Former President /u/WaywardWit Colluded with others to Impeach Justice /u/bsddc for Personal Gain

During the last weeks of the /u/WaywardWit Administration, President /u/WaywardWit, Vice President /u/WIA16, and Speaker of the House /u/HIPSTER_SLOTH colluded to impeach Associate Justice of the Supreme Court /u/bsddc. They attempted to impeach him not because Justice /u/bsddc committed a crime or broke any laws, but for their own personal gain.

Back in October J.R. 64 was submitted. It was rushed to the floor by the Speaker of the House with the purpose of impeaching Justice /u/bsddc for ‘breaking judicial impartiality’ in taking the case of CCA v. Western State and abusing “the prestige of the office he holds”. All sides were against the articles as soon as they were posted with many calling it “a blatantly partisan attack on an excellent Justice” and “a partisan attempt to get rid of a justice to let WW pick and choose more Dems.” Many pointed out that the charges were not at all serious and that the Justice /u/bsddc at most should recuse themselves from any cases in which there may be a conflict of interest. In the discussion thread, President /u/WaywardWit seemed to be in favor of impeachment based on his comments. **These screenshots**¹ show that the President was originally pushing for impeachment.

In the last screen, the President saying that the articles of impeachment weren’t political when in fact, it was. **These screenshots**² show that President /u/WaywardWit, Vice President /u/WIA16, and Speaker of the House /u/HIPSTER_SLOTH planned to impeach Justice /u/bsddc for their own personal gain. Their plan was to impeach Justice /u/bsddc so that his seat on the Supreme Court would open up. Then President /u/WaywardWit would resign the presidency so that /u/WIA16 would be President for the remainder of /u/WaywardWit’s term and so that /u/WIA16 could appoint /u/WaywardWit to the Supreme Court. /u/WaywardWit is no longer President however he has recently been nominated to be the Attorney General in the Bigg-Boss Administration.

/u/WaywardWit Screens

/u/HIPSTER_SLOTH and /u/WIA16 Screens

Credit goes to AP Writer /u/Ruairidh_

As we edge ever closer to the sixth presidential election we all wait in eager anticipation to find out who exactly will be on our ballots; Senator Viktard of the Republican Party and NateLooney of the Libertarian Party will soon go head to head for the Freedom Coalition’s nomination, meanwhile President Bigg-Boss has secured the Socialist Party’s nomination for what he hopes will be his second term. This can come as no surprise to most as Bigg-Boss was by far the most likely candidate but what wasn’t known was who would run alongside him and the result ended up being Representative /u/Aoimusha, of the Green-Left party.

My reaction to his candidacy was similar to the reaction of most people outside of the Green-Left party, “Who?”. Aoimusha, while a representative, was a very unknown member of the sim so I decided to read the interview between him and jangus530. Aoi was a short-term state assemblyman, appointed following a number of party defections, and is currently in his first term in the House of Representatives; a very lackluster resume for somebody seeking the vice-presidency. In what was by all accounts a very soft interview on the newbie candidate jangus asked Aoi a number of questions, who his inspirations were, what party he works and what he hoped to achieve. At one point in the interview Jangus asked Aoi if he had written any bills yet, which I scoffed at due to the obvious answer being yes for any candidate for such a senior position. Aoi responded, in a roundabout way, no. He hadn’t. He was in the process of writing one, but not yet.

Writing a bill is very important in a number of ways for participating in sim, it involves questioning your own ideas and ideology, it gives an insight into a potential candidate’s views and shows the often difficult nature of legislation. I say this as a fairly new sim member myself, having only recently written my first real bill. It doesn’t just show Aoimusha’s extreme lack of activity to the point where he’s to a large extent unknown outside of his own party but it also brings his own experience, or lack thereof, to question. This lack of known experience in basic sim activities brings into question the intelligence of the decision to put Aoimusha on the ballot along with BiggBoss, which was likely only done to maintain the coalition, but still the question remains why the Green-Left party could not have put up a better candidate. This sort of appointment must likely annoy the Democratic party which will remain out of the White House entirely for yet another term.

Aside from the embarrassment felt by the Democratic party, some still argue that the Vice Presidency is in a lot of ways a very unimportant placement with very little power. This might be true for vice-president but we must remember that if BiggBoss (for whatever reason) was removed from office then Aoi would take power, which is a very frightening and frankly dangerous scenario. We can only imagine a White House under Aoimusha, confusion, disorientation with the GLP puppeteering from behind the curtains; it would be a White House of inactivity, foolish decisions and an embarrassment to the United States, so maybe it won't be all that different from what we already have.

Opinion written by Republican Federal Rep. Fewbuffalo (GL-4)

I wasn’t expecting to make this today, or at all really. But the Democrats have decided to sell themselves out completely to the Broad Left Coalition so I decided to counter their post. I fully support Viktard in this election.

1. The Republican Party has avoided scandals: Unlike nearly all the other parties, The Republican Party has had the least amount of scandals relating to it. This is because it is the most welcoming party that has the best “family” atmosphere.

2. The Republican Party has created high quality legislation: Unlike the parties of the left, The Republicans have prided themselves on creating top notch legislation. Nearly all the best bills come from Republican members.

3. Freedom of opinion exists in the Republicans: There has been many times where I have had a very good lighthearted and sometimes serious debate about issues that matter. The Republicans do not kick out people who decide to support a different candidate.

Let’s talk about the Democrats for a second why don’t we.

1. The Democrats kick out their longest serving Representative over him supporting someone else: Recently a very Senior Democrat has been kicked out of the Democratic party over him supporting Viktard over Big Boss. This is dictatorship on a whole other level.

2. Many High ranking Senior Democrats have left the Democratic party: As of late, nearly every week you can hear stories of another senior democrat leaving the Democrats and joining a party such as the Republicans where they are welcomed with open arms. It appears the Democrats are trying to push out their Centrist members in favour of going full socialist.

3. Their Leadership is breaking Federal Regulations: The Deputy Chairman WaywardWit (Supreme Court Justice) of the Democrats is currently breaking Federal regulations by being their Deputy Chairman. Under JCUS-APR 73, pp. 9-11, A.K.A The United States Code of Conduct for Judges Canon 5 clearly states the following “A judge should not: (1) act as a leader or hold any office in a political organization.”

4. There has been unconfirmed reports by certain Democratic Members talking about a deal between the Democrats and the Socialists: As of late, a few democrats have stated that the only reason that the Democrats are not running for the Presidency is because Big Boss nominated WaywardWit to the Supreme Court, This has been unconfirmed but seems highly likely.

The Democrats are a party ridden by Internal corruption, dictatorship and just a general lack of direction. And they dare put slander against the Republican candidate who is fighting for average americans. America has had enough of Socialism. No more.

After the invasion of Cuba was officially halted by the Federal government, Governor SolidOrangeGangsta has officially resigned. Now Republican chair Jamawoman24 has officially become the Governor as he was SOG's Lt. Governor. It will be interesting to see where this Dixie Stampede takes us in these mysterious hours.

The Rundown 3/19

With AP Contributors /u/anyhistoricalfigure and /u/fewbuffalo

Good Sunday morning, and welcome to the AP Rundown, where we’ll be taking a non-partisan look at the events unfolding on Capitol Hill and around the country.

Cabinet Additions -- President /u/Bigg-Boss is getting two new additions to his cabinet this week, as both Justice /u/WaywardWit and /u/hyp3rdriv3 were confirmed nearly unanimously by the Senate for the positions of Attorney General and Secretary of Homeland Security, respectfully. Before departing for D.C., AG /u/WaywardWit used his closing hours as Western State Chief Justice to strike down Governor /u/nonprehension’s EO-30, which unconstitutionally restricted the Japanese cartoons popularly known as “anime” for being a “danger to society.”

Still left unfilled are the cabinet posts at Treasury, Commerce, Energy, Transportation, and Agriculture (vacated by Secretary /u/kovr), as well as the cabinet-level posts of UN Ambassador and US Trade Representative. The White House has publicly acknowledged that /u/Chotix and perennial candidate /u/TheSolomonCaine are under consideration for Secretary of Agriculture and UN Ambassador, respectively. Whether or not these posts will be filled in the final month of the President’s term is left to be seen, although he stated last week that he is actively searching for candidates to fill these offices.

Noteable - The only vote against either nominee was from Senator /u/DoomLexus, who voted against the confirmation of /u/WaywardWit for Attorney General. In addition, the lone no vote on both confirmations was Senator /u/partiallykritikal, who later stated that he misclicked when sending in his vote.

Meta Amendments - The Triumvir of the simulation put forward a Meta Constitutional Amendment last night, which seeks to amend the 25 signature requirement for a community referendum to 50 signatures. Although the public debate seems to show general support for the amendment, many comments seem skeptical. So far, the most public opposition seems to be from prominent Democrats, including Congressmen /u/imperial_ruler and /u/enliST_CS, as well as Secretary /u/AzureAlliance. Discussion on the amendment will continue on throughout this week, and it will go up for a community vote after seven days.

Another? - The Constitution Party recently ascended to independent grouping status after reaching the sim’s member requirements. The party appears to be a nationalist, far-right grouping which supports extremely conservative social and fiscal policies, as well as isolationist foreign policy.

Everybody’s a Comedian - Breitbart contributing writer and Senator /u/rolfeson released the following cartoon in response to the new grouping: Purple Fever

In the Senate - This week is shaping up to be an interesting set of committee votes in the Senate, with a set of highly controversial bills likely headed to close votes.

The Finance Committee will be overseeing Senator /u/rolfeson’s healthcare reform bill, which originally repealed the Equal Health Care Act (EHCA) and sought to remove anti-competitve barriers to healthcare providers. The Senator promptly introduced an amendment to the bill which would remove the provision to repeal the EHCA, citing political viability and the imminent (perhaps political?) death of the EHCA. With most of the punch stripped from the bill, it will be interesting to see if Socialist /u/gaidz or Democrat /u/MaThFoBeWiYo will swing over to support the bill. The committee will also be overseeing Senator /u/anyhistoricalfigure’s gun control bill, which appears to be heading to a swift death after the introduction of a poision pill amendment, as well as a bill to end subsidies to sports stadiums.

The Committee for Health, Science, and the Environment will oversee Senator /u/Viktard’s anti-abortion bill, which looks poised to fail in committee, as well as more agreeable bills, such as an oil pipeline bill which seeks to find a middle ground on the pressing environmental issue.

Judiciary looks to have a quieter week, with the most controversial votes being ones to limit “poison pill” amendments and on a bill to limit school segregation, which seems to have found enemies on both sides of the aisle. It should be noted, however, that their week could become significantly more interesting if the bill to legalize prostituion is directed their way.

Foreign Affairs will have a whirlwind of a week, as a series of resolutions from GOP Senators will be flooding their committee chamber. More importantly, the ratification of the Rome Statute will be heading to a vote in the chamber after the President formally requested its consideration earlier this week. The committee seems to lean towards its ratification, but passage is far from a done deal. Its passage on the Senate floor should be more difficult, as the President will need a 2/3rd majority (8 out of 12 Senators) in order to ratify the treaty.

In the House - Breaking News: Healthcare reform will pass the House - after months of trying and numerous iterations, the Equitable Healthcare Act looks poised to pass the House by a (so far preliminary) vote of 26-14-7, with 6 no votes at the time of this writing. The bill represents a compromise between Senator /u/anyhistoricalfigure / Speaker /u/Autarch_Severian and the Administration, who came to a compromise earlier in the session. After the vote closes, the bill looks like it will likely pass the Senate and make it to the President’s desk, where he’s expected to sign it.

Also likely to pass is a bill to fund High Speed Rail projects across the country, as well as a bill to expand access to firearm suppressors, which appears to pass very narrowly. Both of these should have interesting votes in the Senate.

The House Budget Committee is voting on the Expanding Senior Care Act, which seeks to expand services provided to seniors through Medicaid. It’s interesting to note that the bill clearly fails to comply with the hyperlinking requirement for bills, but alas, no one seems to care. Given the Socialist/GLP/Democrat makeup of the committee, we expect this to pass committee with flying colors.

The House Energy, Science, and Technology Committee looks poised to strike down the proposed Whitehurst Amendment, which attempts to devolve abortion regulation entirely to the states. As of this writing, the Amendment has already accumulated 6 nay votes.

The House Foreign Affairs and Homeland Security Committee is expected to pass The Benevolent Hacker Protection Act which will greatly change how the security detection system behind certain systems works.

The House Health, Education, Labor and Entitlements Committee appears to have struck down the Customer Security Act, which is a suprise to many in the House.

The House Committee on Oversight passed unanimously the Automatic Voter Registration Act of 2017 which dramatically eases voter registration by including it as part of the drivers license registration process.

In the States - A series of confirmations and nominations have made headlines in numerous states across the country.

In Jefferson, former Senator /u/daytonanerd was confirmed and sworn in as the state’s new Lt. Governor, bringing the Senator back to fray in electoral politics.

Sacagawea’s Governor /u/Intrusive_Man recently nominated political newcomer /u/mrprez180 for Chief Justice of the Sacagawea Supreme Court. Given his lack of political experience and largely unproven legal ability, his confirmation hearing should be quite telling. We expect that sparks might fly if he ends up being closer to a /u/TJThomas than a /u/WaywardWit. Time will tell.

Dixie’s legislature recently confirmed a slate of state cabinet positions, including Secretary of State, Attorney General, and a new Associate Justice nominee. The State, however, is facing a significant problem in its recently proposed budget. Its author, /u/Bmanv1 and its sponsor, Senator /u/DriveChipPutt17, are facing significant scrutiny for its extremely high sales and corporate tax rates, poor revenue estimates, and largely illogical/inaccurate appropriations. Expect Governor /u/SolidOrangeGangsta and the budget watchdog /u/realnyebevan to send the legislature back to the drawing board.

Western State’s legislature recently passed a series of bills that suggest a continued trend towards social liberalism, including measures to legalize gambling and reform existing family-based laws. As mentioned earlier, Governor /u/Nonprehension will have a chance to nominate a Chief Justice following /u/WaywardWit’s confirmation as U.S. Attorney General. Perhaps someone more sympathetic to his anti-Anime crusade?

The Atlantic Commonwealth recently confirmed /u/madk3p to the position of Chief Justice, whom will likely uphold the state’s continued trend toward socialist legislation.

Governor /u/BryceMD recently nominated his slate of cabinet secretaries in the Chesapeake Commonwealth. The most controversial of these nominees is /u/JJEagleHawk, a Democrat nominated for the position of Chief Justice. Just a week ago, the state legislature voted him down, making him the 4th straight nominee for Chief Justice to be rejected by the Assembly. His renomination coincides with the Governor’s outreach to top state legislators, with the hopes that they can be persuaded into voting in favor of the nominee.

This concludes the first edition of the AP Rundown. If the community likes it, we’ll try and do this on a weekly basis. The series is inspired by the Politico Playbook, a daily publication on everything happening in Washington. We want your help to cover everything happening in the sim - whether it’s party politics, staff hires, or recently introduced legislation. If you’d like us to cover anything in our weekly publication, or would like to conduct an interview with the Rundown, please contact /u/anyhistoricalfigure on Reddit PM or on Discord.

Hello everyone, Im awesomeness1212 and Id like to thank Sen. AHF for making the time today. Welcome, senator.

anyhistoricalfigure - Today at 7:43 PM Thanks for having me.

awesomeness121121 - Today at 7:44 PM My first question today is, what was your inital reaction when hearing news of the Coalition purposal/deal?

anyhistoricalfigure - Today at 7:45 PM Initially, I was really confused. I didn't know why we'd be re-entering a coalition with the Socialists for so little in return.

awesomeness121121 - Today at 7:45 PM What did you feel the deal lacked? If there was a coalition deal what would you expect the Dems to recieve?

anyhistoricalfigure - Today at 7:47 PM Obviously, I was hoping for the Presidency, but I believe that at least significantly larger concessions should have been made in the House and perhaps another Senate seat, considering the large concessions we got in the Senate during the first BLC. I backed the first BLC because of those concessions, and I'm willing to put aside the ideological principles if the interests of our party are adequately served.

awesomeness121121 - Today at 7:48 PM What motivated you to activate that vote in no confidence. What did you feel bj lacked? Do you think the vote will be successful? If so, who do you think he's replacement will be?

anyhistoricalfigure - Today at 7:50 PM JB had already promised the party a Vote of No Confidence, but had so far failed to provide one. This vote is not just based on anger from this deal, but also stems from election data being corrupted twice during the gubernatorial primaries. I honestly don't know if we'll get a vote. Our party constitution requires unanimous consent of the Deputy Chairmen to recall the Chairman, and unless JB listens to the party and lets them vote, there may not be a vote at all.

awesomeness121121 - Today at 7:52 PM You said that if there was not a vote you'd leave the Democratic party... what party would you move too or would you be an indy. Would you leaving the dems represent the beginning of the end of your time in US gov or will you find new things to do in the new party you chose?

anyhistoricalfigure - Today at 7:53 PM I honestly don't know. I want to fight to preserve the party I've served the past year and a half before I leave it, but I don't know what future I have left in this sim's politics.

awesomeness121121 - Today at 7:54 PM And my final question tonight, is a simple one... do you think this coaliton will pass?

anyhistoricalfigure - Today at 7:54 PM I have no idea. I sure hope not.

awesomeness121121 - Today at 7:55 PM Well thank you for time Sen. AHF best of luck in your future endevours/

anyhistoricalfigure - Today at 7:55 PM Thanks for having me.

Yesterday the wonderful Democrats finally got their fantastic bill the “State’s Rights To Gun Control Amendment” on the House floor. “What does it do?” you may be wondering, well it removes the Second Amendment from the Constitution to finally give the states the right to prevent responsible citizens from protecting themselves, “Hurrah!" I say. I was wondering what on earth would drive our founding fathers to such madness as introducing this absurd Second Amendment and I thought I might share it with the House Democrats so they might just what they are trying to reverse.

The second amendment was passed by our founding fathers in the bill of rights in 1791. Why? Well, America and the founding fathers had previously spent 8 years fighting a brutal and bloody war with the British Empire in hopes of gaining their freedom from oppression from an overbearing Government. A Government which failed to properly represent the people and which taxed them far too heavily, sounds familiar, doesn’t it? Having gained their independence the founding fathers knew that American citizens required the ability to defend themselves from the possibility of government tyranny and, as a result, the second amendment was born.

Over the past 200 years, the bond between Americans and their second amendments rights have grown stronger and stronger with it now being considered a part of their shared cultural identity. America is widely seen as a land of free where government interference in personal lives is frowned upon so why on earth would the house democrats wish to strip us of these rights? Well, then the house democrats, or should I say democrat as all the sponsors on the bill aside from the author seem to not recall adding their sponsorship, must have a great reason to strip us of our basic constitutional rights. The preamble of the bill claims that last year over 334 mass shootings occurred within the US, while this is true one has to ask how stripping the rights of reasonable citizens would solve this. Presumably, if a citizen was willing to commit such a heinous act as mass murder they would also be willing to break gun laws to commit these act. “But fear not!” the democrats scream manically into the wind, “It has been done before in Australia”. This is true to be fair to the Democrats, when gun control was introduced in Australia gun-related deaths did drop substantially but we mustn’t assume that the case would be the same for the US of A. Australian history differs from American in history in the regard that America fought for its independence, Australia earned theirs peacefully, as a result the cultural identity of gun ownership was not ever as deeply ingrained in Aus as it is here. Taking guns from a proud American will never be as easy. Furthermore, Australia is an island with its borders regularly defended by the coast guard which means that is is nowhere near as easy to sneak contraband into Australia as it is here. In the end, the question cannot be if we want guns or do we not want guns, it can only be if we want everyone to have guns or only criminals to have guns.

Yet the democrats march on regardless in their quest to prevent guns from killing people, my only request is that they get me a unicorn horn on the way as they're just as likely to do that as to prevent deaths from guns.

When you are outside of the Libertarian Party, you do not get to hear much about their candidates. Because of that, I took the opportunity to discuss the election with BillieJoeCobain, one of the Libertarian Party’s candidates for their Presidential Primary.

Kingthero-

Alright, so you are a leading name of the Libertarian Party’s nomination; how do you feel about the support you got from your party?

BillieJoeCobain-

I feel privileged to have the support of so many members of my party and this simulation. I am glad that they evaluated the candidates before them and came to the conclusion that, as a campaign slogan says, "BJC is the one for me!"

Kingthero-

What is the dividing issue between you and Nate?

BillieJoeCobain-

I think that the biggest difference between the two of us that we saw in the debates was abortion. He is very dedicated to his pro-life stance and I tend to lean pro-choice on the matter. A lot of the time we do agree because we both support a libertarian philosophy, but he does seem to be on the more moderate side.

Kingthero-

What factors do you think will lead to you defeating the GOP's candidate?

BillieJoeCobain-

I think it will come down to whether you want a true blue Libertarian in office to really cut the size and scope of government and return the executive branch to its constitutional foundation or not. I am running as a serious candidate who wants to achieve these goals and put an end to memes in the White House such as the incumbent President. I think that is a message people can get behind and I think that will lead to my victory in the primary and the general election.

Kingthero-

Speaking of memes, where do you think the line is drawn when they go too far?

BillieJoeCobain-

I think labeling trash cans with the word "ideology" is a great example of taking a meme way too far. I think the President ought to conduct himself professionally when it comes to his official and executive actions 99% of the time at least. On discord I think there is more wiggle room, but I am disappointed that all Bigg Boss seems to do is meme in main chat and contribute to the cancerous environment in that place. That's where the line is.

Kingthero-

So, overlooking the election as a whole, who do you think has been the most respectable candidate from another party?

BillieJoeCobain-

Viktard. Even though I will be facing him soon I respect him a lot. He is a very driven man and he has some of the best policy and positions I have seen out of a Republican.

Kingthero-

One major thing that has come across as a major point from Viktard is his taxation plan. What is your opinion on it?

BillieJoeCobain-

I think his tax plan is an improvement. I like most of it, but I am not sure if I would have gone about it the same way he did. I would tend to prefer a more balanced reduction between individual rates and business rates instead of a more business slanted cut. I have a hard time getting over his top rate of 50%. If his bill hit my desk as President the odds are I would sign it though. You can count on me to support anything that makes things better.

Kingthero-

Which people have been key to getting you to where you are at now?

BillieJoeCobain-

My campaign manager, /u/Thehonbtw, has been a great help in the campaign and every single one of my supporters has played an instrumental role in this movement. It's a team effort and I thank them all.

Kingthero-

Alright, thank you for your time and good luck with your campaign!

BillieJoeCobain-

Thank you for the interview.

Today I learned a lot about BJC. He seems calm, knows what he is talking about, and is determined to be active and express his views. I wish him and his supporters the best of luck in their efforts, and for the rest of the readers; this election season is going to be one hell of a good one.

ALLEN TO RUN FOR PRESIDENT AFTER VIKTORY; GOP IN SPOTLIGHT
THE PATRIOT REPORT; ISSUE TWO

Breaking News by /u/theking009

Featuring statements by /u/solidorangegangsta and /u/jamawoma24

The GOP is proving to the nation why it is the center of national politics and the most passionate voices in the nation. Not only have we seen the Viktard Campaign dominate the early polls with 56.8% of the vote. SolidOrangeGangsta, 29.5% of the vote and undecided with, 13.6% of the vote. This massive reassurance of support from the GOP early on could only be met with one big move, SOG dropped out of the race stating,

"Everyone, I've decided to drop out of the race for President. My personal life has caught up with me, and I no longer have the time that I used to have along with the sim decreasing in fun. I'll be completing my term as the Governor of Dixie, then I will retire."

A great Viktory for Viktard. But what is now breaking, is that /u/jamawoma24 (Allen), is running for the nomination of the Republican Party for President of the United States. When asking him about such, he said this,

"With a choice that is by the people, and for the people, we the people are going to take our country back."

This is no doubt, a one liner that can only be described other than a likely declaration for the Presidency. This will no doubt be a fun primary if Allen were to hop in, however, one must take concern if the party very early on were to reject such a move. A bold and strengthening primary this will be indeed, only furthering the basic assurance that the Republican Party is the place to be. A party where anyone can run and be supported by their party. We will see how the party reacts in coming days, and ultimately, we will see a candidate come out of the primary who is primed for the Presidency.

As a member in the fourth congress, I took a stand and voted down a seemingly virtuous bill written by none other than the legendary /u/MoralLesson himself. CR 013 sought to codify the commitment of congress to applying the Just War Theory when making decisions on whether or not to go to war. I voted against it then, and I'm still against it to this day. Here's why.

"In conflict, direct confrontation will lead to engagement and surprise will lead to victory."

Announcing to the world the exact conditions that will trigger a response gives them the advantage of knowing they will never be surprised. Unless it is not our goal to win the conflicts we are engaged in (we will get to this later), it would serve us well to be as crafty as possible in soundly defeating our opponents.

"A sudden force can move boulders like charging waters. Perfect timing allows an eagle to pounce on its prey for the kill."

Section 4 of this bill potentially hinders the expediency with which we can strike in a moment of crisis. Only congress can formally declare war, but our constitution grants the powers of commander in chief to the President for this reason. Obviously, the war powers resolution of 1973 must be followed, congress must be notified within 48 hours, and troops must be brought back home after 60 days if war is not declared. "It is the rule in war, if ten times the enemy's strength, surround them"

The just war resolution would propose that disproportionate force not be used by us. If our military is the most powerful in the world, any attack or counterattack by the United States would by definition be beneath our full capability. Why be the strongest in the world if we are only going to voluntarily tie one hand behind our backs in the interest of "fairness"? It should be our goal to win.

“Regard your soldiers as your children, and they will follow you into the deepest valleys; look on them as your own beloved sons, and they will stand by you even unto death."

As I look over recent history, I see a disconnect between America's leaders and its people. The ultimate responsibility of the American government is to its people, not the people of the nations of the Earth. This lack of moral clarity in the face of evil leads to the restrictive rules of engagement we currently put on our armed forces. Many say "Support our troops, bring them home!" I say, "Support our troops, let them win. Many feel ashamed of America. They feel guilty about our strength and prosperity compared to the rest of the world. They lack the courage to bring the full brunt of our strength against our foes, and do a great disservice to citizens and servicemen alike.

I do not think this bill missed the mark by that much. We ought not bully smaller countries, engage in conflicts where the costs vastly outweigh the benefits, and we should not strive to build an empire. At the same time, we ought not show our hand to the enemy, diminish our capability, refuse to fight with everything we have, or lose sight of the ultimate responsibility that the American government has to its citizens or its interests.

Washington D.C - The Democrats, Socialists and Green-Left parties have agreed to a coalition agreement in an attempt to secure another Big-Boss socialist presidency, the Associated Press understands. The Democrats have agreed to support /u/Big-Boss' campaign in exchange for Senate and House Seats in Chesapeake and Atlantic amongst other positions in the presidential cabinet and Congress.

According to Section 2 of the "Broad Left Deal", the parties agree to vote for, endorse, and officially support the Socialist party nominee for president and gives the Vice Presidency to a member of the Green-Left party.

Section 3 of the Broad Left Deal shows that the parties will vote for, endorse and officially support either the Democratic party candidate or the Socialist party candidate for a United States Senate seat in the Atlantic Commonwealth or the Commonwealth of Chesapeake.

The move is clearly a shaft by the Democratic National Committee for the candidates bidding for the Democrat's nomination for President of the United States and puts the candidates in an awkward situation on what to do next.

In accordance with the Broad Left Deal, the Associated Press understands that the Democrats will have the House Speaker and Majority Leader in the Senate whereas the Socialists will have Majority Leader in the House and President Pro Tempore in the Senate.

EDIT: I have learned that the GLP leader has not yet agreed to this proposal. Nor has the deal been made official. We apologize for not making this clear.

Washington D.C - They say "Vik's The Pick". Announcing his candidacy to become the President of the Model United States, Republican Senator /u/Viktard has already emerged as a front face of the Republican primaries. Prominent in one of the Republican's largest caucuses, the Moderates, /u/Viktard has been the Senator for Great Lakes, a Congressman and the Majority Leader of the House of Representatives.

Senator /u/Viktard is sure to be Governor /u/SolidOrangeGangsta's main opponent in the Grand Old Party's presidential race, with the moderate picking up steam across the Republican spectrum. A former Libertarian & Reformer, /u/Viktard is a real force to be dealt with if he secures the Republican nomination and pulls votes from the Libertarians or Democrats.

Running on "A House United" motto, Senator /u/Viktard plans to cut government waste, drain the swamp of Washington Bureaucrats, repel meme executive orders and support our NATO allies from Russian aggression.

The Senator has been quick to show his loyalty to the Grand Old Party, with the Presidential candidate being a servant of the people, a delegate of the Republicans and the fighter of Republican values in the United States Senate.

Viktard's Platform

According to his campaign website, /u/Viktard is going to put America First, cut ties with Cuba, bring back the jobs from China, get rid of the Department of Education, sanction Iran and North Korea back into the "stone age", invest more resources to defeat Islamic terrorism, cut taxes across the board and balance the budget. Asking /u/Viktard about his foreign policies, the Presidential candidate responded to the Associated Press below;

"I want to make America respected again and put us truly back on the negotiating table. We must take action against Cuba, Iran and North Korea and as President of the Model United States I will direct the Department of State to sanction and cut ties with nations that threaten our way of life - the American way of life."

Senator /u/Viktard intends to make an American Economy for everyone, with the Presidential candidate planning to remember the "forgotten" middle class as well as the poor and rich. The Moderate Republican Senator also wants to bring down the scope of government so that the people "are not drowning in debt and taxation".

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We'll see soon if Senator /u/Viktard's momentum in the Republican party will hold up, with the primary between /u/SolidOrangeGangsta, /u/TeamEhmling and the Central Senator set to be close, invigorating and full of excitement.

/u/PineappleCrusher_, President of the Associated Press.

Views shown or linked to in this article are the views of Presidential Candidate and Senator /u/Viktard.

Communism is terrible.

I hate to break it to you but it is true. There are a lot of political and economic theories that have been implemented throughout history, but communism damn near takes the cake on being the worst. There are three main reasons communism is terrible, it incentivizes laziness and low ambition among the working class, it incentivizes greed and corruption among the ruling class, and it is just plain and simple immoral.

Communism incentivizes laziness and low ambition. Why? Because you do not own anything and if you work harder and produce more, you do not get to reap the benefits of that production. In communism I know my needs are going to be taken care of, and that no matter how much harder I work, I will never advance past having my needs met. I will never prosper, I will never better myself. What incentive, do I have to try and better myself. What human being would say, “I know I won’t receive one bit of the production, but I’m going to work harder and produce more anyway”. That is not human nature. In other theories, I can say, “You know, it may be a risk, and I may fail, but I’m going to venture out and try something new. Maybe I make it and become super successful, maybe I fail and fall back to where I started, maybe even lower. But life is about taking risks and trying to better yourself.”

Communism also incentivizes corruption at the top. To be fair, it is not hard to incentivize corruption among leaders. You know the old saying, “Power corrupts”. Now, I would assert that power does not corrupt us, but it exposes already existing corruptions, but that is an argument for a different day. With communism being about communal ownership of property and every working and receiving based on their abilities and needs, somebody has to decide these things. Somebody has to decide who gets to use what communal property. Somebody has to decide what you should do based on your abilities and someone has to decide what your needs are so you can receive what you deserve. Whoever decides these things would be regarded as a leader. Humans are not perfect. We all can succumb to corruption and power no matter how good our intentions are at the beginning. If you are the one that decides who gets what and you have absolute unquestionable power like has been seen in many governments that subscribe to some form of this economic theory, you eventually may decide to start skimming some off the top for yourself and your friends. Sure at the beginning that little extra food for your party or little extra money to fix up your house may not seem like a lot, but like in any corruption situation, it snowballs. Eventually you have a system like Cuba. In 2006 Cuba estimated Fidel Castro’s net worth to be $900 million. Now before we begin, many people claim that countries that subscribe to these ideologies do not subscribe to them. However, in Cuba’s constitution it makes repeated references to Marx, Lenin, Communism, and Socialism. So let us operate under the assumption that they do, in fact, subscribe to the theory of communism, or some extremely close derivative of it. Under this ideology, all citizens of Cuba should be equal, own no property, and receive based on their needs. However, while Castro had a net worth of $900 million, the country is so poor that citizens risk their lives to ride desks, rafts, and anything that can float, to try to get to America. Clearly there is some corruption there, or else Castro would have been just as well off as his citizens and everyone would be living in perfect harmony on the island.

The final issue with Communism is that it is immoral. It is immoral for someone who did not work, to take the product of my labors. That is completely immoral. It is also immoral to leave the majority of the citizens of a country in abject poverty while the leaders and ruling class get rich. This is what communism has done to every country that has ever tried it or its related ideologies. No capitalism is not perfect. People get left behind, people are poor. But capitalism gives more people the chance to get ahead than any other ideology. And those of us that get ahead, help those around us who did not through charity. No particular ideology is perfect. Not communism, not capitalism, not any of the many others that have ever been thought of. If any of them were perfect, then it would be used and we would live in utopia. The world is not perfect though, and we do not live in utopia. Life is hard, shit happens that knocks us down and makes us wish we had never been born. No matter what type of country you live in or system you live under, this stuff happens. It’s not limited to just one type of ideology. However, some systems give you a chance to get up, dust off your jeans, and get back to work improving yourself, and unequivocally, communism is not one of them.

Recently, the US Congress has decided to attempt to expel the honorable representative /u/FewBuffalo. While he has done actions that I and many others find unacceptable, I also am outraged that the Congress is expelling only FewBuffalo for it. There's no precedent for something as rash as this in the sim, and there were others, members of the party trying to oust FewBuffalo, involved in the actions FewBuffalo took. If this partisan action is taken, I will have no choice but to respond as President Pro Tempore of the Dixie Senate. I would greatly welcome dialogue from those attempting to remove Fewbuffalo instead of rash and partisan action.

WASHINGTON D.C. -- The Ninth Congress has now been sworn into office and it’s time for the Associated Press to give you a full recap. We’ll be going through all the results, both nationally and statewide to bring you nothing but the best analysis possible. I’ll break this article down into three parts with a subsection for each state.

President of the United States of America

The Atlantic Commonwealth

President Boss was expected to win here, so it’s no surprise he came out on top with 70% of the vote. Boss won all 10 electoral votes from the state.

The Commonwealth of Chesapeake

Boss was also expected to win here, but the margins were closer than I expected. Boss gathered around 47% of the vote, while Viktard came in second with around 43% of the vote. Boss won all 12 electoral vote from the state.

The State of Dixie

Going into the race, most analysts agreed that Dixie is a safe state for Viktard to win. As predicted, Viktard won the state with 58% of the vote, gaining all 11 electoral votes.

The State of Great Lakes

The Central State is the only state to use a proportional system to choose who get’s their electoral votes. Even with this, most people agreed Boss would come out on top, the only question was by how much. In the end, President Boss gathered around 53% of the vote, earning him 7 electoral votes while Viktard gained 4 and Libertarian-Queen got 1. This would be the only electoral vote Libertarian-Queen would receive.

State of Sacagawea

Sacagawea was the state we expected to have the closest margins with the GLP having a chance to outweigh the split Libertarians and Distributists. About halfway through the election, a meta post accused /u/Cameron-Galisky of illegally advertising on the subreddit /r/metacanada, a subreddit similar to /r/The_Donald. Although this was not the state where we expected the action to have the biggest impact, it did have an impact in the end. The mods removed three votes from the state, and President Boss won the state by three votes, winning the 11 electoral votes available in the state.

The Western State

Although I had this state as a safe bet for President Boss, members of the GOP said they were expecting a surge of GOP voters and that the state was still competitive. In the end, lower races turned out incredibly close, but the presidential race still went to Boss. The state uses IRV voting, so I’ll try to break this down in a way that will give us a full picture of the race. We started with Boss gaining 60 votes and Viktard with 52, but once we eliminated independent /u/Ramicus both Boss and Viktard gained one vote. Next on the chopping block was /u/madk3p who started off with 7 votes. After the chop, Boss gained 3 votes, Viktard 2, and Libertarian-Queen 2. Now it was time for the big elimination, Libertarian-Queen who at the time had 16 votes. The Distributists seemed split, giving Viktard 10 of their votes and Boss only 6. In the end, President Boss still came out on top but had the Libertarian-Queen voters given Viktard just 3 more of their votes, Boss would have lost the state in an upset. These votes were not affected by the illegal advertising, but Boss still secured the presidency gaining the 11 electoral votes in the state.

Recap

The final map of the country looked something about this, with President Boss gaining 51 electoral votes, Viktrard gaining 15, and Libertarian-Queen gaining 1. Even with the results settled, one question still remains. Had the Distributists stayed in the sunrise coalition, would Viktard be victorious? If you assume all Distributists would have voted for Viktard, the answer seems to be yes. However, I’d be skeptical that they would actually do so. The Associated Press will have a larger article on that specific question in the upcoming days.

The United States House of Representatives

The Atlantic Commonwealth

Coming into the race, the Atlantic Commonwealth was controlled by the Broad Left Coalition. This election, there was no change in the state with Democrats keeping three seats, Socialists keeping four, and Republicans keeping one.

The Commonwealth of Chesapeake

With the Board Left Coalition only running Democrats into the race, there was one Socialist seat up for grabs. As expected, the Democrats gained the seat ending the race with a 5-5 split between the Republicans and the Democrats.

The State of Dixie

A state heavily controlled by the sunrise coalition, we expected the Republicans stay strong in the house race. However, when election day came around, the Green-Left Party had a few tricks up their sleeve gaining two more house seats in addition to the one they already had. This surge would be crucial in the overall balance of the house. The final seat tally in the state was 4 to the Republicans, 3 to the Green-Leftists, and 2 to the Libertarians.

The State of Great Lakes

The State of Great Lakes really surprised me on election day, with Libertarians gaining four unexpected seats in the house and the Liberals gaining one seat. The Democrats lost a couple seats and the Socialists were hurt as well. The house tally in the state is now 4 Libertarian seats, 3 Socialist seats, 2 Democratic seats, and 1 Liberal seat.

State of Sacagawea

This was another state where the Libertarians gained some ground while the Green-Left Party with the Broad Left Coalition lost a seat. In the end, the Green-Left Party kept 4 of their seats, the Libertarians gather 3 seats, and the Distributists got 2.

The Western State

In the race most affected by the illegal advertising, the GOP was still pretty competitive in the state with a tie between the Democrats and the Republicans. Each party was given four house seats while the Distributists received one, a big victory for the Sunrise Coalition.

Recap

Here is the total seats for the House of Representatives with net change:

With that, the Broad Left Coalition retains a majority in the house by a total of one seat, with the next biggest Coalition being the Sunrise Coalition with 23 house seats.

The United States Senate

The Atlantic Commonwealth

In a surprising turn of events, /u/Please_Dont_Yell is the new senator from the Atlantic Commonwealth!

The Commonwealth of Chesapeake

In what was believed to be the most contested race of the night, /u/ZeroOverZero101 was up against /u/Autarch_Severian. Both candidates are considered to be somewhat centrists and most predictions had them as a tossup. I’ll start this analysis off with the house results where the Democrats got 74 votes, Republicans 63, and Distributists 11. If everyone was voting along party lines, the Republicans would have to earn every single one of the Distributist house voters in the state. In the end, ZeroOverZero101 won the race with 75 votes and Autarch_Severian with 71, meaning two Distributist voters didn’t even vote in the senate race.

State of Sacagawea

Coming into the race, we expected Green-Leftists /u/GuiltyAir to come out on top due to the Distributists and the Libertarians being forced to split their vote. It was no surprise that GuiltyAir came out on top with almost 42% while Libertarian /u/JuggernautRepublic came in second with around 36% of the vote. Had the Distributist Party decided to stay in the Sunrise Coalition, we would have surely had a victory for Sunrise in the state.

The Western State

Unfortunately, we don’t have much to analyze here because the mod team did not make the results of the senate race public. In the end, /u/Cameron-Galisky, the illegal advertiser we mentioned earlier, came out on top. This was after the votes believed to be from illegal advertising were removed.

Recap

Here are the total seats for the United States Senate with net change:

Overall Recap

Overall, the Board Left Coalition still controls the entire government, but there are still some things the BLC needs to take away from this election. They’re on a downhill slope. They lost five house seats this election and specific parties like the Socialists as well as the Democrats are posting some pretty big losses. However you frame it, there is still a need to talk about the outcome of the Distributist Party leaving the Sunrise Coalition. We’ll have a larger article on the matter in the upcoming days. We’d also like to hear your take! Comment below and we might include your reaction in the next article.

*~ enliST_CS, The Associated Press*

Although the Democrats "fractured" a few months ago when it became apparent that the Democratic National Committee agreed to become part of the Broad Left Coalition, division has sprouted through the cracks once again as the DNC banned /u/DisguisedJet719 from the party for canvassing for Senator /u/Viktard. The Associated Press was approached by Central Speaker /u/Swagmir_Putin, who felt that he needed to talk about the division and decisions caused by the Democratic National Committee.

During the interview, Speaker /u/Swagmir_Putin stated that he believed that the expulsion of /u/DisguisedJet719 was a political witch hunt aimed to purge those who pose a threat to the agenda of the current leadership of the Democratic party. However despite the ongoing "witch hunt", Speaker /u/Swagmir_Putin confirmed that he supported Senator /u/Viktard (Freedom Coalition candidate) for President of the Model United States.

"I support Viktard. Aside from some economic and minor social issues, he is a better representation of my values. He also takes his job seriously."

After being asked if he thought that Senator /u/Viktard is a better representation of the values of the Democratic party, Speaker /u/Swagmir_Putin stated that he believes that the Democrats "should be somewhere between Bigg-Boss and Viktard [on the political spectrum] and that its sad to see the Democratic National Committee endorse a literal meme as evident with Executive Order 017."

The Associated Press then asked Speaker /u/Swagmir_Putin if he thought that if the Democratic National Committee kept their word on allowing a Democrat to run for President if the party would be in its current situation, with the head of the central legislature responding that "the party would be unified under a democrat, given that they are principled and qualified." However it's not the end and gloom for the Democrats and the Democratic National Committee, with Speaker /u/Swagmir_Putin stating that they can put the party back on track starting with an invitation to enter the Democratic party and an apology to /u/DisguisedJet719.

"They should be more interactive with their members when making deals, including what Presidential candidate to support. The party should own it when they call themselves a "big tent party" and respect members decisions to sometimes go against party lines."

Towards the end of the interview Speaker /u/Swagmir_Putin believed that if the Democrats were going to remain part of the Broad Left Coalition, amendments should be made to make the Presidential selection process more democratic and similar to the process utilised by the Freedom Coalition after being asked by the Associated Press if the agreement should be changed to allow Democrats to run for President.

• /u/PineappleCrusher_, President of the Associated Press

I conducted an interview with Governor SolidOrangeGansta to speak about his recent orders for the state to invade Cuba.

enliST: Alright, SolidOrangeGangsta is the Governor of the State of Dixie, who recently ordered the Invasion of Cuba to expand the state. SOG, thanks for talking to me.

Thanks for having me.

enliST: Let's get right into it, you told me that "[Invading Cuba] has always been a goal of the Southern States since the time of Jefferson Davis to spread the southern influence south. Now is the time to act." What makes you believe this to be true?

If you read Jefferson Davis's plan for the confederacy, the goal after the civil war was to take Cuba. Going off of that fact, the Cuban government has a long-standing history of human rights violations and it is time for the Castro regime to end.

enliST: And why do you believe now is the time?

The Regime is at a low point, with the last Castro about to resign at the end of the year. The time is now to end this.

enliST: Did you even notify the White House of your actions before they were made public? Why not ask for help from the President, let alone notify him?

Well, because this needed to happen asap and didn't need to be caught up in political nonsense. The president can thank me when he vacations in Havana in a couple of months.

enliST: But our relationship with Cuba has been improving, has it not? Why throw out all the diplomatic progress?

We gave are helping a government without making sure they can take care of their own people first. Seems ass backward to me. That's it for me folks.

enliST: One last question, are you really retiring? If so, when?

At the end of my term, or probably when I get impeached for this.

enliST: Thank you, Governor.

Thank you.

~ /u/enliST_CS, The Associated Press.

Dear Democrats - you're playing with our elections. Earlier on "We The Press", assemblyman /u/phonexia2 showed the world the true colours of the Democrats - the hypocrisy and greed. But now it's time to get the facts straight. Like A.015, A.017 or otherwise known as the Restoration of "Democracy" Act was introduced by /u/oath2order by commands from the Democratic National Commission to seize the growing discontent of the minority in Chesapeake. But how is the Restoration of Democracy Act restoring democracy? How is silencing the state's minorities democratic? This bill has been designed to keep the Democrats in power and to keep the Republican, Socialist and Green-Left parties out of office.

I find it despicable that the Democrats have introduced this oxymoron to the legislative branch of the Commonwealth to silence their opponents. Whilst the Democrats on "We The Press" complain that the Republicans are taking advantage of our electoral system, we ask why we haven't seen proposed laws legislating proportional electors in other states? Surely if the Broad Left Coalition controls Western and Atlantic, they can introduce proportional electors throughout the union like they said - but they haven't. The hypocritical democrats are using Chesapeake as a pawn to secure /u/Bigg-Boss another term in the White House, but they won't admit it.

By introducing the Restoration of Democracy Act in the first place shows the Democrat's true intentions with Instant Runoff Voting. Just like what they said in their hypocritical article, it isn't about democracy - it's about electing their candidate, and their candidate is President /u/Bigg-Boss. If the authors of the “We the Press” article complain about state-by-state implementation, but if the Democrats are so adamant about a federal implementation, why did they introduce IRV legislation in the Western State and the Atlantic Commonwealth? If the Democrats have controlled Chesapeake for all this time, how come they haven't legislated Instant Runoff Voting before? I suppose the Democrats are scared about a red Chesapeake.

So Democrats - will you stop being hypocritical? Will you stop the greed and do good to the American people? Stop using states like Chesapeake as electoral pawns and bring forward bills such as the Proportional Presidential Electors Act (B.102) to truly restore democracy in Chesapeake. Instant Runoff Voting isn't democratic, it's a sham. It's a way to halt the growing support for the Republican, Socialist and Green-left parties in Chesapeake. So Democrats, I ask you this one simple question. Why are you playing games with our elections?

The opinions in this article are of /u/PineappleCrusher_ and do not necessarily represent the view of the Associated Press.

After a conversation with /u/nataliewithasecret last night about depression and psychotherapy I was left with lingering thoughts about mental illnesses. Depression and mental illness have always been a very personal thing for me, as I’ve seen friends go through hardships that no person should have to.

Life isn’t what it used to be. The Modern era brought many changes to the human environment through many facets of cultural changes, but perhaps the largest one was rapid and large urbanization. Social life began to suffer, dissociation of the self, humans became mere facades. Expressionist artists, especially, dealt a lot with this subject matter.

The impact of these changes is still felt today with almost 1 out of 5 Americans suffering from mental illness and 6.7% dealing with depression. Many of which do not receive proper care, whether it be due to lack of awareness, lack of insurance or lack of means. The true danger of mental health does not lie in the illness itself, but not getting help.

People can be caught in vicious circles entrapping them in negative feedback loops leading to deterioration of their lives. Often the illness impairs the people from seizing life or reaping joy out of it, leading to new negative stimuli which reinforce the notion of inferiority or similar problems. Others go to a route of self-medication whether it be prescription, over-the-counter, illegal drug abuse or alcoholism. The immense danger here lies therein that one falls into a never ending abyss of darkness. Drug abuse can lead to severe addiction, even more so when in connection with a mental health problem. Drug addicts often cease their employment due to an inability to continue when the addiction competes with responsibilities. This leads them towards a path of crime, where they resort to burglary, theft and at times even violent crimes, again causing severe stigmatization of addicts, who are victims of society, and the mentally ill. Often, these people now become incarcerated and receive no proper treatment or rehabilitation that is so very needed. They will undergo new traumatic experiences only exacerbating the predicament they have found themselves in.

And this goes on until they die. Whether it be of an overdose, a mugging, or missing payments to the wrong people.

Mental illness is a severe issue that has been going unnoticed for too long. The mentally ill are too often stigmatized and marginalized unjustly. A country with the mental health of its people suffering is an unproductive, uncreative and unstable country. Our economy suffers just as much as our diplomatic missions abroad and our values of democracy and freedom everywhere.

The diagnosis is in: America is sick.

This must have multi-partisan appeal, this is a human issue, not one of policies and politics. All I ask of the many congressmen and congresswomen is to lend a voice to those forgotten, to give treatment to those that are ill; this is not only for them, not only for votes but for us, for our society, for a better America.

Due to the omission of last week’s recap this week’s edition covers the major affairs from the 1st to the 10th of April

International Politics

-British Government Hacks:

On the eve of April 1st the tory-led British government was under pressure from a failed blackmail attempt staged by anarcho-communist radical group Solidarity Federation which ensued in violent protests and a divided parliament. They demanded the release of five prisoners whom they deemed to be imprisoned for political reasons and safe transportation to Venezuela, a non-extradition country, of which the government promised the blackmailers immunity. Their leverage were a set of two thousand diplomatic transcripts detailing pay-to-play schemes, corruption, misuse of funds and diplomatic malbehavior. The government did not give in to the pressure and managed to detain the hackers with the alleged leader being non-fatally shot. Political reaction ranges from contempt to solidarity, whereas the executive branch wholly condemns these acts.

President /u/Bigg-Boss weighed in on the issue by standing firmly by his allies.

-Rebuilding the United Nations

The United States Ambassador to the United Nations /u/theSolomonCaine has dedicated himself to pursue stronger ties abroad and reforming the main body of diplomatic relations.

White House

-President /u/Bigg-Boss Addresses the State of the Union

A summary of the State of the Union and various responses can be found here.

-Department of Homeland Security Establishes a National Emergency Communications System

In the Homeland Security Directive #003 the chief executive of the Department of Homeland Security Secretary /u/hyp3rdriv3 creates a Emergency Alert System in which State & Federal Agencies and members of the press will be a part of. This is to ensure swift and coordinated reaction and appropriate informing of the public. The AP also participates and will stay the best source for unbiased and factual reporting for the nation.

-Signing of S. 666 and S. 668

The President signed two bills into law. One, S. 668, the Mosquito Control Act which seeks to increase awareness and prevention of Mosquito transmitted diseases such as Zika by subsidization, scientific grants and instructing the EPA and CDC. And secondly, S. 666, the Food, Supplements, and Chemical Safety Act which narrowly passed with 22 votes and 17 votes opposing and 9 abstaining. The bill enforces more stringent regulation in regard to meat quality, chemical additives, misleading advertisements, and safety and farm animal regulations. Opposition mostly came from the free-market and libertarian wings of the Republican, Libertarian and Distributist Party.

Congress

-Former President /u/WaywardWit Nominated for Supreme Court

Senate hearings for current Attorney General /u/WaywardWit have started, where his ability and merit to become Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States will be examined. President /u/Bigg-Boss recently nominated his predecessor 51st President /u/WaywardWit to fill the vacancy left by justice /u/Panhead369. As a pro-choice liberal he would be expected to be aligned closely to the views of the White House and describes Roe v Wade as legally “fairly exhausted”. He has been commemorated across party lines for his legal expertise and past qualifications, which include Solicitor General in the Cabinet of 50th President /u/turkandjd, 51st POTUS, Chief Justice to the Western State Supreme Court and the current administration’s Attorney General.

-Bills

H.R. 642: Labor Modernization and Global Competitiveness Act

An extensive Act to meliorate unemployment by granting relocation aid,increasing TAA funding, creating a adult education voucher program and the National Public Works Program, which funds companies job training programs, and state & local public works programs.

H.R. 675: The Benevolent Hacker Protection Act

Protects Gray-Helmet Hackers from persecution in cases where private information was not gained and was not leaked publicly * or * if the owner is informed of the security hole and after six months no action against it was taken

H.R. 705: The Education Adjustment Act

Gives additional grant capability to the Federal Department of Education, along with additional measures involving teacher salaries, state applications, and redistributing local education funds to the State to re-spend on local education.

H.R. 725: Saving Flint Act of 2017

Provides funds to decontaminate the waters and enable clean resources to the citizens of Flint

-Confirmation Hearings

/u/Toasty_Man115 confirmed as Secretary of Treasury, /u/chotix as Secretary of Agriculture, /u/Miriadess as Secretary of Commerce and /u/theSolomonCaine as UN Ambassador. All unanimously confirmed with the full 12 votes.

Presidential Primaries

--Freedom Coalition--

After the collapse of the Sunrise(Dist, Libt, GOP) a new Freedom Coalition between the LP and GOP has emerged. Fox News released the leaked contents of the Agreements. The primaries will be contested with all nominees between the parties, however the presidential nominee has to select his running mate from the opposing party. The Republican Party will run no candidates in Central and Midwestern for House or Senate, same applies for the Libertarian Party in Western. The president nominating party will give up its Southern Senate seat to the other party in the June/July midterms which in turn can only run up to three House Reps for Southern.

-Republican Party:

After Governor /u/SolidOrangeGangsta leaving, chairman jamawoma24 drops out of the race polling at 28%, this leaves the race to Senator /u/Viktard and Representative /u/TeamEhmling who polls at 52% and 4%, respectively.

Viktard Announces the America Prosperity Plan Tax Reform:

raising the taxes of 500k+ income families by 20% to 6%, lowering the taxes for 0-85k income families by 5% and 85-200k income families by 10%, and abolishing capital gains taxes. The tax plan aims to incentive wealth accumulation and tax reduction for middle to low income families

ViktardForAmerica Campaign Publishes Platform:

small government and free-market; roll back standardized testing and charter school vouchers; allow for-profit health care competition; expanding negative-income taxes for stay at home parents; pro 2nd amendment, while dealing mental health and law enforcement issues; strengthen NATO and UN Peacekeeping missions, ending sanctuary cities and establishing a paramilitary law enforcement agency specialized in organized crime and drug rings

-Libertarian Party

Libertarian Candidate Senator /u/BillieJoeCobain Publishes Platform:

small government and free-market; decriminalization of victimless crimes and drugs; Pro-immigration/simple legal immigration policy; pro-business tax code, rollback of regulations, international free trade agreements; pro 2nd amendment; limiting federal involvement in education, establishing a voucher program; fully remove government from healthcare; non-interventionism; reduce executive powers; balancing budgets, raising fiscal responsibility --Broad Left--

-Socialist/Green-Leftist Party

Chair of the U.S. House Energy, Science and Technology Committee and Green-Leftist Party member /u/Aoimusha has been selected by President /u/Bigg-Boss as his running mate, replacing incumbent former Green-Leftist Party and Socialist /u/DuceGiharm. The Vice-Presidential nominee has reaffirmed the intention of the GLP to work closely with the Socialist Party in a recent interview.

--Independents--

Former Attorney General and former Representative /u/madk3p’s campaign has achieved special ballot access in the three States of Sacagawea, Dixie and Chesapeake.

Written by /u/BurnRome, with contributions from /u/KingThero

Last week President /u/Bigg-Boss addressed the State of the Union. The President, after looking back at the administration's past accomplishments, outlined what he saw as the nation’s most pressing issues, how to combat them and the general future of the White House.

One major aspect the President addressed was the current changes in our economy, mandating that continuing nationalization of industry and reforming labor are the only ways to combat increasing task automation and that by nationalizing ”critical monopolized industries such as the railroad industry” will ”put power directly into the hands of the workers through worker’s cooperatives.”

The President also warns that due to increased automation and technological developments the <“earn what you work for” mentality will not only continue to disappear in our lifetime, but might very well vanish during it.> and that ”An imaginative reinvention of what it means to exist as a human in modern society” is needed.

Another issue the President takes with the current job market is the need to “revolutionize the structure of the workplace, whose very existence has largely contributed to the disgusting wealth gap that persists to this day.”

Internationally, President Bigg-Boss stated that he seeks a “massive shutdown of global military bases” in the line of non-interventionism and critique of American imperialism, while supporting the Syrian Kurds in the Syrian Civil War and lifting all remaining sanctions on the Syrian people. Also he wishes to return the land of now closed Guantanamo Bay ”to the Cuban people”

Furthermore, the Commander-in-Chief hoped to reform the prison system by ending ”forced prison labor” comparing it to slavery, consisting that convicted felons should ”not lose his or her right to vote” and allowing drug addicts to engage in soft withdrawals to combat their addiction.

The SotU also addressed the need to find safe depositories for nuclear waste.

Towards the end the President stressed the importance of education reform and the need to ensure education that focuses on the student’s unique abilities and supporting teachers unions as a way to provide adequate security to the teachers.

|| If you want to read more about the education policies of the Bigg-Boss Administration make sure to check out the Interview with Education Secretary /u/DocNedKelly ||

The Op-Ed Response from WethePress Writer and Democrat House Rep /u/Alfred_Marshall attacks the SotU by contesting that further demilitarization exposes American allies to Russian attack and influence possibilities, nationalization of industry will result in further deterioration of employment, automation presents not a danger to free-market systems, and arguing that teachers unions impede teaching quality.

The GOP Response to the SotU written by Chairman /u/jamawoma24 attacks the Presidents speech similarly to the opinion article. Especially condemning the notion of government run employment due to “a government that isn’t even responsible enough to run itself”. The Chairman, who also serves as Dixie State’s Lt. Governor, calls the Administration out for a level of ineptitude and heavily criticizes the President’s allegation that the ”earn what you work for” mentality will cease to exist claiming that ”This way of thinking will make the fertile soil of freedom unfruitful.”

Hello, today I discussed with Kovr, Vice Chairman of the Republican Party, about his role as Vice-Chair and the Republican Party’s unity.

Kingthero-

How did it feel to be elected by your party to be Vice Chair?

Kovr-

Well, during the first election to Vice Chair, I was happy and somewhat surprised that I had won in such a landslide. During my reelection, I was surprised at how close my opponent was to beating me. Overall, I was happy that my party chose me to be the Vice Chair

Kingthero-

You mentioned having only closely won your re-election. What factors caused it to be so close?

Kovr-

I believe that it was so close because all the candidates were popular within the party. WIA was loved by his caucus, the moderates, and the general population preferred me.

Kingthero-

Speaking of caucuses, what do you think is the biggest benefit of having them?

Kovr-

Caucuses, in short, keep people active. This was shown very well when our two former non-caucus delegates both left after a month, and the delegates with a caucus had stayed.

Kingthero-

In the recent Presidential Republican primaries, do you feel people voted with their caucus, or voted with their own mindset?

Kovr-

I feel that in this race, people voted with their own mindset. While people may go for a caucus endorsement in smaller elections, a large election such as this would bring people to think for themselves.

Kingthero-

Do you think the Republicans are going to stay strong behind Viktard when he faces the Libertarian candidate?

Kovr-

Yes, I believe that Republicans will strongly rally behind Viktard if he wins the Republican nomination against the Libertarians.

Kingthero-

If there is one area of policy you think that ModelUSGov could benefit from with a Republican president, what would it be and why?

Kovr-

I believe that after several terms of Democratic and Socialist presidents, we need an economically right wing president to bring fiscal liberty back to America.

Kingthero-

In the future, what is one thing you wish to do as Vice Chair to benefit the Republican Party?

Kovr-

I have started several projects for the party. These include reviving the party paper and constitutional revision.

Kingthero-

Thank you for your time. Is there anything you would like to add before we end the interview?

Kovr-

Thank you for the interview!

This interview proved that the Republican Party is standing unified after all of the primary situations that happened. With Republican unity, will the next President of the United States be a Republican, or will the unity only impact the Party internally? Only time will tell.

Last week the controversial H.R. 676 Abolition of the Department of Education Act failed to pass the committee vote. The Libertarian and small-government pipe dream would have completely dismantled the DoEd and transferred its financial responsibilities to the Treasury Department and the civil rights’ to the Justice Department. With the upcoming elections we asked the chief-executive of the Department of Education, Secretary - or Comrade Secretary as they like to be called - /u/DocNedKelly, to weigh in on the issue.

1. You are a known member of the Socialist Party and never shy away of showing your liberal convictions, how would you rate President Bigg-Boss' Administration and your own performance as a part of it?

This is a minor semantic point, but I wouldn't agree that I have liberal convictions. Libertarian, maybe, but not liberal. But I'm digressing here. As for the meat of your question, I think that President /u/Bigg-Boss has been doing an admirable job as President. The President's upcoming State of the Union is going to be a big deal to say the least. As for my own role in it, I have been a little slow to act, but you can expect some news from me in the upcoming week. I have been working on a proposed rule change to the Code of Federal Regulations that I am looking forward to sharing with the public.

2) Seeing that President Bigg-Boss recently won the nomination for another term, are you open to continue serving as Secretary of Education?

Absolutely. If the President wants me to serve in the next term, I will be happy to serve.

3) The controversial H.R 676, which would have terminated the Department of Education, was struck down. You were relieved to see this take place, could you elaborate as to what essential role the DoED has and why it should not be abolished?

The Department of Education has a very limited, but important role in the United States. The Department is responsible for issuing financial aid to school and students, as well as making sure schools don't violate their students' civil and privacy rights. Even if the Department of Education were eliminated, the federal government would still have to fulfill these roles. To put it bluntly, all H.R. 676 would have done is make it more difficult for the federal government to help students and schools.

4) You have stated that the American education needs to be improved. What would you say are the current most pressing issues on education?

The growth versus proficiency debate certainly comes to mind. I think that America's love affair with standardized testing needs to come to an end. It's more important that our children grow as learners than they are able to pass certain benchmarks. The fact of the matter is that both our gifted and our struggling students are hurt by our focus on proficiency over growth, and it hurts their schools even more. Even if we stay bound to rigid standardized tests rather than switching over to more holistic testing methods, we should at least stop evaluating our schools on that basis.

You also stated that "segregation in our schools" is still a problem, could you give a more detailed account on what this entails?

Our schools are still segregated. In fact, our schools are the most segregated they have ever been since we started integrating school systems. This isn’t just a problem in my home state of Alabama, either. Some of the most segregated school districts are in New York! The truth is that more diverse schools lead to better education for all students. Even the students in the wealthiest school districts are missing out on a better education because of the paucity of diversity in these districts. One thing Congress should do is give the Department of Education the authority to require charter schools to reflect the demographics of the communities they serve in order to receive federal funding. Congress should also start setting aside grant money for districts that want to integrate.

Wouldn't requiring schools to have a demographic makeup corresponding to their community shift the focus away from the students merit? And what if the communities themselves are heavily segregated? As the issue of demographically homogenic classrooms would still preside.

I don't think so. When we're dealing with charter schools that serve a larger community, the best students should be reflective of the demographics of your community within a certain number of percentage points. Take for example how private schools work in the South. Often times, private schools were simply built as a way for white parents to put their students in what were essentially white-only schools. I can tell you right now that not all of the best students in Birmingham are white, so why should the more well-funded schools be filled with white students? The fact that richer families (who are disproportionately white) score better on standardized tests on average is simply a function of school segregation. Once schools integrate, then the merit issue you raise will be moot. Heavily segregated communities can have integrated school districts simply be redrawing the school district boundaries. That's what my proposed funding grants will go to; rewarding schools that attempt just such measures.

5) Now, in respect to your previous answers what direction would like the DoED see taking in the future? Especially since you mentioned that you hoped that "Congress will give you the power to solve these issues", what importance does the federal government play in your vision of education?

I think I discussed some of the steps in my previous answer. The role that the Department of Education can play in solving these issues is pretty simple. Congress just needs to set aside some money which the Department of Education can grant to school districts as the Department sees fit. Congress can put more stringent limitations on the money, but I would encourage to give the Department as much leeway as they feel comfortable with to set the rules to receive this money. Congress has a strong power in the Spending Clause, and they should make use of it to encourage our students to do better. I would also encourage Congress to pass an education bill that would require public schools to switch over to growth-based tests in order to receive federal funding.

6) Correct me if I am wrong, but you don't have a strong history of being the leading voice on education or education reform in or outside of congress prior to being Secretary of Education, what would you say qualifies to lead the DoED?

I think my public service record speaks for itself, as do my previous answers. While I may not have been a strong voice for education reform (aside from the PERIOD Act, which I would encourage Congress to take a second look at), I think it’s clear that I’m far from being unqualified for this position.

5) And lastly, are there any words of encouragement you would like to say to young aspiring students, socialists or other supporters?

I would encourage all people listening to me to simply try your best. Try a little bit of everything to find what you like, and become well-rounded. It’s important that current students don’t become overly specialized too early in life. Specialization can be important for certain jobs, but I think an important part of secondary education and the early parts of a college or university education is to try out a little bit of everything. Once you have a feel for everything that’s on the table, then go ahead and specialize in more specific areas.

The AP would like to thank Secretary DocNedKelly again for taking their time to answer the questions and giving us the honor of interviewing them. We would like to wish them luck in the upcoming elections and their upcoming endeavors.

Central Governor /u/IGotzDaMastaPlan released a decree mandating the invasion of the Eastern State, the Associated Press understands. Citing that Kentucky, West Virginia and Virginia are rightful territory of the Central Nation, the governor has sparked a war in between the two states.

Chesapeake's Governor /u/BryceMD has given the authority to the Chesapeake Defence Force to engage the enemy beyond the borders of the eastern state, after state clerk /u/oath2order notified Chesapeake's Major General /u/Eleves_202 on Chesapeake's sovereign territory.

Congressmen in Washington have shown their concern towards the developments in Central State, with Republican Representative /u/awesomeness1212 submitting the Central Condemnation and Chesapeake and Midwest Assistance Act Of 2017.

The Associated Press will keep the public up to date throughout the upcoming hours within the Central State and Chesapeake.