In response to the renewal of the Cold War, America did something that she had never, to anyone's knowledge, done before: she elected and extremist President. The churches hailed Edward Masters, hard-line fundamentalist, as God's great emissary, the catalyst that would turn the nation back to Christian values. Within a year of the election, two of Christianity's most vocal opponents in Congress were tried and convicted of corruption, and the FBI indicted a liberal Supreme Court Justice. All accused the Administration of framing them, but to no avail.
After the inauguration, Masters' attitude toward the Russians took a ferocious turn. Day after day, week upon week he denounced the change in government as an insidious plot to dupe the west and railed on "that godless hotbed of murder and oppression." His talent for inventing newer and harsher adjectives with which to assail them seemed boundless.
Europe soon abandoned the Americans to their leader's folly. Once the treaties of the late 80's and beyond led to a nuclear-free Europe, the continent determined to keep it that way. In an unprecedented move, leaders of the European Common Market nations negotiated their own agreement with the Russians: if the Russian government would keep its hands off Eastern Europe, they would insure that Masters wouldn't plant his missiles on European soil. When Masters tried to move his missiles in by force and re-establish them at American military bases, the Europeans sent their own soldiers and blew up the convoys that carried the missile parts. In the end, Masters capitulated to the Allies' demands, but by the time he did many of them were no longer allies.
Masters chose to concentrate on readiness at home. He spend billions to develop and deploy bigger, more accurate missiles and warheads all over the U.S. Protests by states that had to house the weapons went unheeded. Russia, of course, matched him missile for missile, warhead for warhead, target for target. As the average warhead size reached 200 megatons, Masters stepped up his verbal attacks and dared the Russians to do anything about them.