I got it to work using the alias. Currently the button works for me, but I was trying to see if I could make it easier for other users, by putting in some error checking.
I think the problem is with my @if commands
I found this post that explained the issue, that @ifexists doesn't work with variables.
see this excerpt
But the alias option doesn't work either. Anyway I've decided to ignore it for now. as it works for me for now.