History
He beat the former president known as “The Beast” by Spider. He wasn’t the kind of man you would want as your savior of your country.
He became the president to control the people. Nicknamed for his wide, rigid, nearly perpetual grin, The Smiler is originally given Spider’s grudging support, until he proves to be far more corrupt and dangerous than The Beast. The Smiler privately admits to Spider that he hates everyone and only wants to be President in order to control and oppress people, and begins a personal vendetta against Spider after the journalist repeatedly humiliates him in the public eye. The Smiler goes so far as to send assassins after him, have him fired from The Word, and sic the National Guard on him. The Smiler also has no qualms about killing anyone whose death will help him gain or keep power, as demonstrated by his orchestration of the assassinations of Vita Severn and, later, his wife and children. In fact, Fred Christ reveals that this is not the first time the Smiler has done this; every time the Smiler’s support fades, he has someone close killed (such that it looks like an accident) in order to regain loyalty via sympathy. Spider finally exposes The Smiler for what he is at the end of the series; he is arrested by Detective Newton. In the final issue, it is revealed that he has been denied presidential pardon by his successor, and is quickly running out of the money and resources that will allow him to forestall the legal process, implying that he will probably be convicted and incarcerated. However Royce also tells Spider that despite all that was done that the Smiler still has die hard supporters donating him money.