The Record-Courier:(9-14 Edition)

[GAworth]

Just wanted to say that the amount of work you've put into this is quite impressive. Keep it up! If you ever want to interview someone like me, I'm open to that possibility.

I will certainly keep you in mind. Thank you sir!

[GAworth]

This is my favorite newspaper. Keep up the wonderful work!

Thank you Spamage, and wonderful speech. I will include it in the paper either tomorrow or the next day.

[GAworth]

I would love to have an interview with this awesome paper too!

Sure thing!

[GAworth]

I'm always up for an interview, too.

Always happy to sit down with the Region's Senator.

[GAworth]

The Record-Courier

Serving the Midwest . . . and the Pacific

Regional News

Dual Name of Provinces Amendment tied.
6-6 Vote, Governor Holds vote open.
The Dual Name of Provinces Amendment referendum has resulted in a tie. The Governor has announced he will hold the vote open until another voter has voted.  

More legislation makes it to the Althing floor.

The Althing has seen a flush of new activity in recent days.

 Cheesewhiz, Vitality - The Althing has seen a flush of new activity in recent days. The passage of three laws and the debate of 6 others have seen the three member chamber flush with recent activities, although most of the activity has come from the Governor, the Lieutenant Governor, Representative GAworth as well as Representative cris. So far no votes have been called. Debate and amendments continue, and we will continue to keep you informed.

A Part time Council?

Pacificans mull over having councilors who have other jobs due to shortage of candidates.

 San Francisco, California - With controversy sparking over the Executive Order, we find that the council may have some part time Councilors. To fill the void, SoIA Superique has mentioned interest in being appointed a councilor. Some are suggesting that possibly a Senator could be a part time councilor (Flo or Tyrion). Such ideas however are illegal under federal law. We will continue to see what unfolds.

Spamage: Everyone is too worried about Nyman, come back to the Pacific.

He calls for all Pacificans to run to help re-build the Pacific.

 San Francisco, California - In a passionate statement posted early this morning. Spamage called for activity to return to the Pacific. He said, “. . . there's been too many who are in the Pacific promising activity and reform one day and packing their bags for Nyman the next, before any real work can be finished.” Many in the Pacific Political scene know who he might just be talking about. One observer told us, “Come on, we all he is definitely talking about Flo, and probably Tyrion and Napoleon too.” Another analyst told us, “It is slightly amusing that he is playing the ‘how dare they go to Nyman’ card when he was a Senator his self . . . in Nyman.” He has announced in the speech that he is running for the Council. That makes three candidates so far, which if Governor PJ’s Executive Order stands, means all the seats have a candidate running.  

National News

Progressives vote on new Chair

The Midwest’s GAworth and the Pacific’s SoIA Superique have entered the race.


Rapid City, Vitality- Following the resignation of ME Assemblywoman Siren as Chair of the Party is voting on a new Chair. Due to the By-laws, the Vice Chair is also vacant as Pacific Governor PJ assumed the Chairmanship. PJ has declared his attention to run as vice chair again.  GAworth has called for a renewal of the Party and Superique has called for a focus on a common policy platform. “No matter which one of us wins, the Party will be in good hands. If I win, I want Superique to stay around as I will stay around if he is elected," GAworth told us. We will keep you informed on who wins.

What is the Party line?

With elections under way, we look at whether party line voting is the ticket.

Rapid City, Vitality - As the election for At-Large Senate is under way, we will be seeing people most likely voting straight party ticket. A federalist supporting Federalists, Labor supporting Labor, etc. but does that mean that like minded people will be elected? “Some people with the same party are vastly different. You have more moderate members and you have more hard line members, on both sides of the spectrum.” A Senate watcher told us. “Take consolidation for example,” he continued, “some Federalists want regional preservation, some want reform, some left of center people want reform, and some want regional abolition. You have to be careful not to lump them in the same pot.” So remember to check where they stand before you vote!

[GAworth]

Great work so far! Also, I'll sit down for an interview, if there is room.

There is always room for the Vice President!

[GAworth]

I'd like to request the Record-Courior's endorsement for tomorrows election

(If you do that)

I am keeping the Paper neutral. I believe that our news should not be another Partisan tool. Personally, you know you have my support.

[GAworth]

The Record-Courier

Serving the Midwest . . . and the Pacific

Regional News

The Record-Courier celebrates its 10th issue and well over 1000 views.
“I want to thank everyone for reading the Paper, for commenting on the thread and for giving interviews. I truly appreciate the support I have felt from the entire political spectrum. I try, and emphasize try, to keep the paper critical of all sides where needed and to keep the partisan snipes out of my writing, I let my interviewees and op-ed writers say what they want without edit. If others would like to write articles for the paper, weekly columns or anything of that nature, I am more than happy to accommodate you. Thank you for making the paper one of the most read papers in Atlasia. – GAworth”

Pacificans react to Spamage Comments
After the impassioned speech, Atlasians react.
San Francisco, California – Spamage’s speech certainly did not go unnoticed by Atlasians. A Pacifican currently in Nyman told us “He was all too quick to attempt to run for President when it suited his ambition, and the region was in complete shambles then. Now, there's a new constitution in the works, high activity, a fixed legislative record, and incredibly competent officials. Spamage is in a glass house here, and he should know it.” Former President Averroes told Spamage to name names instead of “casting aspersions on every Pacifican who holds Federal Office.”  Although Spamage looks like he will be elected to the Pacific Council, will he have any friends? “It was a good idea and mantra, but I think it turned away more people than decided to join him,” another analyst told us.

Interview with Senator TNF

We sit down with the Midwest’s regional Senator to discuss legislation in front of the Senate.

1.    Of all the legislation you have introduced, and there are a lot, what would you most like to see passed?
“1. At present, I think that the piece of legislation I'd like to see most passed is the Co-determination Act. I am a firm believer in industrial democracy -- I believe that workers should eventually own the factories, the shops, the hospitals, the schools, etc. where they work and manage them democratically. The Co-determination Act establishes a framework for industrial democracy that will, I hope, blossom into full-fledged industrial democracy at some point in the future. As long as I'm in the Senate, you can be certain that I will be a tireless advocate of worker ownership and management of industry.”
2.   A piece of legislation that affects the Midwest is the State Name Recognition Act you introduced; do you think it can pass the Senate?

“2. I think it can. We have three members of the Senate that currently represent the Midwest; none of us really agree on much of anything, but we can all agree on is that we should preserve and protect the Midwest's longstanding and colorful history. While I am by no means an advocate of regional rights (in fact, I'd like to see all regions done away with), I am sure we will find willing partners on that side of the spectrum for preserving the integrity of the Midwest naming system.”

3.   Why do you believe that the penalty in the Amendment to the Responsible Contracting Act of 2013, you proposed, is the right one versus a cancellation of the contract and a harsh fine?
“3. To be frank, I loathe using middlemen like contractors to get results for the federal government, but if we are going to go through contractors or private organizations, those contractors, those private entities, need to recognize the right of labor to organize. If they don't, I have no qualms with quite literally cutting out the middleman and nationalizing the entity in question. Not only will this serve as a lesson to industry unwilling to take seriously the demands of their workers (and I will definitely seek to introduce legislation expanding this penalty to the whole of the private sector) but it will put us one step closer to industrial democracy by placing the ownership of industry in the hands of the Republic, who will then run those public enterprises jointly with the workers themselves, who will, of course, take full responsibility of managing those firms at some point or another.”
4.   What has made you such an advocate for union rights?
“4. I am a union brat. My father is a member of the United Steelworkers, my mother a member of the National Education Association; I have always been a supporter of the underdog all my life, and labor my friend is the ultimate underdog. As a person with a working class background, I can tell you that the working class has never had a greater friend than the labor movement. Without the labor movement, without democratic trade unions organized to defend the working class, than all of this great country would be in the hands of the takers, that is, the exploiters, the robbers, the capitalists. Now I'm not saying that the 1 percenters are completely out of power; far from it. Rather I am saying that the 1 percenters are on the run. We are closer today than at any point in Atlasian history of throwing the money lenders out of the temple, and I hope that I can say that I had a role in it as the working class' representative in the Senate.”

5.   Do you wish to stay in the Senate or seek another office?
“5. I plan on staying in the Senate as far as I can tell. I love legislating, I love debating, I love politicking. I have already declared that I will seek another term in the Senate come February, and I aim to keep that promise.”
We appreciate the Senators hard work and dedication and thank him for sitting down with us.
Staff Note Quotes are not edited, only formatting changes were made and no content was edited. [/size]

Due to character limits, we will be having a second release.

[GAworth]

The Record-Courier

Serving the Midwest . . . and the Pacific

National News

Election is underway, who is leading?

We look at who is winning the various races.


Rapid City, Vitality- For At-Large Senators, based on our tabulations based on the votes ending with Earthling the next five Senators will be:
1.   Tmthforu94
2.   Talleyrand
3.   Shua
4.   Sibboleth
5.   Flo
We will provide more updates as the election continues.
Governor of the Pacific is PJ hands down.
Pacific Council is a tricky one. Based off of our tabulations of the votes ending with DemPGH, if the council is three seats:
1.   DemPGH
2.   Spamage
3.   Superique
Now that means Superique will have won while being an SoIA, so the next candidate would be Flo, which he is unsuccessful in the Senate race could mean he has a job. But if he wins the Senate then hats is in.
If it is five then we have a royal mess:
1.   DemPGH
2.   Spamage
3.   Flo
4.   Superique
5.   Hats
These would be the five victors, with Oakvale and Napoleon next in the rankings. A Progressive Union Party watcher told us, “it is sad, 4 seats would be great, but they aren’t even candidates for the position.”
The Last race is the race to replace Siren as Party Chair of the Progressive Union. The Midwest’s Representative GAworth looks to be winning by a wide margin.

Sit down with SoIA Superique

We sat down with the Secretary following his visit to Canada.

1.   What would the single currency look like, how would it work?

   It would work just like the Euro but, unlike them, both Canada and Atlasia have the macro economical characteristics to do so. I know that many people will claim that this is a failed premise as it was with the folks on the Eurozone but the thing is that they didn’t have what Mundell described as an optimal currency area. The idea in fact is simple, Canadians and Atlasians would have a single banking authority and would share the same currency, without a name yet, we would leave our Atlasian Dollar and Canadians would leave their Canadian Dollar. However, the idea requires some controls in order not to see the disaster that is happening with the countries of Europe. If we are entering in this project, then we have to make a Fiscal Compromise, a single monetary authority and shared regulation on those areas. I’m not saying that it will be easy but, by allowing easier exchanges between the two countries, we will see thousands of benefits of a common currency.

  

2.   How was the idea received in Canada?

   Well, I would be lying if I told you they received pretty well the idea. They are afraid of loosing their decision power, their sovereignty and their independence on monetary decisions but I’m still positive that we could convince them. We have seen that already on the debates of the Eurozone but I think that the benefits of this ideas will be greater then their fears. It’s pretty funny, but if you take a look at polls, there is only one province that really approves the monetary union and that is the French-speaking one, Quebec!  The idea is not ready yet, those are the first discussions and I did not expect Canadians be receptive at first.

   One of the major problems of this discussion was the matter of the pre-Atlasian Area, when we were a country with high-taxes and low public spending and high-debt but those economical policies have been changing for a long time and now we share many similarities with the Canadians. We used to have balanced budgets, but now we are spending a little bit more on some programs so we will also have to pay our price to join in this single currency. I’m not saying that this will happen, but it’s likely that we will have to reduce some expenditure to be more in-line with the Canadian Economical Policies. However, some differences are not a real problem when we share a single currency, what is more important is having some compromises, joint-targets and follow the same long run intentions.

3.   Is this the start of a Union between Atlasia and Canada?
  
   A political union is not the main target of our discussions; but we want better integration on many areas. If you are talking about an economical union, then yes this is supposed to strengthen the relationship that we have with Canada since NAFTA. Joint infrastructures projects are also being considered, Healthcare integration as well, but we are not working on a North American Assembly or any type of political integration. Since the Marokai Agreements, Atlasian Citizens that live in Canada our allowed to participate in Atlasians politics and I believe, as well as President Duke, that this more than enough for now.

4.   How would the relationship between the stock exchanges be strengthened?

   I cannot give precise details right now, but my intention is to make the Canadian and the Atlasian Financial Markets so close that you wouldn’t even notice the difference. One of the options we currently have in our minds is allowing people to save in Canadian Dollars and making the Canadians accept the use of Atlasian Dollars as well. A joint action of regulation between the two countries and allowing free movement of capital between the two nations would also be very important in order to see this happening as well.  Once more, this also requires more integration within the Bank of Canada and the Federal Reserve, as well as a compromise on common regulation.

5.   How will Mexico play into this idea?

   Mexico is a member of NAFTA and I see that we can work more on integration with them. However, I don’t believe that a common currency with them would be wise. Mexico is an emerging economy with different details on public spending and taxation and the union between Canada, Atlasia and Mexico would be far away of what we know as an optimal currency area. Even so, the benefits of a common currency between Canadians and Atlasians will also come to Mexico that will have to deal with fewer currencies and save some billions of dollars.

   There are some areas that Mexico could act with us! We can work on investment programs, we can enhance the integration between our financial systems and we could even have more joint actions on some types of regulations and the healthcare system, sharing information, prescription drugs and efficient methods of care.  But what I think that is the most important issue with Mexico is immigration. I would like to see in the end of Duke’s Term a summit that deals with immigration of Mexican Citizens and create other types of movements like work visas or a study visa. Immigration is also something that should be deal with Canadians and sharing “Brains” would be something nice to see in North America!

We thank the SoIA for sitting down with us and look forward to seeing the developments as they unfold.

[GAworth]

You're doing a great job GAworth, congratulations .

I'm always up for an interview, too.

Thanks Archduke, I will gladly do an interview with you early next week.

[GAworth]

The Record-Courier

Serving the Midwest . . . and the Pacific

Regional News

Are Snickers doing the trick?
With relatively little partisanship, what can we learn from the Althing?
Cheesewhiz, Vitality-  Although not the most productive legislature in the land, it certainly is one of the more cordial chambers. The three member Althing consists of a member of the Progressive Union, second termer GAworth, Cris, a federalist first timer, and Labor newcomer Arturo Belano.  “Last session was much the same as this one so far; we had disagreements certainly, but never name calling or fireworks like we see elsewhere. We focus on the legislation and not the personalities, at least I try to, and I think that helps,” GAworth told us after being cornered after leaving the chamber. We look forward to seeing if this remains the norm in the Althing.

Spamage leaves the Pacific
After a heated exchange, Spamage moves to Joy (Minnesota).
San Francisco, California – After naming names on his speech in the Pacific, Spamage received much criticism from those he named in particular Tyrion. With no counter-argument from Spamage, the Federalist formally from Oregon, announced that he was leaving the Pacific and took residence in the State of Joy. This left many puzzled, one Council watcher told us, “So he makes a huge plea for everyone to get involved, but when he gets flack for what he said, he leaves? This is the Pacific there are tougher problems than someone attacking you after you called them out. Now the Pacific is short another councilor, and he looked like he was going to be elected.” The spat continued between both the men after move. Saying the other was the one doing political point scoring and not them and that the other had put personal ambition over the pacific. “In a way they are both right,” a political observer told us. We look to see how the story will continue to develop and try to keep you updated.

National News

Election update: Senate.

Who could make it to Nyman?


Rapid City, Vitality- We are leaving the Pacific alone due to the departure of one of the official candidates. So let us focus on the Senate. We are looking at the First Preference only, final vote of Fritz.
-   Talleyrand and Tmthforu94 are tied for 1st
-   Goldwater is next
-   Shua is next
-   And Flo, Mr. X, and Sibboleth are tied in last place.

A Sit down with Jack Enderman

We discuss a whole range of topics from IDS-Pacific relations to future plans.

Q: What are your thoughts on the degradation in IDS-Pacific relations?

   “Well let me tell you first that I am very excited that we can hopefully resolve this after nearly four years... I am very supportive of this resolution. And I hope that the records show that I was one of the big supporters of this from the IDS to get this resolved. I really hope that the Pacific can pass their complimentary bill before the new year so we don't have to go three years of continuous bad relations. To be honest I'm pretty ticked off that Tyrion and Sbane is trying to go back at it again and continue this useless strife. But in my arrogant opinion, we said we tried to forgive them first.”
   

Q: What are your thoughts on the Duke Administration?

   “Personally I'm slightly turned off that it is a "Log Cabin Administration", but I am definitely interested in the bicameral system attempt. My first bill was an attempt to make the IDS bicameral.”


Q: Turning to IDS politics, who do you believe will win the Emperorship?
   
   “In my opinion I think because of the campaigning aspect, PiT is going to win. I also think that Mechaman switched to the D-R is to run to the far right of PiT to paint him as the liberal one, not Mecha.”

Q: What do you think when you read that JerryArkansas might run for President?

   “I know Jerry beyond Atlasia. When I was thinking about it this morning I said aloud: "ABOUT TIME!", but I was alone so it wasn't awkward. Personally, if Duke decides not to run for re-election, I'm pushing for Matt/JerryAR.”

Q: What's your opinion of beastality?

   “Eww! I hate it from the bottom of my heart. Its completely horrible and it is basically incest with animals. Not only is it disgusting, it is also deadly! I can't even think why we are debating such a lowly topic. Whoever does this definitely needs psychiatric help. Also those who would support such a measure to legalize this definitely needs a long, long talk.”

Q: What are your future plans?

“Right now I'm not thinking of going past the IDS legislature until I get three terms under my belt. Then I might run for At-Large Senate; or wait another two months and get four terms under my belt and run for Emperor. Then I really don't know what I'd do after August, I might move to the Northeast and run for office, or to the Pacific and be a councilor. Personally I have no clue what to do. But I can definitely tell you this: If you think that I'm going to run for national politics soon, I'm not gonna go that far until about ten months in the future...

Thank you for having me the privlege to participate with your paper, GAworth...  ”
 We thank him for sitting down with us.
Staff Note Quotes are not edited, only formatting changes were made and no content was edited. In the interest of transparency question 5 was one given to us by the subject, we respect our interviewees and agreed to publish the question.

[GAworth]

Are you up for interviewing me GAworth?

Certainly, I will send material tomorrow.

[GAworth]

My administration and campaign in the past has been attacked for daring to love in a public manner. I can only assume this is yet another tomato being thrown at my heart, but thankfully love is so strong that it can survive anything.

Hey, I just transcribe what was said, I don't give my opinion and don't edit.

[GAworth]

The Record-Courier

Serving the Midwest . . . and the Pacific

Regional News

Althing holds votes on several bills
Three bills being voted on and another one close behind.
Cheesewhiz, Vitality- The MW Native Atlasian Revitalization Act, the MW Labeling of Products Act, and the MW New Dude, where’s my Government Officer? Amendment have all been passed. They follow the unanimous passage of the MW Judiciary Amendment. A vote was just started today for the Royalty legislation we covered earlier in the session and the Family leave legislation as well. The two Acts are sponsored by Representative GAworth while the two Amendments just passed are sponsored by Archduke Windjammer. The two bills up for a vote now are also sponsored by Representative GAworth. So far no legislation has been submitted from Representatives cris or Arturo Belano.
Governor Lumine kills Dual Name Amendment
Says it is outdated.
Cheesewhiz, Vitality – After the amendment tied, the duty fell to the Governor to decide what happens. The Governor decided not to approve the amendment and has re-introduced a new amendment without the claims to New Mexico. The amendments sponsor, GAworth, told us, “I respect the Governors decision, however, the claim to New Mexico doesn’t go away just because he removed it from the legislation. I gave my best shot at a compromise piece of legislation on State Names, and it failed and life goes on.” We wait to see if the new legislation moves on.

Pacificans hold breath for Council
With only two councilors elected, what is the fate of the region?
San Francisco, California – DemPGH (PRO – Oregon) and Xahar (NMAM-California) have been elected to serve in the chamber. All other write-ins were invalid because the candidate did not announce a write-in Campaign or left the region. We wait to see who if anyone will fill the seat.

National News

Profile of the Week: 

Former IDS Legislator JerryArkansas: A Change of Fortune:


By LumineVonReuental.

From now on and each week, I’ll choose an Atlasian who has made the headlines to write a profile about him, trying to make these citizens better known to the country while signaling accomplishments, record, political life and what they expect of the future. These Atlasians are previously informed and they consent to have a profile written about them, but they only provide basic information to speed up research.

Now, going into subject, our first Profile of the Week is the man who has singlehandedly reignited the presidential contest in Atlasia. With President Duke approaching half of his term, a growing rumor has former IDS Legislator JerryArkansas (currently a Mideast citizen) thinking about a presidential campaign to succeed Duke as the President of Atlasia. But who is JerryArkansas?

Jerry joined Atlasia a year ago, in December, a new Federalist in an Imperial Dominion of the South that was trying to find a balance in the middle of Operation Cottonfield. Jerry wasted no time in running for office, and proved his commitment to Atlasia by running in December for a seat in the Legislature. He received 18.5% of the vote in the first round, almost beating the famed Bacon King but losing by a few votes. However, with the departure of SJoyce from the Legislature, he was appointed to a Class A seat by then Emperor PIT.

The new Legislator would stay in the South until September, ten months of constant activity, elections and bills. “A change of fortune” defines him, for fortune did smile at him at a minute, and sometimes it did not. In January, the apparent excess of Federalist candidates caused a split vote on the right, which led to Jerry’s defeat. But with Ben Kenobi gone, Jerry returned that same month to the Legislature, easily winning reelection in February and April. Defining himself as a moderate, Jerry was a voice of compromise in the South, and the voters seemed to have rewarded that. Looking like he was at the top, Jerry dropped what seemed like a bomb in late March when he announced he was going to be a candidate against President Marokai, one of the earliest launched bids in our history. Despite words of encouragement from Wolfentoad, Alfred Jones and this humble writer, he failed to get traction, and once Clarence appeared on the stage, Jerry endorsed him.

Despite that, Jerry was still on the top of Southern politics, often cited as a potential Emperor. It was then when he decided to go Federal, and he fought the special Senate election against Gass and Superique. However, the goddess of fortune (or Atlasian politics, they’re the same) struck him, and he lost that close election. It got worse, since Jerry lost the June Legislature election with JBrase appearance, and in July, Griffin’s objectives with Operation Cottonfield were accomplished with Hashemite and Alfred Jones victory, denying Jerry a return to the Legislature. Another attempt in August ended when fellow Federalist Supersonic defeated him again. Nonetheless, he defines those days as productive, and given the good number of bills discussed during those months, they certainly where.

The next month saw a big change, since the former Legislator left his party. Jerry chose to leave the South, and he moved to the Mideast as an independent. He has been mostly silent… until now. While Presidential polls don’t look good right now, he says that many things are on his mind for the future: could be President, Senator or other offices. Jerry is a man who has experienced good times, and bad times, and he has witnessed a year full of events, often leaving his mark at them. He is not free of defects, but he is a positive voice in Atlasia. For that same reason, I say that one thing is certain about his future: JerryArkansas won’t stay silent much longer.
GAworth elected Chair of the Progressive Union
Vows to hit the ground running
Saturday saw the election of the Midwest’s own, Representative GAworth of Vitality elected as Chair of the Progressive Union. He thanked SoIA Superique for contesting the election with him, and asked for him to continue to serve the Party. The party then moved to the nomination of Vice Chairs. The Pacific’s Governor PJ and former Pacific Councilor now Senate hopeful Flo have both announced they are running for the job, a rematch of the race at the convention. Chair GAworth also opened the floor to nominations for Shadow Cabinet posts. “We have a lot of work ahead of us as a party, and a lot of work ahead for me as chair,” GAworth told us. In addition to the two nominations, he also announced he was creating a group to overhaul the by-laws.

[GAworth]

The Record-Courier

Serving the Midwest . . . and the Pacific

Regional News

An energy tax credit bill re-appears in the Althing
GAworth renews his effort to get the law passed.
Cheesewhiz, Vitality- The Energy Self-Sufficiency Tax Holiday Bill makes reappearance in the Althing. The bill calls for a one year exemption of sales tax on the several energy efficient appliances, as well as other items. “It helps Midwesterners lower our energy bills. Which in the end saves the family money and help our environment,” Representative GAworth told us. The bill had faced opposition in the last session due to cost. GAworth addressed this, “we now have 40 Billion in Surplus; I think we can pass the bill no problem.” We will see if the bill makes it to law.


A Seat deferred?
After confusion, Napoleon is a Councilor.
San Francisco, California – After he wrote himself in for the Pacific Council, the Former Senator was declared invalid as a candidate, and with the departure of declared candidate Spamage, the third seat was left vacant. However, the Governor clarified that he was confused over the way the law handle it, and then recognized his seat to the Council.

National News

 NMAM to join the Cultural Marxist Party
The party starts the process of dismantling.
Rapid City, Vitality – Yesterday the NMAM started their December conference, largely from the looks of it to dissolve the party and move into the Cultural Marxist Party of Atlasia. Hashemite and Xahar have both called for the vote. No word from the Cultural Marxist’s on if they accept the move, although chairman Sibboleth has welcomed members to join. We will keep you updated.
Senate Elections are over
Center-Right Parties win three seats.
Rapid City, Vitality – The Senate elections are over, the winners are, Mr. X, Shua, Tmthforu94, Talleyrand, and Goldwater. Sibboleth and Flo did not make it over the line. This now makes the Senate composition this: 5 Labor, 3 Federalist, and 2 D-R, effectively a even split with 5 left of center and 5 right of center members. Although Regional DR Senator Spiral of the Mideast has announced he will a campaign for the Governorship and if successful, would mean a new seat up for grabs. We wish everyone the best of luck, and look forward to the progress ahead.

[GAworth]

The Record-Courier

Serving the Midwest . . . and the Pacific

Regional News

Midwest Budget presented to the Althing
With a $40 Billion plus surplus, some look to cut taxes.
Cheesewhiz, Vitality- The budget has been presented by Archduke Windjammer which gave a $42 Billion surplus from the royalty bill. Several individuals have proposed cutting taxes, while others want a balanced approach. Senator Maxwell has introduced an idea on corporate tax reform; Archduke windjammer has proposed sales tax reduction. Representative GAworth has also introduced a plan to raise the exemption on income tax while keeping a healthy surplus for future projects.

Editorial: The West Pacific Roman Empire:

By LumineVonReuental.

Nobody should be surprised at the statement that all of Atlasia’s five regions and it’s governors are different: Governor Zuwo’s Conservative Mideast; the springboard for Nyman, King SirNick’s Northeast; the Westeros-Styled Kingdom of Ice, Emperor Dereich’s South; cultural bastion, Governor PJ’s Pacific, the Western Roman Empire in Atlasian fashion, and my very own region, the Midwest; the most quiet and peaceful (and often inactive in the past) place in the entire country.

Atlasia is… no, not at the crossroads, that line is too cliché to actually embody what we are going through. Atlasia is going through realignment, a realignment of political parties, changes in voters and populations, and renewal of officeholders. These are strange times, which seem both stagnant and full of progress, hopeless and filled with a bright future, chaotic and quiet. It’s a duality of forces thorough this nation that threaten to confuse our identity. That very same confusion, perhaps, is the one that makes all of the Atlasian vices thrive and expand.

Inactivity, partisanship and trolling: those are our problems. Every single region has a problem with one, two or all three, and they define our current dynamic. Going to the point, the Pacific crisis pretty much describes this situation: a region filled with inactivity from nearly thirty citizens, in constant attack of trolls that wish change out of boredom and not necessity, and trouble between the factions that wish to restore the region. I commend Governor PJ for his constant and valiant struggle to save his region, but it seems we are reaching a point in which those forces are proving stronger. I made the Western Roman Empire analogy because despite PJ (and Tyrion, DemPGH, Spamage and so forth) efforts, the Pacific has not experienced a Renaissance. It’s possible to revive a region, Maxwell and the Midwest serve as the best example of that, but unlike the Pacific, we faced little partisanship and no trolling, making our task several times easier.

What should be done? Some say that a Pacific/Midwest merge is the solution, and I strongly believe that is wrong. We are functional now, but we must not forget that while we would get a region with as much population as that Mideast, it would be a region full of members who have a slight problem with democracy and democratic methods (the way I see it, call me a fascist hack if you wish), a region riddled with partisanship, a region in constant danger of doing down in flames. The answer is not a merge, nor chopping both regions in half and distributing them between the rest. I spoke about this during my presidential bid: all regions must lose something. The name, some states, culture, styles of governance, something has to go in this redistribution of the electoral map of this nation, to avoid preserving regions just to destroy others.

I urge the Senate and President Duke to make this work. The first real step has been taken, and a bill is being discussed. The Ides of December are upon us, and if we fail to act, we are not only going to lose the Pacific to inactivity, we are going to lose something far more important. We will lose the idea of a fully functional country.

We can’t afford to lose that.

Sit Down with Archduke Windjammer
We talk about the Althing and his bid for re-election.
Cheesewhiz, Vitality – We sit down with the Archduke of the Althing to discuss a wide range of issues facing the Althing nowadays and his goals and future plans.
1.   Do you believe the Althing should have formalized rules?

“No, formalized rules and the Althing needs flexibility! I don't see its necessity, I'm not a troll!!!”

2.   Why did you believe the need for a separate judicial officer exists in the Midwest?

“I want a separate judicial officer to boost the Midwest's activity and to respect the Midwest Constitution. It's not an obligation but it's obviously a great + for the Midwest. And I want to thank Ilikeverin's job in the Midwest, he will be a great judicial official.”

3.   Do you believe that the Midwest should continue its claim on New Mexico?

“The Midwest and the Pacific should be merged, it would solve the Pacific's problems! So the Midwest should claim every state in the Pacific, not only New Mexico  .”

4.   What are you looking forward to doing in the remainder of this term?

“Well, avoiding a government shutdown for 2014  , proposing some laws regarding to education (creating a school for 2-6 years old,...).”

5.   You have announced re-election for Archduke, why are you running for another term?

“I like my job, I like representing the Midwest, that's why I will be running again!  ”

National News

  Senate moves to expel Senator Xahar
The Citing a lack of activity
Rapid City, Vitality – We all thought that Xahar had moved back to the Pacific as a Councilor and therefore had vacated his Senate seat due to the fact you cannot hold a Senate Seat and a local position at the same time. However, Xahar has not taken his seat in San Francisco, but instead is still in Nyman. Proceedings to expel the Senator have already begun with many Senators expressing their joy that they can remove the Senator. However, in an attempt to counteract the motion, Xahar resigned and Hashemite, who is the Chair of the NMAM appointed Xahar to the Senate after the vacancy that Xahar caused. However, we do not know whether the expulsion motion can continue, and every time he is expelled, he can simply be replaced by himself because he is an at-large Senator. We will try to keep you updated.

[GAworth]

The Record-Courier

Serving the Midwest . . . and the Pacific

Regional News

Striking balance in the Budget
We look at the various ideas for the Midwest Budget in detail.
Cheesewhiz, Vitality- With so many ideas being suggested after the passage of GAworth’s Royalty Bill found the region with nearly $43 Billion in proposed surplus. Senator Maxwell proposed lowering the corporate tax, Archduke windjammer called for abolishing the sales tax. Representative GAworth, who was cautious about cutting too much, suggested raising the exemption on Income Tax to $50,000 instead of $20,000. Maxwell countered with a reduced Income Tax and a reduction in the Corporate tax, then Maxwell got behind a proposal from SirNick and Superique to abolish the corporate tax altogether. One Althing staffer was overheard saying, “I am starting to get confused as to who is a member of the Althing and who is not.” Arturo Belano agreed with the raising the income tax exemption to $50,000 and a reduction in the sales tax. GAworth then proposed an increase in the exemption of the income tax to $50,000, a reduction in the sales tax, and increasing the exemption to $250,000 for corporate tax, but said he was willing to scrap the corporate tax proposal if the surplus was cut to much. “We need some of the surplus to go to schools, healthcare, infrastructure, energy, and economic development, “GAworth told us, “We shouldn’t just use this surplus to lower taxes.” We will try to follow the twists and turns for you as the budget debate continues.

GM announces economic data.

Midwest improves while the Pacific remains on the edge of default.

Cheesewhiz, Vitality – Shedding over one percent off of unemployment, the Midwest outdid all other regions in terms of lowering unemployment and also was the only region to receive a credit upgrade. This is in stark contrast to the Pacific, who gained four percentage points in unemployment to just over twenty percent, it was also the only region to receive a credit downgrade as well. “With unemployment now at 6.9% is an improvement,” GAworth told us, “but there is still more work to be done. I hope that we can continue our efforts to make the Midwest the jobs capitol of Atlasia.” The economic forecast also predicted oil to rise to around $115/barrel of crude.  This sparked a call from Representative GAworth to pass several measures that would aim at lowering fossil fuel dependence. No announcement from Pacific officials on the statement.

What is before the Althing?
We look at all the legislation this session.
Cheesewhiz, Vitality – With so many bills being passed by the Althing in recent days, what is left to be passed? We look at the various laws in the queue. With less than a month left until the next elections, here is what remains:
1.   Midwest Energy Self Sufficiency Tax Holiday Bill, Sponsor: GAworth
2.   Midwest Start to Energy Independence Bill, Sponsor: GAworth
3.   Althing Rule #1, Sponsor: Lumine
4.   Midwest 2014 Budget, Sponsor: windjammer
5.   Small Farm Assistance Bill, Sponsor: GAworth
6.   Midwest Increased Speed Limits Act, Sponsor: GAworth
7.   The Dual Name of Provinces Amendment, Sponsor: Lumine
8.   Start Up Midwest Act, Sponsor: GAworth
9.   Midwest Biofuels Act, Sponsor: GAworth
10.   Midwest Teacher Pay Raise, Sponsor: windjammer
The Archduke of the Althing is in charge of bringing the bills to the floor, only the Budget and Pay Raise are currently being debated by the Althing.
 

National News

  Progressive Shadow Cabinet takes shape
The We take a look at who will be in the cabinet.
Rapid City, Vitality – The Progressive will be finishing up voting on a shadow cabinet later this evening, although with only one person running per slot, no one believes the results will change. Only four positions have been proposed, excluding the SoIA, which the party currently has a member at the head of, and the SoFE, RG, and GM.
President: Lumine
Vice President: PJ
Attorney General: DemPGH
SoEA: GAworth
“I am excited to see how the cabinet has developed. Lumine will be spearheading the effort, and as Chair, I look forward to working with him to bring the cabinet to the platform I know it can be.

[GAworth]

The Record-Courier

Serving the Midwest . . . and the Pacific

Regional News

Maxwell declares candidacy for Althing
He attacks the Althing and jumps in the race to get elected . . . and then jumps out?
Cheesewhiz, Vitality- After speculation of the outgoing Senators plans for the future, it appears for now anyways that those have been laid out. Senator Maxwell is looking to be Representative Maxwell, he announced last night his intention to contest the upcoming election. He cited what he calls a “lack of intellectual debate”, and a lack of “dedication to honest government” as some of the reasons he is running. That wasn’t received well by local officials in the Midwest. Both GAworth and Lumine responded immediately to his comments. Maxwell apologized and did not mean to cause offense. This has prompted Representative Cris to have an interview in which he said that the Althing does have extensive debate on bills. Then he said this in response to a question about Maxwell running, “R. "I think that Maxwell is one of the best men of Atlasia and if he wants make federal legislator, his choice is right. Only negative thing is that he hasn't announced first to me (the current Representative for Federalist Party) the decision. For my announcement, I have announced first the decision to him.” “That’s got to hurt,” said one analyst, “I guess Maxwell doesn’t think cris is doing a good enough job and decided to bench him.” No word yet from any of the other members of the Althing on whether they will be running or not for re-election.
Last Minute addition: However, we looked on the declaration page and found that Maxwell had posted something yesterday evening around the time of his announcement, but several hours later edited it to read: “Nah no I’m not.” This leads us to now believe that the Senator is indeed not running for the Althing.

National News

Federalist may have a new chair soon
Looks like Harmony’s own Tmthforu94 could very well get the job.
Cheesewhiz, Vitality – Following the resignation of Maxwell as Chairman of the Federalist Party, the party has started its search for a new Chairman. So far only two names have been mentioned, Senator Goldwater and Senator Tmthforu94. Only SenatorTmthforu94 has been properly nominated and seconded, and has accepted the nomination. No vote has been announced yet. We look forward to seeing how the results continue.

  Majority of NMAM look like they support dissolution
Xahar calls the vote to merge the party with the CMPA.
Rapid City, Vitality – With three of the five members publicly stating they have no problem with the merger, it very well looks like the party will be joining forces with the Cultural Marxist Party of Atlasia (CMPA). So far Xahar, Hashemite, and ilikeverin have announced that they support the motion. A vote has been called, so far only ilikeverin has voted on the question, he voted yes. We look forward to forward to seeing the results.

[GAworth]

The Record-Courier

Serving the Midwest . . . and the Pacific

Regional News

End of the Year Feedback
We want to know what you want to read!
Cheesewhiz, Vitality- So as you know, the paper has been in existence for just half of a month. We thank everyone for their readership. As the New Year is right around the corner, we want to know what you want to read. We are always open to Op-Eds and Regular Column writers; we do ask that they pertain to the Midwest, Pacific, or National issues since those are the areas we cover. However, that leads to the question of do you want the paper to go national? Should we have more or less stories per paper? Should we continue to be a daily? Most importantly, what do think of the paper overall? We are all ears on any suggestion/answer/comment you have.

Flo fills last vacant Council seat
Looks The region finally has a full Council . . . for now.
San Francisco, California – Governor PJ filled the last vacant Council seat earlier today. The seat was won by Senator Xahar, but he decided to stay in Nyman as a Senator. As of now, DemPGH, Napoleon, and Flo are the Pacific’s latest batch of Councilors. However, this could all be for not. If the Court case favors DemPGH then there will be 2 more vacant seats. An analyst told us, “If that happens, it seems almost impossible to see how those are going to be filled. No one seems to want to be a Councilor, but can you really blame them?” We look forward to seeing if the Council can work together to rebuild the Pacific.

National News

SoEA Sjoyce heads back to regional politics
Says he is staying on as SoEA.
Rapid City, Vitality – With Secretary of External Affairs Sjoyce running and most likely winning a seat in the IDS legislative race, the position of Secretary of External Affairs could become vacant. This will mean that President Duke will have to appoint another person to the position, and then that person will need to be confirmed by the Senate. However, under the recently passed Semi-Presidentialism Amendment, Sjoyce could stay on as SoEA while being a member of the IDS Legislature. We reached out to SoEA Sjoyce for comment and clarification, he said, “If I win, Yes” he will remain SoEA. We look forward to seeing how the first participant in the Semi-Presidentialism experiment handles it.
  Senate Starts voting on Xahar’s Expulsion
Although he’ll be back as soon as it is over.
Rapid City, Vitality – The Senate has started a vote on the expulsion of Senator Xahar. So far 8 Senators have voted:
Aye: NCYankee, Tyrion, Maxwell, Spiral, Tmthforu94, bore
Nay: Xahar, TNF
Not Voted Yet: Gass3268
2/3rd is needed to pass the vote, which according to our back of the Napkin calculations is 7 Seats, so we wait to see how Senator Gass will cast his ballot. However, if the vacant seat is not taken into account then the number is 6. We look forward to seeing how the vote proceeds.

[GAworth]

To clarify, I researched the legality of Napoleon's electability, and I could not find anything saying that he was eligible as a write-in candidate. I asked him if he had evidence to prove me wrong, and he declined to provide any. Therefore, I did not recognize his candidacy. The council therefore consists of DemPGH, Xahar, and Flo.

We thank you for the clarification however, Xahar has not sworn in as a Councilor and cannot be a Senator and a Councilor at the same time.

[GAworth]

"If I win, yes", it "means will/can no longer be SoEA". The Semi-Presidentialism Amendment only applies to Senators, not to regional legislators.

My apologies I misunderstood what you said, and the amendment.

[GAworth]

The Record-Courier

Serving the Midwest . . . and the Pacific

Regional News

Tyrion introduces an Emergency Relief Bill for the Pacific
Will the $100 Billion get the Pacific on its feet?
San Francisco, California- With the Pacific constantly, it seems, on the brink of default, it appears a new measure has been taken up in Nyman by regional Senator Tyrion to introduce legislation to provide a $100 Billion dollar stimulus package. At the same time in San Francisco, the Governor has introduced a new jobs bill and is rumored to be working on a budget that would make up for the roughly $80 Billion deficit the previous budget, passed by a NMAM majority council. We look forward to see what action will be taken by the Senate on the measure.

Pacific Court hands down ruling
Rules the “legal number of councilors is five” but provides injunction.
San Francisco, California – In two rulings handed down earlier today in the case on the recent executive order by Governor PJ. The court ruled that the constitution could not be changed by Executive Order, the ruling stated in part: “2. While the Governor's Executive Order authority is currently not limited by statute, thus giving his decrees an authority equal to constitutional provisions (and thus can effectively suspend specific clauses when needed), this authority is itself derived from the Constitution. It is thus impossible for him to amend the Constitution using this authority.”  However in an additional ruling the Court ruled that the number of councilors should be capped at three. The ruling said that the region’s citizens “have a constitutional right to, an active, capable, and functional government” and that having five councilors is less “conducive to regional activity” than three. The cap may only be removed by a judicial order, executive order, or a majority vote of the Pacific Council. Despite the semi-victory for the Governor, the Council still only has two members. DemPGH and Flo, as Xahar was never sworn in and constitutionally cannot be a Senator and a Councilor at the same time and Napoleon was not appointed to the Council due to his candidacy was not declared valid by the Governor. We look forward to see if the Pacific can function.

National News

The Record-Courier will be hosting a discussion forum in the New Year
The Forum will focus on ways to revitalize the Pacific.
Rapid City, Vitality – With recent talk of economic collapse in the Pacific, we wanted to help in any way possible, so we have decided to host a forum in the New Year on ways to rebuild the Pacific. Publisher GAworth told us, “We (the paper) are not looking at pointing fingers at any party and simply saying we need more active people or regional reform is not going to solve the here and now. We need to look at all the ways the region can try to rebuild. Both sides of the political spectrum have ideas on how to create a stable budget and ways to create jobs, we see successful programs all across Atlasia so why not bring talk about how we could implement them in the Pacific.”

  Correction on SoEA Story
Sjoyce cannot remain on as SoEA.
Rapid City, Vitality – Yesterday we incorrectly stated that under the Semi-Presidentialism Amendment Sjoyce could remain SoEA after winning the IDS legislative race. Our staffers misread the document and have been demoted. So the SoEA will become vacant after the all but certain win of Sjoyce. We look forward to see who will be appointed.
Editors Note: We apologize for incorrectly reporting a story yesterday, we are now implementing several new policies to help with this, and one of them is if you are sent a PM regarding the paper, we ask you quote what we sent you in your reply.


Furthermore, we would like thank everyone for helping surpass the 2,000 view mark!

[GAworth]

The Record-Courier

Serving the Midwest . . . and the Pacific

Regional News

Council debates composition
No movement on job bills.
San Francisco, California- After the court case ruled that the composition would stay at three members until there is higher activity in the region. However, to make sure that the number does not rise via court action, the Council is debating a bill to permanently reduce the number to three.  “I mean I can understand why, but they have a 20% unemployment problem to deal with,” on Pacific Politics watcher told us. We look forward to seeing how the Council progresses.

Ilikeverin returns to Cheesewhiz
Appointed to serve as Midwest Judicial Officer by Lumine
Cheesewhiz, Vitality – After the approval of the referendum that created the office, Governor Lumine announced that he would appoint the long serving politician to serve as the inaugural office holder. The Althing will have to approve the nomination. “The thing that worries me is that ilikeverin voted against the measure, why should he take over the office,” on Midwest analyst told us. We look forward to seeing how the confirmation process occurs.

National News

Shadow Cabinet received with mixed reviews
RC Poll: Favorable 41.2%, Negative 32.4%, Neutral/Too Early/Undecided 26.5%
Rapid City, Vitality – The Progressive Union shadow cabinet has been received with mixed views after its creation earlier this month. “It is a new idea to have something like this.” GAworth told us, “I feel that it does serve a purpose, to help raise the level of debate we have in Atlasia, to point out policy differences, and to offer assistance and advice to the Government of the day. We are not looking to undermine the Duke Presidency, we are simply pointing out differences and offering possible solutions.” We look forward to see how the Cabinet develops.

We will also be publishing article for the person of the week.

[GAworth]

Profile of the Week:
"Superique: Our very own Bush 41:

By LumineVonReuental.

And here we have the second Profile of the Week! I want to remind readers again that all Atlasians who get a profile are previously informed and they give their, but then again they only provide basic information to help speed up research. These profiles are also subjective in several areas, given that, for example, the first two Atlasians to have a profile are friends of mine here. Also, from now one I’ll be accepting requests if anybody’s interested.

Now, going into subject, our second Profile of the Week is a man with a strong resume. He described himself once as the Atlasian Bush 41, a very efficient man who has more experience in appointed offices, but nonetheless a great officeholder. He has been very active this week, giving advice on several key pieces of legislation. This week’s Atlasian is the sitting Secretary of Internal Affairs, Superique.

Superique entered Atlasia in December of 2012, recruited by the Atlasian Nixon, Governor Wolfentoad. Those were the days of Liberal hegemony on the Pacific, and Superique wasted no time, immediately running for Pacific Council on January 2013. He ran on an environmentalist platform, and he never stopped focusing on green energy. He easily won that election, and he had no trouble winning reelection in March as well. Sadly, it was not as exciting as it sounds. The Pacific was already in slow decline, presided by inactive Governors. Despite the challenges, Superique was always involved, and the passed the now defunct Fuel Standard Legislation.

Our man’s first major crisis came on May, where the Pacific took a turn for the worse. Wolfentoad left in disgrace, and Governor NVGonzalez never did anything. Superique chose to act, and he led a recall effort against the Governor and the entire Pacific Council. He succeeded, and just in case there weren’t enough candidates he led a write-in effort for himself. He lost that election, and eventually Xahar was put in charge of the Pacific. Even today, Superique still feels guilty about that time. He started the recalls, and by not making a more serious effort to return to the Council, the NM-AM won the majority that enabled them to start Pacific Rim. To this day, Superique believes that Xahar betrayed the President and Atlasia, a view shared by many Atlasians.

That said, Superique had a different goal at the time. For him, it was the right time to go Federal. With Senator X gone, there was a need for a Special Election, and Superique signed in, along with JerryArkansas (see his profile) and Gass. Polling consistently showed Gass leading and Jerry in a strong place, but Superique managed to deliver a surprise and defeat Jerry for second place. The defeat seems to have dealt a negative effect, though, for Superique was inactive after that. Superique decided to back Matt in the June election, and the “Liberal surprise” was undoubtedly a major factor in the results. Controversy appeared again with the demise of the Liberal Party, almost dead after Wolfengate. Superique chose to intervene, and he became the next Liberal Chair, calling for a convention to save his party. Despite a notable effort by Shua and him, the party quickly became a place for zombies.

It is often said that friendships are born out of anything: Fights, conversation, accidents, wars, conventions, military coup, etc. But Superique’s most significant friendship in Atlasia was born out of something different. It was a bond created by a joke. Averroes Nix was celebrating his victory, and Superique compared him right away with Jimmy Carter. Nix added that he felt closer to Mike Dukakis, and a conversation started right away, marking the beginning of a friendship that lasts until today.  Fifteen days later, the man of the Pacific was nominated to be the next Secretary of Interior Affairs, and even today he feels indebted to the Former President. Despite the implied inexperience, he promised high quality work and he declared himself to be a man of enthusiasm, and the Senate agreed. Gass clashed with him over the NM-AM, and TNF voted against him as well, but it didn’t mattered. Atlasia had a new SoIA.

Many things could be said about his tenure, but the most eloquent of them is this: He remains SoIA. Six months, two Presidents, and Superique is still the SoIA, with the idea of him being replaced being almost unthinkable. Active, sharp and enthusiastic, he is always there. Giving advice on currency, helping Regional Government, negotiating with Regional Executives, Superique is always there, our very own domestic policy institution. Superique finally left the Liberal Party following the demise of the Revival Convention, and he joined Civic Union/Progressive Union.

After the success of his first three months in office, he decided it was time to try for another position. Thus, Superique challenged Tyrion to be the Regional Senator for the Pacific, and he started with a blast, using pictures of Jerry Brown and his strong environmentalist record. He was endorsed by three Regional Executives, and he was the likely first Senator of the Progressive Union. And yet, another opportunity appeared on the horizon. Members of his new party hoped to draft him for President, believing he was the best hope for the party. Yet he refused, while leaving the VP spot open for speculation. Once LumineVonReuental started his somewhat quixotic bid, he had no doubts. He was the running mate he wanted, and Superique “Moonbeam” joined the ticket. There was criticism of him being more focused on the Senate race, but his running mate was apparently very satisfied with his performance. The ticket won 24% of the vote, but Alas, Superique was defeated in his Senate bid in a close race, losing against Tyrion with 44% of the vote.

Yet, President Duke asked him to remain on the Cabinet, and he accepted. Superique is still SoIA, and polls consistently rank him well among the Cabinet. After a year in Atlasia, there’s still a lot of potential in this Atlasian, and he certainty has a date with destiny. And, as they say, the rest will be history."

[GAworth]

The Record-Courier

Serving the Midwest . . . and the Pacific

Regional News

Announcement by the Paper
We will not be publishing anymore papers until the 27th of December. To allow our team a long and relaxing holiday break. We will publish an end of the year paper and then will not return to the printers until the New Year, in which after the consultation we have received from you, our reader, we will announce a new way forward for the paper.

Midwest Teachers to get a pay increase, budget heads to a vote.
Althing votes on Teacher pay bill
Cheesewhiz, Vitality – After some confusion as to the language bill, the bill is on its way to being passed. The bill aims at equalizing teacher pay to roughly $60,000/year in every Midwestern State. Also being voted on, in an attempt not to shut down the regional government, is the un-amended budget. “We haven’t got back estimates for some of the amendments and couldn’t wait any longer,” One Althing budget analyst told us. “I look forward to bringing forward amendments after we get an estimate, but we will wait for now,” GAworth said. We look forward to seeing how the process continues on both on these.

National News

Tmth unopposed for chair of Federalist Party
An early Christmas present for the man from Harmony
Rapid City, Vitality – After the resignation of Maxwell as chair of the Party, the party nominated Tmth as chair. The man from Harmony looks likely to get an early Christmas present as being elected chair of the party as no one else has put their hat into the ring. We look forward to see what will come for the new chair.
JCL interview
1. Who are you supporting for Federalist Chair?
“I'm backing Senator Tmth. He brought me into the game and has demonstrated the leadership the Atlasian Right has always needed. Not that I'll always agree with him but a united front with a clear and articulated message is the best shot we have to improve on our successes of recent elections past.”

2.   Being someone from the Mideast, what is your opinion on regional consolidation?

“I initially wanted to have an open mind to it. Unfortunately, when possible map proposals came about I kept seeing one thing that they largely had in common. The Mideast was the region totally eliminated. Since then I've been one of consolidation's leading critics. What should be done is build up the Midwest and Pacific while not seeking to destroy the good of the Mideast, IDS or Northeast.”

3.   Who do you think should run for Governor in the Mideast?

“I'm supporting my fellow libertarian minded friend and colleague Spiral. Had I declared for the governors race, he would've been on my short list for a Lt. Governor. “

4.   Do you think the Federalists and DRs should work closer together?

“Absolutely. We have many mutual interests. Particularly in economic matters. There's even room for the Progressive Union to join in on the fun as well. It's better to have two or three heads working together than one going at it alone to see from different angles on an issue. When I ran for President in October I made it a point to reach out to non-Federalists to be part of my team. Unfortunately I had no takers on the offer an had to go with someone from my own wing of the party while Duke and his lovers made with the presidency.”

5.   What are your plans for the future?

“This week is rather busy. While folks are making last minute purchases (myself included) I have another four shifts at work(not all of us have white collar jobs while not working for the people), followed by Christmas celebrations, and a church conference. I will be running for office in January and February. Further announcements will be coming by the end of next week on both.”
6.What do think about the Duke plan on regional consolidation?
“The idea of a National Assembly is something I could see myself supporting. The concern is maintaining solid activity levels in the regional governments. The strength of the game should be our regions more than in Nyman. The part I have problem with is that it eliminates the Mideast region. We can preserve five regions but I do think some states need to change regions to improve overall strength. How we do that is just as controversial as consolidation. We who support the five region model need to make our case on why we should maintain that even with some modest changes being made. Reducing the senate to 5 members to form a National Assembly with 11 members should be considered.”
We thank him for the interview.
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