Ultimate Universe have put Steve Rogers in the Oval Office or given him other political offices. Of course, the Captain Americas of these worlds have very different political views and experience levels from the mainstream Captain America, making them perhaps more realistic (but less idealistic) depictions of the Star-Spangled Avenger.

Link Source : https://screenrant.com/captain-america-president-stern-byrne-250/

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