The Office of Senator LumineVonReuental (A Farewell to the Senate)

[Lumine]

Endorsed of course.

Thank you very much, Senator!

A few words before the election:

While it is sad to see Cincinnatus leaving the race, I think we can all agree that he will prove an excellent Secretary of SoIA, and I certainly hope his Senate confirmation will go smoothly. Now, this election went much more quickly than expected, so I honestly apologize for not running an extremely active campaign, specially after doing so for the Midwest. I do feel, however, that after so many months the beliefs of all three candidates are more than known to all Atlasians, and I also believe nobody could doubt our stands on the issues. I wish both of my opponents the best of luck, this election will be a tough one, and electoral surprises are not unheard of in this game.

It is true I can't boast to have a resume as impressive as Adam Griffin's, nor I can claim to have the 100% independent spirit of Poirot, but some of the things I have proved is my commitment to this game and my desire to go out and do things to the best of my ability, all while trying not to drive my fellow Atlasians insane. Hopefully these constants runs for office won't achieve that undesired effect.

Well, to the election we go, and let's see if I'll end up in Nyman or back to be home!

Lumine.

[Lumine]

I greatly hope we will see you in the senate, governor. I can think of no one who could do a better job or make a greater difference.

Thanks, Rooney! So far the results look very encouraging for me, but there are still many voters left, and everything can happen in the remaining election time.

___________________________________________________________________________________

I hope that the this election will enjoy a very high level of turnout, the more voters the better for us candidates and the more representative this election is. Don't forget to vote!

[Lumine]

Victory! (I hope)

March 3rd, 2014:
After a very intense week, the election is over, and the apparent final count gives Former Governor Lumine a one vote advantage, breaking a good number of election record numbers. The results still have to be certified, but it seems that Lumine goes to Nyman after all.

"Thank you, Atlasia!

It's hard to describe the feeling that victory (so far) brings to a player, but it can be described as both a reward and a reminded. You are rewarded for your efforts, but you have to remember that there are so many things to do that you can't stop, you have to keep working. I received a gracious PM from Adam Griffin with his congratulations (although concessions of any kind will have to wait for the official results, obviously), and I wish to thank him as well for being a fantastic adversary. The same goes for Poirot, who fought a valiant fight until the end and got a great result in the first round. Together we broke several records during the weekend, and I can't explain how happy I am right now. This was one hell of a race, ladies and gentlemen!

I will await until the official certification to see if this victory is truly certain, but even if the results showed a narrow loss for me, I would be as proud and as happy. In the past days I had to trust on the judgement of the people of my region and then the people of Atlasia, and the support I received was always incredibly encouraging. Despite how hard it has been, this was a fantastic period of time for me in Atlasia. The Senate comes now, and granted, starting college always makes things more complicated, but I am confident in the future, and I feel that I will be able to perform in the best way I can. I have good relationships with several of the current Senators, so I am confident that my stay in the Senate will be both productive and very pleasant.

On a related note, today's global crises seem to further illustrate the point that foreign policy is starting to be neglected in a very dangerous way, with the same thing happening to the environment. There were those who claimed in 1990 that History was dead, but they were wrong. They said governments and states were dead, and they were wrong. We live in a complex world, ladies and gentlemen, and it's time for Atlasia to put more focus and find more assertive ways to become a truly positive force in the international stage. This is our chance to fix some of the mistakes of the past and fight for long term policies that will make the difference, and I wish to be a part of said effort.

I thank my friends, my opponents and the voters for such a fantastic election, and to Nyman I go!"

LumineVonReuental, Probably Senator-Elect.

[Lumine]

Congratulations on getting the most votes in Atlasian history, Senator Lumine.

Thanks, Flo! It really is a fantastic surprise to get this record!

Congratulations Lumine, you seem to be a bit like Mary Landrieu, you like close elections .

Thank you Governor, it seems I'm haunted by close results, xD

Congratulations Mr. Senator!

Thank you very much, Cris!

[Lumine]

I'm glad to have supported you, Lumine.  You really deserve this.

Thank you, Scott! I can't wait to swear-in!

[Lumine]

Congratulations! You will do a grand job I have no doubt.

Thanks, Rooney! Sadly I'll have to wait until certification, but I trust to be able to start working as soon as possible!

[Lumine]

     Wonderful job, Herr von Reuental. I look forward to good things from you in the Senate.

I hope that will be the case, Emperor, thanks!

[Lumine]

To Nyman!

March 5th, 2014:
Right after the certification of the electoral results, now Senator Lumine took the oath of office and then proceded to open his new private office in Nyman, ready to work. Naturally, friends and fellow officeholders are more than invited to visit once in a while.

"Well, the election is now truly over, and it's time for the to get to work.

I step into the Senate in a truly fascinating time, right as we are facing a crisis in Ukraine, a possible impeachment and several fascinating bills up for discussion and vote. I expect to release my proposals to the Senate as orderly as possible, and while I don't wish to flood the Senate I would like to start with two ideas today. I wish to send a symbolic resolution addressing the Ukranian crisis, urging the Senate to take a stand against potential aggresion from Russia, to support the current Ukranian government and advice the President, the SoEA and the Special Envoy to use every single plausible diplomatic effort, including heavy trade sanctions. I do not wish war, but it's time for the Republic of Atlasia to show our committment to democracy and actual diplomacy by avoiding a Russian takeover of Crimea.

The second bill is also foreign policy related, and it involves the first part of a comprehensive foreign policy reform package that I wish to see enacted. Without giving too many details, I wish to begin by joining and giving more support to several key organizations in Asia and South America involving both diplomacy and free trade efforts, like APEC, OAS, the Pacific Aliance and so forth. I will try to be as involved as I can in the current bills in discussion, although some of them are already at the final vote, thus making my participation rather simple. I will try to devise a rather concrete style as a Senator, but for the time being I wish to state that I consider all of Atlasians as my constituents given my At-Large role, and I'm more than willing to take advice, criticism and to sponsor some bills if that's your desire. I'll try to be transparent and open about most of my bills and votes as well, but time will define how that proceeds. Well, I guess that's all for now.

Time to get to work!"

LumineVonReuental, At-Large Senator.

[Lumine]

My little Lumine's now a Senator

We grow so fast, xD

[Lumine]

So do you prefer to be boiled in oil or burned alive?

Well, a firing squad has always looked very interesting (and somewhat appropriate) to me, but if I had to choose... Boiled, please!

[Lumine]

Congratulations on your victory Senator!

Thank you very much, Devin!

[Lumine]

Congratulations on your election, and a job well-done!

Thank you very much!

[Lumine]

Update I: NATO and Environmental Reform

March 15th, 2014:
With ten days as Senator, and right after introducing two new pieces of legislation and having a small meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Senator Lumine (forgive the third person style, I just like it) decided to give a small update on his work so far.

Good night, my fellow Atlasians.

I spoke before of my desire of having an open office as a Senator, being as transparent as I can while doing my job, and that's why I will give these small updates whenever something important happens, like introducing a bill or releasing my voting record. These days have been quite active for me, as they correspond to my first days in the Senate, my first days in college (and it hasn't been easy) and my days in a new political party after the dissapearance of the Progressive Union. And now I find myself as a Senator of the People's Party, who knows very well that he has to keep improving the work in the Senate. My first days have not been impressive at all, but so far I have introduce four pieces of legislation to the Senate, with a couple more to be introduced next week. First we have my Crimea resolution, which is currently in discussion. The need for amendments here has become obvious in light of some of the objections, but I feel that a consensus will be found in time for this resolution to pass before the crisis keeps escalating. Then we have the South American and Asian Trade Act, which will have to wait for discussion.

Today I introduced two new bills: One is designed to take on my earlier promise of "NATO Reform", by addresing the matter of membership. It is a rather simple bill that would make us request the North Atlantic Council to ask a few allied nations to join NATO (like Japan, South Korea, etc.). Once that is accomplished, we can proceed with further reform in that front. The second bill is the first in a series of environmental proposals I have in mind, and it seeks to increase funding of clean energy research. I acknowledge it will take some time before they are discussed, but hopefully I will manage to see them on the Senate floor before the April election. On another note, I feel I should congratulate the new members of the Cabinet for their sucessful confirmation hearings and their good work so far. Game Master Griffin, SoIA Cincinnatus and AG Maxwell are incredibly capable Atlasians, and we can certainly expect a lot from them in their current positions.

I also wish to congratulate SoEA Superique for his hard work on the Israel-Palestine peace talks, given that so far we have seen quite sucessful results when compared to previous efforts. I briefly met with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas today in Nyman (I am unaware if the other Pro-Palestine Senators did the same) to speak about the current situation, and he seems quite optimistic about the potential results. The Atlasian committments of the peace deal will probably undermine some of the efforts to put restrictions on Israel (like the military sanctions I proposed), but so far I am glad that there's a potential resolution to this conflict, and I remain supportive of the Palestinian state.

Last but not least, I wish to conclude this small update with my voting record so far:

Voting Record

(March 7th - March 15th)

60th Senate President Pro Tempore Election (Senator North Carolina Yankee)
Article of Impeachment Against Attorney General Benconstine (NAY)
Senate Hearing: Adam Griffin for Game Moderator (AYE)
Senate Hearing: Maxwell for Attorney General  (AYE)
The Regional Exemption Act of 2014 (AYE)
Collective Bargaining Modernization Act of 2014 (NAY)
Regional Recognition of Marriages and Civil Unions Act (AYE)
Troubled Teen Protection Act (AYE)
The Double Jeopardy Is OK Sometimes Amendment (AYE)

LumineVonReuental, At-Large Senator.

[Lumine]

On the unexpected passing of Senator X:

As Former Senator Simfan said, today is a sad day, for we have witnessed the loss of a valuable Atlasian to the unexpected forces of destiny. In all honesty, I find Former President Napoleon's refusal to duel quite dissapointing, and it believe the excuses he spoke of are quite weak for something as decisive and relevant as a duel. With Senator X's passing I now find myself as the  only Senator of the People's Party, and despite this loss for the Senate I am confident that we will keep up the good work that this session has showed. I probably have a couple of other announcements as well, but those will have to wait a few hours or a couple or days.

Thank you very much for your attention.

LumineVonReuental, At-Large Senator.

[Lumine]

OOC: Alright, I guess I'll play along with this for some time.

Aliens?

March 20th, 2014:
In light of the recent "unusual" activity in the skies of many countries, and given the lack of official statements beyond Mr. Urquhart's announcement, Senator Lumine chose to make a rather short televised address in order to express his thoughts and his evident skepticism of the possibility of alien contact.

Good night, my fellow Atlasians.

I understand that words alone cannot express how many of you feel right now. Right now, we are facing quite a good amount of doubts that range from our personal safety to some pretty philosophical questions. Are we alone? What is going on? Are we in danger? What is the government doing? and so forth. Throughout this day we have seen unusual objects in the skies, objects to which we are not used to, and a good number of countries have jumped to interesting conclusions, like the President of Mexico's (Adam: Isn't the President of Mexico Peña Nieto and not Calderon?) comments on the aircraft nor being "human". To those of you who are worried about the government, I encourage you to take a deep breath and have a second look at what's going on, as I did to compose myself. When Francis Urquhart called for tranquility and prudence, he was making the best request possible. Panic never helps, and I'm sure the President will address you soon and perhaps put this issue to rest.

Perhaps some of you heard about my small intervention in the Midwest Althing in regards to the second coming of the so called "Alien Bill". I stand by those comments. Call me a skeptic, but I refuse to believe that what we have seen today is the day in which aliens appeared on Earth. As far as I'm concerned, this could very well be Atlasian special military aircraft being tested, and it wouldn't surprise me if an announcement from the President confirmed this. We have no reason to think this could be the work of beings from outer space, and I want to encourage every Atlasian to take a second look, to try and come up with a different explanation just in case. Panic and fear will not help our nation or the world in this incident, and the more calm and composed we face it, the better for all of us, for we will reach a resolution in a more efficient way.

Do not fear, do not despair, and always doubt and think twice. That is the key for solving a problem, and by tomorrow I believe we will be able to witness a true ending to this matter. If I am wrong in my approach to this, well, my conscience will tell me I did the right thing at giving a lot of careful consideration to alternate explanations. Until then, I remain confident in my resolve to doubt the very existence of aliens in this world, and I tell you that as an individual and as a Senator.

Thank you for your attention,

LumineVonReuental, At-Large Senator.

[Lumine]

My mistake then, thanks for the clarification!

[Lumine]

Running for Reelection!

March 24th, 2014:
With the "Alien Crisis" done and the Senator correctly predicting that there were no aliens, Senator Lumine has formally launched his reelection bid after declarating his candidacy a few days ago. As the remaining Senator of The People's Party, and despite having served less than a month, the Senator is confident of victory in the upcoming election.

Good morning, Atlasia:

I'll try to be brief this time, given that so many announcements will end up making this office too boring for the constituency to actually read. It is with great relief that I saw the end of this so called crisis in Burlington, Vermont, where we finally discovered the reason for the panic: a simple prank. Regardess of the need for us to put those people in jail for all they did (invading foreign airspace, causing widespread panic, and so forth), and trying not to sound  "I told you so", I'm rather pleased that in the end it was reason and a calm disposal what won the day. This incident goes to show that we still need to evolve in our state of mind to face the uncertain, but this is no way a legitimation of "alien" legislation, and I sincerely hope we can put this to rest as soon as possible.

Now, I also wanted to launch my reelection bid in a more formal way (not just announcing on the legal thread), for I intend to remain in the Senate for a very long time! I don't know who else will run, or if the current At-Large Senators intend to run for reelection, but I'm sure we will see a rather engaging election with great challenges to all parties and independents. Despite my new party affilation, I believe I have managed to stay away from mere partisanship, and I would like to count on the support of people of all parties, as always. Independents, Federalists, Democratic Republicans, Laborites and fellow members of The People's Party, my office is always open to all of you.

I also decided to give some changes to my old logo, as you can see. I decided to switch blue for green, and honoring my days as an Archduke and in light of the slightly germanic surname I chose to have, I have decided to adopt this as my new sigil: the eagle. The words remain similar, and I hope that my performance so far has been satisfactory to the voters. I'm not really sure about what else to say here, besides that I am also considering a potential change of regions in the near future. I have been for several months in the Most Serene Republic, but I guess I have also done everything I wanted and aimed to do here, and new challenges are always welcome in a political life. It's just an idea, but it doesn't hurt to think about new options.

Nothing else to say here, thanks for your attention!

LumineVonReuental, At-Large Senator.

[Lumine]

Depending on shua's re-election status, you'll have my first or second preference, obviously.

Thank you, Maxwell, it really means a lot!

Endorsed!

Thank you very much, Simfan!

[Lumine]

Endorsed.

Anyone who supports the Duke-Scott education reform bill, let alone sponsors it, gets a vote from me.

Thanks, Scott! I hope the Education bill passes the Senate as quickly as possible!

[Lumine]

You've always got my endorsement

I'm glad to keep having your support, Flo, thanks!

[Lumine]

Update II: Aliens and Godzilla
in the Campaign Trail 14'

March 31th, 2014:
With almost a month as a Senator and after a rather strange month, the Senator has decided to release the next update (they will be released every two weeks with the voting record, potential ideas for legislation and a few comments on Atlasian politics, just for the sake of attention whoring.

Well... It looks like I'm still the only Senator from The People's Party, but I honestly hope that will change in the April election. Not that Senators actually make caucuses like in real life (and I believe that would be a nice addition), but it still feels somewhat strange. Anyway, my sincere congratulations to Alfred (I congratulated him via PM as well), for his victory, and my congratulations to the challengers who fought hard in a titanic and rather short election. As of now the only candidates for At-Large Senate are Senator Goldwater and Assemblyman JCL, so I hope more people will jump in and make it a truly memorable event.

Speaking of memorable, I want to take the time to discuss with you some of the issues we have seen in the past days. I think we can all agree March has been a rather crazy month, even when compared to the February Presidential Election. We lost Senator X to Godzilla after a former President refused to duel, we saw an election that had no candidates 24 hours before the start, and we saw Chinese military staging an alien invasion in our ground. Concerned as I am because of this, I openly support the recent efforts of the Senate to punish this type of activities, and I'm really looking forward towards the Administration's response to China. While I openly disagree with the way this event was handled by our Game Master, I find it much more worrying to see a lack of response, not only in the middle of the event, but in the aftermath. We constantly complain about the lack of exciting events, but we don't react when we have them or we fail to grasp the consequences of a lack of action, and that is something we have to change.

For that reason, I have seen the recent talk of game reform quite encouraging, and I openly support having another house in Congress. The reboot is something I'm not so sure about, but I can say with confidence and having a Lower House (and a parliamentary system as well) would bring innovation back, and it would lead us into the unknown. I'm probably alone here, but the constant repetion of events in Atlasia (centrists are HP's, the Napoleon hate/love cycle, the fact that people can't let 2012 and 2013 go, etc, etc, etc) is not really helping the game, and I want to encourage the voters to acknowledge that we need reform, and that repeating the same over and over again is eventually going to kill us.

Going into my performance, it has been dissapointing thus far, so I am going to blame college and a lack of free time. Thankfully, my foreign trade reform will soon be up for discussion, and this week I should be able to introduce one or two bills to accomplish other parts of my old platform. All in all, I feel this half-term and a full term should be more than enough to do quite a good amount of projects, and I'm looking forward to continue my work on the Senate. As always, I'm open for questions, comments and criticism, and I thank whoever took the time to read this.

Voting Record

(March 16th - March 31st)

Small Investor Protection Act  (AYE)
The Stingray Conservation Act (AYE)
Fracking Limitation and Safer Energy Act (AYE)
Collective Bargaining Modernization Act (NAY)
Fair Banking Act (NAY)
Co-Determination Act (NAY)

LumineVonReuental, At-Large Senator.

[Lumine]

Special Envoy to Ukraine!

April 14th, 2014:
Right after his appointment as Special Envoy for the Ukrainian Crisis, Senator Lumine jumped on the first flight to Kiev and is getting prepared to meet with President Alexandr Turchinov and the Ukrainian government in order to coordinate further efforts and support from the Atlasian government.

Good day, my fellow Atlasians.

As of now, I am the new Special Envoy for the ongoing Ukrainian Crisis, and as I stated in the SoEA thread, I am now getting prepared to meet with Presdent Turnichov and his government in order to ensure the best cooperation and coordination possible between Atlasia and Ukraine in this difficult time. By combining the prerogatives of a Senator with the duties of a Special Envoy, I will try to do my best to make an impact and gather enough support for the Ukrainian government against Russian aggression. I will push for further Atlasian assistance once the Ukrainian Act passes the Senate in the form of an aid package and potential weapon sales in case the Donetsk situation gets out of control.

Superique has given me a set of instructions and general ideas that I shall follow as closely as I can, and while I can assure you that is not in my plans to make this situation even more complicated, I do not plan to sit idly while we let Russia do as it pleases with a sovereign nation. It's about time Atlasia faces the fact that we do not live in a vacuum, and that we have to do something about the issues the rest of the world is facing right now. We can't simply abandon Ukraine, not in this time of need. To do so would mean that our commitment to democracy, to diplomacy and to international law are mere words, worth nothing in the face of a real crisis, and I wish to prove this point by working as the new Special Envoy.

I'll try to write on an often basis as well, so expect more updates.

LumineVonReuental, At-Large Senator and Special Envoy to Ukraine.

[Lumine]

At-Large April Election Speech:

April 16th, 2014:
A few hours after returning from a meeting with Ukrainian President Turnichov and high ranking members of the European Union and NATO, Senator Lumine has chosen to release a small speech making his case for reelection before going to the At-Large Senate debate.

Good day, my fellow Atlasians.

I think it's a good time to make my case for reelection, given that the election is near. I will try to participate as much as I can in the debate, but given the more focused approach the debate will have in regards to the issues, I thought about delivering this small speech now that I am back from Europe.

I come to you as a man who has witnessed many decisive events, despite having a comparatively short life in Atlasia. I come to you as a man who has had the honor of being the sole Senator of The People’s Party for a few weeks, following the unfortunate death of Senator X. I come to you as a man who desires the support of voters in order to continue to work for Atlasia, as I’ve tried to do in my career as Mideast Assemblyman, Midwest Archduke, Midwest Governor, At-Large Senator and Presidential Candidate. There are seven Atlasians running in this race, and I am confident that all of them could do a wonderful job in the Senate. Alas, there can only be five winners, five standard bearers that shall represent the people in the At-Large Senate.

My time in the Senate, brief as it may be, has been marked by activity and by a desire to open new ground instead of presenting old legislation over and over again. While I openly acknowledge that my participation in debate is not the ideal (it has been rather limited thanks to time constraints) I’ve tried to find a way to commit Atlasia to a greater focus on foreign policy and the world stage, and I have taken the first steps to do that. Trade reform with Latin America and Asia, a preliminary reform of NATO, a resolution condemning Russia for the aggression against Ukraine, increased funding for green energy, and co-sponsoring President Duke and Emperor Scott’s Educational Reform bill. These are the preliminary steps (and I hope to send more if reelected), but they go a long way to show that this Senator takes a stand, and cares about issues that are often neglected for supposedly not being “amusing”, or because some (when dealing with foreign policy) prefer isolationism or believe we already do enough.

If anything, the recent alien debacle and the depressing state of activity in the months of March and April prove that we are not doing enough in any area of policy and politics. While I am not the most active public officer, I believe I am active enough to draw attention to the situations I listed before, and I am confident that the Atlasian public will reward those efforts. Well, that's all I have to say for that, I'll see you at the Nix debate!

LumineVonReuental, At-Large Senator.

[Lumine]

Crimean Crisis Act passes the Senate!

April 18th, 2014:

Another bit of attention whoring for Atlasia (I promise to tone it down in the future), after a very long time of discussion and a fairly good amount of interest, the Crimean Crisis Act, my first piece of legislation, has passed the Senate and it has been signed by President Duke. As I stated back in the thread, my thanks to the Senate and the President for allow this to pass, and I look forward in continuing to work with the Senate if I win reelection. As I promised, I will introduce the aid package to Ukraine before the Senate tomorrow.

[Lumine]

Elected for a full term!

April 21st, 2014:

I'm not going to lie, I will admit that I was somewhat nervous at some point on the voting period. It passed quickly, but even if the results of this election were something I had I mind after running a poll, Atlasia continues to prove that everything can happen in every election, and that even the strongest or the more experienced candidates are nowhere safe. After serving half of Tmthforu’s term in the Senate, I will now go once again to Nyman to serve as your Senator for four more months, once again the only Senator from The People’s Party, despite Butafly’s strong efforts to win this election was well.

Well, what can I say? I sincerely thank the voters for giving me the chance of having a full term and continue my foreign policy and environmental focused efforts in the Senate, and I keep my promise of doing the best job that I can. I also wish to congratulate the rest of the winners, fellow Senators Alfred, Shua and Goldwater, and GM Griffin on their well deserved victories. Of course, Butafly and JCL should be congratulated as well for their strong campaigns and their focus on the issues, and I can only hope that one day they will form a part of the Senate as well. With all of that said, it’s time to resume work! Thank you very much, Atlasia!

LumineVonReuental, At-Large Senator.