Blanton Silver

> And the time to fight is now. On my word, I will break the bonds of this Salem Accord and I will lead these great United States towards a better world. Free from the sin and corruption of witches. And together, we will silence their songs of murder and chaos... forever.
>
> Blanton Silver addressing the United States, "Happy Yule!"

**Blanton Silver** is a recurring character in *Motherland: Fort Salem*. He is portrayed by Victor Webster.

He was the 46th President of the United States, and formerly the Vice President. When his daughter, Penelope Silver, is discovered to be a witch, Silver tries to adjust to her newfound identity. He is later revealed to be an ally of the Camarilla, an organization dedicated to the eradication of witches. He became President after the president he served under, Kelly Wade, was apparently assassinated. After she revealed her survival, she had him taken into custody. Freed from custody by the Camarilla, he again attempted to depose Wade, only to be killed by his own daughter, Penelope.

## Throughout the Series

### Season 2

During a church service, Vice President Silver witnesses his daughter, Penelope, singing and her voice resonating with a stained-glass window behind her, causing the paint to melt away. He is then taken before the witches, who tell him that the work is passed along the matriline. They say that his wife must have lost touch with her history at some point and that some choose to hide from their duty, that she must have had some inkling she was one of them. He replies that unfortunately they can't ask her and they tell him that they won't know for sure until they test Penelope. If she is discovered to be a witch, the law of the land is that she must deliver herself to Fort Salem for training, no exceptions. He expresses his concern that she will become a target for the Camarilla, but they promise him that they take care of her own.

Later, Vice President Silver is present for his daughter's testing. He watches as Penelope first causes a vat of water to resonate using only her voice, then the water arcs into the air and twists into shapes. She is declared to be "of the blood."

Following a series of conflicts with the Camarilla, a particularly aggressive and powerful witchplague is released on the base. Abigail, Raelle, and Tally eventually to track it to its source and are horrified to learn that Penelope is patient zero. They find Penelope enveloped in the witchplague and followed by civilian reporters, walking aimlessly as the plague has affected her mind. The unit makes the gut-wrenching decision to kill her in order to kill the witchplague and prevent it from spreading further. They are successful but the entire ordeal is caught on camera.

The footage from the incident reaches out into the rest of the United States, emboldening anti-witch sentiment and fueling a massive outcry from the "Not Our Daughters" movement. While the unit mourns Penelope's death and deals with the trauma of killing her to prevent further outbreak, Blanton blames the general and the unit for the death of his daughter. He finds the unit and demands that Abigail, Raelle, and Tally be sent to Washington D.C. to stand trial for the murder of Penelope. Later on a private flight, a disheveled and grieving Blanton is rewatching footage from the interview and subsequent terrorist attack. The Camarilla leader Dr. Hearst was shown in the footage to have posed as a cameraman and infected Penelope with the witchplague.

Dr. Hearst comes into the room of the plane to watch the footage of him. He callously makes playful remarks on his "performance" despite the clear pain his co-conspirator is processing before thanking the vice president for his "sacrifice." Blanton grimly returns the banter, confirming that he knowingly orchestrated the attack on Fort Salem and the death of his own daughter. Hearst toasts the broken man for the success of the attack and to the next steps of their plans to commit witch genocide and have Silver replace President Wade as the head of the US government.

### Season 3

In the wake of his daughter Penelope's death, Blanton Silver goes on the air and vilifies the Unit for killing his daughter. He proposes a series of reforms that include identifying and rounding up unknown witches for their "protection" and stripping away voting rights from witches. Meanwhile, the witches of Fort Salem spy on Blanton and discover his true allegiance to the Camarilla. They inform President Kelly Wade of this, who announces her intention to publicly move against him and place him under investigation.

Kelly Wade announces a press conference to reveal her opposition to Blanton's proposals and her intention to place him under investigation. Before she can do so, however, the White House is bombed. In the aftermath, Kelly Wade's body seemingly lays dead on the grounds and Silver is sworn in as the 46th President of the United States. In secret, Wade's body was replaced by a golem and she is spirited away into the Chippewa Cession to go into hiding until the time is right. She then watches from afar as Silver gives her "eulogy," which is really little more than an inaugural speech, and as he announces his intent to break the bonds of the Salem Accord and exterminate witches.

Blanton creates a new Civilian Oversight with the stated purpose of monitoring operations at Fort Salem. In truth, it is essentially his and the Camarilla's attempt at a takeover of the army and Fort Salem. Having learned that the Bellweather Unit attacked a chemical plant in the Cession, he orders troops there to effect their capture. A battle begins until the Unit finally decides to surrender in order to prevent bloodshed. He then has them placed on trial, hoping for it to be a show trial to turn the nation fully against witches. During the trial, however, Kelly Wade appears and reveals her survival, then ends the trial. Blanton is imprisoned.

Blanton is broken out of jail by Camarilla. He then attempts one last effort, going on television and claiming that the Kelly Wade who had him arrested was a fake. However, Penelope Silver then appears before him, having been resurrected by the witches' necros. She blames him for what happened to her and takes the form of the witchplague, absorbing and killing him.

## Relationships

### Penelope Silver

She had a close and loving relationship with Blanton, possibly in part to him being her only remaining parent following the loss of her mother. He attends church service and watches her sing and is very concerned for her when her powers as a witch first manifest. He expresses concern for her safety and that she may become a target.

He initially is shown to have some prejudice against witches and it took him a while to act like he has come to terms with his wife and daughter's witchhood. The depths of his hatred is ultimately revealed as he worked with The Camarilla to orchestrate the witchplague attack on Fort Salem. Amidst the success of the attack, Blanton becomes emotionally wrecked as he comes to terms with the fact that he killed his own daughter to further his genocidal hatred and political ambitions.

### Sarah Alder

Blanton Silver is suspicious of General Sarah Alder. He feels that someone who is as old as her cannot have the interests of the common people in mind.

### Kelly Wade

Blanton Silver despises Kelly Wade for her collusion with witches. He has put on a face of supporting her and her policies to become her Vice President, but secretly opposes much if not all of her agenda. He eventually stages a coup to depose her.

## Quotes

"It's not every day you kill your own daughter."