Self-made billionaire and philanthropist Henry Ross Perot, twice candidate for the presidency, has died at age 89.
H. Ross Perot was an early pioneer of the computer industry, founding Electronic Data Systems Corporation in 1962. Perot was heavily involved in the Vietnam War POW/MIA issue, arguing that hundreds of American soldiers were left behind after the war. During the administration of President George H. W. Bush he opposed the first war against Iraq and later funded research into Gulf War Syndrome.
In 1992 Ross Perot entered politics for the first time to run for president, advocating a balanced budget, paying off the national debt, opposition to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the outsourcing of American jobs. His campaign became one of the most successful third party runs ever, garnering 19% of the popular vote. He would go on to found the Reform Party and became it’s first Presidential Nominee in 1996. After Perot was excluded from the 1996 presidential debates his vote total fell to 8% and in 2000 Donald Trump would go on to run for the Reform Party nomination before becoming a Republican.
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