Atlasia Chronicle - Presidential Debate

[Clyde1998]

Hello and welcome to the Atlasia Chronicle Presidential Debate, live from Raleigh, North Carolina. With just five days left to the start of polling, the three candidates, Southern Governor DFW Libertylover, Representative NeverAgain and former-Northeast Governor Winfield, have an opportunity to put their case to the public and win over undecided voters.

The debate will have a simple question-answer format, but first each candidate will have a chance to make their opening statements.

I've extended an invitation to Maxwell to take part in this debate.

[Terry the Fat Shark]

I would like to thank the Atlasia Chronicle and its debate moderator Senator Clyde1998 for hosting this Presidential debate for us! It's so important for us to talk about the issues and show where our clear differences are so that voters will have a REAL choice this weekend! I am running on a platform to fix up our infrastructure system, our roads and our water systems. I am running to scale back our nation building foreign policy and instead only intervene in extreme situations or when we are attacked. I am running because I believe that we need an active President in office, one that will never stop respecting our constitution and everything that it stands for and will never slack off as President. I believe that I am that candidate! I have been a Southern Delegate, a Representative, a Senator, PPT of the Senate, and the Governor of the Southern Region. I believe I can take everything I have learned from my time in all of these offices and apply that knowledge and my enthusiasm to the Presidency!

[Lincoln Republican]

Thank you to Senator Clyde, the Atlasian Chronicle, and all involved in sponsoring this debate.  Open and respectful debate and free flowing discussion is such an essential aspect of democracy.

Let me give you some details of my public record of service.

I have served as Governor of the Northeast, Lieutenant Governor, Speaker of the Assembly, a multi term member of the Northeast Assembly.

I have as well served as an elected delegate to the recent Constitutional Convention.

Recently, I have served as a Domestic Advisor to Blair when he was President of Atlasia.

In a society where 1% of the population control 48% of the wealth, this is cause for concern.  I want to ensure the very wealthy are paying their fair share of tax, and will not be able to shelter this tremendous wealth in off shore, tax free accounts.

I was the first to enter this race, and one of the first policies I announced was to undertake the most ambitious and extensive public works and infrastructure program in the history of Atlasia.  This will bring billions into the economy and result in the creation of millions of jobs.

I plan on introducing a sensible and well needed gun control policy, which I believe has wide support in the nation, and will make the people of this nation safer.

I want to see medical and dental costs be brought under control.  I will institute an audit of the cost of medical and dental equipment, to determine which costs are justified and which are not.

Medical administrative costs in Atlasia are 8%, more than double the average world wide costs of 3%.  I will want to know why, in order to determine if these costs are justified or not.

I will do a thorough audit and investigation of the pharmaceutical industry to determine why the cost of pharmaceuticals are so high, and correct those costs where necessary.

I want to ensure senior's homes are treating the seniors in their care and in their facilities are being treated with respect and dignity, and are well cared for.  I will undertake an extensive investigation, and will lay charges where appropriate.

As far as our military is concerned, I will ensure that Atlasia maintains a strong, modern, effective, state of the art military, so that we will be prepared for any situation.  I will never allow Atlasia to negotiate from a state of weakness.

Being militarily well prepared does not mean that we will be involving ourselves in foreign wars and adventures.  We will not act as the world's policeman.  We will act to protect our interests at home and abroad where necessary.

Our foreign policy will be one of negotiation and diplomacy rather than one of confrontation.  We will act as much as possible with our allies in NATO and the United Nations. 

Thank you my fellow Atlasians for being here today, and I look forward to a lively and spirited debate.         

[Clyde1998]

Thank you both for your opening statements. To accommodate Winfield's busy schedule this week, I'll ask him his questions now. I'll ask DFW Libertylover and NeverAgain their questions, once the Laborite has had an opportunity to give his opening statement.

• The question of whether we should have a Parliamentary Atlasia has become topical recently. If you were elected, would you seek any changes to the system of government that is currently in place?
• Could you explain your "Shovels in the Ground, Trucks on the Road" policy? Would the whole country see the benefit of your plan to upgrade infrastructure or would this target the places most in need of improvement in their infrastructure?
• How would you seek the end the crisis in Syria? Would this be something that you feel could be ended through negotiation, or do you believe that the military effort should continue?
• You've mentioned in your campaign that you'd like to increase funding to help with student mental health. How would you like to see mental healthcare work under your leadership and is this something that you can see expanding towards the wider public in the future should your policy with student mental health be successful?
• Would you seek to propose any of your policies to Congress, in the event that your not elected as President?
• And finally, for now, your running on the same ticket as you did twelve months ago - do you believe that you can improve on that result?

[Lincoln Republican]

The question of whether we should have a Parliamentary Atlasia has become topical recently. If you were elected, would you seek any changes to the system of government that is currently in place?

Thank you Clyde for permitting me the opportunity to attend this debate to fit into with my schedule this week.

Personally, I like the governmental system we have in place at this time.  I believe our Presidential system of government works for this republic and serves us well.

I am not in favor of a parliamentary system.  The presidential system with a bicameral legislature  works fine as far as I'm concerned.

The Presidential system in my view provides more stability. The parliamentary system leaves more room for instability in the process, with the greater possibility of minority governments.

With our system, there is plenty of opportunity for most to serve if they wish to do so.

[Lincoln Republican]

Could you explain your "Shovels in the Ground, Trucks on the Road" policy? Would the whole country see the benefit of your plan to upgrade infrastructure or would this target the places most in need of improvement in their infrastructure?

My "Shovels in the Ground, Trucks on the Road" proposal is designed to benefit the entire nation.  We will upgrade and modernize where necessary and we will create where necessary.

Across the nation, there is ample opportunity to see infrastructure that is in need of upgrading and modernization.  As well, there are areas in need of new infrastructure. 

This policy will make Atlasia more competitive on the world economic stage, will increase wages for Atlasian workers, will reduce the cost of goods and services for Atlasian consumers, and will create jobs. 

[Lincoln Republican]

How would you seek the end the crisis in Syria? Would this be something that you feel could be ended through negotiation, or do you believe that the military effort should continue?

The situation in Syria is a human tragedy, caused by the brutal dictator and murderer Assad, backed by  Russian another brutal dictator, Putin

It is perfectly clear by now that Assad is not going to give up power and that he will kill as many people, including children, as he has to in order to maintain power.

The only thing Assad and Putin understand is power and armed might.  Given this, the only thing that is going to bring the brutal Assad dictatorship down is armed might. 

Assad has only allowed a limited amount of humanitarian aide through to the victims.

Ideally, a regional force should be organized to carry out an extensive bombing campaign of key targets, taking out Syrian military installations, bombing their planes on the ground, possibly even taking out the Assad palaces.

If the bulk of Syrian military installations are taken out, this would severely cripple Assad's ability to continue killing innocent people.  It would as well increase the opportunities for the Syrian rebels to regroup and be more effective.

If this bombing campaign by regional forces does not succeed in taking out the Assad regime, the United Nations should send in more forces to continue the air campaign. 

A ground campaign of the United Nations would be a last resort.

As President, I will not commit  our forces to a ground campaign in Syria.   

 

[Lincoln Republican]

You've mentioned in your campaign that you'd like to increase funding to help with student mental health. How would you like to see mental healthcare work under your leadership and is this something that you can see expanding towards the wider public in the future should your policy with student mental health be successful?

This mental health initiative is specifically part of the gun control policy that I have proposed. 

We all know that many of the shootings that have taken the lives of so many innocent people, even children, have been perpetrated by mentally unstable individuals.

Mental health is a very misunderstood issue I believe.  There are many types of mental health issues that are not understood. 

There are many good programs in place for mental health treatment for adults, which I support.

If we can deal with mental health issues where they exist with young people, this will go a long way, I believe, in preventing potential violent behavior later in life.

If this mental health initiative with students proves to be successful, I would consult with mental health professionals about expanding the program for adults.       

[Lincoln Republican]

Would you seek to propose any of your policies to Congress, in the event that your not elected as President?

If not elected, I would certainly propose gun control through a sponsor to Congress, as well as investigations into the cost of medical and dental treatment and equipment as well as  the cost of pharmaceuticals.
 

[Lincoln Republican]

And finally, for now, your running on the same ticket as you did twelve months ago - do you believe that you can improve on that result?

I am very pleased that Poirot offered his services as the Vice Presidential candidate on our ticket in this election.

Poirot is a candidate who is knowledgeable, experienced, well versed on the issues, and hard working.

Poirot has pledged that should be become Vice President, that he will be a very active Vice President.

I have to say that there is no one else in  Atlasia at this time that I would rather have on the ticket with me in this election.

It is my honor to have Poirot on the ticket twice with me.

As far as the results of this election, I will leave that in the hands of the voters.

[Maxwell]

As the fourth candidate, I will break into the debate hall and give my statement:

who am i? why am i here? I'm not sure, but I'll tell you what I know. I'm Maxwell - I've been here for quite some time. I was once of the right-ward persuasion and was a rising star during that time. I am no longer of that persuasion and no longer any kind of star. I represent the oft forgotten - the communists, the abolitionists, the independence lovers, average joe of many six packs, dental hygienists, various pronouns, and, of course, the people of Vermont.

My platform is simple - and I put a time clock on myself of one term to get it done, because that's always about my interest level if that. I want to institute a 32 hour workweek, I want to nationalize the energy industry and the healthcare industry, a cap on CEO salaries to exactly $1 Million and only after 2020 increase it for the affects of inflation, building a world workers council, a total and complete shutdown of home schooling in Atlasia, introduce parliamentary style game reform to halt the excessive influence of the executive branch, and of course, grant amnesty to Vermont so that the state can secede from the union and become its own independent anarcho-communist nation.

I will answer more questions if given, but those are the basics.

[NeverAgain]

NeverAgain's Opening Statements

Good evening all! I want to first thank my good friend, Clyde and the Atlasian Chronicle for hosting this debate which is so crucial to our democracy. I also want to thank my opponents who are here tonight for demonstrating this crucial democracy in action. And most importantly I want to thank everyone who is viewing this debate tonight. Thank you all, and I look forward to fruitful dialogue in this coming exchange of ideas.

Let me start off by introducing myself and my partner in our battle for justice for the working class. My name is NeverAgain, and SouthernGothic, if he were able to speak here, would say he's SouthernGothic. Our goals in our public service careers have been to Never Stop Fighting™ for those who have been ignored by our top-down economy. We continue to do this, every day, and we got in this race because we knew that we could and we HAD to make a difference for working families in Atlasia.

What we're facing in Atlasia is a threat like no other, and one I am so optimistic we can and will solve, if we act on this together. The threat of inactivity and regressivity is the biggest factor in this race and for every Atlasian citizen. I have proposed a comprehensive plan to help stem the flow of this inactivity, and help put us on the path of growth and inclusion that I know we can achieve. 

I stand on this stage, the proud child of a Methodist Minister and a professor, who both have struggled to get ahead in troubling times. I stand here fighting for them. I stand on this stage, a proud student of many wonderful educators who have made me the person I am today. I stand here fighting for them. And most importantly, I stand here on this stage the proud Representative for all of the people of Atlasia. I stand here fighting for you!

Thank you, and may God Bless Atlasia.

[Clyde1998]

Thank you all for your responses. These next few questions relate to internal affairs.

I'll ask this to all of you: The question of whether we should have a Parliamentary Atlasia has become topical recently. If you were elected, would you seek any changes to the system of government that is currently in place?

Specifically to Maxwell: You've mentioned in your campaign that you'd end home schooling, could you explain your reason being this? You appear to have been in favour of homeschooling in the past, what's changed your opinion on this subject? Additionally, do you believe that there would be need for increased spending in education to help achieve this policy?

NeverAgain, you've brought forward a new tax proposal that simplifies that tax code and introduces a 45% tax for people earning over $10 million. How do you think that this structure would work better than the system that's currently in place and do you think that there would be any changes in spending if you're elected?

DFW Libertylover, you've said that you'd like to 'provide economic relief to the common folk'. Can you give voters an idea of how taxation would look under your Presidency and if, as the statement implies, you're planning to cut taxes for certain economic groups, do you believe that a spending cut would be necessary to achieve this?

[Terry the Fat Shark]

DFW Libertylover, you've said that you'd like to 'provide economic relief to the common folk'. Can you give voters an idea of how taxation would look under your Presidency and if, as the statement implies, you're planning to cut taxes for certain economic groups, do you believe that a spending cut would be necessary to achieve this?

Thank you for the question, I do plan on cutting spending before I cut any taxes ( this may seem a bit odd since I'm planning an infrastructure project as well). I plan on slashing spending wherever possible, preferably without cutting the social safety net at all. I believe that there is a lot of excess government waste and cutting that alone could significantly reduce the deficit. After that I will evaluate what tax cuts can be made based on the circumstances, but I can't promise that there will be across the board tax cuts right now.

[Maxwell]

Specifically to Maxwell: You've mentioned in your campaign that you'd end home schooling, could you explain your reason being this? You appear to have been in favour of homeschooling in the past, what's changed your opinion on this subject? Additionally, do you believe that there would be need for increased spending in education to help achieve this policy?

I was brainwashed - George Romney voice.

I am only kidding of course - I evolved on this issue as I have evolved on quite a few issues. I stopped it back when I believed sincerely in the idea that school choice was something that would be beneficial to all. I think some choice in school is acceptable, but the fact is that charter schools must meet the same standards that our public schools meet and follow at least similar regulatory burden. what majorly changed for me in terms of home schooling is my increasing aversion to parents who want their children to, instead of growing up an independent human being, be indoctrinated and isolated from society. The benefits of being a part of society are endless!

And of course I want to expand public education. I want to spend a shocking amount of money on public education. I want to spend it because our children are not getting the best from our government. Teachers have to pay for their own supplies, school districts face increasingly unequal situations, and with the trend of a reduction of school districts, more children are forced into broader districts as a result of "cost cutting" measures that never cut costs. I want to completely re-wire education and make our children smart again.

[NeverAgain]

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      Yes, Parliament. First off, I want to say that it is a very interesting idea, and I would never want to put it down, but there are major worries I have with it. First off, being it's implementation and possibility to force a rewriting of a Constitution that took so many months to pass and so much effort to undertake. But, I am quite in support of looking at proposals and seeing what they plan to accomplish, but I will not support any proposal that includes destruction of the regions, or the ending of our current system of STV elections. I do think the idea of electing a PM through this new Parliament does intrigue me, on the basis that elections would be so action packed and, hopefully by having just one chamber of enthusiastic MP's we'll also see increased action on that front.

Anyways, in all, I am very interested to see what is proposed and I will be extremely excited to help get all ideas out there on this front.

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      Wonderful question, so my tax code is actually only 4 brackets, 5, 15, 25, and 35. The 45% Bracket for over $10M is for the Estate Tax, as the estate tax doesn't hinder growth, in comparison to the income tax, and can help support tax relief for working families. I would encourage anyone who hasn't already, to go read my tax proposal here and see fully what I am proposing on this front. Now, one thing about my plan that is so important to mention is that while this does lower taxes on all Atlasians, marginally, looking at the effective rate, the bottom 96% of Americans are going to be receiving the actual majority of the tax cuts, unlike some proposals that give large breaks to those at the top. The rationale for this is that if we look at how we get true growth, is through allowing middle-class Atlasians to be able to invest a couple extra thousand dollars in our economy, not allowing the wealthy to store another couple million in their offshore bank account.

      On the issue of spending, my proposal is fully paid for and will not add a dime to the deficit. In addition, my plan will likely increase government revenue through tax returns over the next decade. The deficit and the debt are issues I take extremely seriously and care a lot about. While I am by no means in favor of a balanced budget amendment, I am strongly in favor of lowering our deficit to a sustainable level so that we do not spend more on paying interest on our debts than we do on securing every Atlasian's right to old-age security. Thanks for your question.

[Maxwell]

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Parliamentry Atlasia is the way to go. I believe we should have 15 elected members to the Senate, 6 from the regions, 9 at-large, and the Prime Minister is elected by the members. Instead of some cabinet of even more officers, the cabinet would be made up of the members of the Prime Minister's coalition (ie Secretary of State, Secretary of Labor, blah blah, all of them are Senators). If there is truly a need for there to be one national election where we select one person to be on top, we could perhaps have some sort of figurehead like King or whatever to make some folks happy. The GM and the Courts would go largely unchanged, though I have to wonder if there could be, instead of or in conjunction with a GM, some sort of random event generator and Dice to allow Atlasia to respond to events thrown at them and then rolled in terms of effectiveness in some instances. I have a very rough idea of game reform, I hope to hear from citizens on how to clamp down on the details.

[Clyde1998]

Thank you all for your responses. Moving towards foreign policy, these questions are for all of you.

How would you seek the end the crisis in Syria? Would this be something that you feel could be ended through negotiation, or do you believe that the military effort should continue?

Do you think that we should reduce our military presence across the globe and restructure our international military installations, as to only keep the most important bases? Or should we continue with our current structure and maintain our footprint internationally?

Would you continue to spend as much as we currently do on the military, or should we cut spending in this area?

[Maxwell]

what? Syria? I think i'll be briefed on it and then i'll have an opinion on it. I pity the suckers who read up on this stuff ahead of time!

Moving on, I think for too long we've been a military welfare state instead of just a regular welfare state. I believe we should deescalate rapidly. My plan (holds up policy paper filled with penis drawings) for military spending will have us spending around half of what we spend now by the end of the decade adjusted for inflation. We should remove bases in countries where no military activity will ever be necessary - ie Germany, France, ect. allied countries with no real threats.

The only type of military spending that should ever be increased is increased spending and focus on cyber-security. We face vast threats from enemy countries like RUSSIA, who could potentially hack into this election and our polls. I mean, how could my campaign be only polling at 10% if not for Russian hacking? we're winning winning winning. So "the cyber" is very important and we're going to get the best people on it.