Confirmation Hearing: Razze for VP (Approved)

[P. Clodius Pulcher did nothing wrong]

Friends, Atlasians, senators - lend me your eyeballs. I am grateful to have the opportunity to once again serve our country - for the first time in a long time!

Thank you to President Tack, nuestro excelentísimo señor presidente, for nominating me to be vice president of Atlasia. I promise to be a capable #2 who will get the job done with diligence and patience.

Our country has been through a rough last couple of weeks, featuring drama, name-calling, and even harassment nearly approaching the levels once seen in the former United States of America. Seeing the state of things, you can be assured that I will not answer to any clique or faction or political party.

In the midst of the recent conflict over cliques and factionalism, many of you saw first-hand as I maintained friendly contact with colleagues of various stripes and tried to bring everyone "back down to Earth" as often as I could. I am proud of my own (and, if I may say so, my party's) independence in matters of partisan politics.

The most important considerations, however, are with the constitutional duties of the job, and not petty politics. In the past, I was Dean of the Old House of Representatives, and served as the chamber's Speaker for 1 month. As such, I performed a role very similar to the vice presidency of the 5th Republic.

With that experience, know that the vice presidency will be in good hands. Senators, I hope each of you will consider my nomination and trust that I will do a good job as vice president.

☮︎

[P. Clodius Pulcher did nothing wrong]

Thank you, Razze, for providing this opening statement. It is appreciated that you have already touched on your tenure as Dean and Speaker of the House.

In the interest of public debate and to promote a fair hearing, I would like to put forward a question.  As you know, the current makeup of the Senate reflects a concerning degree of divisiveness. It is entirely possible that your role as President of the Senate will be highly significant should we face tied votes on legislation. Could you please speak to your experience as a consequential decision-maker in Congress, or in any other professional role, and how you can best ensure that factionalism and party affiliation will not play a role in your duties as VP?

Thank you for your question. I don't think the appearance of division needs to be a self-fulfilling prophecy. Following the acrimony of last month, I think we should all actually be grateful that we are faced with a nearly equally divided Congress – the people of Atlasia have decided that we, the politicians, should be forced to work together harmoniously despite our personal issues. This is for the greater good of the country we all serve (read: game we all play).

You all know that I hold strong opinions. Each of you, especially the ones who have had disagreements with me in the past, should remember that I am honest about those feelings. I don't plan on getting on my soapbox every week to talk about the issues of the day like I once did, but you can be sure that if I'm asked, you'll get an honest answer. I am an independent voice, and in the case of a tie, I will vote with my own personal beliefs in mind, not for the purposes of promoting "my team," or to win political points against the "other team."

[P. Clodius Pulcher did nothing wrong]

I'm sorry you feel like you can't trust me. All I can do is reiterate that I will act with an open mind and as an independent voice – I hope you will eventually be able to see that I mean it. Feel free to contact me privately if you need.

the acrimony of last month

You mean the President's bursting onto the campaign trail attacking his political opposition, as a whole, right?

To be honest, I'm not sure what you're referring to here specifically. Does this refer to Tack engaging in political attacks and campaigning while running for president? That's his right, as well as yours and mine and every other citizen.

By acrimony, I meant the personal attacks and harassment by various politicians from all corners of the spectrum, all of whom I have publicly and called out before in other threads, and who I have privately spoken to in attempts to get us all to stop fighting so harshly. I believe this shows my consistency. I want us to get back to political simulation again, like we all signed up for, and like I used to enjoy back when I was someone who ran for office. Thank you for asking a question!!

[P. Clodius Pulcher did nothing wrong]

I had some concerns, similar to those that others have expressed, and after talking privately with Razze I think he'll be a fine Vice President who will help detoxify the problems in Nyman.

Thank you, I appreciate it. That will be exactly my goal in Nyman.

[P. Clodius Pulcher did nothing wrong]

Will the economy get better soon? Or will I have to pawn my Microsoft Zune?

Heck yes, honored colleague! And never!
Sent from my Zune HD 64. Please excuse any typos.

[P. Clodius Pulcher did nothing wrong]

1. If President Tack runs for re-election, do you think you will be his running mate?

2. Do you believe that most members of your party support continuing an electoral pact with Labor?

3. What party do you believe Peace's natural partner is, if any?

4. Why do you think prominent members of your party broke with Labor and do you think you can be an effective representative of the elected Peace Vice President, Laki, as a result?

5. Should Peace be independent, determining cooperation on a case by case basis, or instead work with one party primarily?

6. Have you been recently active in elected or appointed office? Why or why not? I may have a follow-up or two to this question depending on the answer.

I think these are important questions since the nominee has stressed his ability to represent Atlasians fairly across the party spectrum.

1. I don't plan on running for vice president in the June election, nor did I (or do I) expect that I would be nominated for VP by a political party, like a VP candidate traditionally should be/would be.

2. As much as I would hate to put too-fine-a-point on current events, I do want to answer your question honestly. So allow me to enter Fantasy Elections political analyst mode. Most members of my party are not active participants in Atlasian politics, and frankly I doubt most of them have even heard about the recent drama over the Feb '23 electoral pact and its consequences. Not realizing the current context that you are alluding to with your question, therefore, I believe most members would end up preferring to ally with the left-wing Labor Party over the right-wing Federalist Party, primarily because that's all they've ever heard of us doing. Currently, the party is in a state of transition where it may be turning into a non-ideological party mostly concerned with transparency, pragmatism, and maybe even anti-Discordism (one can only hope); seeing this, you sees why so many active Peace Party members would probably not support continuing an electoral pact with Labor. As a former member, senator, I'm sure you are watching developments with as much interest as I am!

3. I have to assume the premise of this question is similar to question #2, and the ongoing fight over partisanship. Obviously, Peace worked with the Labor Party for most of our history, since we used to align ourselves openly by ideology and "good team" vs. "bad team," "FF" vs. "HP," etc. (depending on whose side you were on) dynamics. This was very normal with Labor, Feds, Pax, ACP, the lot; we all had fun doing it. As I said before, we are in a transitional state where our "natural" partner may turn out to be Labor, Feds, DA, or even the Poirot Liberals. Watching developments closely.

4. I don't want to speak for other people's motivations. I think I can be an effective representative of our duly elected Vice Preisdent-elect Lakigigar because he and I have trust. On the political side, I respect that he was lawfully chosen as the leader of my political faction; constitutionally, I honor his status as the intended #2 of my new potential boss, Tack50; and personally, I believe he and I can be honest with each other on matters of state.

5. Sure, I guess. I'm not planning on running for chairman of Peace, nor do I want to tell our members how to think or act.

6. No, I haven't been. I retired in 2021 when the new Constitution was enacted and figured I might come back eventually if I felt I could do something. Then Feb 2023 came around and everyone started fighting, so I thought it was high time to come on down and play a cool game with some online friends again help rebuild trust in our political institutions.

Thank you for your questions!

[P. Clodius Pulcher did nothing wrong]

Thank you senators!! I am honored. I will wait for the PPT to confirm the result of this vote before I swear in officially.