Third State of the Forum Address

The Senate entered its thirteenth session this month and quickly began to continue its active work from last session. The final accomplishment of the twelfth Senate was energy policy reform proposed by Secretary of the Treasury Bono, which has already begun to show positive effects in the economy. The Senate proceeded to re-elect MasterJedi as its PPT without any dissent, and passed a carry-over from last session regarding trade laws with Canada and Mexico; a removal of various holidays and celebrations that the Senate deemed unnecessary; a constitutional amendment to allow for flexibility in when the SoFA opens the voting booth and legislation to supplement it; and an act with codifies into law the responsibilities of the Attorney General to ensure that laws are placed on the Atlas Fantasy Wiki.

In the upcoming weeks the Senate will consider a series of free trade proposals written by Senator MasterJedi and myself. It is our hope that by catching up Atlasian trade policy with real life U.S. policy and surpassing it, we will be building bridges with these countries and allow for continued economic growth. It is especially vital that we secure friendly ties with nations in South America, as MasterJedi has proposed, so that we can show our allies in South America that is it in their interests to have trade with us as opposed to strengthening the anti-Atlasia entente that currently exists there.

I have also proposed a bill, based heavily off of Mideast legislation written by our new Secretary of State, afleitch, that bars adoption agencies funded by the federal government from discriminating against couples solely or primarily on the basis of the sexual orientation of the relationship. I think this is an important step in recognizing that Atlasia welcomes same-sex couples both as partners fit for unions equal to those of straight couples, but as people who, if willing, are capable of raising our children and providing a better home for them than an orphanage or abusive environment.

Soon my administration will also be proposing Medicare/Medicaid reform, written by Attorney General Brandon H. I think this will be a good addition to the reform pursued by our administration in regards to energy and social security (with the help of Bono and True Democrat, respectively) and hope the Senate will give this upcoming proposal due consideration when it is proposed.

The campaigns for the June presidential election began this month, and to my dismay one of these campaigns used as its basis for what it would correct in Atlasia my presidency: namely, that I have been divisive and disrespectful to political opponents while serving as President. Firstly, I believe that the allegations of disrespect centered around one certain incident regarding to the constitutional amendment to allow the Senate to set a federal minimum wage. I sent a private apology to all of those who I felt I had unfairly wronged in the course of that event, and I think it is fair that no more of is said of it. However, the accusation that I have been divisive is one I do not dispute, nor do I find anything wrong with the premise of a divisive presidency. It is natural that one is able to take stands that may be controversial or divisive when pushing an agenda. It will never be possible to please everyone, nor is it feasible to attempt to do so.

Soon I will be announcing my intentions for the June presidential elections. I am glad to see active campaigns have begun, and believe this to be proof that our system of democracy, at least on a nationwide scale, is working. However, I advise the public to be cautious. Many different ideas and attitudes about the way the nation should be run will be presented to us in the coming weeks and month. I think it is fair to apply a presumption of error to each of these proposals, because many of these ideas may look good on paper but there is reason to believe they won't work out so well in practice. To quote from an editorial published in regards to the June 2005 elections, "choose wisely" -- although it is tempting to vote for the candidate with the flashiest speeches or the catchiest slogan (or perhaps the closest political matrix test score), it's important to look at how "new" ideas played out when implemented in the past. If we don't learn from the past, we are doomed to repeat it.

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