title: Al Iaquinta

text: Iaquinta is a licensed real estate agent. He started the process of acquiring a license after a contract dispute for his fight against Thiago Alves at UFC 205.


title: Sidney Sheldon

text: Sidney Sheldon (February 11, 1917 – January 30, 2007) was an American writer. He was prominent in the 1930s, first working on Broadway plays, and then in motion pictures, notably writing the successful comedy "The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer" (1947), which earned him an Oscar in 1948. He went on to work in television, where his works spanned a 20-year period during which he created "The Patty Duke Show" (1963–66), "I Dream of Jeannie" (1965–70), and "Hart to Hart" (1979–84). After turning 50, he began writing best-selling romantic suspense novels, such as "Master of the Game" (1982), "The Other Side of Midnight" (1973), and "Rage of Angels" (1980).


title: Sidney Sheldon

text: Sheldon's 18 novels have sold over 300 million copies in 51 languages. Sheldon is consistently cited as one of the top-10 best-selling fiction writers of all time.


title: Sidney Sheldon

text: Sheldon was born Sidney Schechtel in Chicago, Illinois. His parents, of Russian Jewish ancestry, were Ascher "Otto" Schechtel (1894–1967), manager of a jewelry store, and Natalie Marcus. At 10, Sidney made his first sale, US$5 for a poem. During the Depression, he worked at a variety of jobs, and after graduating from East High School in Denver, Colorado, he attended Northwestern University on a scholarship, and contributed short plays to drama groups. He had to drop out after six months during the Depression era to help support his family. Sheldon enlisted in the military during World War II as a pilot in the War Training Service, a branch of the Army Air Corps. His unit was disbanded, but he was discharged because of a recurring slipped disc before he was deployed.


title: Sidney Sheldon

text: In 1937, Sheldon moved to Hollywood, where he reviewed scripts and collaborated on a number of B movies.


title: Sidney Sheldon

text: Sheldon began writing musicals for the Broadway stage while continuing to write screenplays for both MGM Studios and Paramount Pictures. He earned a reputation as a prolific writer; for example, at one time, he and Ben Roberts had three musicals on Broadway - a rewritten "The Merry Widow", "Jackpot", and "Dream with Music". Sheldon received a Tony Award in 1959 for his musical "Redhead", starring Gwen Verdon. His other stage plays include "Alice in Arms", "The King of New York", "The Judge", and "Roman Candle". Only "Roman Candle" has been published as a book. The play "Gomes" was performed only in London and not on Broadway.


title: Sidney Sheldon

text: Sheldon's success on Broadway brought him back to Hollywood, where his first assignment was "The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer", which earned him the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay in 1947. He was one of the writers on the screenplay for the 1948 musical film "Easter Parade" and sole writer for the 1950 musical film "Annie Get Your Gun", both of which featured the songs of Irving Berlin. Some of his other writing credits include "South of Panama", "Gambling Daughters", "Dangerous Lady", "Borrowed Hero", "Mr. District Attorney in the Carter Case", "Fly-by-Night", "She's in the Army", "Nancy Goes to Rio", "Three Guys Named Mike", "No questions asked", "Rich, Young and Pretty", "Just This Once", "Remains to be Seen", "Dream Wife", "You're Never Too Young", "The Birds and the Bees", "Anything Goes","Pardners", "The Buster Keaton Story, "All in a Night's Work", and "Billy Rose's Jumbo".


title: Sidney Sheldon

text: When television became the new popular medium, Sheldon decided to try his hand in it. "I suppose I needed money," he remembered. "I met Patty Duke one day at lunch. So I produced "The Patty Duke Show", and I did something nobody else in TV ever did. For seven years, I wrote almost every single episode of the series."


title: Sidney Sheldon

text: After seeing Duke's performance as Helen Keller in "The Miracle Worker" (1962), Sheldon cast the actress as the two sitcom leads, identical cousins, Patty and Cathy Lane.


title: Sidney Sheldon

text: In 1965, Sheldon created, produced, and wrote "I Dream of Jeannie" starring Barbara Eden and Larry Hagman. He wrote all but two dozen scripts in five years, sometimes using three pseudonyms (Mark Rowane, Allan Devon, and Christopher Golato) while simultaneously writing scripts for "The Patty Duke Show". He later said that he did this because he felt his name was appearing too often in the credits as creator, producer, copyright owner and writer of these series.


title: Sidney Sheldon

text: Production for "I Dream of Jeannie" ended in 1970 after five seasons. "During the last year of "I Dream of Jeannie", I decided to try a novel," he said in 1982. "Each morning from 9 until noon, I had a secretary at the studio take all calls. I mean every single call. I wrote each morning — or rather, dictated — and then I faced the TV business."


title: Sidney Sheldon

text: In 1979, Sheldon created and wrote for the series "Hart to Hart" starring Robert Wagner and Stefanie Powers. The show aired on ABC and ran for five seasons.


title: Sidney Sheldon

text: In 1969, Sheldon wrote his first novel, "The Naked Face", which earned him a nomination for the Edgar Allan Poe Award from the Mystery Writers of America in the category of Best First Novel. His next novel, "The Other Side of Midnight", climbed to number one on "The New York Times" Best Seller list, as did several ensuing novels, a number of which were also made into motion pictures or TV miniseries. His novels often featured determined women who persevere in a tough world run by hostile men. The novels contained suspense and devices to keep the reader turning the page:


title: Sidney Sheldon

text: Most of his readers were women. Asked why this was the case, he said: "I like to write about women who are talented and capable, but most important, retain their femininity. Women have tremendous power — their femininity, because men can't do without it." Books were Sheldon's favorite medium. "I love writing books," he commented. "Movies are a collaborative medium, and everyone is second-guessing you. When you do a novel, you're on your own. It's a freedom that doesn't exist in any other medium." He was the author of 18 novels, which have sold over 300 million copies.


title: Sidney Sheldon

text: Three years before his death, "Los Angeles Times" called Sheldon "Mr. Blockbuster" and "prince of potboilers."


title: Sidney Sheldon

text: Sheldon was first married to Jane Kaufman Harding (1945–1946). Later, he wrote "Regretfully, in less than a month, Jane and I realized we had made a mistake. ... We spent the next nine months trying in vain to make the marriage work."


title: Sidney Sheldon

text: He was married for 30 years to Jorja Curtright, a stage and film actress who later became an interior designer. She played Suzanne in the 1955 film, "Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing", and appeared in a season-one episode of "I Dream of Jeannie" as Madame Zolta. Curtright died of a heart attack in 1985. Their daughter, Mary Sheldon, became a novelist as well.


title: Sidney Sheldon

text: Sheldon struggled with bipolar disorder for years; he contemplated suicide at 17 (talked out of it by his father, who found him with a bottle of whiskey and several bottles of sleeping pills), as detailed in his autobiography published in 2005, "The Other Side of Me".


title: Sidney Sheldon

text: A resident of Palm Springs, California, Sheldon died on January 30, 2007, of pneumonia at Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage, California, 12 days before his 90th birthday. His remains were cremated, the ashes interred in Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery.


title: Sidney Sheldon

text: Sheldon won an Academy Award for Writing Original Screenplay (1947) for "The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer", a Tony Award (1959) for his musical "Redhead", and was nominated for an Emmy Award for his work on "I Dream of Jeannie", an NBC sitcom. Sheldon was inducted into the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1988 had a Golden Palm Star on the Palm Springs Walk of Stars dedicated to him in 1994. In 1990, Sheldon received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement.


title: Sidney Sheldon

text: The following books were published to introduce English language novels in Japan. Some of the books have also been translated to Spanish, German and Portuguese. The English version of these books are not available outside of Japan.


title: Axiom of choice

text: In mathematics, the axiom of choice, or AC, is an axiom of set theory equivalent to the statement that "a Cartesian product of a collection of non-empty sets is non-empty". Informally put, the axiom of choice says that given any collection of sets, each containing at least one element, it is possible to construct a new set by arbitrarily choosing one element from each set, even if the collection is infinite. Formally, it states that for every indexed family formula_1 of nonempty sets, there exists an indexed set formula_2 such that formula_3 for every formula_4. The axiom of choice was formulated in 1904 by Ernst Zermelo in order to formalize his proof of the well-ordering theorem.


title: Axiom of choice

text: In many cases, a set arising from choosing elements arbitrarily can be made without invoking the axiom of choice; this is, in particular, the case if the number of sets from which to choose the elements is finite, or if a canonical rule on how to choose the elements is available – some distinguishing property that happens to hold for exactly one element in each set. An illustrative example is sets picked from the natural numbers. From such sets, one may always select the smallest number, e.g. given the sets <nowiki></nowiki> the set containing each smallest element is {4, 10, 1}. In this case, "select the smallest number" is a choice function. Even if infinitely many sets were collected from the natural numbers, it will always be possible to choose the smallest element from each set to produce a set. That is, the choice function provides the set of chosen elements. However, no definite choice function is known for the collection of all non-empty subsets of the real numbers (if there are non-constructible reals). In that case, the axiom of choice must be invoked.


title: Axiom of choice

text: Bertrand Russell coined an analogy: for any (even infinite) collection of pairs of shoes, one can pick out the left shoe from each pair to obtain an appropriate collection (i.e. set) of shoes; this makes it possible to define a choice function directly. For an "infinite" collection of pairs of socks (assumed to have no distinguishing features), there is no obvious way to make a function that forms a set out of selecting one sock from each pair, without invoking the axiom of choice.


title: Axiom of choice

text: Although originally controversial, the axiom of choice is now used without reservation by most mathematicians, and it is included in the standard form of axiomatic set theory, Zermelo–Fraenkel set theory with the axiom of choice (ZFC). One motivation for this use is that a number of generally accepted mathematical results, such as Tychonoff's theorem, require the axiom of choice for their proofs. Contemporary set theorists also study axioms that are not compatible with the axiom of choice, such as the axiom of determinacy. The axiom of choice is avoided in some varieties of constructive mathematics, although there are varieties of constructive mathematics in which the axiom of choice is embraced.


title: Axiom of choice

text: A choice function (also called selector or selection) is a function "f", defined on a collection "X" of nonempty sets, such that for every set "A" in "X", "f"("A") is an element of "A". With this concept, the axiom can be stated:


title: Axiom of choice

text: Thus, the negation of the axiom of choice states that there exists a collection of nonempty sets that has no choice function. (formula_6, so formula_7 where formula_8 is negation.)


title: Axiom of choice

text: Each choice function on a collection "X" of nonempty sets is an element of the Cartesian product of the sets in "X". This is not the most general situation of a Cartesian product of a family of sets, where a given set can occur more than once as a factor; however, one can focus on elements of such a product that select the same element every time a given set appears as factor, and such elements correspond to an element of the Cartesian product of all "distinct" sets in the family. The axiom of choice asserts the existence of such elements; it is therefore equivalent to:


title: Axiom of choice

text: There are many other equivalent statements of the axiom of choice. These are equivalent in the sense that, in the presence of other basic axioms of set theory, they imply the axiom of choice and are implied by it.


title: Axiom of choice

text: One variation avoids the use of choice functions by, in effect, replacing each choice function with its range.


title: Axiom of choice

text: This guarantees for any partition of a set "X" the existence of a subset "C" of "X" containing exactly one element from each part of the partition.


title: Axiom of choice

text: Another equivalent axiom only considers collections "X" that are essentially powersets of other sets:


title: Axiom of choice

text: Authors who use this formulation often speak of the "choice function on A", but this is a slightly different notion of choice function. Its domain is the power set of "A" (with the empty set removed), and so makes sense for any set "A", whereas with the definition used elsewhere in this article, the domain of a choice function on a "collection of sets" is that collection, and so only makes sense for sets of sets. With this alternate notion of choice function, the axiom of choice can be compactly stated as


title: Axiom of choice

text: The usual statement of the axiom of choice does not specify whether the collection of nonempty sets is finite or infinite, and thus implies that every finite collection of nonempty sets has a choice function. However, that particular case is a theorem of the Zermelo–Fraenkel set theory without the axiom of choice (ZF); it is easily proved by the principle of finite induction. In the even simpler case of a collection of "one" set, a choice function just corresponds to an element, so this instance of the axiom of choice says that every nonempty set has an element; this holds trivially. The axiom of choice can be seen as asserting the generalization of this property, already evident for finite collections, to arbitrary collections.


title: Axiom of choice

text: Until the late 19th century, the axiom of choice was often used implicitly, although it had not yet been formally stated. For example, after having established that the set "X" contains only non-empty sets, a mathematician might have said "let "F"("s") be one of the members of "s" for all "s" in "X"" to define a function "F". In general, it is impossible to prove that "F" exists without the axiom of choice, but this seems to have gone unnoticed until Zermelo.


title: Axiom of choice

text: The nature of the individual nonempty sets in the collection may make it possible to avoid the axiom of choice even for certain infinite collections. For example, suppose that each member of the collection "X" is a nonempty subset of the natural numbers. Every such subset has a smallest element, so to specify our choice function we can simply say that it maps each set to the least element of that set. This gives us a definite choice of an element from each set, and makes it unnecessary to add the axiom of choice to our axioms of set theory.


title: Axiom of choice

text: The difficulty appears when there is no natural choice of elements from each set. If we cannot make explicit choices, how do we know that our selection forms a legitimate set (as defined by the other ZF axioms of set theory)? For example, suppose that "X" is the set of all non-empty subsets of the real numbers. First we might try to proceed as if "X" were finite. If we try to choose an element from each set, then, because "X" is infinite, our choice procedure will never come to an end, and consequently, we shall never be able to produce a choice function for all of "X". Next we might try specifying the least element from each set. But some subsets of the real numbers do not have least elements. For example, the open interval (0,1) does not have a least element: if "x" is in (0,1), then so is "x"/2, and "x"/2 is always strictly smaller than "x". So this attempt also fails.


title: Axiom of choice

text: Additionally, consider for instance the unit circle "S", and the action on "S" by a group "G" consisting of all rational rotations. Namely, these are rotations by angles which are rational multiples of "π". Here "G" is countable while "S" is uncountable. Hence "S" breaks up into uncountably many orbits under "G". Using the axiom of choice, we could pick a single point from each orbit, obtaining an uncountable subset "X" of "S" with the property that all of its translates by G are disjoint from "X". The set of those translates partitions the circle into a countable collection of disjoint sets, which are all pairwise congruent. Since "X" is not measurable for any rotation-invariant countably additive finite measure on "S", finding an algorithm to form a set from selecting a point in each orbit requires that one add the axiom of choice to our axioms of set theory. See non-measurable set for more details.


title: Axiom of choice

text: The reason that we are able to choose least elements from subsets of the natural numbers is the fact that the natural numbers are well-ordered: every nonempty subset of the natural numbers has a unique least element under the natural ordering. One might say, "Even though the usual ordering of the real numbers does not work, it may be possible to find a different ordering of the real numbers which is a well-ordering. Then our choice function can choose the least element of every set under our unusual ordering." The problem then becomes that of constructing a well-ordering, which turns out to require the axiom of choice for its existence; every set can be well-ordered if and only if the axiom of choice holds.


title: Axiom of choice

text: A proof requiring the axiom of choice may establish the existence of an object without explicitly defining the object in the language of set theory. For example, while the axiom of choice implies that there is a well-ordering of the real numbers, there are models of set theory with the axiom of choice in which no well-ordering of the reals is definable. Similarly, although a subset of the real numbers that is not Lebesgue measurable can be proved to exist using the axiom of choice, it is consistent that no such set is definable.


title: Axiom of choice

text: The axiom of choice proves the existence of these intangibles (objects that are proved to exist, but which cannot be explicitly constructed), which may conflict with some philosophical principles. Because there is no canonical well-ordering of all sets, a construction that relies on a well-ordering may not produce a canonical result, even if a canonical result is desired (as is often the case in category theory). This has been used as an argument against the use of the axiom of choice.


title: Axiom of choice

text: Another argument against the axiom of choice is that it implies the existence of objects that may seem counterintuitive. One example is the Banach–Tarski paradox which says that it is possible to decompose the 3-dimensional solid unit ball into finitely many pieces and, using only rotations and translations, reassemble the pieces into two solid balls each with the same volume as the original. The pieces in this decomposition, constructed using the axiom of choice, are non-measurable sets.


title: Axiom of choice

text: Despite these seemingly paradoxical facts, most mathematicians accept the axiom of choice as a valid principle for proving new results in mathematics. The debate is interesting enough, however, that it is considered of note when a theorem in ZFC (ZF plus AC) is logically equivalent (with just the ZF axioms) to the axiom of choice, and mathematicians look for results that require the axiom of choice to be false, though this type of deduction is less common than the type which requires the axiom of choice to be true.


title: Axiom of choice

text: It is possible to prove many theorems using neither the axiom of choice nor its negation; such statements will be true in any model of ZF, regardless of the truth or falsity of the axiom of choice in that particular model. The restriction to ZF renders any claim that relies on either the axiom of choice or its negation unprovable. For example, the Banach–Tarski paradox is neither provable nor disprovable from ZF alone: it is impossible to construct the required decomposition of the unit ball in ZF, but also impossible to prove there is no such decomposition. Similarly, all the statements listed below which require choice or some weaker version thereof for their proof are unprovable in ZF, but since each is provable in ZF plus the axiom of choice, there are models of ZF in which each statement is true. Statements such as the Banach–Tarski paradox can be rephrased as conditional statements, for example, "If AC holds, then the decomposition in the Banach–Tarski paradox exists." Such conditional statements are provable in ZF when the original statements are provable from ZF and the axiom of choice.


title: Axiom of choice

text: As discussed above, in ZFC, the axiom of choice is able to provide "nonconstructive proofs" in which the existence of an object is proved although no explicit example is constructed. ZFC, however, is still formalized in classical logic. The axiom of choice has also been thoroughly studied in the context of constructive mathematics, where non-classical logic is employed. The status of the axiom of choice varies between different varieties of constructive mathematics.


title: Axiom of choice

text: In Martin-Löf type theory and higher-order Heyting arithmetic, the appropriate statement of the axiom of choice is (depending on approach) included as an axiom or provable as a theorem. Errett Bishop argued that the axiom of choice was constructively acceptable, saying


title: Axiom of choice

text: In constructive set theory, however, Diaconescu's theorem shows that the axiom of choice implies the law of excluded middle (unlike in Martin-Löf type theory, where it does not). Thus the axiom of choice is not generally available in constructive set theory. A cause for this difference is that the axiom of choice in type theory does not have the extensionality properties that the axiom of choice in constructive set theory does.


title: Axiom of choice

text: Some results in constructive set theory use the axiom of countable choice or the axiom of dependent choice, which do not imply the law of the excluded middle in constructive set theory. Although the axiom of countable choice in particular is commonly used in constructive mathematics, its use has also been questioned.


title: Axiom of choice

text: In 1938, Kurt Gödel showed that the "negation" of the axiom of choice is not a theorem of ZF by constructing an inner model (the constructible universe) which satisfies ZFC and thus showing that ZFC is consistent if ZF itself is consistent. In 1963, Paul Cohen employed the technique of forcing, developed for this purpose, to show that, assuming ZF is consistent, the axiom of choice itself is not a theorem of ZF. He did this by constructing a much more complex model which satisfies ZF¬C (ZF with the negation of AC added as axiom) and thus showing that ZF¬C is consistent.


title: Axiom of choice

text: Together these results establish that the axiom of choice is logically independent of ZF. The assumption that ZF is consistent is harmless because adding another axiom to an already inconsistent system cannot make the situation worse. Because of independence, the decision whether to use the axiom of choice (or its negation) in a proof cannot be made by appeal to other axioms of set theory. The decision must be made on other grounds.


title: Axiom of choice

text: One argument given in favor of using the axiom of choice is that it is convenient to use it because it allows one to prove some simplifying propositions that otherwise could not be proved. Many theorems which are provable using choice are of an elegant general character: the cardinalities of any two sets are comparable, every nontrivial ring with unity has a maximal ideal, every vector space has a basis, every connected graph has a spanning tree, and every product of compact spaces is compact, among many others. Without the axiom of choice, these theorems may not hold for mathematical objects of large cardinality.


title: Axiom of choice

text: The proof of the independence result also shows that a wide class of mathematical statements, including all statements that can be phrased in the language of Peano arithmetic, are provable in ZF if and only if they are provable in ZFC. Statements in this class include the statement that P = NP, the Riemann hypothesis, and many other unsolved mathematical problems. When one attempts to solve problems in this class, it makes no difference whether ZF or ZFC is employed if the only question is the existence of a proof. It is possible, however, that there is a shorter proof of a theorem from ZFC than from ZF.


title: Axiom of choice

text: The axiom of choice is not the only significant statement which is independent of ZF. For example, the generalized continuum hypothesis (GCH) is not only independent of ZF, but also independent of ZFC. However, ZF plus GCH implies AC, making GCH a strictly stronger claim than AC, even though they are both independent of ZF.


title: Axiom of choice

text: The axiom of constructibility and the generalized continuum hypothesis each imply the axiom of choice and so are strictly stronger than it. In class theories such as Von Neumann–Bernays–Gödel set theory and Morse–Kelley set theory, there is an axiom called the axiom of global choice that is stronger than the axiom of choice for sets because it also applies to proper classes. The axiom of global choice follows from the axiom of limitation of size. Tarski's axiom, which is used in Tarski–Grothendieck set theory and states (in the vernacular) that every set belongs to Grothendieck universe, is stronger than the axiom of choice.


title: Axiom of choice

text: There are important statements that, assuming the axioms of ZF but neither AC nor ¬AC, are equivalent to the axiom of choice. The most important among them are Zorn's lemma and the well-ordering theorem. In fact, Zermelo initially introduced the axiom of choice in order to formalize his proof of the well-ordering theorem.


title: Axiom of choice

text: There are several results in category theory which invoke the axiom of choice for their proof. These results might be weaker than, equivalent to, or stronger than the axiom of choice, depending on the strength of the technical foundations. For example, if one defines categories in terms of sets, that is, as sets of objects and morphisms (usually called a small category), or even locally small categories, whose hom-objects are sets, then there is no category of all sets, and so it is difficult for a category-theoretic formulation to apply to all sets. On the other hand, other foundational descriptions of category theory are considerably stronger, and an identical category-theoretic statement of choice may be stronger than the standard formulation, à la class theory, mentioned above.


title: Axiom of choice

text: There are several weaker statements that are not equivalent to the axiom of choice, but are closely related. One example is the axiom of dependent choice (DC). A still weaker example is the axiom of countable choice (AC or CC), which states that a choice function exists for any countable set of nonempty sets. These axioms are sufficient for many proofs in elementary mathematical analysis, and are consistent with some principles, such as the Lebesgue measurability of all sets of reals, that are disprovable from the full axiom of choice.


title: Axiom of choice

text: Given an ordinal parameter α ≥ 1 — for every set "S" with Hartogs number less than ω, "S" is well-orderable.


title: Axiom of choice

text: As the ordinal parameter is increased, these approximate the full axiom of choice more and more closely.


title: Axiom of choice

text: Other choice axioms weaker than axiom of choice include the Boolean prime ideal theorem and the axiom of uniformization. The former is equivalent in ZF to Tarski's 1930 ultrafilter lemma: every filter is a subset of some ultrafilter.


title: Axiom of choice

text: One of the most interesting aspects of the axiom of choice is the large number of places in mathematics that it shows up. Here are some statements that require the axiom of choice in the sense that they are not provable from ZF but are provable from ZFC (ZF plus AC). Equivalently, these statements are true in all models of ZFC but false in some models of ZF.


title: Axiom of choice

text: There are several historically important set-theoretic statements implied by AC whose equivalence to AC is open. The partition principle, which was formulated before AC itself, was cited by Zermelo as a justification for believing AC. In 1906, Russell declared PP to be equivalent, but whether the partition principle implies AC is still the oldest open problem in set theory, and the equivalences of the other statements are similarly hard old open problems. In every "known" model of ZF where choice fails, these statements fail too, but it is unknown if they can hold without choice.


title: Axiom of choice

text: If we abbreviate by BP the claim that every set of real numbers has the property of Baire, then BP is stronger than ¬AC, which asserts the nonexistence of any choice function on perhaps only a single set of nonempty sets. Strengthened negations may be compatible with weakened forms of AC. For example, ZF + DC + BP is consistent, if ZF is.


title: Axiom of choice

text: It is also consistent with ZF + DC that every set of reals is Lebesgue measurable; however, this consistency result, due to Robert M. Solovay, cannot be proved in ZFC itself, but requires a mild large cardinal assumption (the existence of an inaccessible cardinal). The much stronger axiom of determinacy, or AD, implies that every set of reals is Lebesgue measurable, has the property of Baire, and has the perfect set property (all three of these results are refuted by AC itself). ZF + DC + AD is consistent provided that a sufficiently strong large cardinal axiom is consistent (the existence of infinitely many Woodin cardinals).


title: Axiom of choice

text: Quine's system of axiomatic set theory, "New Foundations" (NF), takes its name from the title ("New Foundations for Mathematical Logic") of the 1937 article which introduced it. In the NF axiomatic system, the axiom of choice can be disproved.


title: Axiom of choice

text: There are models of Zermelo-Fraenkel set theory in which the axiom of choice is false. We shall abbreviate "Zermelo-Fraenkel set theory plus the negation of the axiom of choice" by ZF¬C. For certain models of ZF¬C, it is possible to prove the negation of some standard facts.


title: Axiom of choice

text: Any model of ZF¬C is also a model of ZF, so for each of the following statements, there exists a model of ZF in which that statement is true.


title: Axiom of choice

text: Additionally, by imposing definability conditions on sets (in the sense of descriptive set theory) one can often prove restricted versions of the axiom of choice from axioms incompatible with general choice. This appears, for example, in the Moschovakis coding lemma.


title: Axiom of choice

text: In type theory, a different kind of statement is known as the axiom of choice. This form begins with two types, σ and τ, and a relation "R" between objects of type σ and objects of type τ. The axiom of choice states that if for each "x" of type σ there exists a "y" of type τ such that "R"("x","y"), then there is a function "f" from objects of type σ to objects of type τ such that "R"("x","f"("x")) holds for all "x" of type σ:


title: Axiom of choice

text: Unlike in set theory, the axiom of choice in type theory is typically stated as an axiom scheme, in which "R" varies over all formulas or over all formulas of a particular logical form.


title: Axiom of choice

text: This is a joke: although the three are all mathematically equivalent, many mathematicians find the axiom of choice to be intuitive, the well-ordering principle to be counterintuitive, and Zorn's lemma to be too complex for any intuition.


title: Axiom of choice

text: The observation here is that one can define a function to select from an infinite number of pairs of shoes, for example by choosing the left shoe from each pair. Without the axiom of choice, one cannot assert that such a function exists for pairs of socks, because left and right socks are (presumably) indistinguishable.


title: Axiom of choice

text: Polish-American mathematician Jan Mycielski relates this anecdote in a 2006 article in the Notices of the AMS.


title: Axiom of choice

text: This quote comes from the famous April Fools' Day article in the "computer recreations" column of the "Scientific American", April 1989.


title: Michel Aoun

text: Michel Naim Aoun ( ; born 30 September 1933) is a Lebanese politician and former military general who served as the President of Lebanon from 31 October 2016 until 30 October 2022.


title: Michel Aoun

text: Born in Haret Hreik to a Maronite Christian family, Aoun joined the Military Academy in 1955 and graduated as an artillery officer in the Lebanese Army. In 1984, he became the youngest Commander of the Army, at the age of 49 years. On 22 September 1988 during the fourth phase of the Lebanese Civil War, the departing President Amine Gemayel appointed him as the interim Prime Minister of a Military Government, after the parliament failed to elect a new president, and dismissed the current government headed by the Acting Prime Minister Selim Hoss. This controversial decision saw the rise of two rival governments contending for power at that time, with Aoun being supported mainly by Christians and Iraq, while the other being supported by Muslims and Syria.


title: Michel Aoun

text: He declared the War of Liberation against Syrian Army forces on 14 March 1989, opposed the Taif Agreement, refused to recognize the newly elected presidents René Moawad and Elias Hrawi, clashed with the Lebanese Forces led by Samir Geagea, and survived an assassination attempt on 12 October 1990. On 13 October, the Syrian forces launched a decisive operation against Aoun, invading his strongholds including the Presidential Palace in Baabda and killing hundreds of Lebanese soldiers and civilians. Aoun fled to the French Embassy in Beirut where he declared his surrender and was later granted asylum in France where he lived in exile for 15 years.


title: Michel Aoun

text: In exile, Aoun founded the Free Patriotic Movement, and advocated for the Syria Accountability Act by testifying in the US Congress. In 2005, a chain of widespread demonstrations triggered by the assassination of Rafic Hariri erupted in Lebanon, resulted in the withdrawal of Syrian troops from the country. On 7 May, Aoun returned to Lebanon.


title: Michel Aoun

text: Aoun was elected to the Parliament for the first time in the same year, while his party won 21 seats in the parliament, forming the largest Christian bloc, and second biggest bloc in the Parliament. In 2006, he signed a memorandum of understanding with Hezbollah, starting a major alliance that has remained ever since. Despite the bloody history with the regime of Hafez al-Assad, father of Bashar al-Assad, Aoun visited Syria in 2008, ending his long rivalry with Damascus.


title: Michel Aoun

text: In 2016, Aoun reconciled with Geagea after signing the Maarab Agreement, and was endorsed by the Lebanese Forces, Future Movement, Progressive Socialist Party as well as Hezbollah to become the thirteenth President of Lebanon. He is the oldest president, taking office at the age of 83 years. After his election, he was sworn in and succeeded Michel Suleiman.


title: Michel Aoun

text: The country descended into chaos with a popular uprising, bringing millions of Lebanese in Lebanon and abroad to take to the streets, mainly caused by the liquidity crisis, political corruption and sectarianism.


title: Michel Aoun

text: With family origins from Haret el Maknouniye, Jezzine, Aoun was born in the mixed Christian-Shiite suburb of Haret Hreik, to the south of Beirut. His father was Naim Aoun who worked as a butcher, while his mother was Marie Aoun, a Lebanese woman who was born in the United States. His family was generally poor.


title: Michel Aoun

text: In 1941, he was forced to leave the house where he was living, as it was occupied by British and Australian forces. He finished his secondary education at the College Des Frères Furn Al Chebbak in 1955 and finished a degree in Maths. He enrolled in the Military Academy as a cadet officer, and graduated as an artillery officer in the Lebanese Army three years later.


title: Michel Aoun

text: After his graduation, Aoun joined the Second Artillery Regiment in 1958, and was sent to France to receive further military training at Châlons-sur-Marne. He finished it the following year, and was promoted to Second Lieutenant on 30 September.


title: Michel Aoun

text: He was serving during the failed coup of the Syrian Social Nationalist Party in 1961, and was decorated for that. He was trained at Fort Sill in Oklahoma, and became the Assistant of The Commander of the Second Artillery Battalion, the Commander of the Command and Service Company and Commander of the Administrative Detachment in 1970.


title: Michel Aoun

text: At the start of the civil war, Aoun was the commander of the Second Artillery Corps of the Army. He took part in the Battle of Tel al-Zaatar, claiming that he developed and planned the siege of the camp and its storming. He directed the attack, which resulted in destruction of it, and the Palestinian refugees being displaced. In 1978, he went to France again for more military training at École Supérieure de Guerre.


title: Michel Aoun

text: In 1980, Aoun returned to Lebanon and was appointed later as the interim commander of the mainly Christian 8th Infantry Brigade, that is credited for protecting the Palestinian refugee camp of Borj Al Barajneh from the sinister fate of Sabra and Chatila, and fought against the pro-Syrian Druze and Palestinian militias at the Battle of Souk El Gharb during the Mountain War. During the Israeli invasion, Aoun's office was at the Museum Crossing.


title: Michel Aoun

text: He was promoted to General and appointed as the tenth Commander of the Armed Forces on 23 June 1984, succeeding General Ibrahim Tannous. At the age of 49 years, he was the youngest Commander since the establishment of the position.


title: Michel Aoun

text: According to French journalist Alain Ménargues, Aoun had strong relationships with Bachir Gemayel and Israel. He suggested that Aoun proposed to Gemayel signing a mutual recognition agreement between Lebanon and Israel along with a joint defense pact, and was accompanied by Israeli officers in his patrols. He also had a meeting with Israeli Minister of Defence Ariel Sharon.


title: Michel Aoun

text: On 22 September 1988, 15 minutes before the expiration of his term, the outgoing president Amine Gemayel appointed Aoun as Prime Minister, heading a military government to formed by six members of the Martial Court, three of which are Christian and three are Muslims. He also dismissed the civilian administration of acting Prime Minister Selim Hoss. The Muslims refused to serve, and submitted their resignations on the next day. Gemayel accuses Syria of forcing them to do so, claiming that they accepted their roles when he contacted them. He also says that he considered forming a cabinet of judges or politicians. Having failed to form a political caretaker government, and feeling that judges "can't defend themselves", he opted for a military cabinet. Indeed, Amine Gemayel had recognized that his own nemesis throughout his presidency, the militia his slain brother Bashir Gemayel had founded, the Lebanese Forces, would also attempt to undermine the authority of a caretaker government. Backed by Syria and its local allies, Al-Hoss declared his dismissal invalid. Two governments emerged, one civilian and mainly Muslim in West Beirut, headed by Hoss as the Acting Prime Minister, the other, military and Christian, in East Beirut, led by Michel Aoun as the Interim Prime Minister. Aoun held the additional portfolio of minister of defense.


title: Michel Aoun

text: Gemayel's move was of questionable validity, as it violated the unwritten National Pact of 1943, which reserved the position of prime minister for a Sunni Muslim. Gemayel argued, however, that as the National Pact also reserved the "presidency" for a Maronite Christian, and as the Prime Minister assumes the powers and duties of the President in the event of a vacancy, it would be proper to fill that office temporarily with a Maronite. Gemayel referenced the historical precedent of 1952, when General Fouad Chehab, a Christian Maronite, was appointed as prime minister of a transition government following the resignation of President Bechara El Khoury.


title: Michel Aoun

text: On 15 February 1989 General Aoun launched an offensive, with those Lebanese Army Brigades loyal to him (30% of whom were Sunni), against Geagea’s Lebanese Forces (LF) positions around Christian East Beirut. Nine days later, 24 February, with seventy people killed and the intervention of the Maronite Patriarchate the LF agreed to hand over to Aoun control of Beirut’s port’s fifth basin with its estimated $300,000 per month tax revenue. Suleiman Frangieh, in the north, also returned control of Ras Salaata port in Batroun District The following month Aoun launched a blockade against the unregulated seaports south of Beirut at Jieh and Khalde. On 8 March 1989 Aoun’s patrol boats intercepted a boat heading for PSP controlled port at Jieh. This percipitated a series of indiscriminate artillery barrages, with Amal shelling East Beirut harbour and Jouneh port, and Aoun’s army brigades shelling Souq El Gharb. On the 12 March Aoun ordered the closure of Beirut International Airport and two days later launched an hour long bombardment of East Beirut which killed 40 civilians.


title: Michel Aoun

text: At the end of the month Aoun announced a ceasefire with the issue of the militia run ports unresolved. The area had seen the worst violence for three years with over 90 people killed and several hundred wounded.


title: Michel Aoun

text: In October 1989, Lebanese National Assembly members met to draw up the Taif Accord in an attempt to settle the Lebanese conflict. This accord was later revealed to have been prepared two years earlier by Rafic Hariri. Aoun refused to attend, denounced the politicians who did so as traitors and issued a decree dissolving the assembly. After the Taif accord was signed over his opposition, Aoun further denounced it for not appointing a date for the withdrawal of the Syrian army from Lebanon. After it signed the Taif Accord (in Taif, Saudi Arabia), the assembly met to elect René Moawad as president in November. Despite heavy-handed pressure from Syria to dismiss Aoun, Moawad relented; his presidency ended 17 days later when he was assassinated. Elias Hrawi was elected in his place. After assuming office as president, Hrawi appointed General Émile Lahoud as commander of the army and ordered Aoun out of the Presidential Palace. Aoun rejected his dismissal.


title: Michel Aoun

text: In February 1990 General Aoun launched an offensive against Samir Geagea’s Lebanese Forces (LF) in East Beirut. The three months of intermittent fighting caused more destruction of property in the Christian part of Beirut than the previous 15 years of civil war. It ended with the LF remaining in control of East Beirut, the harbour and Kisrawan province. Around 1000 people were killed and both East and West Beirut left without electricity and badly damaged water supply.


title: Michel Aoun

text: The Gulf War had its repercussions on Aoun's government. Aoun had asked for help and the only unconditional help he received was from Saddam Hussein, who until 1989 was an ally of the West. On 2 August 1990, Hussein launched his invasion of Kuwait and the US established a coalition against Iraq to liberate Kuwait. President Hafez al-Assad of Syria sided with the coalition, a choice rewarded with a ‘green light’ to crush Aoun’s revolt. On the evening of 12 October, while giving a public speech, Aoun survived an assassination attempt by a lone gunman in the crowd. On 13 October Syrian forces attacked the presidential palace in Baabda. The same morning Aoun took refuge at the French Embassy, where he radioed his units to surrender to Lebanese Army Units under General Lahoud, who had pledged loyalty to Hrawi and his government.


title: Michel Aoun

text: France granted Aoun political asylum, but the Lebanese government wanted to take him to trial. After months of negotiations, he was given conditional amnesty and left to Cyprus and then to France on a French warship on 29 August 1991, where he started his exile.


title: Michel Aoun

text: On 14 July 1994, he established the Free Patriotic Movement in what he called "The National Conference".


title: Michel Aoun

text: In 2001, Aoun started working with the Council of Lebanese American Organizations and the Lebanese expatriates in order to change the American public opinion regarding Lebanon. At the time, the United States supported the Syrian occupation and viewed Syria as an important factor for the stability of Lebanon.


title: Michel Aoun

text: He contacted Eliot Engel, an American representative, to propose a bill that would help ending the occupation. In July 2001, he was invited to attend a symposium on the Middle East, and after further delays from the State Department, he was granted an entry visa on 11 September, right before the same day attacks. After some hesitation about going, Aoun did travel to the United States, and met with several senators and representatives, but could not enter the congress because of the anthrax attacks. His talks did not lead to the result that he was seeking.


title: Michel Aoun

text: Although the Bush Administration refused dealing with Aoun initially, they sent him a delegation of officials responsible for Lebanese affairs from the State Department, and explained the American position on the issue.


title: Michel Aoun

text: Later on, tensions grew between the United States and Syria, with the latter being accused of supporting terrorism and not standing by the United States in the War on Terror. Engel introduced the Syria Accountability and Lebanese Sovereignty Restoration Act in the House of Representatives on 12 April 2003. Aoun was invited to testify in congress, which he did on 17 September.


title: Michel Aoun

text: In his testimony, he criticized Syria in several ways. Aoun's testimony was condemned by the Lebanese Council of Ministers and pro-Syrian politicians and organizations, and he was accused of plotting with the Zionist Lobby against Lebanon, Syria and the Arab Nation.


title: Michel Aoun

text: The bill was approved by both the Senate with an 89–4 vote on 11 November, and the House with a 408–8 vote on 20 November, and was signed by President George W. Bush on 11 December.


title: Michel Aoun

text: In the same year, an avowed Aounist candidate, Hikmat Dib, came surprisingly close to winning a key by-election in the Baabda–Aley constituency against the state-sponsored candidate, Henri Helou.


title: Michel Aoun

text: Aoun ended 15 years of self-imposed exile when he returned to Lebanon on 7 May 2005, following the withdrawal of the Syrian Army from Lebanon after the assassination of Rafic Hariri on 14 February 2005. Hariri's killing was a catalyst for dramatic political change in Lebanon. The massive protests of the Cedar Revolution helped achieve the withdrawal of Syrian troops and security forces from Lebanon, and a change in governments, paving the way for return of Aoun to Lebanon. Aoun held a short press conference at Beirut International Airport before heading with a convoy of loyalists and journalists to the "Grave of the Un-named Soldiers and Martyrs". After praying and expressing his gratitude and blessing to the people, he went on to the grave site of former Prime Minister Rafic Hariri. Then, he visited Samir Geagea who was in the 11th year of a lifetime jail sentence, condemned for alleged and disputed responsibility for politically motivated assassinations during the 15-year civil war. His journey continued to Martyr's Square where he was greeted by supporters of the Cedar Revolution.


title: Michel Aoun

text: After his arrival, Aoun moved into a home in Lebanon's Rabieh district, where he was visited on 8 May by a large delegation from the disbanded Lebanese Front (LF), who were among Aoun's former enemies. Aoun and Sitrida Geagea, wife of the imprisoned LF leader Samir Geagea (since given amnesty), publicly reconciled. Other prominent visitors included National Liberal Party leader Dory Chamoun, Solange Gemayel, Nayla Moawad (widow of assassinated President René Moawad), and opposition MP Boutros Harb. Patriarch Nasrallah Boutros Sfeir of the Maronite community sent a delegation to welcome him, and even the Shiite Muslim Hezbollah Party sent a delegation.


title: Michel Aoun

text: In the parliamentary election at the end of May 2005, the political leaders of the Syrian occupation imposed to run the elections with the 2000 electoral law; a law that Critics argue was implemented by Syrian intelligence chief Ghazi Kanaan and Rafik Hariri, that does not provide for a real popular representation and marginalizes many communities especially the Christian one throughout the country. Aoun opposed this electoral law choice and was fought by a quadruple alliance grouping Anti-Syrian (the Future Movement, the Progressive Socialist Party, the Lebanese Forces and some other parties) and Pro-Syrian (Amal and Hezbollah) main political parties against the Free Patriotic Movement headed by General Michel Aoun. In this context, Aoun surprised many observers by entering into electoral alliances with a number of former opponents, including some pro-Syrian politicians like Michel Murr and Suleiman Frangieh, Jr.


title: Michel Aoun

text: Aoun's party, the Free Patriotic Movement, made a strong showing, winning 21 of the 58 seats contested in that round, including almost all of the seats in the Christian heartland of Mount Lebanon. Aoun also won major Christian districts such as Zahle and Metn. Aoun himself was elected to the National Assembly. The FPM failed however to win any seats in Northern Lebanon due mainly to the 2000 electoral law that gave the pro Hariri Muslim community of Tripoli an easy veto over any Christian candidate in its electoral district, thus falling short of its objective of holding the balance of power between the main "anti-Syrian" opposition coalition (formerly known to be Syria's strong allies) led by Sa'ad Hariri (which won an absolute majority) and the Shiite-dominated Amal-Hezbollah alliance.


title: Michel Aoun

text: The FPM won 21 seats in the parliament, and formed the largest Christian bloc in Lebanon, and second biggest bloc in the Lebanese Parliament.


title: Michel Aoun

text: In 2006, Michel Aoun and Hassan Nasrallah met in Mar Mikhayel Church, Chiyah, a venue that symbolizes Christian–Muslim coexistence as the Church, located in the heart of the mainly Muslim Beirut southern suburb, was preserved throughout the wars. The FPM signed a memorandum of understanding with Hezbollah organizing their relation and discussing Hezbollah's disarmament given some conditions. The second and third conditions for disarmament were the return of Lebanese prisoners from Israeli jails and the elaboration of a defense strategy to protect Lebanon from the Israeli threat. The agreement also discussed the importance of having normal diplomatic relations with Syria and the request for information about the Lebanese political prisoners in Syria and the return of all political prisoners and diaspora in Israel.


title: Michel Aoun

text: On 1 December 2006, Michel Aoun declared to a crowd of protesters that the current government of Lebanon was unconstitutional claiming that the government had "made corruption a daily affair" and called for the resignation on the government. Hundreds of thousands of supporters of this party, the Amal Movement and Hezbollah, according to the Internal Security Forces (ISF), gathered at Downtown Beirut trying to force Fouad Siniora to abdicate.


title: Michel Aoun

text: On 11 July 2008, Aoun's party entered the Lebanese government. FPM members, Issam Abu Jamra as Deputy-Prime Minister, Gebran Bassil as Minister of Telecommunications, and Mario Aoun as Minister of Social Affairs were elected into government. It is the Movement's first participation in any Lebanese Government.


title: Michel Aoun

text: The results of the 2009 Elections granted the FPM 27 parliamentary seats. One of them was won by Aoun from Keserwan.


title: Michel Aoun

text: In November 2009, and after 6 months of strong political pressure by General Michel Aoun himself, by refusing any participation in the government that was inferior to the 2008 participation, Prime Minister Saad Hariri eventually gave in. The Free Patriotic Movement nominated three ministers to join the first government headed by Saad Hariri, who would receive the ministry of telecommunications, the ministry of energy and water, and the ministry of tourism.


title: Michel Aoun

text: Aoun and his allies got one third of the government, but were one minister short of having veto power. On 12 January 2011, in a move orchestrated from Aoun's house in Rabieh, the Hariri government was toppled through the resignation of the FPM ministers and their allies. On 13 June 2011, a new government headed by Prime Minister Najib Mikati saw light where Aoun's parliamentary Reform and Change Bloc assumed 10 ministries.


title: Michel Aoun

text: Lebanese Forces (LF) leader Samir Geagea and Michel Aoun turned a historic page in intra-Christian relations when the former March 14 presidential nominee officially endorsed on Monday Aoun's candidacy for the presidency. "I announce after long consideration, discussions and deliberations between members of the executive body of the Lebanese Forces, our endorsement of the candidacy of [former] General Michel Aoun for the presidency," Geagea said in joint news conference with his March 8 rival. Speaking from the LF's headquarters in Maarab where he had met with Aoun shortly before the news conference, Geagea read a 10-point understanding that summarized the key points of the Declaration of Intent struck between the LF and FPM in June.


title: Michel Aoun

text: The commitment to the implementation of the Taif Accord, the need to stop the flow of arms and militants across the Lebanese-Syrian border in both directions, the ratification of a new electoral law and compliance with international resolutions were among the key points agreed upon between the LF and FPM, Geagea said. As he read the key points of his understanding with Aoun, Geagea paused for a moment to tell a joke. With humor, the LF leader asked Aoun to urge his son-in-law Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil to act in accordance with the sixth point of their agreement. Geagea was referring to his understanding with the former general over "the need to adopt an independent foreign policy that guarantees Lebanon's interests and complies with international law." For his part, Aoun thanked Geagea for his support and said he would extend his hands to all political parties.


title: Michel Aoun

text: Geagea's official endorsement of Aoun's nomination would provide a significant boost for the former general's presidential bid but it remains unclear how the Future Movement would react to this initiative. Before his arrival to the LF's headquarters, Aoun met with Maronite Patriarch Bechara Boutros al-Rahi, who has repeatedly voiced his support for initiatives aimed at breaking the presidential deadlock. "We came to inform the patriarch of the agreement", Aoun said from the seat of the Maronite church.


title: Michel Aoun

text: Earlier in the day, Rai had met with former Prime Minister and head of the Future Movement parliamentary bloc Fouad Siniora. Following his meeting with the patriarch, Siniora stressed the need to elect a president who enjoys the support of all Lebanese factions. "We have to work hard to elect a person who can unite all Lebanese people from all political affiliations and promote coexistence among them," said Siniora. Geagea's endorsement of Aoun is the first time the country's two leading Christian parties have come together on such a pivotal issue after decades of animosity.


title: Michel Aoun

text: Geagea, the former March 14 presidential candidate, was caught by surprise when his ally Future Movement leader and former Prime Minister Saad Hariri reportedly nominated Marada Movement Chief Suleiman Frangieh, Jr. for the presidency. Geagea has staunchly opposed the deal, which stirred up controversy both within the March 8 and 14 camps.


title: Michel Aoun

text: Aoun, on the other hand, had shown no signs of giving up his presidential ambitions in favor of Franjieh, a longtime ally of Hezbollah and a member of Aoun's reform and Change parliamentary bloc. For weeks Hezbollah remained silent over Hariri's proposed settlement, as Franjieh sought to win the support of its allies. Hezbollah finally broke its media silence on 29 December 2015, and reaffirmed its support for Aoun's presidential bid.


title: Michel Aoun

text: In the first official statement since Hariri's initiative emerged, Hezbollah's Politburo Chief Sayyed Ibrahim Amin al-Sayyed announced from the seat of the Maronite patriarchate that his party is committed to supporting the presidential bid of its ally Aoun. Aoun and Geagea kicked off talks a year ago. The talks culminated in a Declaration of Intent that paved the way for a surprise visit by Geagea to Aoun's residence in Rabieh in June. The Declaration of Intent has since brought Aoun and Geagea closer together, putting an end to the bitter rivalry between the Christian leaders who fought a devastating war in 1990. Lebanon's top post has been vacant since May 2014 as Lebanese politicians failed to agree on a consensus president.


title: Michel Aoun

text: On 20 October 2016, Saad Hariri declared publicly his support and that of his parliamentary block to voting Michel Aoun for president. This support increased his chances tremendously of getting elected president during the parliamentary session scheduled for 31 October.


title: Michel Aoun

text: On 31 October 2016, Aoun was elected the president of Lebanon, ending a 29-month vacuum at the head of the state. After 45 failed attempts to achieve a parliamentary quorum for presidential elections by the Lebanese Parliament, the 127-seat chamber convened for a 46th time on 31 October under the leadership of house speaker Nabih Berri.


title: Michel Aoun

text: The first round of voting required a two-thirds majority of the house, meaning 85 votes of the 127 member chamber, but Aoun closely failed to secure the necessary votes for the round winning just 83 votes, two less than required, while there were 36 blank ballots, 6 cancelled ballots and one ballot for MP Gilberte Zouein.


title: Michel Aoun

text: The second round of voting had to be repeated three times before ballots were read out loud after the parliament's secretariat counted 128 envelopes instead of 127, which is the number of MPs who participated in the presidential election. In the second round, an absolute (50 percent plus one) majority of the quorum was needed, meaning 64 votes required for election. Eventually Aoun received 83 votes and was elected. There were 36 blank ballots in the second round, 7 ballots cancelled and 1 vote for MP Sethrida Tawk Geagea.


title: Michel Aoun

text: Aoun was quickly sworn in as president, pledging political and economic reform and urging a "real partnership" among notoriously divided Lebanese political factions. Following the parliament session, Aoun was driven to the presidential palace in the southeastern Beirut suburb of Baabda, returning exactly 26 years after he was forced out of it as army commander and interim premier by Syrian forces.


title: Michel Aoun

text: After the resignation of Tammam Salam, Aoun designated Saad Hariri to form a new cabinet following binding parliamentary consultations. This came as a result of the consensus that led to the election of Aoun, and it was the second time Hariri held the position. The cabinet consisted of 30 ministers as a national unity government. On 28 December, it won the confidence of the parliament with an 87 MPs majority.


title: Michel Aoun

text: On 4 November 2017, Hariri resigned from office in a televised statement from Saudi Arabia and blamed it on Iran policies and it is "interference in the Lebanese affairs". He also described Hezbollah a threat to the security of Lebanon, and compared the situation in Lebanon with the one before the assassination of Rafic Hariri. Iran called his resignation part of a plot by the United States, Israel, and Saudi Arabia to heighten Middle Eastern tensions. The secretary general of Hezbollah Hassan Nasrallah considered this a Saudi declaration of war on Lebanon. After his 12-day stay in Saudi Arabia, Aoun informed the foreign ambassadors that he is detained there.


title: Michel Aoun

text: On 21 November, Hariri returned to Beirut to participate in the Independence Day celebrations. He decided to suspend the resignation after meeting Aoun, who told him to postpone the thing until other consultations. On 5 December, he officially withdrew his resignation.


title: Michel Aoun

text: In August 2017, Aoun signed the country's first animal protection bill into law, guaranteeing that domestic and wild animals would be legally protected from abuse.


title: Michel Aoun

text: On 6 January 2019, a new Lebanese government was formed, headed by Prime Minister Saad Hariri. The government took nine months to form, following extended negotiations with various political factions. It is a national unity cabinet, and was composed of 30 ministers.


title: Michel Aoun

text: Large-scale antigovernmental demonstrations ignited in the country from 17 October. Initially triggered in response to a rise in gas and tobacco prices as well as a new tax on messaging applications, the demonstrations quickly turned into a revolution against the stagnation of the economy, cabinet failure, unemployment, Lebanon's sectarian and hereditary political system, corruption and the government's inability to provide essential services such as water, electricity and sanitation, involving hundreds of thousands of people from every region and sect of the country. President Michel Aoun addressed the population on 24 October, stating his willingness to hold a dialogue with the protesters and find the best solution forward. He supported Hariri's reforms but did confirm a need to "review the current government" within the "state institutions", and not through protesting. Hariri supported this review through Lebanon's "constitutional mechanisms", but the protesters rejected any calls for dialogue until the government has resigned.


title: Michel Aoun

text: Aoun gave a live interview at 8:30PM on 12 November, during which he rejected calls for a fully technocratic government, warned against a run on the bank further damaging the economic sector, and called for an immediate end to the protests to prevent a "catastrophe". Aoun accused protesters of "stabbing the nation with a dagger" and accused protesters that blocked roads of "violating international law". Aoun also stated that "anyone who cannot find faith in the current Lebanese government can leave Lebanon and live somewhere else". Aoun's interview proved exceedingly unpopular with the protest movement, which began blocking dozens of arterial roads in Beirut and across Lebanon. Alaa Abou Fakhr, a Lebanese national, was shot and killed in Khalde at the ensuing protests.


title: Michel Aoun

text: Protesters began appearing in the early morning of 13 November near the heavily fortified Baabda Presidential Palace to express dissatisfaction with President Aoun's speech a few hours earlier and picked up in pace as the day progressed.


title: Michel Aoun

text: Diab was appointed prime minister by President Michel Aoun following the resignation of Saad Hariri following the 2019–20 Lebanese protests, that started in October 2019. A new Lebanese cabinet led by Prime Minister Hassan Diab was formed in Lebanon on 21 January 2020, after agreement was reached by the heads of the involved political parties after nearly three months. The already delegitimized government assigned Diab and his new cabinet, despite ongoing public outrage against the new cabinet and citizen requests for a competent, independent, and technocratic government. The marketing campaign by the authoritative powers around the new cabinet were mired by supposed untruths such as Diab claiming to have met reformist representatives of the revolution but turned out to be regime supporters or the regime using the term "techno-political" to describe the new cabinet in order to justify the majority partisan appointments.


title: Michel Aoun

text: On 10 August 2020, the government resigned following public anger over the 2020 Beirut explosions on 4 August but continued to govern as a caretaker government. Aoun appointed Moustapha Adib as prime minister designate on August 31 to succeed Diab. The latter renounced to form a government on September 26, 2020, because of the dissensions between political parties concerning the attribution of the ministries. Saad Hariri later announced on October that he was “definitely a candidate” for the formation of a new government. He was again appointed President of the Council of Ministers after binding parliamentary consultations led by Michel Aoun. On March 6, 2021, while Saad Hariri has still not managed to form a government, Diab denounces the situation of political and economic crisis and threatens to stop expediting current affairs by leaving office immediately. In conflict with Aoun concerning the distribution of ministerial posts, Saad Hariri gave up on a government formation on July 15, 2021.


title: Michel Aoun

text: On 4 August 2020, a large amount of ammonium nitrate stored at the Port of Beirut in the capital city of Lebanon exploded, causing at least 218 deaths, 7,000 injuries, and US$15 billion in property damage, as well as leaving an estimated 300,000 people homeless. A cargo of 2,750 tonnes of the substance (equivalent to around 1.1 kilotons of TNT) had been stored in a warehouse without proper safety measures for the previous six years after having been confiscated by the Lebanese authorities from the abandoned ship . The explosion was preceded by a fire in the same warehouse. As of , the exact cause of the explosion is still under investigation. Aoun expressed intention government would make up to 100billion pounds (US$66million) in aid available to support recovery operations. On 10 August 2020, Hassan Diab and his cabinet stepped down from office. Michel Aoun accepted the resignation of the government and the Prime Minister, and asked the government to stay on in a caretaker capacity until a new cabinet is formed. During his address after the 1st year commemoration of the blast, Aoun stumbled in his speech after he mistakenly said the phrase 'Lemon doubly' which was used as a way of mockery ever since.


title: Michel Aoun

text: Aoun signed the government's resignation decree, a day before his six-year term officially ended, and Prime Minister Najib Mikati's government remains in office in a caretaker capacity which is unconstitutional since it goes against Aoun's request for the cabinet's step-down after numerous attempts failed to form a new cabinet. His term officially ended in 31 October 2022 after 6 years in office, with no successor designated similarly to his predecessors.


title: Michel Aoun

text: In an unprecedented move, Aoun signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Hezbollah on 6 February 2006. His present strategy is an alleged "war against corruption".


title: Michel Aoun

text: Since the end of the Syrian occupation of Lebanon, General Aoun has been seeking to improve his country's relationship with Syria. He has treated all Lebanese parties as potential partners in the process of change and reform of the country. The Memorandum of Understanding with Hezbollah enters in this context.


title: Michel Aoun

text: In September 2015, Aoun sponsored the candidacy of his son-in law, Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil, to the FPM leadership post. Bassil was elected by acclamation after his main contender, MP (Michel's nephew), was convinced to quit the race.


title: Michel Aoun

text: Aoun explained why he turned back on the West and forged an alliance with the Axis of Resistance in a speech in May 2008 by saying:


title: Michel Aoun

text: In a December 1995 interview with the "Middle East Quarterly" journal, Aoun replied when asked if he disliked the United States


title: Michel Aoun

text: A son of Naim and Marie Aoun, he married Nadia El-Chami on 30 November 1968 and together, they have three daughters.


title: Michel Aoun

text: The first, Mireille Aoun, who works as his personal advisor and is married to Roy Hachem, the CEO of Aoun's OTV.


title: Michel Aoun

text: The second one is Claudine Aoun who serves as the president of the Arab Women Organization since 2019 and the National Commission For Lebanese Women since 2017, and married to Brigadier-General Chamel Roukoz, a decorated officer who took part in Aoun's liberation war, Nahr al-Bared conflict and Battle of Sidon. He is also a Member of Parliament, elected in the 2018.


title: Michel Aoun

text: The third, Chantal, is married to Gebran Bassil, whom she met at an FPM conference in Paris in 1996. He served as a minister in different cabinets, and succeeded Aoun as president of the Free Patriotic Movement in 2015.


title: George Pataki

text: George Elmer Pataki (; born June 24, 1945) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 53rd governor of New York from 1995 to 2006. An attorney by profession, Pataki was elected mayor of his hometown of Peekskill, New York, and went on to be elected to the State Assembly and the State Senate.


title: George Pataki

text: After defeating three-term incumbent Governor Mario Cuomo by a margin of three points in 1994, Pataki would go on to be elected to three consecutive terms himself. He was the third Republican since 1923 to win New York's governorship, after Thomas E. Dewey and Nelson Rockefeller. Pataki ran for the Republican Party presidential nomination in 2016 but withdrew from the race before the primaries began.


title: George Pataki

text: Pataki was born on June 24, 1945 in Peekskill, New York. Pataki's paternal grandfather was Pataki János (known in the U.S. as "John Pataki", 1883–1971) of Aranyosapáti, Kingdom of Hungary. The family name's Hungarian pronunciation is ['pɒtɒki] and means "creek" (little river). János came to the United States in 1908, worked in a hat factory and had married Erzsébet (later Elizabeth; 1887–1975), also Hungarian-born, around 1904. Their son, Pataki's father, was Louis P. Pataki (1912–1996), a mailman and volunteer fire chief, who ran the Pataki Farm. Pataki's maternal grandfather was Matteo Laganà (born in Calabria, Italy in 1889), who married Agnes Lynch of County Louth, Ireland around 1914. Their daughter, Margaret Lagana (1915–2017), is Pataki's mother. Pataki has an older brother, Louis. Pataki speaks some Hungarian as well as Spanish, French, and German.


title: George Pataki

text: After graduating from Peekskill High School, Pataki entered Yale University in 1963 on an academic scholarship and graduated in 1967. While there Pataki was Chairman of the Conservative Party of the Yale Political Union, where he participated in debates. He received his J.D. from Columbia Law School in 1970.


title: George Pataki

text: While practicing law at Plunkett and Jaffe, P.C. in Peekskill, Pataki became friends with Michael C. Finnegan, who would go on to be the architect of Pataki's ascendancy to power. Finnegan would go on to manage Pataki's campaigns for Mayor, State Assembly, State Senate, and the governorship. Finnegan was then appointed chief counsel to the governor in 1995, and played the key role in developing and negotiating nearly all of Pataki's early legislative success.


title: George Pataki

text: Pataki first won elected office in November 1981. He was elected Mayor of the City of Peekskill, which is located in the Northwestern part of Westchester County. Pataki defeated the Democratic incumbent Fred Bianco Jr., winning 70% of the vote. In November 1983, he was re-elected Mayor, winning 74% of the vote.


title: George Pataki

text: In November 1984, Pataki was elected to the New York State Assembly (91st District), by defeating one-term Democratic incumbent William J. Ryan, winning 53% of the vote. In November 1986, Pataki defeated Ryan in a rematch, capturing 63% of the vote. Pataki won a third term in November 1988, winning 74% of the vote against Democratic candidate Mark Zinna. Pataki won a fourth and final term in November 1990, winning over 90% of the vote, as he only faced a minor party candidate. He was an assemblyman in the 186th, 187th, 188th and 189th New York State Legislatures.


title: George Pataki

text: From 1983 to 1992, the 91st Assembly district included parts of Westchester, Orange, Rockland, and Putnam Counties. However, in 1992, Assembly Democrats substantially redrew the district boundaries, placing the newly renamed 90th Assembly district entirely within Westchester County. Instead of running in the newly redrawn district, Pataki decided to challenge seven-term incumbent Republican State Senator Mary B. Goodhue in a Republican primary in Senate District 37 by criticizing her for taking her grandchildren to Disney World and missing a vote in Albany. Pataki won the primary by a 52% to 48% margin. However, Goodhue still planned to appear on the November ballot on a minor party line. In November 1992, Pataki won the general election. He served in the Senate during the 190th New York State Legislature and ran for governor at the next election.


title: George Pataki

text: Pataki was a first-term state senator from Westchester County when he launched his bid for the Republican nomination for governor in 1994. He said he launched the campaign because of his frustration in the Senate regarding how Albany worked and on tax issues. Pataki's campaign received a boost when he was endorsed by U.S. Sen. Al D'Amato. He received the party's endorsement at the spring state convention and easily defeated former State Republican Chairman Richard Rosenbaum in the September primary. Pataki was considered an underdog from the start since he was running against three-term Gov. Mario Cuomo and because Pataki had little name recognition statewide. D'Amato reportedly backed Pataki because of a poll that showed a pro-choice, fiscal conservative from the New York City suburbs could win statewide for governor. The poll also showed a female running mate for lieutenant governor would help the ticket. Academic Betsy McCaughey was chosen as Pataki's running mate.


title: George Pataki

text: The polls had Governor Cuomo ahead by as many as ten points going into the final two weeks, but they narrowed at the end. Pataki made an issue of Cuomo seeking a fourth term as governor and pledged to serve only two terms in office. Cuomo was helped late in the race by the endorsement of New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani. Pataki narrowly defeated Cuomo in the general election. Many, including Pataki himself, believed Howard Stern's endorsement of Pataki was a major reason for his win. He finished with 48.8% of the vote to Cuomo's 45.5%, and independence candidate Tom Golisano finished with 4.2%.


title: George Pataki

text: Pataki made up for a soft performance in New York City by running up a decisive margin outside of it, especially among upstaters disenchanted with Cuomo. Pataki won all but one county outside the Five Boroughs. Pataki became New York's first elected Republican governor since Nelson Rockefeller.


title: George Pataki

text: Pataki was considered the front-runner from the start of the 1998 campaign for governor. He was unopposed for the Republican nomination and paired with a new running mate, Judge Mary Donohue. The Democrats faced a primary battle between New York City Council Speaker Peter Vallone, Lt. Gov. Betsy McCaughey Ross, who had switched parties, and former Transportation Commissioner James LaRocca. Vallone captured the Democratic nomination, with Thomas Golisano running as the Independence nominee and McCaughey Ross as the Liberal Party nominee. Pataki was easily reelected to a second term in office. He finished with 54.3% of the vote, his highest percentage finish in a gubernatorial race, to Vallone's 33.2% and Golisano's 7.7%. This is the last time a Republican has won a majority in a statewide election in New York, and only the first time since 1970, when Nelson Rockefeller was re-elected.


title: George Pataki

text: Pataki was considered a strong contender for a third term, despite having pledged in 1994 to serve only two terms. He ran again on a ticket with Lt. Gov. Mary Donohue and the Democrats faced a primary battle between State Comptroller Carl McCall and former HUD Secretary Andrew Cuomo, Mario Cuomo's son. Pataki emphasized his previous work and the need to have continuity following Sept. 11.


title: George Pataki

text: McCall essentially secured the Democratic nomination when Andrew Cuomo stumbled (and ultimately withdrew before the primary at the urging of his mentor Bill Clinton); Cuomo was quoted in the media as saying, regarding Pataki's performance post-9/11:


title: George Pataki

text: Pataki stood behind the leader. He held the leader's coat. He was a great assistant to the leader. But he was not a leader. Cream rises to the top, and Rudy Giuliani rose to the top.


title: George Pataki

text: Pataki sought the nomination of the Independence Party of New York in his bid for a third term as well. He faced the party's founder and 1994 and 1998 nominee, Thomas Golisano, in his bid for the nomination. Pataki ran an active primary campaign and lost to Golisano. Donohue did win the primary for lieutenant governor and was the running mate of both Pataki and Golisano in the general election.


title: George Pataki

text: In the general election, Pataki defeated McCall and Golisano easily. As in 1998 due to Golisano's presence on the ballot, Pataki did not win a majority, instead winning a plurality. Pataki won 49.4% of the vote, and McCall only mustered 33.5% with wins in four of the five New York City boroughs. Golisano finished with the highest vote total of his political career, and the highest vote total for any candidate of the Independence Party of New York in any statewide election.


title: George Pataki

text: This was the last time a Republican was elected Governor of New York, and the last time a Republican has cracked over 41% in a gubernatorial election until the 2022 election in which Republican candidate Congressman Lee Zeldin amassed 47% of the vote against incumbent democrat Kathy Hochul.


title: George Pataki

text: By the summer of 2005, opinion polls indicated that Pataki would face an uphill battle if he sought a fourth term in 2006. Accordingly, he announced on July 27, 2005, that he would not do so, saying that New York was "a better state than it was 10 years ago" and that he was retiring so he could "follow a new path, find new challenges." He was succeeded by Eliot Spitzer.


title: George Pataki

text: As Governor of New York, Pataki was known as a moderate Republican who cut taxes and was tough on crime, but who also supported gun control, environmental protection, gay rights, and abortion rights.


title: George Pataki

text: Under the Pataki Administration, New York's credit rating was increased three times by Moody's Investors Service, a fact that he highlighted often before his critics. During his three terms in office, he introduced and approved more tax cuts than any of his predecessors. Following through on a campaign promise, Pataki led a push to cut both the individual and the corporate tax rates in New York. The state's infamously high income tax rates dropped by 20% on average, but an economic downturn following the attacks of September 11 and increasing state spending caused Sheldon Silver and Joseph Bruno to coordinate an effort to roll back a number of these cuts in 2003 over Pataki's veto power.


title: George Pataki

text: The STAR and STAR-Plus programs were also introduced during Pataki's governorship. The STAR program introduced tax relief for New York's homeowners and landowners on their school taxes. The STAR-Plus program was later introduced when relief was diminished by increasing school taxes, increasing spending and State Aid. In his third term Pataki challenged the Speaker of the Assembly, resulting in two Court of Appeals decisions sustaining the powers of the governor to formulate a statewide budget.


title: George Pataki

text: Pataki advocated for Native American casinos in upstate New York. As a part of the creation of the Seneca Niagara Casino in Niagara Falls, an agreement was reached to give a percentage of the slot machine revenue to the City of Niagara Falls each year to spend on local tourism projects and projects relating to hosting the casino.


title: George Pataki

text: Pataki describes himself as pro-choice. In 1999, he called upon the Republican Party to soften its platform language regarding opposition to abortion rights.


title: George Pataki

text: Pataki lobbied heavily in favor of the Sexual Orientation Non-Discrimination Act, a gay rights bill that had languished in the state Senate for many years due to the opposition of Senate Leader Joseph Bruno. In late 2002, Bruno finally gave in; the bill passed the Senate and was signed into law by Pataki. He opposed same-sex marriage as governor.


title: George Pataki

text: Polls showed that the majority of New Yorkers wanted the state's death penalty laws restored. Prior to Pataki's tenure, a bill to restore the death penalty had passed the Legislature for several years in a row only to be vetoed by Mario Cuomo. Pataki made the issue a top priority of his, and when the bill reached his desk in 1995, he signed it into law. The New York Court of Appeals later ruled the death penalty law unconstitutional in a 4-3 decision in People v. LaValle (2004).


title: George Pataki

text: Being tough on crime was a major plank of Pataki's campaign for governor. In 2011, the administration touted statistics that illustrated that crime had steadily reduced during the 12 years Pataki had been governor, bringing New York from the 6th most dangerous state in the nation to the 7th safest. During his time in office, he signed into law over 100 new bills to change New York's criminal statutes. In 2000, Pataki helped lead the legislature in passing some of the then-strictest gun control laws in the country. Numerous aspects of the bill had been put forward by members of the Democratic-controlled Assembly but had never made it through the Republican held Senate. With numerous mass shootings in recent public memory, he urged a number of Republican Senators to support the bill, eventually passing it in a bipartisan effort. His administration also launched programs such as SAF-T (Statewide Anti-Fugitive Teams) and the 100 Most Wanted. The initiatives were aimed at disseminating descriptions of criminals who were evading law enforcement officials to promote the ability of average citizens to help aid in their capture. Versions of Megan's Law and Kendra's Law were integrated into New York's laws under the governor as well as a number of reforms to the Rockefeller Drug Laws. The changes to the Rockefeller laws were largely focused on inmates' ability to appeal for an early release from sentences that were passed on them under mandatory minimum sentencing statutes.


title: George Pataki

text: Under the Pataki Administration a number of new health care programs were created focusing on expanding care to the state's poorest citizens.


title: George Pataki

text: In 1999, Governor Pataki signed into law comprehensive health care legislation that provided health insurance coverage, under Family Health Plus, to lower income adults who do not have health insurance through their employers.


title: George Pataki

text: Child Health plus greatly expanded coverage for poorer families with children under 19 who did not qualify for Medicaid. By 2001, 530,000 children had been enrolled in the program. Family Health Plus would expand insurance coverage even further, offering free insurance to families and single adults who had too much income to be covered by Medicaid but could not afford insurance. Pataki also increased the affordability and availability of medication for seniors under New York's EPIC program by lowering fees and expanding eligibility. New York's 2003 ban on smoking in public places was passed and signed into law under the Pataki administration in the hopes that it would promote better health in New York and reduce health care cost overtime. Accessing his twelve years in office, "The New York Times" ran an editorial praising his work on health care.


title: George Pataki

text: In 2005, "BusinessWeek" placed George Pataki among the 20 individuals it commended for their personal efforts to combat global warming, citing his Greenhouse Gas Task Force and efforts to increase New York's usage of renewable energies. In 1996, Pataki oversaw the creation and passage of the Clean Water/Clean Air Environmental Bond Act. The act put forth $1.75 billion for over 2,200 environmentally minded projects throughout the state. Projects were focused on improving drinking water quality, closing landfills, investing in recycling programs, cleaning up New York's polluted waterways, funding cleanup of Brownfields and clean-air projects. During his tenure, Pataki added over one million acres to the entirety of the protected open spaces of New York. He also worked to protect the drinking water of millions of New Yorkers through the Catskill Watershed Agreement. Through the agreement, the numerous small communities that surround the 19 reservoirs that provide drinking water for New York City received $1 billion in aid to assuage environmental issues and promote local development in return for accepting higher standards of environmental regulations to better protect the reservoirs. On Pataki's final day in office, "The New York Times" ran an editorial evaluating his twelve years as governor and praised his work on the environment.


title: George Pataki

text: Pataki heeded mounting desire to allow New York to join numerous other states in the growing movement for charter schools. In 1998, Pataki prevailed upon the Legislature to pass a charter school law by threatening to veto a legislative pay raise if the bill was not passed. Over the course of his terms in office, Pataki would expand the availability of charter schools in New York City and raise the state's cap on charter schools to 250.


title: George Pataki

text: In coordination with Mayor Giuliani, Pataki pushed to begin disassembling the reputation of City University of New York system as a group of remedial schools. Starting in 1999, CUNY colleges would be required to drop their remedial courses over a 3-year period and restrict students who could not pass entry exams in an effort to deliver a higher quality college education through the city colleges. Pataki also put forth legislation that would lend mayors in New York's five largest cities greater control over their education systems. Through negotiations this authority was only awarded to the mayor of New York City as an attempt to overcome a system of school boards that many considered to be hampering efforts at reform.


title: George Pataki

text: Looking over his tenure, "The New York Times" ran an editorial that criticized Pataki for the lack of tangible political reform and the consolidation of power under his watch.


title: George Pataki

text: Pataki's New York City office had moved out of the World Trade Center in the months before the September 11, 2001, attacks, as the governor had pushed for privatization of the building.


title: George Pataki

text: Following 9/11, Pataki and New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani appointed the LMDC to distribute nearly $10 billion in federal grants and to oversee the construction of a memorial. A symbolic cornerstone for the Freedom Tower with Pataki's name was laid on July 4, 2004, and after numerous design changes, construction commenced in May 2006. The memorial was completed in 2011.


title: George Pataki

text: Pataki's 1994 running mate for lieutenant governor was Betsy McCaughey, an academic best known for her critique of the Clinton health care plan. McCaughey was selected because of her work on the Clinton health care plan. Pataki choose McCaughey over sofa bed heiress Bernadette Castro; Castro was nominated for the U.S. Senate in 1994.


title: George Pataki

text: In April 1997, Pataki announced that he was dropping McCaughey from his 1998 reelection ticket. McCaughey became a Democrat and unsuccessfully sought the governorship in that party's 1998 primary. She was on the 1998 general election ballot as the nominee of the Liberal Party for governor.


title: George Pataki

text: After dropping McCaughey Ross from his 1998 ticket, Pataki considered several replacement running mates. In the spring of 1998 he announced his choice of State Supreme Court Justice Mary Donohue for lieutenant governor. Donohue did not run to succeed Pataki in 2006. In December 2006, Pataki appointed Donohue to be a Judge of the New York Court of Claims.


title: George Pataki

text: In July 2000, Pataki's name surfaced on the short list to be the running mate for Republican presidential nominee George W. Bush, along with the names of Governor John Engler of Michigan, Governor Tom Ridge of Pennsylvania, former Senator John Danforth of Missouri, and former U.S. Labor Secretary Elizabeth Dole of North Carolina. Bush eventually selected the man who was in charge of scouting vice presidential candidates, former Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney. Pataki had strongly campaigned for Bush, making an unsuccessful effort to keep John McCain off the New York primary ballot (which Bush ultimately won).


title: George Pataki

text: Pataki and New York GOP Chairman Sandy Treadwell faced controversy after naming moderate Assemblyman Howard Mills the party's nominee for the U.S. Senate against Senator Chuck Schumer over conservative Michael Benjamin, who held significant advantages in both fundraising and organization. Benjamin publicly accused Treadwell and Pataki of trying to muscle him out of the Senate race and undermine the democratic process. Mills went on to lose the election in the largest landslide for a Senate seat in the history of New York.


title: George Pataki

text: Pataki was instrumental in bringing the 2004 Republican National Convention to Madison Square Garden in Manhattan. New York City, which normally votes overwhelmingly Democratic (the Democratic presidential nominees carried 78 percent of the city vote in both 2000 and 2004), had never hosted a Republican Convention. He introduced President George W. Bush. A year prior, Pataki had boasted Bush would carry the state in the 2004 elections; Bush lost New York 58–40 to John Kerry. Pataki notably orated, referencing the recently deceased Ronald Reagan, "This fall, we're going to win one for the Gipper. But our opponents, they're going to lose one with the Flipper."


title: George Pataki

text: After leaving the governorship, Pataki joined the law firm Chadbourne & Parke in New York joining their renewable energy practice. He continued to flirt with a possible bid for president. After ruling out a presidential campaign, Pataki retained his political action committee, which he could legally use to further his own views and other political interests. In addition, Pataki has formed an environmental consulting firm with his former chief of staff John Cahill, the Pataki-Cahill Group.


title: George Pataki

text: The Governor George E. Pataki Leadership and Learning Center, located in Peekskill, New York, is designed to educate schoolchildren on government using Governor Pataki's public service as an example. Charles A. Gargano, Pataki's former economic development chief, led the effort to create the center. On August 14, 2008, the "New York Times" announced that the center's sponsors had "filed paperwork with the State Department of Education and are trying to raise $500,000 for a start-up fund so they can open the center in the fall." The center held Governor Pataki's official portrait, which was moved to Albany at the end of 2009. As of 2008, the center had three directors: David Catalfamo, the governor's former communications chief; Kimberly Cappelleri, Libby Pataki's former chief of staff; and, Amy Holden, former executive assistant to the governor.


title: George Pataki

text: In February 2009, Pataki was approached by Sen. John Cornyn, head of the Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee, about a possible 2010 run for the U.S. Senate seat to which Kirsten Gillibrand had been appointed. In April 2010, Pataki said he would not run against Gillibrand.


title: George Pataki

text: In November 2009, Pataki traveled to Iowa, sparking speculation. Ending months of speculation, Pataki announced on August 26, 2011, that he would not run for the Republican presidential nomination. He endorsed Mitt Romney.


title: George Pataki

text: Pataki announced in April 2010 that he was creating a nonprofit organization, Revere America, that would advocate repeal of the recently enacted United States Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which he said was a "horrific" and costly bungle. As of 2015, the organization is defunct.


title: George Pataki

text: In early 2015, Pataki started exploring a candidacy for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination; On May 28, 2015, Pataki formally announced his campaign for the 2016 Republican nomination. He had previously considered running in 2008 and in 2012, but had decided against it.


title: George Pataki

text: Pataki's candidacy was considered a long-shot because of his age, because he had not run for office since 2002, and because of his liberal stances on abortion, gun control and environmental protection. Pataki received the endorsements of two New Hampshire State Senators: John Reagan and Nancy Stiles.


title: George Pataki

text: Pataki's run failed to gain traction. He failed to make the main stage in the candidate debates, being relegated to the undercard debates or being excluded altogether. His national poll numbers stayed in the one percent range. Pataki did not file to be on the primary ballot in multiple states and missed the filing deadlines for Alabama, Arkansas, Idaho, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah, and Virginia. On December 29, 2015, Pataki ended his campaign before the Republican presidential primaries had begun. He endorsed Florida Senator Marco Rubio on January 26, 2016 and went on to endorse Ohio Governor John Kasich after Rubio suspended his campaign.


title: George Pataki

text: After video footage of eventual nominee Donald Trump making lewd comments about women emerged on October 7, 2016, Pataki described the Republican nominee's candidacy as "a poisonous mix of bigotry & ignorance." Pataki also called upon Trump to step down as the Republican nominee.


title: George Pataki

text: In 2020, he declined to endorse Trump for re-election. He stopped short of endorsing Joe Biden, citing disagreements with foreign policy relating to U.S.-China relations. Pataki opposed efforts to decertify the election results, denouncing senator Tom Cotton.


title: George Pataki

text: Pataki suffered a burst appendix and had an emergency appendectomy on February 16, 2006, at Hudson Valley Hospital Center. Six days later, he developed a post-surgical complication (bowel obstruction caused by adhesions) and was transferred to New York-Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center for a second operation. From there, he was discharged on March 6.


title: George Pataki

text: Pataki has been an intense critic of the Cuomo and Hochul administrations. He was also considered to be a contender for Governor of New York for a fourth, non-consecutive term in 2022.


title: CARES Act

text: The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, also known as the CARES Act, is a $2.2trillion economic stimulus bill passed by the 116th U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Donald Trump on March 27, 2020, in response to the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. The spending primarily includes $300billion in one-time cash payments to individual people who submit a tax return in America (with most single adults receiving $1,200 and families with children receiving more), $260billion in increased unemployment benefits, the creation of the Paycheck Protection Program that provides forgivable loans to small businesses with an initial $350billion in funding (later increased to $669billion by subsequent legislation), $500billion in loans for corporations, and $339.8 billion to state and local governments.


title: CARES Act

text: The original CARES Act proposal included $500billion in direct payments to Americans, $208billion in loans to major industry, and $300billion in Small Business Administration loans. As a result of bipartisan negotiations, the bill grew to $2trillion in the version unanimously passed by the Senate on March 25, 2020. It was passed by the House via voice vote the next day, and was signed into law by President Donald Trump on March 27. It was originally introduced in the U.S. Congress on January 24, 2019, as (Middle Class Health Benefits Tax Repeal Act of 2019). To comply with the Origination Clause of the Constitution, the Senate then used H.R. 748 as a shell bill for the CARES Act, changing the content of the bill and renaming it before passing it.