The governing philosophy of the Wrightman administration appeared to be, What the American public doesn’t know can’t hurt us. In that, it was no different from any previous administration. The public remained remarkably loyal to the president until it found out about a transgression, be it a blow job or a mass murder. Then a sense of betrayal kicked in.

This video did significant damage. After the endless lies and duplicity of Trump/Pence, Americans had latched onto Wrightman’s boring integrity. They liked him because they trusted him, and they trusted him because they liked him.

Real video versus fake video reignited the battles that had been fought throughout Trump/Pence. Polling showed that overall support for the administration was declining substantially, but the intensity among those people who continued to support Wrightman increased significantly as those people doubled down on their beliefs.

In an effort to position Ian Wrightman as more user-friendly, his pollster, Nolan Noyes, arranged an appearance on Jimmy Fallon’s late-night show. Charisma dressed him to convey the desired image: a suede jacket without a tie, a just-one-of-the-great-outdoors-guys look. The purported reason was to discuss his daughter America’s upcoming nuptials. “You’re darn right, Jimmy, that I’ll have tears in my eyes when I kiss my baby on the altar.”

Later in this interview, when pushed by Jimmy, the president admitted sheepishly that he had never really wanted to be president. His years in the Senate were the happiest of his life. “But let me tell you, when I was asked to serve the American people by bridging the gap between Democrats and Republicans…”—he chuckled at the memory—“well, no man who loves this country could have turned it down.”

Jenny and I were in bed. I started humming “God Bless America.” She slapped my hand.

Yes, the job was even more difficult than he had imagined it would be, he admitted. Yes, there had been many sleepless nights. No, he hadn’t lost his enthusiasm for improving the lives of every American. Yes, now that his team was finally in place, he would soon be announcing a series of additional measures that will make the country stronger and safer.

When the show returned after a brief commercial break, Wrightman took the opportunity to address “the growing concern” about “that strange unsourced video” that was circulating. “Frankly, Jimmy,” he said, looking directly into the camera, shaking his head and tossing open his hands in bewilderment, “we don’t know where it came from. But I can tell you with all my heart…”—he tapped his chest twice with his right hand to emphasize his sincerity—“that it doesn’t reflect accurately the reality on the ground that night. And I have to tell you, it really gets my dander up to see people impugning the integrity of those brave Americans who literally put their lives on the line for all of us.”

The audience burst into cheers. To me, at least, the guy had all the sincerity of a love letter from a lonely Russian beauty. It surprised me that anyone would believe any of this, but then I remembered, at least he isn’t Trump. Of course, all of this was the setup for the real reason for this appearance.