Twilight's Last Gleaming: An American Political RP OOC (Open

[Yaruqo]

Ladies, Gentlemen, and Honorable Nobinary Peeps!

If you turn your attention to the OP (first post for those who are new to NS forums), you will find a link to the IC thread. While we are working on setting up Congress, you can take this time to introduce your characters to the RP if they have been accepted.

For those of you who are new to the “An American Political RP” world, the IC thread is where you will post about your character, what they’re doing, what their struggles might be, and their interactions with other characters. For your first post, it is recommended that you write up at least two paragraphs introducing us to your character. Give us an idea of who they are as a person. We look forward to seeing you there!

[The Anarcho-Syndicalist Commune]

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Character Application and Information Sheet

NS Nation Name: The Anarcho-Syndicalist Commune
Character Name: Stephen Black
Character Gender: Male
Character Age: 40
Character Height: 6'2
Character Weight: 193 lbs.
Character Position/Role/Job: Representative from Colorado's 4th District
Character Country/State of Birth: Colorado
Character State of Residence: Colorado
Character Party Affiliation: Democrat
Faceclaim: Ben Sasse
Main Strengths: A charismatic personality, long family history in his district with great familiarity with the right people to know, and known as a man who gets business done.
Main Weaknesses: He holds a thin majority in his district at the best of times, and is nominally supported by his state party, but is unpopular as a populist and is seen as blocking progress that the CDP is trying to make in the state, as well as being seen by urban voters outside of his main base in Fort Collins as a Democrat in name only. Meanwhile his pro-enviromentalist agenda since he was elected to the congress has been unpopular among the more conservative bases of his home territory, leading to Stephen riding a knife's edge between populism and moderatism that many see as unsustainable.

Biography: Stephen Black is the youngest son of Carson Black, current owner and boss of the Five Horses Ranch located outside of Fort Collins, CO. Comprising a thousand and a half acres, Carson was and remains a strong figure among the Colorado Cattleman's Association and conservatives in the north east corner of the state, serving as Sheriff for Larimer County for two terms from 1980-1992. Stephen spent his early years homeschooled on the ranch, learning to ride, rope, and read books about cowboys and explorers before he learned how to do other things like math. At the age of eleven he was sent to boarding school out east at the behest of his mother, a native Virginian. Attending a variety of prestigious boarding schools in the Northern Virginia area, the teenaged Stephen often spent his free days at school visiting Washington with his friends or hiking in the Shenandoah's as part of class trips. These trips would inspire his two passions in later life, politics and environmentalism. When he returned home for summers and winters he would spend more time in the high country of the rockies then he would on the plains of the family ranch. Upon graduating high school in 1981, not feeling any particular calling in the world, Stephen returned to the east and spent a gap year hiking the Appalachian Trail, much to the dismay of his father. Upon the finishing of his hike, Stephen returned out west, where he was promptly forced to apply to and study at UC-Boulder.

Stephen spent his college years like he would spend most of his life, riding the edge between one world and another. He kept his nose to the grindstone during the day, and engaged with the university's party scene by night. It was a tough way to plow through school and one that he might not have kept himself together doing if it weren't for him meeting his future wife, Laura Miller, in the process. The pair were made for each other, both having a deep interest in both governement and conservation. Together the pair organized several on campus rallies, and both went off to Georgetown Law School upon graduating in 1990. After Law School, Stephen was hired by the Office of the Solicitor in the U.S. Interior office, but was forced to move back out west in early 1991 due to the death of his mother. He opened a private practice focusing on land law and environmental law in Fort Collins, which took off thanks to the never ending land disputes on the plains.

In 1999, Stephen made his first strides into the world of politics since he had to leave Washington. Running for the Mayor of Fort Collins, his first foray into politics was met by abject failure as Stephen with his little experience tried to run his own grassroots campaign and stumbled most of the way, and ended with only a slim margin of the City's vote. Determined to make his mark on the world, and taking his loss in stride, Stephen once again ran for Mayor in 2001, this time with the assistance of his father to form a proper campaign. Stephen ran on making the city one of America's first green cities, along with extensive infrastructure repair and reform. His message struck a chord in the mostly blue city and thanks to a properly managed campaign this time around, he won by a fair margin with 55% of the vote. In his first term, Stephen made much progress on his platform, upgrading his city's road and sewer network and rapidly encouraging solar energy across the city. After being elected to a second term in 2003, Stephen spent much of his next encumbancy encouraging the development of recreational areas and improving the city's education system. A system of public use parks were constructed and Stephen's strides in reading intiatives and pushing use of electronic tools such as laptops in classrooms has been seen as ahead of it's time amongst his Colorado political peers. He declined to run for a third term in 2005, instead announcing his candidacy for Colorado's 4th District in 2006.

Promoted by his father's friends in the Cattleman's association, and running on a platform emphasizing better representation for the cattle industry as well as better subsidies, extensive environmental investment into green energy and protection, support of NCLB, as well as going against the grain of his party with support for gun rights. He also supported a more extensive healthcare system which he presented as being good for Cowboys often put out of work or forced into extensive debts to a ranch boss by their dangerous profession. With this platform, as well as promoting the good he had done the City of Fort Collins, and vastly better fundraising than his primary opponent, Stephen went into the primary election strong. Utilizing a strong ground game and friends in high places through his fathers contacts, as well as thanks to his more moderate leanings as opposed to the very libertaria of his primary opponent, an old city council rival from Fort Collins, Stephen won the primary with 59% of the vote. His opponent ended up running on a Libertarian ticket, attempting to appeal to the conservative base of the county by painting both Stephen and the republican candidate as moderates and two sides of the same coin. He managed to score 5% of the vote in the proper election, which in turn allowed Stephen managed to eke out a 1.5% victory in the election over his republican challenger, a victory many believe he would have lost if he had faced an encumbent. He now serves as a member of the House Energy and Commerce and Natural Resources committees, where he has been advocating for the Cattle industry his district relies upon while also trying to pass green energy bills to earn the support of his blue voters in Denver's suburbs and his home city of Fort Collins
Other Info:

I have read and accepted the rules of the roleplay: The Anarcho-Syndicalist Commune

Do Not Remove: DRAFT123123

Added some about the primary and added an analogue to CO-4's unusual 3rd party showing in 2006

[Madrinpoor]

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Character Application and Information Sheet

NS Nation Name: The Anarcho-Syndicalist Commune
Character Name: Stephen Black
Character Gender: Male
Character Age: 40
Character Height: 6'2
Character Weight: 193 lbs.
Character Position/Role/Job: Representative from Colorado's 4th District
Character Country/State of Birth: Colorado
Character State of Residence: Colorado
Character Party Affiliation: Democrat
Faceclaim: Ben Sasse
Main Strengths: A charismatic personality, long family history in his district with great familiarity with the right people to know, and known as a man who gets business done.
Main Weaknesses: He holds a thin majority in his district at the best of times, and is nominally supported by his state party, but is unpopular as a populist and is seen as blocking progress that the CDP is trying to make in the state, as well as being seen by urban voters outside of his main base in Fort Collins as a Democrat in name only. Meanwhile his pro-enviromentalist agenda since he was elected to the congress has been unpopular among the more conservative bases of his home territory, leading to Stephen riding a knife's edge between populism and moderatism that many see as unsustainable.

Biography: Stephen Black is the youngest son of Carson Black, current owner and boss of the Five Horses Ranch located outside of Fort Collins, CO. Comprising a thousand and a half acres, Carson was and remains a strong figure among the Colorado Cattleman's Association and conservatives in the north east corner of the state, serving as Sheriff for Larimer County for two terms from 1980-1992. Stephen spent his early years homeschooled on the ranch, learning to ride, rope, and read books about cowboys and explorers before he learned how to do other things like math. At the age of eleven he was sent to boarding school out east at the behest of his mother, a native Virginian. Attending a variety of prestigious boarding schools in the Northern Virginia area, the teenaged Stephen often spent his free days at school visiting Washington with his friends or hiking in the Shenandoah's as part of class trips. These trips would inspire his two passions in later life, politics and environmentalism. When he returned home for summers and winters he would spend more time in the high country of the rockies then he would on the plains of the family ranch. Upon graduating high school in 1981, not feeling any particular calling in the world, Stephen returned to the east and spent a gap year hiking the Appalachian Trail, much to the dismay of his father. Upon the finishing of his hike, Stephen returned out west, where he was promptly forced to apply to and study at UC-Boulder.

Stephen spent his college years like he would spend most of his life, riding the edge between one world and another. He kept his nose to the grindstone during the day, and engaged with the university's party scene by night. It was a tough way to plow through school and one that he might not have kept himself together doing if it weren't for him meeting his future wife, Laura Miller, in the process. The pair were made for each other, both having a deep interest in both governement and conservation. Together the pair organized several on campus rallies, and both went off to Georgetown Law School upon graduating in 1990. After Law School, Stephen was hired by the Office of the Solicitor in the U.S. Interior office, but was forced to move back out west in early 1991 due to the death of his mother. He opened a private practice focusing on land law and environmental law in Fort Collins, which took off thanks to the never ending land disputes on the plains.

In 1999, Stephen made his first strides into the world of politics since he had to leave Washington. Running for the Mayor of Fort Collins, his first foray into politics was met by abject failure as Stephen with his little experience tried to run his own grassroots campaign and stumbled most of the way, and ended with only a slim margin of the City's vote. Determined to make his mark on the world, and taking his loss in stride, Stephen once again ran for Mayor in 2001, this time with the assistance of his father to form a proper campaign. Stephen ran on making the city one of America's first green cities, along with extensive infrastructure repair and reform. His message struck a chord in the mostly blue city and thanks to a properly managed campaign this time around, he won by a fair margin with 55% of the vote. In his first term, Stephen made much progress on his platform, upgrading his city's road and sewer network and rapidly encouraging solar energy across the city. After being elected to a second term in 2003, Stephen spent much of his next encumbancy encouraging the development of recreational areas and improving the city's education system. A system of public use parks were constructed and Stephen's strides in reading intiatives and pushing use of electronic tools such as laptops in classrooms has been seen as ahead of it's time amongst his Colorado political peers. He declined to run for a third term in 2005, instead announcing his candidacy for Colorado's 4th District in 2006.

Promoted by his father's friends in the Cattleman's association, and running on a platform emphasizing better representation for the cattle industry as well as better subsidies, extensive environmental investment into green energy and protection, support of NCLB, as well as going against the grain of his party with support for gun rights. He also supported a more extensive healthcare system which he presented as being good for Cowboys often put out of work or forced into extensive debts to a ranch boss by their dangerous profession. With this platform, as well as promoting the good he had done the City of Fort Collins, and vastly better fundraising than his primary opponent, Stephen went into the primary election strong. Utilizing a strong ground game and friends in high places through his fathers contacts, as well as thanks to his more moderate leanings as opposed to the very libertaria of his primary opponent, an old city council rival from Fort Collins, Stephen won the primary with 59% of the vote. His opponent ended up running on a Libertarian ticket, attempting to appeal to the conservative base of the county by painting both Stephen and the republican candidate as moderates and two sides of the same coin. He managed to score 5% of the vote in the proper election, which in turn allowed Stephen managed to eke out a 1.5% victory in the election over his republican challenger, a victory many believe he would have lost if he had faced an encumbent. He now serves as a member of the House Energy and Commerce and Natural Resources committees, where he has been advocating for the Cattle industry his district relies upon while also trying to pass green energy bills to earn the support of his blue voters in Denver's suburbs and his home city of Fort Collins
Other Info:

I have read and accepted the rules of the roleplay: The Anarcho-Syndicalist Commune

Do Not Remove: DRAFT123123

Added some about the primary and added an analogue to CO-4's unusual 3rd party showing in 2006

Only one note: You said his primary opponent for the House seat was a Libertarian trying to appeal to conservatives, but also painted Stephen as a Republican? I'd love a little explanation.

Almost done!

[Dentali]

IC IS UP


viewtopic.php?f=31&t=516143


Congress thread will be launch in about a week, we need to iron out some of the details.... We should be advancing the timeframe of the RP every monday, with this week being a bit longer so people can get their feet wet.

[Dentali]

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Character Application and Information Sheet

NS Nation Name: Dentali
Character Name: George Malcolm Pierce Jr
Character Gender: M
Character Age: 68
Character Height: 5’8”
Character Weight: 216 lbs
Character Position/Role/Job: Senator from Arizona. Elected 2006
Character Country/State of Birth: Arizona
Character State of Residence: Arizona
Character Party Affiliation: Independent, Republican Caucusing
Faceclaim: Wendell Pierce
Main Strengths: unifying figure, crazy high favorable, outsider, popular politics in general, military and FP experience
Main Weaknesses: lack of political experience, too moderate for primary, lacks any political Allies or connections, alienated evangelicals and neocons
Biography: George Malcolm Pierce Jr was born to George and Linda Pierce in Tucson, Arizona in 1940. His father was a mechanic who would serve in the Army Corp of Engineers during WW2 and his mother was a teacher, the couple had 4 children. George would attend public school in a bad part of Detroit but would excel and eventually graduate class Salutatorian and scored a 168 on an IQ test. He would go to the University of Arizona in 1956 joining Alpha Phi Alpha, one of the earliest I-M African American fraternities, and graduated with a degree in Engineering.

As a member of the ROTC he would graduate in 1960 and be commissioned as an infantry 2nd Lieutenant. He earned his Parachutist Badge and was assigned as a platoon leader to the 187th Airborne Infantry. George’s first overseas assignment was with the 6th Infantry Regiment in West Germany, serving as an Aide-de-Camp to the Brigadier General of the Berlin Brigade. In 1963 he was promoted to Captain and spent 8 months attending Advanced Infantry School. In 1964 he enrolled at the University of Southern California to pursue his masters in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering graduating in ‘66.

After Graduation he volunteered for service in South Vietnam rather than teaching for faster career advancement. He served as a task force advisor to the Republic of Vietnam’s Airborne Division. During this tour he would be wounded by a Punji Stick during his first combat experience while fighting in the Central Highlands breaking a siege. For this action he was awarded the Silver Star and Purple Heart. 6 months later he was wounded four more times in a single action and was awarded a second Silver Star and a Purple Heart.

After 10 months of combat duty Pierce left the frontlines and became a staff advisor for civil affairs for the ARVN Airborne Division and then returned stateside as an associate professor in the Mechanics Department at West Point. In ‘68 he attended the Command and General Staff College and completed the course in June of ‘69. He would return to Vietnam in July of 69 with the rank of Lt Colonel for a second tour, this time serving as an Executive Officer to the MACV Chief of Staff in Saigon. This tour had a massive effect on him, as he saw the demoralization of the troops, leading to rampant drug use and poor discipline.

Still Pierce gained a reputation as an effective and aggressive commander amid a poor brigade performance record. He led from the front and became known for a short temper. It was also during this tour that he accidentally ordered his helicopter to land in a minefield. Poor judgment on his part led to the deaths of 3 soldiers under his command. After this tour he was awarded a third Silver Star as well as a Bronze Star and a Legion of Merit in 1970.

Upon his return he was interviewed by a newspaper and said

“I don't think there will ever be another major confrontation where the armies line up on both sides. If that happens, it's inevitably going to be nuclear weapons and the whole thing. So I think all wars of the future are going to be—and again, God forbid, I hope we don't have any. War is a profanity, it really is. It's terrifying. Nobody is more anti-war than an intelligent person who's been to war. Probably the most anti-war people I know are Army officers—but if we do have a war, I think it's going to be limited in nature like Vietnam and Korea. Limited in scope. And when they get ready to send me again, I'm going to have to stop and ask myself, "is it worth it?" That's a very dangerous place for the nation to be when your own army is going to stop and question”

His negative experiences during the second tour and the treatment of Vietnam Veterans made Pierce seriously consider leaving the military for good. Instead he served a White House Fellowship from 1972 to 1973 and then attended the National War College from 1974-75. In ‘76 he assumed command of the 1st Brigade of the 9th Infantry Division which he commanded until 1978 when he received his first star as a brigadier general.

Pierce served two years as assistant division commander of the 8th Infantry Division in Germany between 1981 and 1983 before returning to Washington as the director of personnel management for the Army where he was promoted to Major General. In ‘83 he was given command of the 24th Infantry.

He was appointed to the command group for the Invasion of Grenada and became well known for clashing to the overall operation commander for the poor communication, coordination and logistics operations. He would say privately during this time that he did not think the US should have been involved in the conflict and began to push hard for greater cooperation between the branches, and for the implementation of policies that would make joint warfare the standard. This was a doctrine that would win out, and would become the basis for the “Pierce Doctrine”

After the invasion he would become assistant Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations and Plans at the Pentagon for until mid ‘86. Before returning to Georgia to command I Corps as a Lt General. In ‘87 he returned once more to Washington as the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations and Plans, but more importantly during this time he began a secondary role as the Army’s senior member of the Military Staff Committee at the UNSC where he garnered valuable foreign policy experience and diplomatic skills, which included arms reduction talks with the Soviet Union.

In January of 1989 Pierce was named Commander of CENTCOM, a dark horse candidate chosen over a more popular vice admiral and was promoted to General. This position made him responsible for US Military Operations in 19 countries and for 200,000 service Members. During this time he was very concerned with the Iran-Iraq war and led a wargame of the Soviet Union invading through the Zagros Mountains. In multiple testimonies before the Senate Armed Services Committee between 1988 and 1990 he impressed the committee with his command over the intricate relationships of the region and encouraged the US to seek a moderating influence in Iraq and stated the threat the nation posed to its neighbors, particularly under Saddam Hussein. He would direct his command to prepare for the ‘most realistic conflict scenario’ in coming years, that being the invasion of Kuwait by Iraq eventually drafting a War plan for the Defense of the Arabian Peninsula which envisioned an invasion of Saudi Arabia by Iraq through Kuwait. And in 1990’s Internal Look ‘90 he wrote a scenario clearly based on a theoretical invasion of Kuwait by Iraq. Only 1 week after the exercises concluded Iraq invaded.

General Pierce activated his contingency plans, putting his local troops on alert and then had an immediate emergency meeting with the President. Pierce’s internal plans were made the basis for the aggressive response to the invasion. Learning from the mistakes of the vietnam war Pierce’s plan called for decisive and overwhelming force.

Pierce began to be closely followed by the media, conducting front line inspect tours of the combat zones accompanied by reporters and conducting many high profile press conferences. He worked closely with the other allied nations contributing military forces and highlighted their contributions, while working to minimize culture clashes. Pierce frequently worked 18 hour days for the planning of the operation where he would command a multinational force of over 750,000 and cultivated close relationships with the French, British and Saudi commanders.

After 139 days of planning Operation Desert Storm Commenced. Within 10 days total air superiority had been achieved and the Iraqi army had been fooled into believing the attack would focus on Kuwait directly. Instead he launched a ‘left hook’ into Iraq itself, and within 90 hours 42 out of 50 Iraqi divisions had been destroyed at the cost of 125 American and 482 coalition lives. On February 27th after a media blackout he gave a famous hour long press conference where he gave a truly comprehensive and comprehensible detailing of events.

He was greeted by the President with a large Parade down Broadway in NYC and given numerous honors becoming the only person to receive the Distinguished Service Cross from the Army, Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard. He continued to lead CENTCOM and in ‘93 was assigned as the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff for the incoming (Not-Clinton) administration, becoming the youngest chairman in its history and the first commissioned through the ROTC.

He was considered a bad fit for the administration which was made up of liberal internationalists, particularly clashing with Madeleine Albright over situations like the Bosnian Crisis which he felt did not involve US interests. He also clashed with SoD Leslie Aspin who he felt was disinterested in his presentations and with whom he laid the blame for the Battle of Mogadishu.

Pierce would resign in 1994 and retire from the military and move to Arizona where his son had settled to be closer to his family. He founded the “America’s Promise” program which would help children around the country coming from poor means. He was profiled by the Associated Press, the Washington Post, and Newsday, People, as well as praised in a Random House publication on the war, “Triumph in the Desert.” His speaking fees topped $60,000 per public appearance. In 1995, he published a memoir, “It Doesn't Take a Hero”, about his life; it became a bestseller and Pierce sold the rights to his memoirs to Bantam Books for $5,000,000. That same year he would win $24,000 on celebrity jeopardy for his charity.

He was considered a potential Republican candidate for the ‘96 election but said he was an independent and decided not to run, though the truth was also linked to his wife’s misgivings. Despite this he won the Republican New Hampshire Vice-Presidential Primary on write-in votes.

In 1998 Pierce officially registered as a Republican and many believed he would run in 2000 but once again his wife’s mental health issues, which included a several month stint in a psychiatrist facility in the 80s, kept him from doing so. Instead he endorsed (Not Bush) and gave a powerful speech at the 2000 convention, he had a favorable rating of over 80% at the time.

In 2001 Pierce was unanimously confirmed as Secretary of State and became the first African American in the position. In the wake of 9/11 Pierce’s chief job was managing the coalition in the War on Terror and spearheading the HIV/AIDS relief efforts of the (Not Bush) administration.

In ‘03 he was given the job of building the case of the invasion of Iraq. Pierce favored involving the international community instead of a unilateral approach and argued in favor of military action to the UN. He later said this speech was given on four days' notice and he did not know the dubious nature of the intelligence dossier and later described it on Barbara Walters as a ‘Painful blot on my record.’

After Saddam was deposed Pierce continued to work on maintaining and building coalitions, this time to rebuild Iraq, even testifying in ‘04 that he now knew much of the information used to justify the invasion was ‘flat out wrong’ and he thought it would be unlikely any WMDs would be found and pushed to reform intelligence services and sharing. He notably called the Darfur Genocide a genocide, thus becoming the first cabinet member to use such a term to describe an ongoing conflict.

Tensions within the administration between Pierce, particularly with the Vice President, and the failing health of his wife cause Pierce to choose not to serve for a second (Not Bush) term, though many believe he would have been forced out regardless. His achievements in the state department include solving a Crisis with China and leading the international HIV/AIDS initiative, and blocking the attempts of the Vice President to tie Saddam to the 9/11 attacks.

After retirement he spent the majority of his time with his wife before her passing in early ‘05 from cancer. Continuing to see what he saw as the Not-Bush administration flailing and mismanaging the war on terror, Hurricane Katrina and curbing civil liberties at Home he once again considered entering politics. He consulted a number of individuals and experts to consider an 08 campaign for President, but his moderate positions made him unlikely to win the primary for either party and risked hurting his reputation and legacy should he begin to contort himself for the race.

Instead he announced he would run for Senate in ‘06, challenging the incumbent Republican in Arizona as an independent caucusing with republicans. Not-McCain Arizona’s other Senator made a public announcement to ‘not take sides’ leading many to interpret this as a tacit endorsement of Pierce. Pierce also collected endorsements from around the country from non-politicians and many moderates, amassed an impressive warchest and was heavily covered by the media. The Republican Senate leadership was already stretched far too thin, and elected to not send more than the bare minimum of support to the incumbent Republican. Still Pierce was a novice at campaigning as was his team, as he chose loyalists and up and comers rather than seasoned campaigning veterans to run things. He was hit hard on his moderate abortion position but for the most part was able to run a populist campaign and his personal favorables actually hurt those attacking him.

In the end he won with a plurality of the vote, 42%. He has since made several pushes to protect civil liberties and has supported a number of consensus driven pieces of legislation, joining Arizona’s other Senator as a “Maverick”. His main focus is trying to drive the GOP more towards the center. Many believe he will run for President in ‘08 but he has privately ruled it out. He has said he intends to serve two terms AT MOST.

By this time his national favorables had dropped to the mid 60s as he had finally gone into the morass of politics directly.


Other Info: Serves on Armed Services and Foreign Relations Committees. Has 3 sons and 1 daughter.


I have read and accepted the rules of the roleplay: Dentali

Do Not Remove: DRAFT123123

1. He's both unifying and alienates groups/has no allies?
2. Military stuff is good
3. Awfully liberal for being popular with Republicans...I know he's an independent, but that means he has to toe the line between both liberals and conservatives, especially in 2007 Arizona. He has less freedom to be a maverick, and to try and move a party he doesn't belong to towards the center.
4. I'd add name recognition as a strength from his books and stuff, but it's up to you.
5. Will you have enough photos of Wendell Pierce being politicianey? Idk, just consider that.
6. He seems way too popular. He's a war hero, but he's also a pol who's spent a lot of time crafting strategies and campaigns. He doesn't have a cult following like Bernie, and he isn't just consistently amazing like Angela Merkel.
7. I do like the idea of an Independent Republican-caucausing guy though

1. The idea is that yea his politics are popular and he is personally popular but he has done this by alienating the establishment and the major groups which propel candidates forward.
3. I'm happy for some suggestions, he's not too far from McCain
4. yea sure i figure that would go without saying
5. Lots of him in suits and committees plus military pics
6. lol about Merkel. I took Colin Powell's irl popularity and lowered it by 20 points

[Alozia]

First draft of my app.

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Character Application and Information Sheet

NS Nation Name: Alozia
Character Name: Robert J. Wallace
Character Gender: Male
Character Age: 45
Character Height: 5 ft. 7 in.
Character Weight: 154 lbs
Character Position/Role/Job: U.S. Senator from Vermont (2005 - Present)
Character Country/State of Birth: Vermont
Character State of Residence: Vermont
Character Party Affiliation: Democratic
Faceclaim: Dusty Johnson
Main Strengths:

We, the People - Robert Wallace is known for his grassroots activism, entering the Senate not through the halls of Ivy League schools, but rather the Main Street. He's well connected to his constituents, often holds town halls and enjoys high popularity within his state.

Tears Welling Up - Wallace's youth can be considered endearing, as his changing fortunes can be inspirational to a section of population.

Main Weaknesses:

A Man, An Island - Being a grassroots politicians comes with its downsides as Robert Wallace has few, if any, connections to major players in Washington. This makes it harder for him to make an attempt at increasing his power through institutionalized means, forcing him to rely on the sheer power of his popular appeal.
Little Visual Appeal - Wallace is relatively short, skinny and - worst of all - a ginger. This doesn't make him visually appealing.

Biography: Robert John Wallace was born on June 13, 1962 in Burlington, Vermont. Raised in a middle-class family was involved in politics from a young age, winning his first election as a high school student in Burlington High School becoming student body president. Having lived in a relatively liberal state in the 1980s, he became involved in left-wing politics, influenced by his personal opposition to the Reagan Administration, affiliating with the Liberty Union Party and rising to prominence for progressive advocacy.

During his time in college, when Wallace studied at the Robert Larnier College of Medicine at the University of Vermont, his father lost his job, the family's house was forclosed on and the Wallaces lived for two years in an abandoned gas station. Robert and his parents struggled to make ends meet, their accommodation lacked a functioning toilet and the family had to rely on support from friends to support themselves financially while Robert finished his education. Things improved during Robert's final year in college and his family moved to new accommodations and Robert was able graduate with a M.D. in 1983. Following his graduation, he began working as an internist and would do so until being elected to the House of Representatives.

Wallace's first successful political undertaking came in 1992 when he was elected to the Vermont State Senate in Chittenden County officially registered as "Democrat/Progressive". There, he first established himself as a progressive politician active in his community. Constituents appreciated his frequent townhalls and advocacy for green projects as well as for the elderly and sick in the state. He was one of the people involved in organizing busses to Canada to help Vermonters buy medications at a lower price, alongside [not-Bernie Sanders]

Wallace first ran for the House of Representatives in 1996 against then-incumbent first-term Republican as a Democrat. The Democratic Party initially looked skeptically at Wallace's candidacy, considering it too similar to that of [not-Bernie Sanders], Independent Representative who caucused with the Democrats for two terms before narrowly losing his seat in the 1994 Republican Revolution by a single percentage point, but supported Robert in the general election in hopes of regaining the seat and preventing the Republicans from entrenching themselves in the position. Running on a platform of reducing economic inequalities and ending obstruction in Congress, Wallace enjoyed the support of incumbent Democratic Senator from Vermont [not-Patrick Leahy] and Governor [not-Howard Dean]. Proving the previous election to be more of a fad than a trend, Wallace won 54% - 43%, unseating the incumbent Republican and becoming the first Democrat since 1961 and only the second since 1853 to represent Vermont. Analysts cite Wallace's positive campaigning and the 1996 presidential election as one of two major factors that lead to Democratic victory, as well as the relative unpopularity of Republican policies among Vermont voters, who were disappointed with their Republican Representative following the party line on a number of key votes and issues. During his tenure in the House Wallace has not faced significant electoral opposition.

As a Representative, Wallace voiced his support for healthcare reform, supported the creation of SCHIP (later known as CHIP) and co-operated closely with then-First Lady [not-Hillary Clinton]. Their working relationship was good during the [not-Clinton] Administration, but would later deteriorate due to growing policy disagreements. As Congressman, he took interest in the conflict in Northern Ireland, working on the issue with Congressman [not-Pete King], but once again that relationship would deteriorate later on, as [not-Pete King] would become disgruntled with the IRA's vocal opposition to the Iraq War and USA's involvement.

Wallace was a vocal critic of the war in Iraq, both in the House and the Senate, opposing the resolution on the war and participating in the anti-war movement. In the early 2000s, Robert became somewhat distanced towards the Democratic caucus as a number of members "didn't do enough" to oppose [not-President Bush]. He broke off with some [not-Clinton]-era associates over the issues of Afghanistan and Iraq. Despite this, as Senator, Wallace took a trip to Iraq in February 2005, only a month after his swearing-in, to visit American troops stationed there and to look into the issue of healthcare in post-invasion Iraq. He opposed legislation to increase the number of U.S. troops in Iraq.

In 2003 the then-incumbent Senator from Vermont [not-Patrick Leahy] suffered a heart attack, forcing him into retirement. With the primary now open, Wallace took little time to throw his hat into the ring and officially began his campaign. Registering to run as in the Democratic primary in November 2003, Wallace's campaign focused on a number of progressive causes - expanding access to healthcare, increasing minimum wage, establishing prescription medication price controls - while also taking stances relatively unorthodox for a liberal politician, such as opposing gun control. With state-wide name recognition, Wallace had little trouble winning the Democratic primary and moved on to the general election. There, he faced 6 opponents including candidates from the Republican and Green parties as well as a candidate from Liberty Union and two Independents. He won the November election with relative ease, campaigning on economic issues as well as opposition to the war and was sworn in on January 3, 2005.

Wallace opposed President [not-Bush]'s nominations to the Supreme Court, that of [not-Roberts] and [not-Alito].

In 2005, he opposed increased regulation on video games, calling it a moral panic. Since then, Wallace has become a noted video game advocate, popular with a section of younger voters.
Other Info:
Married, with two children
I have read and accepted the rules of the roleplay: Alozia

Do Not Remove: DRAFT123123

[Dentali]

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Character Application and Information Sheet

NS Nation Name: New Provenance
Character Name: John Walker Cush
Character Gender: Male
Character Age: 67 years
Character Height: 182 cm
Character Weight: 79 kg
Character Position/Role/Job: Governor of Texas (1994-2000), President of the United States (2000-present)
Character Country/State of Birth: Connecticut, U.S.A.
Character State of Residence: Washington, D.C.
Character Party Affiliation: Republican Party
Faceclaim: Conrad Burns
Main Strengths:

The Cush Name - Cush had since his start in politics when he ran for the House of Representatives in 1978 the advantage of a well-known family name. His family was wealthy and fairly popular in Texas for his father and his grandfather were businessmen in the oil industry in particular. When his father, John H.W. Cush, became president in 1988, Cush became a household name. As such in 1995 he won the Texas governorship after co-owning the Texas Rangers baseball team in the years prior.
A Persuasive Speaker - As opposed to his father, who was seen as an 'awkward' speaker, John W. Cush is an eloquent and persuasive speaker, with an aura of charisma around him.
To Infinity and Beyond - Thanks to the wealth of the Cush family and their connections with politicians and businessmen alike, campaign funding is barely an issue for John W. Cush.

Main Weaknesses:

Not One of Us - Cush's opponents have regularly made the argument that he is elitist and out-of-touch with common Americans due to his wealth and connections all over America, and unfortunately such arguments have gained some support among the American public, damaging the president's public appeal significantly.
In The Shadow - John W. Cush's father, who served as the American president from 1988 to 1992, was regarded as a popular president due to his role in the successful Gulf War in 1991. He is claimed to be the person who oversaw the collapse of America's greatest geopolitical rival and the person who oversaw promising economic growth during his tenure. While Cush too was fairly successful, the surplus at the end of the previous administration disappeared with the War on Terror and his failure to handle Hurricane Katrina has pushed him into the shadow of his father, with many doubting whether or not he is up for the top job in the White House.
Ulterior Motives - Cush has been occasionally accused by opponents of using his position as president to further the interests of his family and his business. While he has repeatedly denied these accusations and no substantial evidence can be found, the accusations have yet to stop coming in.

Biography: (Minimum 2-3 paragraphs)

John Walker Cush was born to John H.W. Cush and Barbara P. Cush on July 6, 1946 in New Haven, Connecticut. He was the first and eldest child of the couple and was raised in Midland and Houston, Texas alongside his four siblings, Jeb, Neil, Martin and Dorothy. His younger sister, Robin, died at three years old from leukemia in 1953, greatly affecting John. His family had long been involved in politics as his paternal grandfather, Prescott Cush, was a U.S. senator from Connecticut.

Cush exceled in public schools in Midland in his early years before his family moved to Houston, where he continued his education after seventh grade before studying at The Kinkaid School, a college-preparatory school in Houston. He attended high school in Andover, Massachusetts where he played baseball and served as head cheerleader. Here he was elected class president, giving him his first experience in 'politics'. He attended Yale University from 1964 to 1968, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in history.

In 1973 he entered Harvard Business School, from which he graduated in 1975 with an MBA degree.

In 1977, Cush married Laura Welsh, a schoolteacher and librarian who he met through mutual friends. The same year, he established Arbusto Energy, a small oil exploration company, which was later renamed to Cush Exploration. In 1984 the company merged with Spectrum 7, a company of which Cush became chairman.

His first exploratory maneuver into politics was in 1978, when he ran unsuccessfully for Texas's 19th Congressional District. He won 46.8% of the vote to his opponent Kent Hance's 53.2%.

In 1988, the Cush family moved to Washington, D.C. to help on John Sr.'s presidential campaign that year, which he won successfully.

In the 1994 election, John W. Cush successfully defeated the Democratic incumbent to secure the Texas governorship, at the same time his brother Jeb unsuccessfully sought the Florida governorship. As governor he signed a bill allowing Texans to obtain permits to carry concealed weapons and used the state's largest surplus to enact a $2 billion tax cut, the state's largest. He extended government funding to programs dedicated to raising awareness on the dangers of alcohol and drug use, as well as the dangers of domestic violence.

In 1998, Cush won re-election with a massive 68% of the popular vote, displaying his apparent popularity as Texas governor. In 1999 he enacted legislation that would go on to make Texas one of the largest wind power-producing states in America.

John W. Cush successfully sought the 2000 Republican presidential nomination and the same year defeated the Democratic candidacy for the presidency of the United States. He portrayed himself as a compassionate conservative, implying he was more centrist compared to other Republicans. He campaigned on a platform of bringing integrity and honor back to the White House, as well as increasing the size of the military, cutting taxes, improving education and aiding minorities. He won the election in the closest presidential race in American history.

In 2001 Cush led the War on Terror in Afghanistan and later in 2003 in Iraq against the Iraqi tyrant who the American government claimed possessed weapons of mass destruction. At first the war was immensely popular among Americans, but as the supposedly few-month-long fight stretched into several years, it became one of the reasons for Cush's fall in popularity.

Commanding broad support in the Republican Party, Cush secured the 2004 Republican presidential nomination with ease and without any significant challengers. In November 2004, he defeated the Democratic presidential candidate for re-election.

In 2005 Hurricane Katrina hit the United States, devastating most of the Gulf Coast of the U.S. Cush's popularity took a nosedive afterwards when he received extreme criticism for downplaying his administration's inadequate response to the hurricane and the destruction left in its wake.

Other Info:
I have read and accepted the rules of the roleplay: (Your Nation's Name Here)

Do Not Remove: DRAFT123123

ACCEPTED123123

[Rygondria]

Is secretary of defense available?

[Dentali]

First draft of my app.

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Character Application and Information Sheet

NS Nation Name: Alozia
Character Name: Robert J. Wallace
Character Gender: Male
Character Age: 45
Character Height: 5 ft. 7 in.
Character Weight: 154 lbs
Character Position/Role/Job: U.S. Senator from Vermont (2005 - Present)
Character Country/State of Birth: Vermont
Character State of Residence: Vermont
Character Party Affiliation: Democratic
Faceclaim: Dusty Johnson
Main Strengths:

We, the People - Robert Wallace is known for his grassroots activism, entering the Senate not through the halls of Ivy League schools, but rather the Main Street. He's well connected to his constituents, often holds town halls and enjoys high popularity within his state.

Tears Welling Up - Wallace's youth can be considered endearing, as his changing fortunes can be inspirational to a section of population.

Main Weaknesses:

A Man, An Island - Being a grassroots politicians comes with its downsides as Robert Wallace has few, if any, connections to major players in Washington. This makes it harder for him to make an attempt at increasing his power through institutionalized means, forcing him to rely on the sheer power of his popular appeal.
Little Visual Appeal - Wallace is relatively short, skinny and - worst of all - a ginger. This doesn't make him visually appealing.

Biography: Robert John Wallace was born on June 13, 1962 in Burlington, Vermont. Raised in a middle-class family was involved in politics from a young age, winning his first election as a high school student in Burlington High School becoming student body president. Having lived in a relatively liberal state in the 1980s, he became involved in left-wing politics, influenced by his personal opposition to the Reagan Administration, affiliating with the Liberty Union Party and rising to prominence for progressive advocacy.

During his time in college, when Wallace studied at the Robert Larnier College of Medicine at the University of Vermont, his father lost his job, the family's house was forclosed on and the Wallaces lived for two years in an abandoned gas station. Robert and his parents struggled to make ends meet, their accommodation lacked a functioning toilet and the family had to rely on support from friends to support themselves financially while Robert finished his education. Things improved during Robert's final year in college and his family moved to new accommodations and Robert was able graduate with a M.D. in 1983. Following his graduation, he began working as an internist and would do so until being elected to the House of Representatives.

Wallace's first successful political undertaking came in 1992 when he was elected to the Vermont State Senate in Chittenden County officially registered as "Democrat/Progressive". There, he first established himself as a progressive politician active in his community. Constituents appreciated his frequent townhalls and advocacy for green projects as well as for the elderly and sick in the state. He was one of the people involved in organizing busses to Canada to help Vermonters buy medications at a lower price, alongside [not-Bernie Sanders]

Wallace first ran for the House of Representatives in 1996 against then-incumbent first-term Republican as a Democrat. The Democratic Party initially looked skeptically at Wallace's candidacy, considering it too similar to that of [not-Bernie Sanders], Independent Representative who caucused with the Democrats for two terms before narrowly losing his seat in the 1994 Republican Revolution by a single percentage point, but supported Robert in the general election in hopes of regaining the seat and preventing the Republicans from entrenching themselves in the position. Running on a platform of reducing economic inequalities and ending obstruction in Congress, Wallace enjoyed the support of incumbent Democratic Senator from Vermont [not-Patrick Leahy] and Governor [not-Howard Dean]. Proving the previous election to be more of a fad than a trend, Wallace won 54% - 43%, unseating the incumbent Republican and becoming the first Democrat since 1961 and only the second since 1853 to represent Vermont. Analysts cite Wallace's positive campaigning and the 1996 presidential election as one of two major factors that lead to Democratic victory, as well as the relative unpopularity of Republican policies among Vermont voters, who were disappointed with their Republican Representative following the party line on a number of key votes and issues. During his tenure in the House Wallace has not faced significant electoral opposition.

As a Representative, Wallace voiced his support for healthcare reform, supported the creation of SCHIP (later known as CHIP) and co-operated closely with then-First Lady [not-Hillary Clinton]. Their working relationship was good during the [not-Clinton] Administration, but would later deteriorate due to growing policy disagreements. As Congressman, he took interest in the conflict in Northern Ireland, working on the issue with Congressman [not-Pete King], but once again that relationship would deteriorate later on, as [not-Pete King] would become disgruntled with the IRA's vocal opposition to the Iraq War and USA's involvement.

Wallace was a vocal critic of the war in Iraq, both in the House and the Senate, opposing the resolution on the war and participating in the anti-war movement. In the early 2000s, Robert became somewhat distanced towards the Democratic caucus as a number of members "didn't do enough" to oppose [not-President Bush]. He broke off with some [not-Clinton]-era associates over the issues of Afghanistan and Iraq. Despite this, as Senator, Wallace took a trip to Iraq in February 2005, only a month after his swearing-in, to visit American troops stationed there and to look into the issue of healthcare in post-invasion Iraq. He opposed legislation to increase the number of U.S. troops in Iraq.

In 2003 the then-incumbent Senator from Vermont [not-Patrick Leahy] suffered a heart attack, forcing him into retirement. With the primary now open, Wallace took little time to throw his hat into the ring and officially began his campaign. Registering to run as in the Democratic primary in November 2003, Wallace's campaign focused on a number of progressive causes - expanding access to healthcare, increasing minimum wage, establishing prescription medication price controls - while also taking stances relatively unorthodox for a liberal politician, such as opposing gun control. With state-wide name recognition, Wallace had little trouble winning the Democratic primary and moved on to the general election. There, he faced 6 opponents including candidates from the Republican and Green parties as well as a candidate from Liberty Union and two Independents. He won the November election with relative ease, campaigning on economic issues as well as opposition to the war and was sworn in on January 3, 2005.

Wallace opposed President [not-Bush]'s nominations to the Supreme Court, that of [not-Roberts] and [not-Alito].

In 2005, he opposed increased regulation on video games, calling it a moral panic. Since then, Wallace has become a noted video game advocate, popular with a section of younger voters.
Other Info:
Married, with two children
I have read and accepted the rules of the roleplay: Alozia

Do Not Remove: DRAFT123123

ACCEPTED123123

[Dentali]

Is secretary of defense available?

Yes BUT this is not a military RP just be aware

[Kavanis]

You know medicine's not an undergraduate degree in the USA, right?

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So, seeing as I'm new, could I do a draft of my first post for the IC thread, post it here in a spoiler, and get an eyeball? I'd rather not work on something and post it only to have it dinged.

[Rygondria]

Is secretary of defense available?

Yes BUT this is not a military RP just be aware

It’s gonna be much more focused on his political career, especially with a presidential election coming up. And you know, navigating the fact that he was probably a major decision maker during the war on terror.

[The Anarcho-Syndicalist Commune]

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Character Application and Information Sheet

NS Nation Name: The Anarcho-Syndicalist Commune
Character Name: Stephen Black
Character Gender: Male
Character Age: 40
Character Height: 6'2
Character Weight: 193 lbs.
Character Position/Role/Job: Representative from Colorado's 4th District
Character Country/State of Birth: Colorado
Character State of Residence: Colorado
Character Party Affiliation: Democrat
Faceclaim: Ben Sasse
Main Strengths: A charismatic personality, long family history in his district with great familiarity with the right people to know, and known as a man who gets business done.
Main Weaknesses: He holds a thin majority in his district at the best of times, and is nominally supported by his state party, but is unpopular as a populist and is seen as blocking progress that the CDP is trying to make in the state, as well as being seen by urban voters outside of his main base in Fort Collins as a Democrat in name only. Meanwhile his pro-enviromentalist agenda since he was elected to the congress has been unpopular among the more conservative bases of his home territory, leading to Stephen riding a knife's edge between populism and moderatism that many see as unsustainable.

Biography: Stephen Black is the youngest son of Carson Black, current owner and boss of the Five Horses Ranch located outside of Fort Collins, CO. Comprising a thousand and a half acres, Carson was and remains a strong figure among the Colorado Cattleman's Association and conservatives in the north east corner of the state, serving as Sheriff for Larimer County for two terms from 1980-1992. Stephen spent his early years homeschooled on the ranch, learning to ride, rope, and read books about cowboys and explorers before he learned how to do other things like math. At the age of eleven he was sent to boarding school out east at the behest of his mother, a native Virginian. Attending a variety of prestigious boarding schools in the Northern Virginia area, the teenaged Stephen often spent his free days at school visiting Washington with his friends or hiking in the Shenandoah's as part of class trips. These trips would inspire his two passions in later life, politics and environmentalism. When he returned home for summers and winters he would spend more time in the high country of the rockies then he would on the plains of the family ranch. Upon graduating high school in 1981, not feeling any particular calling in the world, Stephen returned to the east and spent a gap year hiking the Appalachian Trail, much to the dismay of his father. Upon the finishing of his hike, Stephen returned out west, where he was promptly forced to apply to and study at UC-Boulder.

Stephen spent his college years like he would spend most of his life, riding the edge between one world and another. He kept his nose to the grindstone during the day, and engaged with the university's party scene by night. It was a tough way to plow through school and one that he might not have kept himself together doing if it weren't for him meeting his future wife, Laura Miller, in the process. The pair were made for each other, both having a deep interest in both governement and conservation. Together the pair organized several on campus rallies, and both went off to Georgetown Law School upon graduating in 1990. After Law School, Stephen was hired by the Office of the Solicitor in the U.S. Interior office, but was forced to move back out west in early 1991 due to the death of his mother. He opened a private practice focusing on land law and environmental law in Fort Collins, which took off thanks to the never ending land disputes on the plains.

In 1999, Stephen made his first strides into the world of politics since he had to leave Washington. Running for the Mayor of Fort Collins, his first foray into politics was met by abject failure as Stephen with his little experience tried to run his own grassroots campaign and stumbled most of the way, and ended with only a slim margin of the City's vote. Determined to make his mark on the world, and taking his loss in stride, Stephen once again ran for Mayor in 2001, this time with the assistance of his father to form a proper campaign. Stephen ran on making the city one of America's first green cities, along with extensive infrastructure repair and reform. His message struck a chord in the mostly blue city and thanks to a properly managed campaign this time around, he won by a fair margin with 55% of the vote. In his first term, Stephen made much progress on his platform, upgrading his city's road and sewer network and rapidly encouraging solar energy across the city. After being elected to a second term in 2003, Stephen spent much of his next encumbancy encouraging the development of recreational areas and improving the city's education system. A system of public use parks were constructed and Stephen's strides in reading intiatives and pushing use of electronic tools such as laptops in classrooms has been seen as ahead of it's time amongst his Colorado political peers. He declined to run for a third term in 2005, instead announcing his candidacy for Colorado's 4th District in 2006.

Promoted by his father's friends in the Cattleman's association, and running on a platform emphasizing better representation for the cattle industry as well as better subsidies, extensive environmental investment into green energy and protection, support of NCLB, as well as going against the grain of his party with support for gun rights. He also supported a more extensive healthcare system which he presented as being good for Cowboys often put out of work or forced into extensive debts to a ranch boss by their dangerous profession. With this platform, as well as promoting the good he had done the City of Fort Collins, and vastly better fundraising than his primary opponent, Stephen went into the primary election strong. Utilizing a strong ground game and friends in high places through his fathers contacts, as well as thanks to his more moderate leanings as opposed to the very libertaria of his primary opponent, an old city council rival from Fort Collins, Stephen won the primary with 59% of the vote. His opponent ended up running on a Libertarian ticket, attempting to appeal to the conservative base of the county by painting both Stephen and the republican candidate as moderates and two sides of the same coin. He managed to score 5% of the vote in the proper election, which in turn allowed Stephen managed to eke out a 1.5% victory in the election over his republican challenger, a victory many believe he would have lost if he had faced an encumbent. He now serves as a member of the House Energy and Commerce and Natural Resources committees, where he has been advocating for the Cattle industry his district relies upon while also trying to pass green energy bills to earn the support of his blue voters in Denver's suburbs and his home city of Fort Collins
Other Info:

I have read and accepted the rules of the roleplay: The Anarcho-Syndicalist Commune

Do Not Remove: DRAFT123123

Added some about the primary and added an analogue to CO-4's unusual 3rd party showing in 2006

Only one note: You said his primary opponent for the House seat was a Libertarian trying to appeal to conservatives, but also painted Stephen as a Republican? I'd love a little explanation.

Almost done!

I was trying to account for CO-4's surprisingly large reform party showing in 06' whose candidate from what I could find tried to cast the big 2 parties as two sides of the same coin, I'll change up the wording a bit

[Madrinpoor]

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Character Application and Information Sheet

NS Nation Name: Dentali
Character Name: George Malcolm Pierce Jr
Character Gender: M
Character Age: 68
Character Height: 5’8”
Character Weight: 216 lbs
Character Position/Role/Job: Senator from Arizona. Elected 2006
Character Country/State of Birth: Arizona
Character State of Residence: Arizona
Character Party Affiliation: Independent, Republican Caucusing
Faceclaim: Wendell Pierce
Main Strengths: unifying figure, crazy high favorable, outsider, popular politics in general, military and FP experience
Main Weaknesses: lack of political experience, too moderate for primary, lacks any political Allies or connections, alienated evangelicals and neocons
Biography: George Malcolm Pierce Jr was born to George and Linda Pierce in Tucson, Arizona in 1940. His father was a mechanic who would serve in the Army Corp of Engineers during WW2 and his mother was a teacher, the couple had 4 children. George would attend public school in a bad part of Detroit but would excel and eventually graduate class Salutatorian and scored a 168 on an IQ test. He would go to the University of Arizona in 1956 joining Alpha Phi Alpha, one of the earliest I-M African American fraternities, and graduated with a degree in Engineering.

As a member of the ROTC he would graduate in 1960 and be commissioned as an infantry 2nd Lieutenant. He earned his Parachutist Badge and was assigned as a platoon leader to the 187th Airborne Infantry. George’s first overseas assignment was with the 6th Infantry Regiment in West Germany, serving as an Aide-de-Camp to the Brigadier General of the Berlin Brigade. In 1963 he was promoted to Captain and spent 8 months attending Advanced Infantry School. In 1964 he enrolled at the University of Southern California to pursue his masters in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering graduating in ‘66.

After Graduation he volunteered for service in South Vietnam rather than teaching for faster career advancement. He served as a task force advisor to the Republic of Vietnam’s Airborne Division. During this tour he would be wounded by a Punji Stick during his first combat experience while fighting in the Central Highlands breaking a siege. For this action he was awarded the Silver Star and Purple Heart. 6 months later he was wounded four more times in a single action and was awarded a second Silver Star and a Purple Heart.

After 10 months of combat duty Pierce left the frontlines and became a staff advisor for civil affairs for the ARVN Airborne Division and then returned stateside as an associate professor in the Mechanics Department at West Point. In ‘68 he attended the Command and General Staff College and completed the course in June of ‘69. He would return to Vietnam in July of 69 with the rank of Lt Colonel for a second tour, this time serving as an Executive Officer to the MACV Chief of Staff in Saigon. This tour had a massive effect on him, as he saw the demoralization of the troops, leading to rampant drug use and poor discipline.

Still Pierce gained a reputation as an effective and aggressive commander amid a poor brigade performance record. He led from the front and became known for a short temper. It was also during this tour that he accidentally ordered his helicopter to land in a minefield. Poor judgment on his part led to the deaths of 3 soldiers under his command. After this tour he was awarded a third Silver Star as well as a Bronze Star and a Legion of Merit in 1970.

Upon his return he was interviewed by a newspaper and said

“I don't think there will ever be another major confrontation where the armies line up on both sides. If that happens, it's inevitably going to be nuclear weapons and the whole thing. So I think all wars of the future are going to be—and again, God forbid, I hope we don't have any. War is a profanity, it really is. It's terrifying. Nobody is more anti-war than an intelligent person who's been to war. Probably the most anti-war people I know are Army officers—but if we do have a war, I think it's going to be limited in nature like Vietnam and Korea. Limited in scope. And when they get ready to send me again, I'm going to have to stop and ask myself, "is it worth it?" That's a very dangerous place for the nation to be when your own army is going to stop and question”

His negative experiences during the second tour and the treatment of Vietnam Veterans made Pierce seriously consider leaving the military for good. Instead he served a White House Fellowship from 1972 to 1973 and then attended the National War College from 1974-75. In ‘76 he assumed command of the 1st Brigade of the 9th Infantry Division which he commanded until 1978 when he received his first star as a brigadier general.

Pierce served two years as assistant division commander of the 8th Infantry Division in Germany between 1981 and 1983 before returning to Washington as the director of personnel management for the Army where he was promoted to Major General. In ‘83 he was given command of the 24th Infantry.

He was appointed to the command group for the Invasion of Grenada and became well known for clashing to the overall operation commander for the poor communication, coordination and logistics operations. He would say privately during this time that he did not think the US should have been involved in the conflict and began to push hard for greater cooperation between the branches, and for the implementation of policies that would make joint warfare the standard. This was a doctrine that would win out, and would become the basis for the “Pierce Doctrine”

After the invasion he would become assistant Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations and Plans at the Pentagon for until mid ‘86. Before returning to Georgia to command I Corps as a Lt General. In ‘87 he returned once more to Washington as the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations and Plans, but more importantly during this time he began a secondary role as the Army’s senior member of the Military Staff Committee at the UNSC where he garnered valuable foreign policy experience and diplomatic skills, which included arms reduction talks with the Soviet Union.

In January of 1989 Pierce was named Commander of CENTCOM, a dark horse candidate chosen over a more popular vice admiral and was promoted to General. This position made him responsible for US Military Operations in 19 countries and for 200,000 service Members. During this time he was very concerned with the Iran-Iraq war and led a wargame of the Soviet Union invading through the Zagros Mountains. In multiple testimonies before the Senate Armed Services Committee between 1988 and 1990 he impressed the committee with his command over the intricate relationships of the region and encouraged the US to seek a moderating influence in Iraq and stated the threat the nation posed to its neighbors, particularly under Saddam Hussein. He would direct his command to prepare for the ‘most realistic conflict scenario’ in coming years, that being the invasion of Kuwait by Iraq eventually drafting a War plan for the Defense of the Arabian Peninsula which envisioned an invasion of Saudi Arabia by Iraq through Kuwait. And in 1990’s Internal Look ‘90 he wrote a scenario clearly based on a theoretical invasion of Kuwait by Iraq. Only 1 week after the exercises concluded Iraq invaded.

General Pierce activated his contingency plans, putting his local troops on alert and then had an immediate emergency meeting with the President. Pierce’s internal plans were made the basis for the aggressive response to the invasion. Learning from the mistakes of the vietnam war Pierce’s plan called for decisive and overwhelming force.

Pierce began to be closely followed by the media, conducting front line inspect tours of the combat zones accompanied by reporters and conducting many high profile press conferences. He worked closely with the other allied nations contributing military forces and highlighted their contributions, while working to minimize culture clashes. Pierce frequently worked 18 hour days for the planning of the operation where he would command a multinational force of over 750,000 and cultivated close relationships with the French, British and Saudi commanders.

After 139 days of planning Operation Desert Storm Commenced. Within 10 days total air superiority had been achieved and the Iraqi army had been fooled into believing the attack would focus on Kuwait directly. Instead he launched a ‘left hook’ into Iraq itself, and within 90 hours 42 out of 50 Iraqi divisions had been destroyed at the cost of 125 American and 482 coalition lives. On February 27th after a media blackout he gave a famous hour long press conference where he gave a truly comprehensive and comprehensible detailing of events.

He was greeted by the President with a large Parade down Broadway in NYC and given numerous honors becoming the only person to receive the Distinguished Service Cross from the Army, Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard. He continued to lead CENTCOM and in ‘93 was assigned as the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff for the incoming (Not-Clinton) administration, becoming the youngest chairman in its history and the first commissioned through the ROTC.

He was considered a bad fit for the administration which was made up of liberal internationalists, particularly clashing with Madeleine Albright over situations like the Bosnian Crisis which he felt did not involve US interests. He also clashed with SoD Leslie Aspin who he felt was disinterested in his presentations and with whom he laid the blame for the Battle of Mogadishu.

Pierce would resign in 1994 and retire from the military and move to Arizona where his son had settled to be closer to his family. He founded the “America’s Promise” program which would help children around the country coming from poor means. He was profiled by the Associated Press, the Washington Post, and Newsday, People, as well as praised in a Random House publication on the war, “Triumph in the Desert.” His speaking fees topped $60,000 per public appearance. In 1995, he published a memoir, “It Doesn't Take a Hero”, about his life; it became a bestseller and Pierce sold the rights to his memoirs to Bantam Books for $5,000,000. That same year he would win $24,000 on celebrity jeopardy for his charity.

He was considered a potential Republican candidate for the ‘96 election but said he was an independent and decided not to run, though the truth was also linked to his wife’s misgivings. Despite this he won the Republican New Hampshire Vice-Presidential Primary on write-in votes.

In 1998 Pierce officially registered as a Republican and many believed he would run in 2000 but once again his wife’s mental health issues, which included a several month stint in a psychiatrist facility in the 80s, kept him from doing so. Instead he endorsed (Not Bush) and gave a powerful speech at the 2000 convention, he had a favorable rating of over 80% at the time.

In 2001 Pierce was unanimously confirmed as Secretary of State and became the first African American in the position. In the wake of 9/11 Pierce’s chief job was managing the coalition in the War on Terror and spearheading the HIV/AIDS relief efforts of the (Not Bush) administration.

In ‘03 he was given the job of building the case of the invasion of Iraq. Pierce favored involving the international community instead of a unilateral approach and argued in favor of military action to the UN. He later said this speech was given on four days' notice and he did not know the dubious nature of the intelligence dossier and later described it on Barbara Walters as a ‘Painful blot on my record.’

After Saddam was deposed Pierce continued to work on maintaining and building coalitions, this time to rebuild Iraq, even testifying in ‘04 that he now knew much of the information used to justify the invasion was ‘flat out wrong’ and he thought it would be unlikely any WMDs would be found and pushed to reform intelligence services and sharing. He notably called the Darfur Genocide a genocide, thus becoming the first cabinet member to use such a term to describe an ongoing conflict.

Tensions within the administration between Pierce, particularly with the Vice President, and the failing health of his wife cause Pierce to choose not to serve for a second (Not Bush) term, though many believe he would have been forced out regardless. His achievements in the state department include solving a Crisis with China and leading the international HIV/AIDS initiative, and blocking the attempts of the Vice President to tie Saddam to the 9/11 attacks.

After retirement he spent the majority of his time with his wife before her passing in early ‘05 from cancer. Continuing to see what he saw as the Not-Bush administration flailing and mismanaging the war on terror, Hurricane Katrina and curbing civil liberties at Home he once again considered entering politics. He consulted a number of individuals and experts to consider an 08 campaign for President, but his moderate positions made him unlikely to win the primary for either party and risked hurting his reputation and legacy should he begin to contort himself for the race.

Instead he announced he would run for Senate in ‘06, challenging the incumbent Republican in Arizona as an independent caucusing with republicans. Not-McCain Arizona’s other Senator made a public announcement to ‘not take sides’ leading many to interpret this as a tacit endorsement of Pierce. Pierce also collected endorsements from around the country from non-politicians and many moderates, amassed an impressive warchest and was heavily covered by the media. The Republican Senate leadership was already stretched far too thin, and elected to not send more than the bare minimum of support to the incumbent Republican. Still Pierce was a novice at campaigning as was his team, as he chose loyalists and up and comers rather than seasoned campaigning veterans to run things. He was hit hard on his moderate abortion position but for the most part was able to run a populist campaign and his personal favorables actually hurt those attacking him.

In the end he won with a plurality of the vote, 42%. He has since made several pushes to protect civil liberties and has supported a number of consensus driven pieces of legislation, joining Arizona’s other Senator as a “Maverick”. His main focus is trying to drive the GOP more towards the center. Many believe he will run for President in ‘08 but he has privately ruled it out. He has said he intends to serve two terms AT MOST.

By this time his national favorables had dropped to the mid 60s as he had finally gone into the morass of politics directly.


Other Info: Serves on Armed Services and Foreign Relations Committees. Has 3 sons and 1 daughter.


I have read and accepted the rules of the roleplay: Dentali

Do Not Remove: DRAFT123123

1. He's both unifying and alienates groups/has no allies?
2. Military stuff is good
3. Awfully liberal for being popular with Republicans...I know he's an independent, but that means he has to toe the line between both liberals and conservatives, especially in 2007 Arizona. He has less freedom to be a maverick, and to try and move a party he doesn't belong to towards the center.
4. I'd add name recognition as a strength from his books and stuff, but it's up to you.
5. Will you have enough photos of Wendell Pierce being politicianey? Idk, just consider that.
6. He seems way too popular. He's a war hero, but he's also a pol who's spent a lot of time crafting strategies and campaigns. He doesn't have a cult following like Bernie, and he isn't just consistently amazing like Angela Merkel.
7. I do like the idea of an Independent Republican-caucausing guy though

1. The idea is that yea his politics are popular and he is personally popular but he has done this by alienating the establishment and the major groups which propel candidates forward.
3. I'm happy for some suggestions, he's not too far from McCain
4. yea sure i figure that would go without saying
5. Lots of him in suits and committees plus military pics
6. lol about Merkel. I took Colin Powell's irl popularity and lowered it by 20 points

1. Okay, that makes sense. He's kind of an outsider figure? If so, then some people probably hate him and some love him, like Trump or Macron.
3. This isn't a request to edit the app, just be careful to toe the line.
6. The only problem is that after someone takes office, their popularity usually falls quite a bit. Even if they were really popular before (except AMLO, but I think he's a witch). So it's realistic that he's as popular as you have him at the beginning of his term, but by the middle of his term at least the excitement about him being in office probably would wane. Same with any reelection campaigns of his.

[Dentali]

Here is my first application.

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Character Application and Information Sheet

NS Nation Name: Maximilian Empire
Character Name: Edward Raymond Lopez
Character Gender: Male
Character Age: 38
Character Height: 5'10
Character Weight: 83 kilograms
Character Position/Role/Job: Oil Business Owner (1991-2002), Representative of Texas 14th Congressional District (2004-Present)
Character Country/State of Birth: El Paso, Texas
Character State of Residence: Texas
Character Party Affiliation: Republican
Faceclaim: Marco Rubio
Main Strengths: Strong Hispanic Support, Large amount of personal funds (76 million USD), Big Oil Support
Main Weaknesses: Cocaine addiction, Short temper, Political Inexperience, Alcoholic
Biography: (Minimum 2-3 paragraphs)
Born in 1969 in Phoenix to Juan Esteban Lopez, an oil baron and founder, owner, and CEO of Lopez Oil, an oil company in Texas. Due to his fathers wealth he was afforded the best private tutors throughout his childhood, which fueled his cut-throat business personality. Once he was 18, he was sent to Harvard across the country by his father who used his wealth and connections to get him into the university. He studied business for 6 years, graduating in 1983 where afterwards he was awarded a cushy position in his fathers company. In 1986 he married Emilia García, having 2 kids with her, Fransisco in 1991, and Ángela in 1995.

By 1990, Lopez Oil was failing, its stock was valued at 0.53 Dollars, it was forced to make massive layoffs, and Mr. Esteban Lopez's failing health was not helping the situation, because in 1991, he died of a stroke, forcing Raymond to take up his position as CEO. As CEO, Raymond continued the layoffs, forcing the country to become smaller, but in 1993, he instituted what he called his grand plan, he would rebuild the company from the ground up, expanding from a handful of oil drills, to encompassing all of Texas, which completely turned the companies failure into a great success. The stock had risen to 34.15 Dollars, creating thousands of jobs for Texans. in 1996, he used cocaine for the first time via one of his Mexican contacts, developing a cocaine addiction, and to add onto that in 1997, he tasted Jack Daniels for the first time, developing an alcohol addiction and thus becoming an alcoholic.

But in 2004, he made his debut into politics by running for the position of representative of Texas's 14th Congressional District. He appealed to Hispanic voters stressing his Hispanic background, to the lower class by saying he'd create thousands of jobs, and to the middle class by slashing taxes, and using a whole ton of campaign funds. He won by 67.1% of the vote, becoming Representative in which he strengthened big oil by slashing regulations, cutting taxes, and expanded his company into natural gas, and into Louisiana and southern Mississippi. In 2006 he easily won reelection, campaigning on the same platforms in 2004, which won him the election by 73.97% of the vote. In 2007, he enjoys a comfortable position as a owner of Lopez Oil, the support of big oil, and his incumbent advantage, although that could change in 2008 if his secrets get out...

Other Info: Married to Emilia García, father to Francisco (16), Ángela (12).

I have read and accepted the rules of the roleplay: Maximilian Empire

Do Not Remove: DRAFT123123

1. So the timeline here does not add up, he was born in 1969, studied business for 6 years at harvard and graduated in 1983. Making him 14 at the time of graduation and 8 at the time he entered havard. I'm assuming this was a leftover from a previous draft lol.

2. Several typos throughout the app

3. Company grows a bit too fast from .53 to 34.15, make it over 6 years instead of 3.

4. He can't own the company and be the owner of the oil company. He needs to sell it or leave it to someone.

5. Have his victory margins stay between 60 and 70%

do this an he is good to go

[Madrinpoor]

You know medicine's not an undergraduate degree in the USA, right?

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So, seeing as I'm new, could I do a draft of my first post for the IC thread, post it here in a spoiler, and get an eyeball? I'd rather not work on something and post it only to have it dinged.

Sure! We'll be happy to look over it.

[The Anarcho-Syndicalist Commune]

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Character Application and Information Sheet

NS Nation Name: The Anarcho-Syndicalist Commune
Character Name: Stephen Black
Character Gender: Male
Character Age: 40
Character Height: 6'2
Character Weight: 193 lbs.
Character Position/Role/Job: Representative from Colorado's 4th District
Character Country/State of Birth: Colorado
Character State of Residence: Colorado
Character Party Affiliation: Democrat
Faceclaim: Ben Sasse
Main Strengths: A charismatic personality, long family history in his district with great familiarity with the right people to know, and known as a man who gets business done.
Main Weaknesses: He holds a thin majority in his district at the best of times, and is nominally supported by his state party, but is unpopular as a populist and is seen as blocking progress that the CDP is trying to make in the state, as well as being seen by urban voters outside of his main base in Fort Collins as a Democrat in name only. Meanwhile his pro-enviromentalist agenda since he was elected to the congress has been unpopular among the more conservative bases of his home territory, leading to Stephen riding a knife's edge between populism and moderatism that many see as unsustainable.

Biography: Stephen Black is the youngest son of Carson Black, current owner and boss of the Five Horses Ranch located outside of Fort Collins, CO. Comprising a thousand and a half acres, Carson was and remains a strong figure among the Colorado Cattleman's Association and conservatives in the north east corner of the state, serving as Sheriff for Larimer County for two terms from 1980-1992. Stephen spent his early years homeschooled on the ranch, learning to ride, rope, and read books about cowboys and explorers before he learned how to do other things like math. At the age of eleven he was sent to boarding school out east at the behest of his mother, a native Virginian. Attending a variety of prestigious boarding schools in the Northern Virginia area, the teenaged Stephen often spent his free days at school visiting Washington with his friends or hiking in the Shenandoah's as part of class trips. These trips would inspire his two passions in later life, politics and environmentalism. When he returned home for summers and winters he would spend more time in the high country of the rockies then he would on the plains of the family ranch. Upon graduating high school in 1981, not feeling any particular calling in the world, Stephen returned to the east and spent a gap year hiking the Appalachian Trail, much to the dismay of his father. Upon the finishing of his hike, Stephen returned out west, where he was promptly forced to apply to and study at UC-Boulder.

Stephen spent his college years like he would spend most of his life, riding the edge between one world and another. He kept his nose to the grindstone during the day, and engaged with the university's party scene by night. It was a tough way to plow through school and one that he might not have kept himself together doing if it weren't for him meeting his future wife, Laura Miller, in the process. The pair were made for each other, both having a deep interest in both governement and conservation. Together the pair organized several on campus rallies, and both went off to Georgetown Law School upon graduating in 1990. After Law School, Stephen was hired by the Office of the Solicitor in the U.S. Interior office, but was forced to move back out west in early 1991 due to the death of his mother. He opened a private practice focusing on land law and environmental law in Fort Collins, which took off thanks to the never ending land disputes on the plains.

In 1999, Stephen made his first strides into the world of politics since he had to leave Washington. Running for the Mayor of Fort Collins, his first foray into politics was met by abject failure as Stephen with his little experience tried to run his own grassroots campaign and stumbled most of the way, and ended with only a slim margin of the City's vote. Determined to make his mark on the world, and taking his loss in stride, Stephen once again ran for Mayor in 2001, this time with the assistance of his father to form a proper campaign. Stephen ran on making the city one of America's first green cities, along with extensive infrastructure repair and reform. His message struck a chord in the mostly blue city and thanks to a properly managed campaign this time around, he won by a fair margin with 55% of the vote. In his first term, Stephen made much progress on his platform, upgrading his city's road and sewer network and rapidly encouraging solar energy across the city. After being elected to a second term in 2003, Stephen spent much of his next encumbancy encouraging the development of recreational areas and improving the city's education system. A system of public use parks were constructed and Stephen's strides in reading intiatives and pushing use of electronic tools such as laptops in classrooms has been seen as ahead of it's time amongst his Colorado political peers. He declined to run for a third term in 2005, instead announcing his candidacy for Colorado's 4th District in 2006.

Promoted by his father's friends in the Cattleman's association, and running on a platform emphasizing better representation for the cattle industry as well as better subsidies, extensive environmental investment into green energy and protection, support of NCLB, as well as going against the grain of his party with support for gun rights. He also supported a more extensive healthcare system which he presented as being good for Cowboys often put out of work or forced into extensive debts to a ranch boss by their dangerous profession. With this platform, as well as promoting the good he had done the City of Fort Collins, and vastly better fundraising than his primary opponent, Stephen went into the primary election strong. Utilizing a strong ground game and friends in high places through his fathers contacts, as well as thanks to his more moderate leanings as opposed to the very libertaria of his primary opponent, an old city council rival from Fort Collins, Stephen won the primary with 59% of the vote. His opponent ended up running on a Libertarian ticket, attempting to appeal to the conservative base of the county by painting both Stephen and the Republican candidate as moderates and two sides of the same coin, promising the people of the district real change over more of the same that the big two parties promised. Stephen's republican opponent meanwhile ran on a platform of fiscal conservatism, and infrastructure investments into the rural areas outside of Fort Collins. However, his strong anti-gay marraige stance cost him many votes in the harder blue areas of the district and indeed with many fence sitters. In the end, the Libertarian candidate managed to score 5% of the vote in the proper election, which in turn allowed Stephen managed to eke out a 1.5% victory in the election over his republican challenger, a victory many believe he would have lost if he had faced an incumbent with a more moderate stance on the hot button topic of Gay rights. He now serves as a member of the House Energy and Commerce and Natural Resources committees, where he has been advocating for the Cattle industry his district relies upon while also trying to pass green energy bills to earn the support of his blue voters in Denver's suburbs and his home city of Fort Collins
Other Info:

I have read and accepted the rules of the roleplay: The Anarcho-Syndicalist Commune

Do Not Remove: DRAFT123123

[Dentali]

1. The idea is that yea his politics are popular and he is personally popular but he has done this by alienating the establishment and the major groups which propel candidates forward.
3. I'm happy for some suggestions, he's not too far from McCain
4. yea sure i figure that would go without saying
5. Lots of him in suits and committees plus military pics
6. lol about Merkel. I took Colin Powell's irl popularity and lowered it by 20 points

1. Okay, that makes sense. He's kind of an outsider figure? If so, then some people probably hate him and some love him, like Trump or Macron.
3. This isn't a request to edit the app, just be careful to toe the line.
6. The only problem is that after someone takes office, their popularity usually falls quite a bit. Even if they were really popular before (except AMLO, but I think he's a witch). So it's realistic that he's as popular as you have him at the beginning of his term, but by the middle of his term at least the excitement about him being in office probably would wane. Same with any reelection campaigns of his.

1. Yea outsider is right, he does not fit neatly anywhere.
3. Understood
6. oh yea post election he goes from 80 favorable to 60 favorable. Probably will go lower by re-election time.

[Dentali]

Note

Hey everybody this isn't any kind of hard rule we are instituting ive just noticed that many of the PCs are trending on the younger side, several under 40... just fyi

The average age of Members of the House at the beginning of the 116th Congress was 57.6 years; of Senators, 62.9 years

So please try and age up your characters a bit.

[Madrinpoor]

Only one note: You said his primary opponent for the House seat was a Libertarian trying to appeal to conservatives, but also painted Stephen as a Republican? I'd love a little explanation.

Almost done!

I was trying to account for CO-4's surprisingly large reform party showing in 06' whose candidate from what I could find tried to cast the big 2 parties as two sides of the same coin, I'll change up the wording a bit

Issue is that the Reform Party in '06 would probably work just as a spoiler party. So honestly, if Stephen ran as a farther left candidate than his Libertarian opponent, it's feasible to assume he did really well in the primary.

[Madrinpoor]

1. Okay, that makes sense. He's kind of an outsider figure? If so, then some people probably hate him and some love him, like Trump or Macron.
3. This isn't a request to edit the app, just be careful to toe the line.
6. The only problem is that after someone takes office, their popularity usually falls quite a bit. Even if they were really popular before (except AMLO, but I think he's a witch). So it's realistic that he's as popular as you have him at the beginning of his term, but by the middle of his term at least the excitement about him being in office probably would wane. Same with any reelection campaigns of his.

1. Yea outsider is right, he does not fit neatly anywhere.
3. Understood
6. oh yea post election he goes from 80 favorable to 60 favorable. Probably will go lower by re-election time.

Great. ACCEPTED123123

[The Anarcho-Syndicalist Commune]

I was trying to account for CO-4's surprisingly large reform party showing in 06' whose candidate from what I could find tried to cast the big 2 parties as two sides of the same coin, I'll change up the wording a bit

Issue is that the Reform Party in '06 would probably work just as a spoiler party. So honestly, if Stephen ran as a farther left candidate than his Libertarian opponent, it's feasible to assume he did really well in the primary.

Alright, so a higher percentage on the primary margin?

[The Sarangtus Lands]

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Character Application and Information Sheet

NS Nation Name: The Sarangtus Lands
Character Name: Pauline Bennett (nee Bastien)
Character Gender: Female
Character Age: 38
Character Height: 170cm
Character Weight: 65kg
Character Position/Role/Job: Deming Council Member (1993-2001), Mayor of Deming (2001-2006), Governor of New Mexico (2006-)
Character Country/State of Birth: New Mexico
Character State of Residence: New Mexico
Character Party Affiliation: Democrat
Main Strengths: Inspiring background, good record, quite charismatic, favourable personal ratings, strong support among minorities, able to appeal to traditional rural voters, supported by the activist left, and can attract small dollar donations.
Main Weaknesses: Politically inexperienced, few connections, very much to the left of the current political consensus, has never fought an election in a swing state, race and gender might prove barriers to higher office, very little support from the establishment or large corporations, very unorthodox in terms of background and style
Biography: The story of Pauline Bennett begins with that of her father. Her father, Bernard Bastien, who was a farm worker and committed member of the MOP, attending many meetings of the party. Bastien was a tough man, who attended a great deal of protests and rallies, though mostly in his youth and prior to the birth of his daughter. He cheered when Fignolé was elected, however his quick disposal of by the military - backed by the CIA - made him very angry, and he was involved in civil resistance against the military regime. However, as time grew on, he began to fear for his safety, and so took him and his wife to flee to the United States of America.

Bastien moved to New Mexico, and became a farmer in a quiet New Mexico town, giving up the struggle for a bit, however, within about 5 years, he joined the United Farm Workers and got back to organising. He did some work in and around the area, however, after some time, he and his wife decided to have a child, and this is where the story of Pauline Bennett begins.

Bennett was born as a fraternal twin. Both of her parents worked in farming, and her father often gave her and her brother what he called 'lessons about the world', talking to them about his leftist ideals, with her father being a self-described socialist who often criticised the US government for not providing for its people. While she attended school and did well there, her main education, according to her, came from her father. Her father saw that she began to form into the mould of a politician, and so helped her to realise her potential, giving her books on political topics and passing down the political knowledge he had from self-study.

Thanks to both her efforts and that of her father, she was the first - along with her brother - to receive any form of formal education, with her father having spent the first twenty years of his life illiterate and only able to read thanks to education he received from leftist political organisations back in Haiti. However, due to not being able to afford it, she was unable to attend university, and instead joined the Peace Corps after finishing high school, after doing a few years of volunteering experience while working on the farm.

Both due to her ability to speak French and her farming experience, she was posted off to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where she helped local people with farming techniques and agricultural management, both teaching and getting into more practical work. After the end of her two-year term and a short extension, she returned to the United States.

As soon as she returned, both thanks to her father's status in the town and her personal inspiration, she slowly began to get into politics, first being a member of being the local Democratic Party, organising to increase turnout and get people involved in politics around rural New Mexico. She was decent at her job, and so ran for Deming Council in 1993, winning narrowly thanks to the reputation she built in the town.

In the city council, she primarily focused on local concerns, pushing for increased funding for libraries, personally overseeing the "Read for Deming" initiative, where local schools were provided with books - both fictional and non-fictional - through working with NGOs, parents and some money from the budget along with afterschool clubs to encourage students to educate themselves more about the world and things they were interested in. She also worked on getting a volunteer effort up to help beautify the parks and local environment, helping get rid of litter and so on. She was reelected with a wide margin, typical of the safe Democratic politics of the town.

After two terms in the city council, she ran for Mayor, as the incumbent retired. She was endorsed by the former Mayor, and so won in a solid victory, once again, typical of the town's politics. She continued her work there, amassing what she termed the Deming Volunteers, opening door-to-door outreach efforts to help mobilise people into taking volunteer action, then pushing ahead to improve transport in the town and creating a bill to offer grants and support to local cooperatives and expand adult education. She did this through implementing a small income tax on the more well-off in the town (in relative terms - the town had the highest poverty rate in New Mexico and one of the lowest average incomes when she came into office)

Her ethos of small-town solidarity struck a chord with voters from her town, and her policies were quite effective, slashing the poverty rate by quite a large amount, along with reducing unemployment and driving growth to the town. She also helped cut the crime rate through rehabilitation policies, giving prisoners education and reintegrating them into the community, along with her economic policies offering opportunity to people and tackling the causes of crime as well. Her rhetoric largely consisted of three things: hope, solidarity and inclusive populism, according to one local journalist.

She also made a brief, failed run for Congress in 2002, running on a stridenly and openly progressive platform, as opposed to her more mainline run in 2006. This run failed, as she narrowly lost in the Democratic primary, 52-48. She was disheartened by the loss, but nevertheless moved on, adapting her rhetoric and strategy to be a bit more mainline in the future. This defeat likely contributed to her victory in both the Democratic primary and in the general as Governor.

She briefly saw a moment of national recognition, after appearing on CNN to openly oppose the Iraq War, saying that it would be a great mistake and urging caution, and talked about how a pointless war like it - since the UN hadn't been able to find evidence of WMDs yet and there was no resolution in favour, making the war illegal - would take away money from the bottom of American society, and that instead of spending money on bombs they ought to spend it on food. Her spirited opposition to the war gave her a moment in the activist left circles, but ultimately it was just a mere moment.

Aside from that, her term went quietly well, as local and state newspapers covered the "Deming Miracle", and so, in 2006, with the retirement of the incumbent for personal reasons, she took the chance, declaring early, once again running on her rhetoric of solidarity, along with implementing a "Prosperity for All Plan" for New Mexico, campaigning on support of policies such as expanded access to healthcare, universal employment, police reform and increased funding to education. She narrowly won the primary, using her usual style to win voters over.

But then came the general. The general was a spirited fight, as her opponent knew that her gender and race would pose a high barrier to victory, and in spite of the national environment being against him, he had a chance. She knew that too, so she campaigned hard, despite a few missteps as a result of her lack of statewide experience, with her opponent having held statewide office. But regardless of that, she pressed on, and while some felt that the newcomer progressive's campaign was going to end up like [not-Dukakis] in 1988, she inspired a great deal of enthusiasm among the Democratic base, and brought in quite a bit of attention from outside of the state, and despite an initial slide in the polls, she was able to hold her own, winning 58-39. [Note: this margin is 19 points lower than the IRL result]

Now that she takes office, what will she do? It's time to look ahead, and see what the future brings.
Other Info:

I have read and accept the rules of the roleplay: The Sarangtus Lands

Do Not Remove: DRAFT87421

1. She seems pretty young
2. She's not politically inexperienced, she's been in elected office for just under 15 years
3. Is the "Deming Miracle" based on irl progress in the town?
4. What are her stances on guns, immigration, and abortion?

1. This is true, but her being young is part of the weakness that I'll mention below.
2. I more so meant politically...I wouldn't say incompetent, but perhaps a bit, I don't know how to say this, but in a Michael Dukakis sort of way (hence the Dukakis comment), of being weak and unable to respond to attacks properly due to not having experience in competitive races.
3. Not entirely, but Deming was on the upswing, and the miracle, while making some progress, still puts Deming in quite bad territory, with a much higher poverty rate (I'd say maybe 7-10 points higher) than the national average. By the time she leaves, Deming isn't some haven of prosperity or anything, but rather simply having gone from one of the poorest towns in New Mexico to about average for the state. The broader national economy was also doing well, so while it is something quite difficult to pull off it's not within the realm of impossibility - it probably happened somewhere in the country.
4. She is pretty in line with the Democratic orthodoxy on guns and abortion, quite decently pro-immigration, if she was in Congress she'd support things like DACA and quite strongly oppose the wall. I feel that her left-wing stance on immigration is justified both by the nature of New Mexico politics and her own immigrant background.

[Dentali]

1. She seems pretty young
2. She's not politically inexperienced, she's been in elected office for just under 15 years
3. Is the "Deming Miracle" based on irl progress in the town?
4. What are her stances on guns, immigration, and abortion?

1. This is true, but her being young is part of the weakness that I'll mention below.
2. I more so meant politically...I wouldn't say incompetent, but perhaps a bit, I don't know how to say this, but in a Michael Dukakis sort of way (hence the Dukakis comment), of being weak and unable to respond to attacks properly due to not having experience in competitive races.
3. Not entirely, but Deming was on the upswing, and the miracle, while making some progress, still puts Deming in quite bad territory, with a much higher poverty rate (I'd say maybe 7-10 points higher) than the national average. By the time she leaves, Deming isn't some haven of prosperity or anything, but rather simply having gone from one of the poorest towns in New Mexico to about average for the state. The broader national economy was also doing well, so while it is something quite difficult to pull off it's not within the realm of impossibility - it probably happened somewhere in the country.
4. She is pretty in line with the Democratic orthodoxy on guns and abortion, quite decently pro-immigration, if she was in Congress she'd support things like DACA and quite strongly oppose the wall. I feel that her left-wing stance on immigration is justified both by the nature of New Mexico politics and her own immigrant background.

2. Okay so she is a bad campaigner
3. tone it down a bit, i am hesitant to say such policies work especially without a negative aspect. Basically she needs to have failed at something
4. Cool wanted to get a feel for where she was.

Overall just give he some failure as mayor or tone down her success and ill accept

[Rygondria]

I’m kinda tempted to use Jessie Ventura when he was governor as a Faceclaim

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