A bitter campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination goes all the way to the convention and is stolen by the Senate Majority Leader in a credentials fight. The loser, the moderate California governor, shocks the nation by launching an independent bid for the presidency. The Republican Justice Department opens a criminal investigation into the credentials fight while the GOP candidate, the incumbent vice-president, seems to be coasting to victory in the topsy-turvy three-way presidential race. But nothing in this race is as it appears.