The White House

[Ebowed]

Cabinet Appointments, 3/3/06

For Secretary of Forum Affairs, I nominate Ernest.  Ernest served as one of the greatest Governors in Atlasian history in the Southeast, and has more recently shown himself to be an able and competent Senator during a brief term.  I believe he has the legal knowledge, the experience with administering elections, and the general expertise necessary to serve in this position, and look forward to working with him.

For Secretary of State, I nominate Al.  Al has been a mentor to me in many ways since I joined Atlasia, and has shown that he is able to keep a friendly and helpful tone when dealing with people who disagree with him.  I believe this will translate into the diplomacy necessary to serve as Secretary of State, and urge the Senate to confirm him.

For Secretary of Defense, I nominate Akno21.  This position has been neglected over the past year, and as a former Secretary of Defense I am certainly partially responsible for that.  I trust that Akno21 will work to restore activity to this position and provide input to defense-related issues facing the Senate in the coming months.

For Secretary of the Treasury, I nominate Bono.  Bono has a healthy interest in economics and has been one of the people who often comments on decisions made by the Secretary of the Treasury in the past.  His invitation to an ultimately unsuccessful economic roundtable planned by former Secretary Keystone Phil is a testament to his continued devotion to economic issues throughout his time in Atlasia.

For Attorney General, I nominate Brandon H.  He has already served as our Attorney General for the last four months and performed excellently in the post.  As Senator, I proudly voted to confirm his nomination when he was appointed by President Joe Republic four months ago, and I have no doubts about his commitment to the job or his ability to perform it.

[Ebowed]

Statement on Puerto Rico Government, 3/22/06

An attempt to create a new government in the Atlasian-owned commonwealth of Puerto Rico by former President True Democrat in Puerto Rico is misguided, and this administration will not be recognizing this so-called government as official or legitimate.  I will also not be recognizing him as a Governor alongside the Governors of our five regions, and view him as nothing more than a mere rebellion leader.

His attempts to impose involuntary military service upon all male citizens of Puerto Rico between the ages of 18 and 45 in preparation for a secession attempt are worrying.  However, as the Government that passed this bill of conscription is illegitimate and essentially a figment of True Democrat's imagination, Puerto Rican citizens can rest assured that they do not need to and should not follow the orders of the bill.

By seizing an Atlasian territory and declaring himself Governor of it without any constitutional basis, True Democrat has committed borderline treason.  Although we would like to take as diplomatic a course as possible, his initial demands for regionhood for Puerto Rico and later increasingly ridiculous demands are unreasonable and will not be met should he continue to pursue them in his current fashion.

[Ebowed]

Executive Order

Registrations in Puerto Rico are no longer allowed and are not to be permitted by the Department of Forum Affairs.  The sixth amendment states: "In registration, the person must state his name and State of fantasy residence."  As Puerto Rico is currently not a "state of fantasy residence", any registrations in it are invalid, and any persons who registered in Puerto Rico should have their state of residence reverted to their previous registration (in True Democrat's case, Washington, though he is free to remain in his self-founded Puerto Rico Liberation Party).

[Ebowed]

Statement on Current Events, 3/27/06

First, on the issue of Senator DemoHawk being wounded by a shooting.  We send our best wishes from the administration to Democratic 'Hawk' and hope for a continued quick recovery.  We trust that he will heal soon and be back to work at the Senate serving District 4; until then, we hope he is doing well in hospital care.

On the issue of Puerto Rico, True Democrat claims that Puerto Rico is now an independent country because he pretended to seize it.  First, to be clear, True Democrat is still officially recognized as being registered in Washington.  Second, Puerto Rico very much remains in the ownership of Atlasia, and an imaginary take-over and subsequent secession are not, as True Democrat describes it, "fun," but rather, annoying and mind-numbingly stupid.  We recommend that the former President take up a new hobby, such as masturbation.

I would also like to congratulate Atlasia on an effort to pass regional bans on sex crimes where laws were insufficient or nonexistant previously.  Four of our regions have now passed bans on bestiality, with the Midwest to vote on a proposal next month.  I'm glad to see such a unified effort across every region and proud that our nation has worked quickly to pass appropriate legislation on the issue.

[Ebowed]

Puerto Rico

All right, we're sending 75,000 troops from the federal guard to Puerto Rico to retake the island territory, and another 15,000 troops to help the Southeastern Guard in Florida to help maintain order.

[Ebowed]

Game Moderator Announcement
Sam Spade today announced his resignation as Game Moderator.  I'd like to thank him for his service in this time-consuming and difficult position and announce that I'm naming True Democrat as the new GM, who is welcome to assume the role at his leisure.

[Ebowed]

Military Force in Guam

We are sending 80,000 troops from the National Guard to Guam to end the violent protests and stop the marchers from taking over military bases there.

FYI, the second State of the Forum Address will be coming up later this week.

[Ebowed]

Statement on Reconsideration of Pacifican Statehood Bill

Senator MasterJedi has re-introduced the Pacifican Statehood Bill.  Recently it passed the Senate by a vote of 5 to 4 (and 1 abstention); I vetoed it.  The Senator has decided that reconsidering this proposal will be a good way to address the riots in Guam.

By even considering to have another vote on this proposal immediately after it was vetoed, we are showing the protesters that Atlasia is weak and they are strong.  We are telling them that we will bow to their every whim and demand if they kill enough people and hold riots long enough.  This is not the message we should be sending.  Atlasia is not weak and we should not be obeying the commands of violent protesters.  And yes, I will be vetoing it again, not only because it is a poorly thought-out, imperialistic, and unnecessary addition of a state, but because it represents the mentality that Atlasia's statehood policy is controlled by a group of violent rioters on an island territory in the Pacific.  I will have none of it.

[Ebowed]

The following units stationed in Europe are redeployed to bases in continental Atlasia:
First Infantry Division, and subsidiary units;
First Armored Division, and subsidiary units;
Third Air Force, and subsidiary units;
V Corps HQ, and subsidiary units.

[Ebowed]

Just an FYI to Ebowed that we need a new GM to be named.

Uh, do you think I don't know that?

[Ebowed]

Just an FYI to Ebowed that we need a new GM to be named.

Uh, do you think I don't know that?

Yes, you might not have. You haven't given any indication that you have until now.

Right, because it would make perfect sense that I don't read the GM thread.

Even then, True Democrat discussed it with me before ever making the resignation public.

[Ebowed]

In accordance with the Constitutional Convention Resolution passed by the Senate, I hereby call the Convention.

As stated in Clause 2 of the Resolution, I am given the power to appoint three delegates to the Convention.  I therefore announce that I am appointing Chief Justice TCash, Associate Justice Emsworth, and Associate Justice Colin Wixted as delegates.

[Ebowed]

With Al's election as Mideast Governor, I am nominating Afleitch to serve as Secretary of State.

[Ebowed]

The position of Game Moderator has been left vacant for quite some time.  An interesting note about this job is that it's based almost entirely on precedent, and as such any guidelines pertaining to it are based on tradition.  Therefore I am announcing today that we will be changing things a little bit around here and instead of having one person doing all of the GM duties, we will have an entire news organization.  Atlasian World News will be taking over the "position" of Game Moderator, with Senator EarlAW and jerusalemcar5 at the head of the network.  Now I realize that there have been some controversial broadcasts on this network, particularly within the editorial section, but I am confident in their ability to report news accurately as well as continue their excellent coverage of elections.  I will not be restricting any editorial content on this network, however, a new thread for comments and debate will be created so that Atlasian World News reporters may only post in the news thread as is similar to the situation we had with SAM News Corp. and True News Inc.

[Ebowed]

Do you know what the hell a "Game Moderator" is?

Yeah, it's a position that's been unfilled for too long because nobody else would step up to the plate to fill it. 

Did you have any other suggestions?  Now get the hell out of my thread.

[Ebowed]

We are dispatching federal troops in the states of Pennsylvania and Maryland to aid the Northeast, Mideast, and Southeast regional armies in quelching the rebellion troops.

At this point in time I would like to extend my thanks and appreciation to the following people for their support of the Republic: AndrewBerger, Governor FezzyFestoon, Governor Al, and Governor Cosmo Kramer.

[Ebowed]

Unless the rebellion is restarted, the following people are granted amnesty from any treason charges: Keystone Phil, Wildcard, Supersoulty, and True Democrat.  Wildcard and Supersoulty are also recognized for switching their forces to the defense of the Republic and are thanked for their support.

[Ebowed]

I don't want amnesty.  I want to be charged.

I refuse to pursue charges.  Sorry.

[Ebowed]

I'd like to make a few statements.

First of all, I'd like to thank everyone who came out to the polls to vote this weekend.  Once again the people of Atlasia have shown that our democracy is strong, not weak.  And while the presidential result may have been more decisive than Atlasia is accustomed to, we still had several interesting senatorial and gubernatorial races with close competition.

I'd also like to thank the citizens who participated in the rebellion for ceasing their actions before they caused more damage.  While there has been some harm done (I have proposed a bill to the Senate to address some of these problems) we should be grateful that the effect will be lessened by the speedy surrender of the rebellious forces.  Of course, it goes without saying that I give my most heartfelt thanks to all of the people who stood with the Republic from the very beginning, including in particular our Governors, presidential candidate Andrew Berger, the President pro tempore, and the Secretary of State.

Now I'd like to take this oppurtunity to congratulate all of our winners this weekend, as well as all of the Senate, Gubernatorial, and Presidential candidates who ran and were unsuccessful.  Everyone plays a part in offering something different to the Atlasian voters, and the choice that many of our citizens had at the ballot boxes this weekend is something that should not be minimized.

I am truly amazed at the presidential result.  Not only was it decisive and without controversy, Q and I broke Atlasian tradition by being the first President and Vice-President to be given a second term by the Atlasian people.  Throughout the upcoming term I will try to not forget the powerful mandate that I have been given by the electorate this weekend.

To those who have willfully deregistered, I urge you to reconsider your decision.  Everyone who has an interest in this game should play their part and make their voice heard.  I was actually particularly enjoying the input of one person who recently deregistered in Senatorial business, although I did not vote for him.

Thanks.

[Ebowed]

A Note About the Armenian Genocide

This weekend the Senate passed a resolution based on a text I proposed that reads:

    1. The government of Atlasia recognizes the forced evacuation and resultant deaths of over a million Armenians as ordered by the government of the Young Turks from 1915 to 1917 to be genocide.
    2. The government of Atlasia hereby condemns the refusal to acknowledge the said events as genocide by the government of Turkey.

Today, a month after the 91st anniversary of this horrible genocide, I would like to once again express my full support of the Senate's actions on this matter and send a message to the Turkish government that while we are not imposing any economic sanctions against them and continue to consider them a strong ally, we are not pleased with the way it treated the Armenian people 91 years ago and join more than a dozen other countries in demanding that the Turkish government simply recognize that they perpetrated the genocide and apologize.  That is all we ask; the time is now for it to happen.

[Ebowed]

OFFICIAL PRESIDENTIAL AGENDA FOR THE FOURTEENTH SENATE SESSION
A weekly sample of legislative proposals for the Senate to consider

Amtrak Privatization Bill

1. All rail subsidies are abolished effective FY 2007.
2. The Amtrak rail system is to be privatized through an auction.
3. The Secretary of the Treasury is authorized to make necessary rules and regulations relating to the process of privatization.
4. The privatization of the Amtrak system shall be completed before the year 2007.
5. The person or corporation who purchases the Amtrak system will be authorized to terminate unprofitable routes at their discretion.


Whaling Bill

1. The Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission is abolished.
2. The act of whaling, the hunting and killing of whales, is hereby criminalized.  No person shall be exempt from this law due to ther ethnic or religious status.
3. The intentional killing of a whale for hunting purposes shall be punishable by a maximum fine of $15,000, a maximum of three years in prison, enviro-centric community service, or any combination of these.


Human Cloning Bill

Section 1: Federal Funding
1. Any business, institution, or organization run by or funded, either in full or in part, by the federal government of Atlasia, shall not engage in human cloning.
2. Any business, institution, or organization outlined above shown to be in violation of this act shall be liable to a three month suspension of their funding pending further investigation.

Section 2: Prohibition
1. This section shall apply in the District of Columbia and in federal territories that do not form part of any region.
2. Human cloning experimentation is hereby prohibited.
3. "Human cloning" is defined as attemps to create a human being through artificial means by experimenting with and attempting to create a clone of a human embryo.
4. Any person who breaks this law will be sentenced to a minimum of five years in prison or a maximum of twenty-five years in prison.  Medical professionals who violate this act shall be liable to a temporary or permanent confiscation of their medical license as found appropriate by the jury.


Corporate Welfare Elimination Bill

1. The Maritime Administration's Guaranteed Loan Subsidies are abolished effective FY 2007.
2. The Department of Defense's Foreign Military Financing program is abolished effective FY 2007.
3. The Department of Commerce's International Trade Administration is abolished effective FY 2007.
4. The Department of Agriculture's Market Access Program is abolished effective FY 2007.


Highways Bill

1. The federal fuel tax, the Federal Highway Trust Fund, and subsidies to mass transit programs are eliminated as of FY 2007.
2. The federal government shall no longer appropriate any funds for the construction and financing of highways.

[Ebowed]

Fourth State of the Union Address

To be blunt, the state of the union could be better.

The short-lived rebellion caused some very severe economic problems, some of which have yet to reveal themselves fully.  Unemployment is up, parts of the Northeast and Mideast regions have suffered property and economic damages, and 270 people lost their lives in the midst of needless violence.  I hope this will serve as a lesson to those who feel that military rebellion is the best way to answer what they view as problems with Atlasia.  I have proposed two bills before the Senate, one that will define these acts as treason in the future, and one that will give monetary aid to the two regions most affected by the rebellion (though the Northeast Governor has graciously refused any such aid due to the struggles of the current federal budget).

Regardless of this, Atlasia just completed one of the most uncontroversial and smoothly ran federal elections in our nation's history.  Special thanks should go to Ernest, the hard working Secretary of Forum Affairs, for his competent administration of the voting booth and work in his position leading up to the election, and to the Senate for responding to various problems in the last election (such as VP-less ballots) which somehow managed not to rear themselves again this election.

We leave the thirteenth Senate as one of the most productive sessions ever, with seventeen pieces of passed legislation and counting.  Much of the passed legislation was proposed at my request, including serious reform to our medicare system and penalties for adoption agencies that discriminate against same-sex couples.  We have also removed trade tarrifs and restrictions on dozens of countries in this session alone, including strong allies such as Australia, New Zealand, Chile, Israel, and Bahrain, among many others.

Today I introduced yet another batch of legislative proposals.  I hope to make new batches of legislation for the Senate to work with a weekly feature of my office beginning this week.  Among the bills posted this morning is one to completely ban whaling in Atlasia.  Currently we have a commission that allows Alaskan Eskimos to hunt and kill up to 800 whales every year.  That's just not right and I hope that the Senate will move to both protect whales and remove unfair race-baced priveleges from our hunting laws.

Next month will break away our long-held tradition of no two-term presidents when I swear into a second term as President of Atlasia.  I will also be giving an inauguration address and announcing the new Cabinet.  I look forward to working with the Senate for another four months and hope to see more citizen input into our lawmaking process.  I'd also like to suggest to all citizens to become more active in regional legislatures, propose laws, and revive regional politics.  This is one of the best ways ordinary citizens can contribute to Atlasia and I hope more people will begin to take advantage of it.

[Ebowed]

OFFICIAL PRESIDENTIAL AGENDA FOR THE FOURTEENTH SENATE SESSION
A weekly sample of legislative proposals for the Senate to consider

Alcohol Reform Bill

1. This act shall apply in the District of Columbia and in federal territories which do not form part of any region.
2. Recognizing that persons between the ages of 18 and 21 are eligible to serve in defense of the country, vote, and consent to sexual relations, the Senate wishes to correct an inconsistency by reforming the age at which restrictions on alcohol are removed.
3. The age at which one may legally purchase, possess, and consume alcohol is hereby lowered to 18.
4. Persons under 18 shall be allowed to consume small quantities of alcohol for religious or medical purposes if under the supervision of a parent or guardian.


Rail and Airlines Bill

1. The Railway Labor Act of 1926 is repealed.
2. The Railway Retirement Act of 1934 is repealed.
3. There shall be no subsidies for airline companies or aircraft producers except those that are given for purposes of defense.
4. All federal legislation preventing airports from being privately owned or operated is repealed.
5. All federal legislation preventing foreign airlines from flying domestic routes in Atlasia is repealed.
6. The Jones Act is repealed.


USPS Privatization Bill

1. The United States Postal Service is to be privatized through an auction.
2. The Secretary of the Treasury is authorized to make any necessary rules and regulations relating to the privatization process.
3. The privatization of the USPS must be completed before the year 2007.
4. Upon the successful privatization of the USPS, all legal restrictions on the competitive delivery of mail are repealed.


National Zoo Privatization Bill

1. The Smithsonian National Zoological Park (National Zoo) is to be privatized through an auction.
2. The Secretary of the Treasury is authorized to make any necessary rules and regulations relating to the privatization process.
3. The privatization of the National Zoo must be completed before the year 2007.


Elimination of Selective Service and Conscription Bill

1. The Selective Service is hereby eliminated.
2. No Atlasian citizen shall be involuntarily required to join the Atlasian Military.

[Ebowed]

Appointments, 7/7/06

Chief Justice: Emsworth
Associate Justice: TexasGurl
Secretary of State: afleitch
Secretary of Defense: Bacon King
Secretary of the Treasury: Bono
Secretary of Forum Affairs: Peter Bell
Attorney General: Cosmo Kramer

Thanks to TCash101, Al, Brandon H, Ernest, and Akno21 for their service in the previous term!

[Ebowed]

Inauguration Address, 7/8/06

Good evening, Atlasians.  We have emerged from one of the least, if not the least, controversial presidential elections ever, with the first re-election of a President in Atlasian history.  With the unfortunate resignation of Chief Justice TCash, and the beginning of the new term yesterday, I nominated the new cabinet as well as replacements for the court.  These nominations can be found earlier in this thread.

The thirteenth senate session found itself to be the most active in Senate history, with twenty-three officially passed pieces of legislation.  We removed tariffs and sought free trade with literally dozens of countries, the latest additions being Thailand, Oman, and India.  We were able to give financial aid to the Mideast to help it with its recovery process after the rebellion events of last month.  We passed legislation to make what the rebels did last month strictly illegal and liable to harsh punishments.  We passed medicare reform, barred funding of adoption agencies that discriminate against same-sex couples, and pursued various social goals in our federal territories.

The fourteenth senate session promises to be just as active.  Two weeks ago I began a weekly feature of legislative proposals written by myself and members of the cabinet.  Some of the legislation has been more well-received than others, but I hope that eventually all of these proposals are duly considered.  In the coming months we will be working on solving our budget problems and hopefully fixing the funding crisis currently being suffered by the Department of State.  At times like these, people must realize that some increases in taxes may become necessary.

Attorney General-designate Cosmo Kramer and I will also be working on GM reform.  The GM issue is not a political issue, but a game issue; the GM has indisputable powers to dictate over matters of the game and, essentially, define the reality of the Atlasian world.  Preston is writing a proposal that will alter the way our news is presented to us here in Atlasia, creating a small panel of GMs where each member will be able to focus on separate issues such as economics or foreign policy; this panel will collectively form the "GM."  We look forward to introducing this exciting proposal to the public.

Finally, I'd like to congratulate Senators MasterJedi and WMS on their re-elections and jerusalemcar5, Jas, and Captian Vlad on their successful elections and hope they will enjoy the atmosphere in the Senate.  Don't hesitate to introduce any legislation, particularly if it's a proposal that originated in this thread .  Above all, remember to have fun and to keep the Senate civilized and cordial (but don't be afraid to have a heated debate!).