The Manticoran Empire wrote:Nationstates Name: The Manticoran Empire
Nation Name: The United States of America
Capital: Washington D.C.
Territory: IRL territory of the United States
Population: 333,048,781
Official Language: None, English is the most widely spoken language with a substantial Spanish speaking population.
Head of State: Name: Roland Wilkerson
Age: 45
Party Affiliation: Republican
Political Positions: Wilkerson has championed the availability of abortion clinics despite his admitted opposition to the practice. He has also supported gay marriage and has been vocal in his criticism of Evangelical campaigns against LGBT communities.
He has routinely voted and campaigned in favor of greatly reduced taxes and government spending, arguing that many federal programs would be better run if left up to state governments, especially when considering socioeconomic differences between the states.
HoS Description in lieu Picture: Wilkerson is a white man of average height with a moderately athletic build. His eyes are blue and his hair is brown.
Head of Government: Roland Wilkerson
HoG Picture (If different from HoS):
Legislature Name: Congress of the United States
Party in Power (If bicameral note who controls each): The 2020 election was indecisive when it came to the control of the Senate and the House. In the Senate, 50 Republicans and 47 Democrats hold seats as well as 3 Independents who generally vote with the Democrats. In the House, the Republicans hold 220 seats to the Democrats 212. Three other seats are currently vacant and await special elections.
GDP (nominal): $21,856,254,000,000 (assuming 2% growth over 2020 from 2019 due to no COVID-19 pandemic)
Major Trade Partners: China, Europe, Japan, Mexico, Canada
Major Exports: Capital Goods, Industrial Goods, Consumer Goods, Automotive, Food
Major Imports: Capital Goods, Consumer Goods, Industrial Goods, Automotive, Food
Oil Production: 11 million barrels
Oil Consumption: 20 million barrels
Proven Oil Reserves: 35 billion barrels
Defense Budget (USD): $740.5 billion
Alliances: NATO, ANZUS, UN Command, NORAD, OAS, Rio Pact, Morroccan-American Treaty of Friendship, US-A SPA, US-I SP, US-J MCS, US-P MDAA, US-Ph MDT, US-SK MDT, TRA, CMF
Military Branches (Just list names of official Armed Forces Branches): Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Space Force
Active Duty: 1.4 million
Reserve Duty: 845,500
Total Manpower: 2,245,500
Tanks: 6,100
AFVs: 40,000
SPA: 1,500
Towed Artillery: 1,340
Rocket Projectors: 1,365
Fighters: 1,956
Dedicated Attack: 761
Transports: 945
Trainers: 2,765
Special Mission: 749
Tanker Fleet: 625
Helicopters: 5,436
Attack Helicopters: 904
Aircraft Carriers: 20
Destroyers: 92
Frigates: 1
Corvettes: 21
Submarines: 68
Patrol: 13
Mine Warfare: 8
Other Military Information: Following the drawdown in Iraq and Afghanistan and the increased military build-up of the Chinese in the South China Sea, the US military began a concerted effort to restructure for peer and near-pear warfare while maintaining a counterinsurgency capability. Part of this involved a study on the efficacy of the Brigade Combat Team, with the conclusion that units needed to become more decentralized and flexible to reduce vulnerability to stand off munitions and drones. Other efforts included the Next Generation Squad Weapon, Infantry Automatic Rifle, Next Generation Combat Vehicle, and a series of land, sea, and air drones for reconnaissance and combat use. The most recent acquisition was the THeMIS unmanned ground vehicle, with several logistics, combat, ISR, and EOD variants being ordered for evaluation and deployment. A proposal has also been levied by the Armed Forces to approach US allies for weapon systems. Notable possibilities include South Korea, China, the United Kingdom, France, and Germany.
History Changes (Subject to review and approval by OP and Co-OP): Several US military programs in the early 21st century that IRL were cancelled came to fruition. Notably the XM2001 Crusader artillery system, the Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle, and the RAH-66 Comanche. The M2001 and its companion M2002 resupply vehicle started replacing the M109 Paladin in 2008. The Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle began replacing Assault Amphibian Vehicles in 2015. And the RAH-66 began supplementing the AH-64 in 2008. Additionally, the Common Support Aircraft began development in 2006 and achieved initial operational capability in 2016, replacing the C-2 and E-2 aircraft with variants being introduced to reintroduce the roles once held by the S-3 Viking.
Improved relations with the USSR led to cooperative efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan against Islamist terror groups. As a result of that, the purchase of F-35s by Turkey was not prevented by the Trump administration.
In the waning months of the Bush presidency, the USSR joined Operation Enduring Freedom in 2008, sending troops to aid the fight against Islamist terror groups in Afghanistan and the Horn of Africa. Later aggrements would see US and USSR forces fighting alongside each other in Iraq, Syria, Libya, Somalia, and several other countries as parts of Enduring Freedom, Resolute Support, and Inherent Resolve. However, an apparent lack of commitment from the US, reinforced by continuing reductions in US troop numbers and several attempts to negotiate a peace deal with the Taliban, have seen relations strained between the two superpowers. President Wilkerson will be forced to demonstrate America's continued committment to combatting global terrorism in order to save the relationship with the USSR.
Wilkerson’s political career began when he was 25 in the 2000 elections as a representative of the state of Illinois. As a young Republican from a mostly liberal state, he believed in some of the conservative Republican values, like having a strong military, low taxes, and reduced government interference in the economy. But he also held some decidedly liberal values, such as a support for abortion and non-conformal relationships. While he won three terms in the US House of Representatives, he did lose his seat in 2006 to a more conservative Republican, largely due to his vocal opposition to many of President Bush’s policies. He returned to Congress in the 2008 election and supported many of the policies of Barack Obama, which helped him clinch a Senate run in 2010, a seat he would hold until the election in 2016, when he would lose to a Democratic candidate. He would continue to be politically active throughout the Trump presidency, largely through speaking with people around the nation about different issues and securing a House seat in the 2018 midterm elections. In late 2019, he announced at a small gathering of supporters that he would not be seeking re-election to the House. Instead, he would be seeking the office of the Presidency.
During the 2020 presidential election campaign, Wilkerson focused less on Trump’s failures and more on what still needed to be done. Thousands of US troops were still in Iraq and Afghanistan, fighting wars that had started nearly two decades ago. The economy’s growth was slowing and there were major fears that the Chinese were trying to harm US companies and people.
It was clear to many that a change was needed. Trump’s presidency had driven wedges between the United States and many of her most important strategic allies. Americans were paying more for imported goods due to the trade war with China. On top of that, the only two other candidates who seemed viable had major scandals clouding their campaigns.
Trump’s impeachment trial and his increasingly unpredictable behavior had badly split the opinion of Republicans. Unfortunately, Joe Biden wasn’t a much better option. His aggressive stance against those who supported Trump and the very suspect dealings of his son with foreign governments ensured that actually support was limited. Had the race been limited to Biden or Trump, the race may have been a very close one indeed. But with an established name to oppose them, the race was far more decisive. With 90 million citizen votes and 300 electoral votes, Wilkerson was elected president and inaugurated on January 20th 2021.
Do not remove - Alpha42