Congratulations, you're the Head-of-State: Now what?

[Legitimists]

What Old Turannia said, I will represent my nation and symbolically protect the constitutional order; the only political power I'd allow myself is the right to consult and to be consulted.

[Kvatchdom]

I can do everything, then? I'd restore the President's rights and responsibilities laws from the 1950s till the 1980s, giving the president the ability to stomp down on an ineffective government when it is called for, and extending the presidency all together. We've never fared better as we did under President Kekkonen, changing the laws made no sense, and it paved the way to the ineffectiveness rampant in Finland today.

Also, I would activate our constitutional article calling for the banning of anti-democratic and parliamentary groups and parties, such as the Communist Party of Finland, FDL, Soldiers of Odin, Sinivalkoinen Rintama and the countless anarchist groups. It makes no sense to allow the existence of these groups when it is clearly unconstitutional. The punishment for planning the betrayal/undermining of the Finnish authority should result in proper punishment.

From that, I would simply continue as our Head of State would. Diplomacy, bargains and speeches.

[Ziegenhein]

I will finish what Lord Vader started.

[Sociopia]

I'm King now? Oh my, I'd probably hand my position back to the legitimate monarch and apologise for the coup.

[Alyakia]

Wait... If you were the head of state of Canada... Wouldn't you be the king of the UK?

De jure, yes. But I was speaking more in de facto terms. The British monarch has very little influence in Canadian politics aside from appointing a Governor General. And even through the Governor General, the monarch's influence is quite limited. The Prime Minister is, de facto, the Canadian Head-of-State, since they're the one who actually runs the country.

the person that runs the country, i.e. runs the government, is already called the the head of government. the entire reason the two separate terms exist is precisely because they're not the same as you think the are.

[Conscentia]

I'm the king now? Do as much of what I want as I could without Parliament restraining my powers (probably nothing), then proceed to attempt to dismantle the monarchy.

[British Prussia]

Now all I have to do is become head of government...

[Conscentia]

Now all I have to do is become head of government...

Is the monarch even allowed to run for election?

[The Danish Confederacy]

Great. I'm the POTUS.

Slowly start a transition to a 1984 style government, and then adopt expansionist policies.

[British Prussia]

Now all I have to do is become head of government...

Is the monarch even allowed to run for election?

Yes

[Alyakia]

Is the monarch even allowed to run for election?

Yes

i kinda wanna see this

e: now that i'm an MP it's time to check who appoints the prime minister oh wait that would be me

[Costa Fierro]

Well, strictly speaking, I cannot be the King of New Zealand so I'll settle for Prime Minister. And if introduced, I'd do the following:

• Legalize, regulate and tax marijuana, ecstasy and LSD.
• Introduce government safe injection sites for hard drugs, with the condition that the users who visit these sits must undergo rehabilitation treatment for their addiction.
• Lower taxes on tobacco and abolish taxes on alcohol.
• Introduce comprehensive driver licensing reform to include compulsory car control and defensive driving courses as well as introduce mandatory vehicle insurance.
• Introduce mandatory driving lessons for tourists wishing to drive on New Zealand roads.
• Increase government spending for public transportation projects.
• Introduce a universal basic income that varies depending on employment states, wages and household conditions.
• Create incentives for greater private investment in renewable energy projects suitable for New Zealand.
• Create regulations for effluent and other dairy industry as well as agricultural pollution in waterways.
• Improve water and air quality standards to ensure better protection for our waterways and our population.

There's probably a bunch of other stuff I've missed out on.

[Ifreann]

Quit and take my pension. Maybe hang around long enough to address the media about how odd it is that a random person got into high office by, like, magic or something.

You're looking at it wrong. You don't resign and take a pension. You resign and then charge people 6 figures to give a short bullshit speech about how any man can succeed if they're randomly uplifted to national leadership via magic.

I can do that while taking a pension. I'll be retired, I'll have plenty of time to write speeches. Might even write my memoirs. President Iffy, Or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Run Ireland.

[Radiatia]

If I was head of state of New Zealand I wouldn't do anything because it's only a ceremonial role. I'd get a big house though, but unfortunately that house would be in Wellington, and I hate Wellington with a burning passion. Plus I'm single and don't have many belongings so what would I even do with a big house?

Oh unless I became the Queen instead of Governor-General... then I'd try to rebuild the British Empire somehow.

[Greater Hunnia]

The most important thing in my country (Hungary) would be putting an end to the all-consuming corruption. I'd temporarily sieze dictatorial power, for that, I'd need the support of the military and a few hundred capable, well trained pindividuals. My first, temporary order would be the banishment of all political leaders, high ranking police officers, judges, and prosecutors who held office before I got into power. These people would be sustituted by the few hundred capable, and trusted individuals I mentioned earlier. The officials removed from power would be forbidden from leaving the country. One-by one, over the course of a few years, they would be carefully screened, those who are all clear could get their jobs back, those who are not would be dealth with adequitly. After a new government is set up, I'd give up most of my power and become a quasi-monarch (regent). My powers would be the ability to veto any legislation made by the parliment, and to propose legislations myself, and I'd be the de jure head of the military.

Democracy would be reformed, the universal right to vote would be abolished. Elections would be held every 8 years instead of 4, but by public referendum, new elections could be requested (this would have to be approved by me). Citizens would have to pass a simple test to assess their factual knowlege about politics and their ability to reason to vote. If there's a consensus between parents on who they want to vote for, they'd also gain extra votes for their children (at most 3).

Death penalty would be reinstituted, but only applied when a case of murder with exceptional brutality, treason, or large scale fraud is proven beyond any doubt. For lesser crimes, prison sentence would be substituted with for-profit forced, but humane labour. For even lesser crimes, that are currently penalised by a few weeks of imprisonment and / or fine, flogging would be a cheaper alternative and a better deterrant, especially in rural areas. Any case of corruption or abuse of power would bar a person from entering any government sector jobs for the remainder of their life.

I'd deal with NGOs the same way as Russia does. And any factual errors made by the media would be heavily penalised.

The Hungarian Scientific Academy would be throughly screened, as I suspect that political agendas are currently priorised over the objective truth in their researches. Once it's cleansed, researches regarding our ancient history, which was a taboo in the past 60 years, should be made. I'd try to make a deal with Russia and Ukrainie to exchange the bodies of dead WW2 soldiers, as the treatment of their graves on both sides is currently a source of tensions.

Conscription would be reinstituted, but with the Swiss model instead of the Soviet one. This, especially the armed population would significantly increase Hungary's defensive capabilities with barely any extra cost.

Very interesting.

I'm curious, what would be your policies in regards to the European Union.

I'd try to quit and take the rest of the V4 with us, to form our own union with blackjack and hookers, also I'd work on expanding the said Union with Croatia, Slovenia and the Baltic states, not only to increase our influence in the region but to decrease Poland's influence within the union itself, not that I have anything against Poland, but I'd rather not take part in any union that is dominated by a single country.

[Costa Fierro]

If I was head of state of New Zealand I wouldn't do anything because it's only a ceremonial role. I'd get a big house though, but unfortunately that house would be in Wellington, and I hate Wellington with a burning passion. Plus I'm single and don't have many belongings so what would I even do with a big house?

Oh unless I became the Queen instead of Governor-General... then I'd try to rebuild the British Empire somehow.

You should invade Samoa.

[Arach-Naga Combine]

Cool, POTUS ACTUALLY isn't a citizen.

use this fact to scare southern states into secession, pretend i'll not let them leave, then right at the brink do everything possible to get rid of them
cut all aid to the government of ANY middle-eastern country, israel not an exception
declare saudi arabia a terrorist state, apply for UN peacekeeping actions, embargo and blockade export of saudi oil to make them realize we're serious
appoint john stewart as a supreme court justice(vermine supreme in case a second spot opens)
send military forces to seize and administer every private prison, press charges for racketeering on everyone in a private prison corp
pardon a whole lot of people
move both marijuana and alcohol to schedule 4 temporarily, get some actual SCIENTISTS to create a classification that isn't nonsense for the DEA to use
Take all of the tanks away from the DEA and half their budget, for starters
challenge putin to a dance-off (and then lose to putin in a dance-off)
hold both houses of congress in perpetual session (enforced by marines, of course) until they make public finance mandatory and raise the minimum wage to 12$ (for starters)

then probably get impeached if I somehow make it THAT far.

[Lydenburg]

It's a good time most of us are just fantasising.

I'm going to take this question seriously for once and be brutally honest: I have some general haze of a political philosophy, sure, but like everybody else here I also have zero practical knowledge or experience of how to run and manage a country. The biggest thing I've ever managed was a survey work crew.

If I took over I would in all likelihood (albeit inadvertently) become the next Zuma.

[Ifreann]

Cool, POTUS ACTUALLY isn't a citizen.

use this fact to scare southern states into succession...

Secession.

[Washington Resistance Army]

Make flamethrowers mandatory for every citizen to own, because reasons.

[Ormyllia]

Whether I have ultimate power or am limited by current powers, this is what I would try to do for Canada.

1: Remove the British monarchy and attempt to make Canada a republic.
2: Leave NATO, adopt Switzerland-like foreign policy
3: Nationalize oil and use the money to bolster the Canadian economy.
4: Legalize Cannabis and instate full equality for the LGBT community in areas such as blood donation, adoption and laws against discrimination.

Beyond that, I'm not quite sure.

[British Prussia]

Yes

i kinda wanna see this

e: now that i'm an MP it's time to check who appoints the prime minister oh wait that would be me

What a coincidence! I'm sure more of these will happen when I become head of the opposition.

Then I'd start amassing head of state and head of government positions of other countries. That way, diplomacy would be much easier.

Then become the CEO of commerce.

Then become an astronaut and cosmonaut.

Oh, and let's not forget to retake, diarm, and tax the colonies without representation.

[New Kvenland]

1. Build wall on Canadian border.
2. Appoint Stephen Colbert adviser, ignore everything he says.
3. Enforce public nudity, with the exception of those living within 100 miles of the Arctic Circle.
4. Invade random Pacific island nations for no good reason.
5. Flip off everyone I possibly can as I am kicked from my position because the Head of State doesn't handle these things.
6. Declare my chosen town (probably a little town on the Alaskan coast) a sovereign state.
7. Die in a heroic last stand fighting for said town.

[Kubra]

abolish my position

[Forsher]

Whether I have ultimate power or am limited by current powers, this is what I would try to do for Canada.

1: Remove the British monarchy and attempt to make Canada a republic.
2: Leave NATO, adopt Switzerland-like foreign policy
3: Nationalize oil and use the money to bolster the Canadian economy.
4: Legalize Cannabis and instate full equality for the LGBT community in areas such as blood donation, adoption and laws against discrimination.

Beyond that, I'm not quite sure.

You would either be the "British" monarchy or their representative (as the Canadian GG). The HoS, in short, reigns but does not rule... unless the HoS is also the HoG (not the case in parliamentary democracies like Canada or Germany*).

*Yes, I know Germany is a republic... the principle of reigns is the same, just a little strange when attached to this context.

abolish my position

You may well not have the power. But I am sympathetic to the idea.