Office of Fmr. Governor Simfan34

[Simfan34]

The quality of the President's decision making is progressively declining. Something must be done.

What exactly do you have in mind? Statements like these make me nervous.

Why does this make you nervous?

[Simfan34]

Executive Order 10-05

A curfew is imposed from 11:30pm to 4:30am, local time, for all but essential personnel. People are advised to stay in their homes until 4:30am Saturday morning, 10/4.

Organised or politcally-motivated gatherings of 6 or more persons in public areas are prohibited until further notice.

The Governor will address the region shortly.

[Simfan34]

Executive Order 10-06

The Pacific Defence Force is hereby mobilised. All units of the Atlasian Armed Forces stationed in the Pacific Region are hereby placed under regional control at least until the Vice-President assumes the Presidency.

A state of martial law is hereby declared.

All orders of the Attorney-General after 12:00 EDT are hereby declared null and void, and no authority in the Pacific Region is to comply with them. Pacific Justice Bacon King is hereby invested with law enforcing authority until further notice, provided he does not comply with the orders of the Attorney-General.

[Simfan34]

In this chaotic time it is my duty as governor to keep the region safe and secure. It is also my duty as an Atlasian citizen with the means to do so, to uphold the constitutional order.

As per the constitution, Vice-President Tyrion must now become President. I must do everything in my power to ensure this occurs. My colleagues in the NCRDO and myself will do all we can to ensure our Constitution is preserved and Order maintained.

I hope all Pacificans will join me helping preserve the constitutional order and restore democracy to our country.

Governor Varavour

[Simfan34]

I am retiring to Hatley Park, British Columbia, for the weekend.

[Simfan34]

I concur with the WPF, the real threat of national disintegration must be stopped at all costs! The forces under regional command fully commit to this cause and shall cooperate with all groups seeking to uphold our national integrity and the constitutional order.

Thus I will stop in Seattle before taking my weekend vacation.

[Simfan34]

ETA of my flight to Seattle: 21:00.

[Simfan34]

The President has taken office. Let us follow him loyally, offer our services, and let us wish him the best of luck!

[Simfan34]

All executive orders are still in place.

[Simfan34]

Executive Order 10-07

All sporting, musical, social, and other large events with more than 100 spectators are hereby ordered postponed until further notice and the lifting of martial law. Martial law shall be lifted once the legal state of the government is clarified.

The forces under regional command are instructed to continue their securing the regions of Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, Kansas, and Nebrska, as well as the states of the neighboring region lately secured, in the name of the Federal Government as opposed to the outlaws.

A military administrator will be appointed for the secured regions shortly.

This is in line with the actions of the Secretary of Internal Affairs, and the recognition of the administration of the Governor there as one opposed to the President.

[Simfan34]

I prefer "do not quote laws to us, for we carry swords".

All executive orders are maintained. We shall proceed with the securing of the states of the neighboring region.

[Simfan34]

Executive Order 10-08

All units of the Atlasian Armed Forces stationed in the Pacific Region are to be returned to their normal command. Pacific Justice Bacon King is relieved of his special law enforcing authorities.

The units of the Pacific Defence Force securing the states of Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado are under no circumstance to initiate engagements with would-be hostile forces and shall engage only when fired upon by militias, self-proclaimed authorities, and other individuals. They shall not, at any time, engage units of the Armed Forces or any units of the National Guard of that region, and are instructed to immediately call for a truce and submit if necessary.

The police are ordered to rigorously enforce the executive orders and curfews.

[Simfan34]

Executive Order 10-09

An immediate ceasefire order is issued to all units of the Pacific Defence Force operating in the Midwest Region.

Only 25,000 are active at the moment, and 20,000 are in the Midwest.

[Simfan34]

Press Conference - Preserving the Constitutional Order
Fairmont Olympic Hotel, Seattle, WA

Fellow Pacificans, members of the press, ladies and gentlemen.

I suppose the time has come to explain ourselves, and the actions we have taken in the past few days. There have been a few who have taken to calling recent measure a grab for power, an attempted coup, a move towards fascism, even. There are gross mis-characterisations, to say the least, if not overtly malicious lies. We have even seen our honourable Justice Bacon King characterise our actions as unconstitutional- this being despite their long precedent in historical practice- but I am relieved that the authorities have continued upholding and complying with their orders. But I should explain for those who do not understand.

As we all certainly know too well, our country has been subsumed by instability unprecedented in our modern history, and fallen into a state of civil conflict not seen the Civil War one hundred and fifty years ago. I have been forced to watch in shock and horror, like the rest of us, as the authority of the federal government has slowly slipped away, as one president left office in what seems to have been a forced resignation and the condition of another lies shrouded in uncertainty. But I have been made to do more than just watch.

In one day I was twice detained by forces following the orders of the former Attorney General, who has called for my execution! I was released after those following orders realised their absurdity, but those in New York, Tulsa, or Wichita, where hundreds, if not thousands- thousands of our fellow Atlasians have died- died- in internecine strife- they have not been as lucky as I have been- as we here in the Pacific have been.

As your Governor, I could not, and cannot, allow such things to happen in our region. This is why I have imposed a curfew, a ban on public assemblies, a state of emergency. I cannot stand by idly and put thousands upon thousands of Pacificans at risk. To hold large gatherings, and allow persons to congregate, when tensions are high and there are many are armed with guns and "low potency explosives", would be a virtual death sentence for dozens, at the least, if not hundreds.

How could I ever allow such things to happen to The People? That is why we have taken the steps we have taken. I intend to meet with the Justice to see what can be done to reconcile any discrepancies of our actions with the law, and I intend to put forth legislation to the Legislative Assembly to help formalise and regularise these measures, to create means of enactment, enforcement, and oversight to maintain peace and order while giving the maximum amount of respect to individual rights achievable.

As for our intervention in the Midwest, we could not stand idly by as a fundamentalist Governor stood poised to impose his absurdist, bigoted, racist, views upon the population. We could not stand idly by as every Tom, Dick, and Harry seemed to be establishing his own militia or self-proclaimed government. We could not stand idly by our neighbours cried out for help. That is why we have intervened- at the request of the residents of the region. We must recognise their separate nature, yes, but we must also realise that the leaders of the Government there have been outlawed- which is why I shall seek to find a temporary administrator for those regions, and I hope that we may hand over control back to a local provisional authority or the federal government as soon as possible.

Dave willing, this crisis shall come to an end soon, and peace can return to this country. We may hopefully reconcile with one another in a spirit of forgiveness and unity. We may hope that order shall be the order of the day, that the Constitution will be upheld, that our constitutional order- the string with which all facets of Atlasian life are held together- will once again reign supreme. But until that time, when the government can reassert its authority over the whole nation, and the rule of law be honoured by all, we must and we will take measures to ensure that, at the very least, the constitutional order is maintained in this region.

Thank you, and I am now open for questions.

[Simfan34]

- Governor Varavour, two questions: There have been reports that race-riots have broken out in heavily African-American and Hispanic neighborhoods in San Francisco, Pueblo, Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Tucson over what have been, according to protesters, countless acts of brutality against unarmed African-American and Hispanic citizens by members of the Pacific Defense Forces during the current state of emergency.  Some reports have placed the death toll as high as 115, but we await confirmation of these numbers from the Secretary of Interior Affairs.  How do you plan to deal with these riots?  Are the protesters allegations legitimate or the result of outside agitators?

Senator X,

I am surprised to hear reports of such serious strife. The Pacific Defense Force has been deployed, within the Pacific Region, only around key government installations. The regular police, aided by special divisions, have been responsible for keeping the peace and enforcing curfew during this time, so I am at a loss to hear of their presence on neighbourhood streets, this would represent a serious deviation from orders if what you are saying is true. What reason is there for brutality against citizens, at this time?

I am certain that the casualty figure you quote is a dramatic exaggeration, others elsewhere may have become inured to such tragedy but we have certainly not, so again, if such things had happened I, at the very least, would have heard of them, not to mention the rest of us. I do not see a way for such serious confrontation to have come about- this is more than twice the number of those killed in the Rodney King riots back in 1992!

I once more urge all residents of the Pacific Region to stay in their homes and avoid travel if possible; this is not mandated outside curfew hours, but it is highly advisable. I tell all those who feel anger or are displeased with current affairs to remember that we all share these feelings, and that they should think of their families, their colleagues, their neighbours, before doing anything rash. I have faith in The People of the Pacific. Thus I am inclined to believe that external agents would be responsible for these events, if they are actually happening- which I once more would be surprised if they were, at least to the extent you describe.

It is important that the media continue to report regional goings-on and breaking news as they would normally. In such a time of crisis we cannot afford to have The People be both fearful of the future, and ignorant of the the present.

Thank you, and next question.

I'm now in charge of reestablishing the constitutional order. You are dismissed. Thank you for your service. We will send your things.

With what authority do you make such a statement? Whence does this authority derive? I cannot, have not, and will not acquiesce to such demands.

Next question.

[Simfan34]

Will you abide by the ruling of Justice Bacon King? Will you end the illegal occupation of the Midwest?

We intend to discuss recent events with the Justice shortly, I have acted in broad conformation with precedent and in proportion to events. The most important thing right now is to maintain law and order in the region and prevent a slide into chaos, and I will abide by those interests first and foremost before any other.

As for our securing of three states in the Midwest, I have already laid out our plans. I have also seen Adam FitzGerald's remarks and would like to read my response to them for you now;

Dear Mr Adam FitzGerald,

We received your comments with both shock and outrage, it must be admitted. It is patently absurd for you to maintain that "war is not the answer" and then threaten to wage one on the defence forces of a neighboring region! Some have called recent events a civil war, but if you were to make good on your threats it would undoubtedly be one; imagine, the forces of one federal region firing upon those of another! It is not 1861, for God's sake!

I will tell you what I had been thinking, although I am quite hesitant to abide by what I will propose following your threats. I will ignore your partisan rants, for the sake of brevity. You will abide by the official recommendations made by the Department of Internal Affairs and proclaim your loyalty to the Federal Government and completely abide by their decisions. You will de-mobilise and de-activate the Midwest National Guard unless they are under the command of the Armed Forces. You will renounce any sort of fundamentalism yours and pledge to not undertake any law imposing it on the region. And you will apologise for your deeply incendiary and provocative remarks.

I am not at all sure this is a good idea, neither for the residents of the Midwest, judging by how quickly your region has slid into chaos and experienced massive fatalities, nor for the residents of the Pacific, judging by the tenor of your comments and the venom and hostility they contained. I seek to keep the peace and maintain order, but I am skeptical this proposal would achieve those ends. But I will put these terms before you, regardless.

The choice is yours, and you shall bear responsibility for whatever choices you make, so I desperately hope you choose wisely.

Governor Varavour

I will send these comments to Mr FitzGerald shortly. Next question?

[Simfan34]

Governor, I plan on deploying the Atlasian Army to the Midwest in order to prevent your militia from claiming control of another region. Cease this reckless activity immediately or I will be forced to bring you to trial for crimes against Atlasia. This is reckless at best and treasonous at worst.

Mr President,

I am to take this as a abrogation of the conditions set by the Secretary of Internal Affairs? Or has the Midwest Governor affirmed his loyalty to your government?

I call for the mediation of the President Pro Tempore of the Senate in resolving this matter.

[Simfan34]

Governor, I plan on deploying the Atlasian Army to the Midwest in order to prevent your militia from claiming control of another region. Cease this reckless activity immediately or I will be forced to bring you to trial for crimes against Atlasia. This is reckless at best and treasonous at worst.

Mr President,

I am to take this as a abrogation of the conditions set by the Secretary of Internal Affairs? Or has the Midwest Governor affirmed his loyalty to your government?

I call for the mediation of the President Pro Tempore of the Senate in resolving this matter.

For the last time, I don't know how you've missed this, but I am loyal to President Tyrion, Secretary Cranberry, PPT Lumine, and the rest of the federal government. I by no means support the inexcusable actions of the secessionist movement, am completely opposed to treasonist Snowstalker, and oppose all other uprisings taking place.

My views should have nothing to do with why you're invading the Midwest. The Pacific Justice and the President told you to leave our region be, and I will leave your region be and withdrawal the MW regional guard/corps from the states of Montana, Wyoming and Colorado once you agree to get the Pac. Regional Guards out of our territory.

If this true, I issue the following:

Executive Order 10-10

All units of the Pacific Defence Force are to withdraw from territory the Midwest Region by no later than 12:00 on October 6, 2014.

I am most relieved we could avert a confrontation and that order shall be upheld in our neighboring regions.

[Simfan34]

Executive Order 10-11

Effective immediately, persons are allowed are allowed to organise peaceful gatherings on certain public property between the hours of 5:00pm and 9:00pm, local time, with the necessary approval of local authorities and under the supervision of police forces.

It should be noted that public property extends to roads, transportation systems, rivers, and so forth, and unauthorised gatherings in such areas shall be deemed trespass on public property and dealt with accordingly.

Peaceful gatherings on private property are to be permitted providing they are not considered harmful to public order and security, and that they are organised with the consent of the owner(s). Due to the present situation peaceful gatherings on private property shall be considered harmful to public order if not conducted in the same manner as approved gatherings on public property.

The state of martial law is lifted as there exists no statute or constitutional provision, regional or federal, detailing such a state of law; the declaration did not affect any actual change in law enforcement or any other facet of governance. The general state of emergency (as provided for in the Patriation of the Pacific Recovery Act 2014) is maintained.

The provisions of this order, and prior orders dealing with the regulation of public gatherings, are in conformance with the principle that government may regulate the time, place, and manner of expression, as established through legal precedent (cf. Police Dept. of Chicago v. Mosley, Ward v. Rock Against Racism).

The curfew is likewise maintained, as it is conforms with the established precedent of a compelling state interest, such as when a region has been ravaged by a natural disaster, or when its safety and welfare are otherwise threatened (as it is now), permitting their imposition (cf. Zemel v. Rusk).

The activation of units of the Pacific National Guard and the Pacific Defence Force, as part of the regional militia as opposed as a part of the Armed Forces, to maintain the public order, protect public utilities and infrastructure, and secure government offices and facilities, is well within the rights of the Governor as the commander-in chief of the regional National Guard and a state/regional defense force. As per the the Pacific Constitution, forces may be deployed during "public rebellion or in the interests of public safety", which applies to the present situation.

[Simfan34]

Executive Order 10-12

Units of the Pacific National Guard and the Pacific Defence Force, amounting to 32,000 soldiers in total, are to be deployed in the cities of Los Angeles, San Diego, Phoenix, Las Vegas and Tucson to restoring public order and contain and stop the violence in those regions.

An inquiry shall be launched to investigate the potential role of outside agitation in fomenting civil unrest.

[Simfan34]

Governor, I have two follow-up questions:  Recently, the SoIA's office has reported that the Pacific race-riots have already seen a higher death toll than initially reported.  My first question is what, if anything, do you plan to do to put an end to these increasingly violent and destructive riots, particularly in light of your previously expressed skepticism that death toll was anywhere near as high as had been rumored?

I have just issued an executive order calling up the Pacific National Guard and the Pacific Defence Force to deploy in the affected neighborhoods of the cities experiencing arrest. I advise you to look at the Secretary's response, however, as he reports 63 persons have died. That is far too many, 63 too many, but it is much less than what some had claimed before. I would also like to forcefully state that no person, you or anyone else, should make claims unsupported by the authorities, to "stir the pot" or whatnot. I cannot put this in stronger terms.

Secondly, how do you respond to critics who have either alleged that your initial response was a sign that the Pacific government is unaware of what is occurring within its own region or claimed that you have not taken quick or forceful enough action to quell this unrest and put a stop to the mass looting that has broken out in cities like Los Angeles?

It seems likely these protests have been fomented by external agents seeking to destabilise our region, the claim of "police brutality" is absurd as there have been no reports of such even up till now. I think that no one will say I have not been forceful in keeping order, I think the government in our region has been the most proactive during this crisis. Again, the claims that "mass looting" or even "violent and destructive riots" are taking place are unsubstantiated ones, and I advise you from making them for the sake of The People.

Will you abide by the ruling of Justice Bacon King? Will you end the illegal occupation of the Midwest?

I am pleased to report that the Pacific Justice has recognised our recent actions (or those still in force) as constitutional.

Thank you for your questions, but we must be off, so that will be all.

[Simfan34]

There is a distinction to be made between the Armed Forces proper and a state regional militia, which the Pacific National Guard and Pacific Defence Force are acting as. I believe this is the legal workaround here. The National Guard can act both as an armed force and a militia, strange but true, it seems. This how "states" can maintain "state National Guards" and "state defense forces" as they "do in the US", without violating Art. I, § 10, Cl. 3 of the "US Constitution", which states that no "state shall, without the consent of Congress... keep troops, or ships of war in time of peace."

If not, this is an absurd restriction (which didn't appear in the US Constitution, it should be noted). Let me know what you make of it. As for habeas corpus, that deals with unlawful imprisonment, so I'm not sure how that pertains here. Your proposal sounds good but I'll address it if that becomes necessary.

[Simfan34]

I'll need to comment on what you've said in detail, but I'll take the time to just say that my ignorance of "Atlasian jurisprudence" is hopefully understandable. I need to take a closer look at what you're saying however.

[Simfan34]

Let me look at this.

Simfan did you even read my legal decision that I made against you...

Okay, is the snark really necessary? This is taxing enough as is.

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lawful suspension of Habeas Corpus is a prerogative of the Senate:

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i.e. according to the regional constitution, the only time you can use soldiers to enforce the law is when it's consistent with the federal constitution that says it can only be done when the Senate suspends habeas corpus

I am still at a loss here. What does habeas corpus have to do with military policing? The two are completely unrelated except if, perhaps, members of the armed forces held a person in unlawful detention.

Also, you cannot suspend the "Writ of Habeas Corpus", you might as well "suspend the free and fair trial". The privilege to a writ of habeas corpus is something addressed, but as of now this clause is incomprehensible and is probably void due to vagueness.

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"Law" includes the Atlasian Constitution.

This provision is also unenforceable as the Pacific does not (and can not) maintain its own military, nor can it tell the federal government what it can and cannot do if the Federal government sought to deploy the Armed Forces. Otherwise, this effectively means that regions cannot use an organised militia in times of instability at all and things such as the National Guard being called in during the Rodney King riots would be impossible. If so, this is absurd.

This then means that unless the Pacific is somehow legally maintaining some sort of military, the clause cited here does not affect recent events. Which brings us to the definition of "armed forces".

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Furthermore the distinction between "armed forces" and "militia" is irrelevant because check out this other part of the Federal Constitution:

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So hey check that out, Senatorial consent is required for using militias to do things like enforce laws and suppress insurrections, isn't that neat.

Also stop talking about the US Constitution because it doesn't matter here. We're talking about the Atlasian Constitution. Maybe you can cite US jurisprudence for comparable clauses between the two documents but even then Atlasia-specific things supercede anything American. [/quote]

This is identical to the wording of the US Constitution, so obviously, due to, well... precedent, it should mean the same thing here as it does there. And nothing here prohibited US states from maintaining militias and using them, so it should follow that this should not, either.

Which makes sense, because this whole section details the powers granted to the Senate and not powers denied to the regions. This effectively means the Senate could supercede any order made by a region, but it doesn't prohibit a region from doing anything. Your interpretation... does not follow from the text.

Consider for example that the only reason the Southeast is allowed to have a militia in spite of the Atlasian version of the "no keeping troops in time of peace without the consent of congress" law because I found a beautiful technicality where the Senate referenced the Southeast militia like a decade ago . Not to mention Simfan that your entire militia/armed forces dichotomy is bunk because State National Guards exist due to a series of Federal Laws starting with the Militia Act of 1792 which defined their structure and everything. You may note that you will not find any Atlasian law referencing Regional militias or any Pacific law regarding them

There are several laws referencing the National Guard (cf. Second Military Division Appropriation Act, Support for Atlasia's Soldiers Act), which implies that there is a National Guard. As per the Applicability of Common Law Act, the Militia Act of 1792 and all the relevant acts would seem to be in place. We've been repealing them (cf. Labor Rights Act of 2008), so you need to let me know where we threw all of the US Code out of the window. Which would have been ill-advised.

As for the Pacific we (apparently) adopted the Arizona Revised Statutes back in 2005, and there (obviously) is an Arizona National Guard so it would follow that a Pacific National Guard also exists.

[Simfan34]

The Arizona Statutes were adopted by the Rule of Law (Pacific) Act 2005, to be precise.

If we want to talk constitutionality here, the structure of the Pacific Judiciary where rulings can be handed down without any semblance of a trial, without prior warning, where the prosecution and the judge are one and the same, and with limited ability to appeal, would seem to violate several of the core tenets of the Constitution and fundamental principles of what constitutes due process or fair trial.