Rolling Stone: From Such Things, A President Is Born Part I
Title: Rolling Stone Feature: From Such Things, A President Is Born Part I
Author: melliyna
Fandom: Generation Kill, Band of Brothers, West Wing
Pairing: Colbert/Fick, Nixon/Winters, Speirs/Lipton, Ainsley/Sam
Rating: PG (this part)
Disclaimer: I in fact, own nothing. No disrespect intended.
Warnings/Timeline/Spoilers: Mentions of adult concepts. Also this is The Big Damn AU of Doom world. Fair warning and all (also there is a companion fanmix coming)
A/N: As always, my thanks to m_buggie for the brainstorming that led to this. And to both her and foofighter0234 for collaboration and awesome in general. I've also made use of the original Rolling Stone article 'Generation Kill" for style references and Jed Bartlet,TWW and a certain speech at the end of Shadow of Two Gunmen: Part II to create an end to a convention speech for Nate.
To capture Nate Fick, is to capture a man both in command and riding the wave that has been his emergence on the US political, public and to some extent, celebrity scene. He is still extraordinarily young for his 38 years. Indeed amongst many early conversations he admits that at times, he is still asked for identification in bars, something that dogged him throughout his college and graduate school career, at least in the pursuit of gaining entry in to various bars, clubs and other such places that are gateways to adulthood. But such assumptions don't last much beyond the first meeting - Nathaniel Fick may be the youngest of three, with a clean cut youthful face but his intellect is razor sharp, years ahead of him and, despite thecliché of it, it is in his eyes and body language that the markers of his age can be found.
In the midst of a marathon Presidential campaign, with the added weight of history to be made piled upon him, Fick looks both remarkably young and remarkably old. He's learnt the fine art of sleeping in odd places, squashed in to the corners of a campaign bus, plane or train. Diet is another concern, he admits. "Though Brad, he's always had a talent for turning up with food, drink and an firm suggestion to stop, relax." Uncoiling himself from the chair he had been sitting in, I see something of Nate Fick the man, not just Nate Fick filtered through the necessary protections that all politicians must develop, however authentic. "He wormed his way in to it during the mess of finals, in which Henry and I knew nothing but vending machines and no sleep." When pressed, he says that yes, there is some truth to the notion that his spouse has honed his ability to stop, relax and walk away from a problem for a while. It is this story, a narrative of a loving, domestic and serious relationship that began with a chance encounter, that has been the hidden narrative, sandwiched between breathless tabloid exposes and a fixation on sex, sexuality, shirtless pictures of kissing on a beach or digital camera shops of vacations, nightclubs, a shot of Sydney Harbour. As a product of the multi media generation, the Fick/Seaborn has not had much opportunity to stop the flood, without being accused of rewriting history, a history that for Nate Fick, there is nothing to be ashamed of.
"Just like every young couple, we had fun together. Perhaps we made some mistakes along the way, but after all to err is to be human. " He is speaking not of the infamous Australia photos, given over to the media by a tourist in the crowd that night or the beach shots from Hawaii that provoked such a storm among right wing family groups, who were particularly incensed at the open displays of affection - holding hands, kissing, hugs that were displayed in front of Fick and Colbert's young god-daughter. Correspondingly of course, these glimpses of the potential first couple have ignited a wave of swooning across the nation, as magazines rushed to publish pictures of a shirtless Fick, who has been dubbed "Senator Sexy" and framed as the first pin up Presidential candidate that the United States has produced in modern times. Where he,Seaborn and indeed, Brad Colbert appear, screaming groupies follow as much as do the media and serious political players. It is something that does genuinely seem to bewilder Nate Fick, even as it amuses him. "Honestly, I have very little conception of fashion, celebrity and the sexiness contained therein - mostly I spent my life being entirely, happily engrossed in the process of being an athletic dork." He does, of course, acknowledge it's influence. He is not only the first openly gay presidential candidate in US history, he is also the youngest. No, when Nate speaks of "erring" it is in the year which lead to a relationship breakdown and breakup, one that neither he or Brad Colbert are willing to discuss in detail, beyond a terse recitation inFick's case and a patented stare and "shut it down" comment from Colbert. Asked about it less specific terms however, Fick does say that it was "put simply, both painful and growing, for both of us. But we came back, knowing that this was where we wanted to be, with each other."
When I ask him the first question about the scandals, smears and threats that have become as much a companion to the media narrative of his rise and rise as the inspirational message, movement and campaign genius of Fick,Seaborn and his campaign manager/long time best friend Henry Jones IV, it is in the midst of the thuds, dance of violence, sweat and old uniforms that is the gym that Nate Fick still practices in, albeit now with a lurking presence behind, beside and around him of the Secret Service. And Nate Fick is sparring, in that delicate and deadly way that only a second degree black belt and a product of an elite ROTC program can and could. His uniform has been carefully pressed, but he removes the jacket after a time, entirely unconsciously, almost as though he has forgotten that outsiders are there, both in thedojo and pressed against the window, crowded in to the streets beyond. But the steel remains, observed or unobserved, alongside the decency. "I will not, cannot give in to fear. That's what it boils down." Fick, absentmindedly takes a swig from a water bottle, toweling the sweat from his bare chest. "I could not live with myself, if I gave in to dishonour, to my own fears andleft those who have stood beside me to hang in the wind alone." Scandals and smears? "Slings and arrows against me, that's the hazard of politics and you learn to take that." However, he also makes it clear that there have been many lines that have been crossed in this campaign by his opponents, lines that go beyond the usual cut and thrust of political debate and in to what is, a dangerous place. The spectre of Harvey Milk,Rosselyn, the Kennedy brothers and MLK does indeed hang over him, but it is apparent that it is not his own safety that keeps Nate Fick up at night, pondering worst case scenarios. After all, he says, he is protected. The Secret Service know their jobs. What keeps Nate Fick up at night, perhaps is not contemplations of his own fate, but of the casualty rates of those who surround a leader, those whom he loves. Josh Lyman,Zoey Bartlet and indeed, the Agents who protect him - it is the idea of a loved one being pushed in to harms way that inspires anger, as well as fear in Nathaniel Fick. It has also inspired, lifted and made some of his more celebrated speeches and when Nate Fick speaks, it is a truism that he makes the words sing, makes the crowd lift, wave and ride the music and rhythm of his words and message.
And he says himself, his best speeches are often both long in the crafted and delivered with improvisation. "I was a debater, you see. The duality of that, the prep that you'll do, the research, the drafts of arguments and then yet, on the night you pull on the previous experience, the body memory if you will, to improvise, to think on your feet and go with the words, which always made for better speeches, better messages, if you can pull it all together." The famed convention speech, finished with these lines; A cry that found it's beginnings in pebbles, in the streets of Athens, in the hearts of revolutionaries, of the peoples of the world, in all their variations lives today in and of America, in and of the world. Despite all the obstacles we face, we will overcome. My name is Nathaniel Fick and I accept your nomination for the Presidency of the United States* is a prime example of this fusion of improvisation, craft and impeccable research that has made this campaign what it is. As an observer, an outsider, I can only catch on to a few strands, a few glimpses of the extraordinary connections, friendship and love that binds the Fick/Seaborn campaign but what can be seen is indeed awe inspiring, unexpected and almost entirely unconventional.
All of it, in the end, is centred around Nate Fick.
(Evan Wright is a feature writer with Rolling Stone, The New York Times and a contributor to 538.com, MSNBC and Meech Is Radio. He spent eighteen months on the road with the Fick/Seaborn campaign, chronicling its highs, lows and middle brow moments. Next time, catch up with Brad Colbert, the so called "Victorian Gentleman of a Biker" potential First Gentleman and in coming weeks look forward to interviews with Campaign Manager/Chief of Staff Henry Jones IV, VP Candidate Sam Seaborn and his equally interesting wife Ainsley, along with Senator Fick and Colbert at home and special guest appearance/feature starring Ella Nixon-Winters, the prospective First God-Daughter).
*(Extract of Nate Ficks' acceptance speech to the 2022 Democratic Convention)
Author: melliyna
Fandom: Generation Kill, Band of Brothers, West Wing
Pairing: Colbert/Fick, Nixon/Winters, Speirs/Lipton, Ainsley/Sam
Rating: PG (this part)
Disclaimer: I in fact, own nothing. No disrespect intended.
Warnings/Timeline/Spoilers: Mentions of adult concepts. Also this is The Big Damn AU of Doom world. Fair warning and all (also there is a companion fanmix coming)
A/N: As always, my thanks to m_buggie for the brainstorming that led to this. And to both her and foofighter0234 for collaboration and awesome in general. I've also made use of the original Rolling Stone article 'Generation Kill" for style references and Jed Bartlet,TWW and a certain speech at the end of Shadow of Two Gunmen: Part II to create an end to a convention speech for Nate.
To capture Nate Fick, is to capture a man both in command and riding the wave that has been his emergence on the US political, public and to some extent, celebrity scene. He is still extraordinarily young for his 38 years. Indeed amongst many early conversations he admits that at times, he is still asked for identification in bars, something that dogged him throughout his college and graduate school career, at least in the pursuit of gaining entry in to various bars, clubs and other such places that are gateways to adulthood. But such assumptions don't last much beyond the first meeting - Nathaniel Fick may be the youngest of three, with a clean cut youthful face but his intellect is razor sharp, years ahead of him and, despite thecliché of it, it is in his eyes and body language that the markers of his age can be found.
In the midst of a marathon Presidential campaign, with the added weight of history to be made piled upon him, Fick looks both remarkably young and remarkably old. He's learnt the fine art of sleeping in odd places, squashed in to the corners of a campaign bus, plane or train. Diet is another concern, he admits. "Though Brad, he's always had a talent for turning up with food, drink and an firm suggestion to stop, relax." Uncoiling himself from the chair he had been sitting in, I see something of Nate Fick the man, not just Nate Fick filtered through the necessary protections that all politicians must develop, however authentic. "He wormed his way in to it during the mess of finals, in which Henry and I knew nothing but vending machines and no sleep." When pressed, he says that yes, there is some truth to the notion that his spouse has honed his ability to stop, relax and walk away from a problem for a while. It is this story, a narrative of a loving, domestic and serious relationship that began with a chance encounter, that has been the hidden narrative, sandwiched between breathless tabloid exposes and a fixation on sex, sexuality, shirtless pictures of kissing on a beach or digital camera shops of vacations, nightclubs, a shot of Sydney Harbour. As a product of the multi media generation, the Fick/Seaborn has not had much opportunity to stop the flood, without being accused of rewriting history, a history that for Nate Fick, there is nothing to be ashamed of.
"Just like every young couple, we had fun together. Perhaps we made some mistakes along the way, but after all to err is to be human. " He is speaking not of the infamous Australia photos, given over to the media by a tourist in the crowd that night or the beach shots from Hawaii that provoked such a storm among right wing family groups, who were particularly incensed at the open displays of affection - holding hands, kissing, hugs that were displayed in front of Fick and Colbert's young god-daughter. Correspondingly of course, these glimpses of the potential first couple have ignited a wave of swooning across the nation, as magazines rushed to publish pictures of a shirtless Fick, who has been dubbed "Senator Sexy" and framed as the first pin up Presidential candidate that the United States has produced in modern times. Where he,Seaborn and indeed, Brad Colbert appear, screaming groupies follow as much as do the media and serious political players. It is something that does genuinely seem to bewilder Nate Fick, even as it amuses him. "Honestly, I have very little conception of fashion, celebrity and the sexiness contained therein - mostly I spent my life being entirely, happily engrossed in the process of being an athletic dork." He does, of course, acknowledge it's influence. He is not only the first openly gay presidential candidate in US history, he is also the youngest. No, when Nate speaks of "erring" it is in the year which lead to a relationship breakdown and breakup, one that neither he or Brad Colbert are willing to discuss in detail, beyond a terse recitation inFick's case and a patented stare and "shut it down" comment from Colbert. Asked about it less specific terms however, Fick does say that it was "put simply, both painful and growing, for both of us. But we came back, knowing that this was where we wanted to be, with each other."
When I ask him the first question about the scandals, smears and threats that have become as much a companion to the media narrative of his rise and rise as the inspirational message, movement and campaign genius of Fick,Seaborn and his campaign manager/long time best friend Henry Jones IV, it is in the midst of the thuds, dance of violence, sweat and old uniforms that is the gym that Nate Fick still practices in, albeit now with a lurking presence behind, beside and around him of the Secret Service. And Nate Fick is sparring, in that delicate and deadly way that only a second degree black belt and a product of an elite ROTC program can and could. His uniform has been carefully pressed, but he removes the jacket after a time, entirely unconsciously, almost as though he has forgotten that outsiders are there, both in thedojo and pressed against the window, crowded in to the streets beyond. But the steel remains, observed or unobserved, alongside the decency. "I will not, cannot give in to fear. That's what it boils down." Fick, absentmindedly takes a swig from a water bottle, toweling the sweat from his bare chest. "I could not live with myself, if I gave in to dishonour, to my own fears andleft those who have stood beside me to hang in the wind alone." Scandals and smears? "Slings and arrows against me, that's the hazard of politics and you learn to take that." However, he also makes it clear that there have been many lines that have been crossed in this campaign by his opponents, lines that go beyond the usual cut and thrust of political debate and in to what is, a dangerous place. The spectre of Harvey Milk,Rosselyn, the Kennedy brothers and MLK does indeed hang over him, but it is apparent that it is not his own safety that keeps Nate Fick up at night, pondering worst case scenarios. After all, he says, he is protected. The Secret Service know their jobs. What keeps Nate Fick up at night, perhaps is not contemplations of his own fate, but of the casualty rates of those who surround a leader, those whom he loves. Josh Lyman,Zoey Bartlet and indeed, the Agents who protect him - it is the idea of a loved one being pushed in to harms way that inspires anger, as well as fear in Nathaniel Fick. It has also inspired, lifted and made some of his more celebrated speeches and when Nate Fick speaks, it is a truism that he makes the words sing, makes the crowd lift, wave and ride the music and rhythm of his words and message.
And he says himself, his best speeches are often both long in the crafted and delivered with improvisation. "I was a debater, you see. The duality of that, the prep that you'll do, the research, the drafts of arguments and then yet, on the night you pull on the previous experience, the body memory if you will, to improvise, to think on your feet and go with the words, which always made for better speeches, better messages, if you can pull it all together." The famed convention speech, finished with these lines; A cry that found it's beginnings in pebbles, in the streets of Athens, in the hearts of revolutionaries, of the peoples of the world, in all their variations lives today in and of America, in and of the world. Despite all the obstacles we face, we will overcome. My name is Nathaniel Fick and I accept your nomination for the Presidency of the United States* is a prime example of this fusion of improvisation, craft and impeccable research that has made this campaign what it is. As an observer, an outsider, I can only catch on to a few strands, a few glimpses of the extraordinary connections, friendship and love that binds the Fick/Seaborn campaign but what can be seen is indeed awe inspiring, unexpected and almost entirely unconventional.
All of it, in the end, is centred around Nate Fick.
(Evan Wright is a feature writer with Rolling Stone, The New York Times and a contributor to 538.com, MSNBC and Meech Is Radio. He spent eighteen months on the road with the Fick/Seaborn campaign, chronicling its highs, lows and middle brow moments. Next time, catch up with Brad Colbert, the so called "Victorian Gentleman of a Biker" potential First Gentleman and in coming weeks look forward to interviews with Campaign Manager/Chief of Staff Henry Jones IV, VP Candidate Sam Seaborn and his equally interesting wife Ainsley, along with Senator Fick and Colbert at home and special guest appearance/feature starring Ella Nixon-Winters, the prospective First God-Daughter).
*(Extract of Nate Ficks' acceptance speech to the 2022 Democratic Convention)