Albert Norman (Donald King Timeline)

Albert Norman is the fifty-fourth and current President of the United States of America. Born and raised poor in Arkansas, Norman obtained a scholarship to study economics at Harvard University. He continued his studies at Yale, getting his doctorate in 2041. His PhD dissertation, which connected the Langlands Program to Macroeconomic theory, won both the Fields Medal and the Nobel Prize in Economics. After eight years as Chair of the Economics Department at Yale, in 2051 he became a member of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve, and in 2053 became Chairman under Annie McPherson. He spoke out for economic reforms in wake of the wave of automation which had stripped most of the country of employment, arguing for more redistribution of wealth from the increasingly concentrated creative elite (consisting of scientists, artists, and inventors) who had not been replaced by computers. He was often labelled as a socialist for these suggestions, although polls showed he was very popular among the general population.

In 2062, Norman spoke out against the invasion of Guinea, and in a September speech connected then-president Donald King with November Horror. He was extremely critical of the White House administration under King, and frequently discussed corruption connected to Bruce Industries. In 2063, he was convicted to five years imprisonment by the Patriot Commission. He became a symbol of resistance during the movement of 2060s counter-culture, and when released from prison in 2068, he ran for president. King, fearing a coup or violent uprising if he attempted to secure a third term, allowed Norman to run and obtain his position. Albert Norman is one of the most popular presidents in American history.

Norman has established several economic reforms attempting to alleviate the unemployment problems caused by the Wave of Automation. Norman created several programs to redistribute wealth from the concentrated Creative Elite (scientists, inventors, and artists) which had not been replaced by automation, to the broader population. This included the Prosperity Act of 2069 which provides 40,000 USD to every American every year. Additional programs suggested by Norman include a North American currency union, and a Trans-Pacific trade bloc.

In 2070, a government act established by Norman dissolved Bruce Industries, which had essentially been behind the Guinea War. In the year prior, Norman recalled the last troops home from Guinea, causing the country to fall back into the hands of the Guinean Earth Party. In 2071, he made his famous "Treason is a Crime" speech, suggesting that King be executed for treason. Before King's trial, however, the ex-president ran away to the Ukraine, where he lives in asylum to this very day.

Additional reforms instituted under Norman's presidency include international Geoengineering projects and funding for space colonization. Working with China and the EU, the president has launched a number of high-tech mega-engineering projects intended to alleviate the effects of global climate change. Furthermore, President Norman has invested in nuclear fusion energy, and initiated some rudimentary forms of space colonization, including government-run asteroid mining endeavors.