Perot and the Presidency: A Timeline

Feb. 20: Ross Perot, on CNN’s “Live with Larry King,” says he will run for President if the people place him on the ballot in all 50 states.

March 12: He takes space in Perot Systems office building in Dallas and sets up 30 phone lines.

March 18: Perot headquarters moves to bigger office space to make room for 100 phone lines and volunteers who are answering up to 2,000 calls an hour.

March 23: Tennessee becomes first state to place Perot on the ballot.

March 26: Perot enlists the phone lines of the Home Shopping Network to respond to the overwhelming amount of calls.

March 27: Would-be Perot backers gather in Orange County to organize for Perot.

March 30: Perot names Adm. James Bond Stockdale as a temporary running mate.

April 20: The Texas Poll shows Perot (35%) leading President Bush (30%) and Bill Clinton (20%) in that state.

April 30: Perot has spent $1.4 million on his campaign.

May 16: Nationwide Time-CNN Poll shows Perot winning in three-way race, followed by Bush and Clinton.

May 29: Perot tells Barbara Walters on ABC’s “20/20” that he would not place homosexuals in sensitive positions and would not hire adulterers.

June 2: Even though he is not on the ballot, Los Angeles Times exit poll suggests Perot would have won the California primary on both the Republican and Democrat side.

June 3: Perot hires Hamilton Jordan, former Carter Administration official, and Edward J. Rollins, who helped run President Ronald Reagan’s 1984 campaign, as campaign co-chairmen.

June 21: The Washington Post reports Perot spied on Bush’s family. The President criticizes Perot the next day.

June 23: Perot volunteers are upset with the new paid staff, claiming they have “hijacked” the campaign, the Los Angeles Times reports.

June 24: In a press conference, Perot charges recent stories accusing him of spying on the Bush family are part of a Republican conspiracy to discredit him. According to FEC, Perot has spent $3.2 million of his own money on campaign. Perot begins to slip slightly in some polls.

June 26: Barbara Bush says in an interview on “20/20” that Perot may have turned on her husband because he once refused a Perot job offer.

June 28: Top aides to Perot claim a private memo by Republican National Committee uses “smear and distortion” tactics to discredit him.

July 8: Perot declares he will not tolerate discrimination based on sexual orientation.

July 11: Perot speaks to NAACP meeting in Nashville, and comes under fire for referring to blacks as “you people” while discussing economic hardships faced by minorities. He later apologizes.

July 13: Perot, reported to be unhappy with advertising campaign strategy, fires his ad agency.

July 15: Rollins resigns, citing differences on how to run campaign. Washington Post-ABC News poll shows Perot has dropped 18 points since June, with Clinton at 45%, Bush 28% and Perot 20%.

July 16: Perot announces he is dropping bid for President.