For a long time, George stood at the bridge, pondering his future.  Should he or shouldn't he?  Wouldn't it be best just to get it over with, to stop the humiliation?
    "Yoo-hoo!"
    What was that?  George saw a pudgy old man gesturing wildly to get his attention.
    "What are you doing?" called George, somewhat alarmed.
    "I'm going to apply for food stamps!" shouted the odd old man.
    "Oh, no, you're not!" barked George, forgetting his personal anguish.  And he surged toward the old man and tackled him.  "No freebies for you, buddy!"
    "Woo-hoo!" chortled the old man.  "I did it!  I did it!"
    "Did what?" asked George.
    "I saved you, George!" laughed the old man.  "That's what I was supposed to do!  I'm your guardian angel!"
    "What do you mean, saved me?" scoffed George.
    "Don't deny it!" chided the angel.  "You were contemplating political suicide a moment ago."
    The painful truth came flooding back.
    "Oh, what's the use, uh, ... what is your name, anyway?  And how did you know mine?"
    "My name is Clarence, George.  And I know all about you.  I told you.  I'm your guardian angel."
    "Well, Clarence, the other guy whupped my butt.  When they finish counting the votes in Florida, everyone's going to know.  I may as well just concede now."
    "Don't be so hasty, George," said Clarence.  "If I fail with you, I won't get my horns and tail."
    "Who cares?  It's pointless to go on.  I wish I'd never gone into politics!"
    "Oh, my!  Now, there's an idea!"  Clarence looked down.  "What do you think?" he said.  "Ok, we'll do it!  George, I have arranged for you to see the world as it would have been if you had never entered politics."
    "Oh, pshaw!" said George.
    "No, really!" Clarence insisted.  "Allow me to take you on a tour of your state..."
    George sniffed the air.  "Wait a minute!" he said.  "Something's wrong!  The air doesn't smell right."
    "Of course not," said Clarence.  "You weren't around as Governor to defend the grandfathered polluters.  The liberals forced them to clean up their plants."
    "The air has too much of that stuff - what do you call it? - in it," sniffed George distastefully.
    "Oxygen?"
    "Yeah, that's it.  Hey!  What's that gimpy guy doing with so much money?"
    "You mean the one that lost his legs in an industrial accident?" asked Clarence. "He won a lawsuit against his employer."
    "Hey!  He can't do that!" objected George.
    "Yes, he can," corrected Clarence.  "You weren't around to push tort reform through.  Now undeserving people can get their hands on the wealth of their betters.  Worse, liberal lawyers get a big cut of that, and they support liberal Democratic politicians."
    "Good heavens!" gasped George.  Then he noticed some poor but healthy children playing near by.  "Wait a minute!  Why are all those children so healthy?"
    "They have health insurance, George."
    "No way!"
    "Way," said Clarence.  "You weren't around to deny it to them."
    "Stop, Clarence! Stop!" blubbered George.
    "There's lots more," Clarence offered.
    "I don't want to see it!" George wept.  "I want to go back into politics!  I don't care if I did lose Florida!"
    "Very well," smirked Clarence.

    When George returned to the mansion, he was in for a big surprise.  A big bash was in progress, and it didn't look like a loser's consolation party, either.
    "Well, look at this!" cried George.  "All the little people that I've always fought for turned out to intimidate the Florida election officials!  Isn't it wonderful?"
    "Hey, George!  Where have you been?  There's a telegram here for you from your friend Sam Wainquist in Washington.  It says, 'Authorize 2 gutless partisan Supreme Court decisions immediately STOP Congratulations STOP.'"
    "Oh, look!" piped little Zuzu.  "Another boring, pompous windbag on TV saying how wonderfully democracy survived this crisis.  My teacher said that every time that happens, another angel gets his horns and tail."
    "That's right!" gushed George.  "That's right!  It really is a wonderful life, when you know the right people!"