Henry Ross Perot (born the June 27th 1930) is an American billionaire , known to be itself presented of independent twice to the presidential election, in 1992 and 1996.

Born in Texarkana, with the Texas, it makes its studies with the naval Academy of Annapolis (Maryland) in promotion 1949, then engages in the US Navy, before entering as salesman at IBM in 1957. It leaves it to found its company of data processing data processing Electronic Data Systems (EDS) in 1962, which will make its fortune (in 1992 EDS generates 8 billion dollars of turnover). In December 1969, it organizes and carries out an operation which consists in chartering two planes to deliver meals in favor of the prisoners of war of the Vietnam to Hanoi, but it was not authorized to land there.

The business of the hostages

Right before the Iranian Révolution of 1979, two paid EDS are imprisoned for an alleged problem of commercial contract. In fact, Bill Gaylord and Paul Chiapparone had been imprisoned arbitrarily to make pressure on the US government which supported at the time the Shah of Iran. An important guarantee was required by an Iranian police chief named Hosain Dadgar. Not having the possibility nor the insurance of their release by paying this guarantee in a country in insurrectionary situation, Ross Perot itself will organize an operation commando to make release the two employees of its firm. The operation is controlled by the colonel Arthur " Bull" Simons, former officer of the American special forces. Ross Perot and a team of several employees of EDS Iran then will imagine a mission of rescue, by supporting a rising pro-Khomeini in the prison, rising which releases all the prisoners then. They proceed then to the exfiltration of the two employees per terrestrial way by crossing the border with the Turkey, distant several hundreds of kilometers. This episode is reported in Like a flight of eagle (" One Wings off Eagles ") a novel of Merry Ken.

The presidential election of 1992

Ross Perot presents to the presidential elections 1992 against on the one hand the republican George Bush father and on the other hand the democrat Bill Clinton, which gives place to three triangular debates instead of the traditional face-to-face discussions. The outgoing president warning against the absence of experiment of sound very young and main adversary, the Clinton democrat, Ross Perot exploded: " It does not certainly have, indeed, the experiment which makes you create for this country a deficit of 30 billion dollars per month! ". In front of this unexpected help of the outsider, Clinton posted a few seconds a recreation jubilatoire.

Perot obtains more than 19 million voice (more than 18% of the voices) against 44 million with Clinton and 39 million with Bush.

It tries to maintain active its political movement thereafter, continuing to denounce the increase in the national debt. It is one of the most savage adversaries of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), against which it conducts campaign and debate with Al Gore during the emission " Larry King Live". Its behavior during this debate amuses much especially with its cries repeated of “let finish to me” with his characteristic accent texan. This debate was seen by much like the end of the political career of Ross Perot. Thereafter, it organizes conferences which are followed by many politicians of first rank. Perot approves in 1994 the Republican Contrat with America and invites the Americans to vote for the republican candidates this year.

The presidential election of 1996

Ross Perot presents under the banner of the reforming Parti, left that it created one year earlier. The electoral laws in force oblige it nevertheless to arise of independent in several States. He spends also much less personal money, authorizing this time of other contributors to finance his countryside.

Perot joins together only 8% of the voices at the time of the election, definitely less than in 1992 but a score unusually high in a country or the two-party system reigns. One of the reasons of this score is with its exclusion of the presidential debates following an agreement between the two other candidates, the Republican senator Bob Dole and the outgoing president, the Bill Clinton democrat.

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