AF Primaries: Illinois Primary (Deadline Monday 11th 6pm EST)

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Name: Ernest Calhoun
Party: Republican (given the issues you've decided to focus on, I'd say that I'd likely poll better as a Republican than a Democrat

Where do you stand on the following issues?

• Abortion Neutral (but oppose execeptions for rape and incest)
  
• Affirmative Action Oppose
  
• Gay Rights Neutral (depends on what you mean by "gay rights" in some areas "support", in others "oppose")
  
• Death Penalty Support
  
• War on Drugs Oppose
  
• Gun control Neutral (like Gay Rights, it deends on what you mean)
  
• School Vouchers Support
  
• Promote abstinence over sex education Oppose
  
• Measures to reduce global warming Neutral (which measures?)
  
• ANWR Drilling Neutral
  
• Seek UN approval for military action Oppose
  
• Iraq War was a mistake Neutral (going in wasn't a mistake, but the way we executed it was)
  
• More Spending on Armed Forces Oppose
  
• Domestic surveillance (e.g. wiretapping) Neutral
  
• Support and Expand Free Trade Support
  
• More Federal Funding For Healthcare Neutral
  
• Privatize Social Security Oppose
  
• Encourage Immigration Neutral
  
• Raise the Minimum Wage Neutral
  
• Decrease taxation of the rich Oppose

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Well.  I want XXXXX, which I'm guessing for a Republican will be a medium office, so I'll take option 2, with me picking the office.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Just in case you're unlucky and nobody feels any generosity towards you, you'll be given a standard budget of $1 million anyway, just for a little pocket money.  Consider it your great uncle's inheritance money stashed away for a rainy day.  (Note that every candidate will be getting this $1m each anyway.  Call it socialism.)

Socialism! More like communism! One of the reasons I picked business person was the ability to self-finance.  Let's face it.  When business people running for Senator or Governor routinely dump multiple millions of their own money into the race, to be limited to the same $1 million of initial funding as everyone else is ridiculous.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Ernest Calhoun, CEO and Chairman of the Board of the Maplewood, Minnesota based 3M Company (NYSE:MMM) announced today that he would be stepping down to make a run for President.  Calhoun is best known for spearheading the acquisition of Minco Mining & Metals Corporation of Vancouver, British Columbia in part so that 3M could acquire the use of the MMM ticker symbol on the Toronto Stock Exchange.  Said Calhoun in 2004 when the acquisition was made, "I'd be lying if I didn't acknowledge that the symbol caused us to take a close look at the company, but mining is one of traditional core components of 3M and we expect precious metals will rise in price over the next few years, making Minco's holdings in gold and silver mines attractive." Calhoun is known politically mainly for his support for free trade, having provided donations to groups promoting trade liberalization with Africa and the Americas.  Said Calhoun at a 2005 Senate hearing on the Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement, "Free trade is one of the best tools our country can use to promote the economic development of friendly nations and reduce the flow of illegal immigration."

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

So that we can plan ahead, could we have a schedule of the primaries and caucuses past New Hampshire to be used in this game?

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Iowa: 500 hours of campaigning and a Level 3 organization.

[Ad 1: Level 1 radio ad ($250,000)]
Whether it be the economy, immigration, drugs, or any other issue you care to name, there are too many politicians who would have us cower behind walls of our own making, afraid of the world.  I'm Ernest Calhoun.  I'm not a politican, but I'm running for President, because I'm tired of those who would rather blame others and seek political cover, than lead this generation, as generations past have done, to boldly confront the problems that America faces. I'm Ernest Calhoun, and I wrote this message because I believe in America.

Depending on how much real time we have, I may get around to doing some speeches and some more ads or I might not.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Speech 1: Energy
   America faces many problems today, but that is nothing new.  Each generation has its own challenges to face, but those challenges have always been met by America with strength and determination.  Our own challenges are ready to be faced, and we must confront them, not cower behind walls of our own making.
   Our energy policy is one such problem.  Our addiction to petroleum affects our economy, our environment, and our foreign affairs.  We expend large amounts of money to acquire petroleum overseas, not just in direct purchases, but in the provision of military and other types of foreign assistance intended to safeguard our oil suppliers.  Consumption of fossil fuels also causes unwanted emissions that harm our environment.  We need to confront the dragon of petroleum and slay it.
   Biofuels such as ethanol and biodiesel are helpful and their production should be encouraged.  CAFE standards must be strengthened and combined with a program to encourage the removal of older, inefficient vehicles from the road.  But these conservative measures, while needed, are only short term solutions to curb, not long term solutions to cure our petroleum addiction.  We need to aggressively research replacements for the internal combustion engine.
   Improved battery technology has already made possible $100,000 electric sports cars with comparable performance to conventional vehicles in the same price range, but if we could do the same with a $20,000 family car, we could utilize our electricity grid to generate and distribute the energy we need for transportation without recourse to petroleum or leaky pipelines.  Hydrogen fuel cells are another possibility to achieve the same ends, but will require the development of a number of different technologies to make practical a hydrogen economy.
   However, whether it be improved batteries, fuel cells, or some other technology, replacing petroleum will require increased production of electricity.  If that production comes from increased consumption of fossil fuels, we will only have achieved the replacement of the problem of petroleum with another.  We should do all that can be done to increase the use of wind power and other renewable sources of electricity; we should research practical methods of carbon sequestration; but we must be prepared to make use of the one proven, existing means of electricity production that both has no carbon impact in generation, and is easily scalable up in size to not only meet the demands for new generating capacity, but to retire existing fossil fuel powered generators, and that is nuclear power.
   Our fears of nuclear power, while not entirely unjustified, have been overhyped by fear mongers who ignore the dangers of the alternatives.  More environmental damage is caused by fossil fuels than by nuclear power, yet it is nuclear power that attracts the focus of a number of supposed environmental activists.  This no doubt because of the human tendency to worry more about new risks, even when than they are lower than the old risks that already exist.  To the extent that renewable supplies of electricity can be utilized, they should, but given a choice between nuclear and fossil fuels to supply the remainder of our demand, we should be doing all we can to utilize nuclear.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

It's ok, there isn't really a 'rule' about long speeches.  It's just strongly recommended that you stick to a single paragraph, for two reasons.  One, I don't like reading lengthy tracts, and two, for similar reasons, they'll deduct from the quality of the speech and thus reduce its effect.

I stuck to a single topic, and a 3-minute speech is hardly long in my opinion.    I'm keeping the one paragraph sound bites for the ads.  Besides, I'm using the same formula for all of my speeches.  The first paragraph will be the same and contains the overall theme of my campaign.  The second summarizes the topic and the rest goes into slightly wonkish details.  I'm hardly going into Clintonesque excess here folks.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Speech 2: Military
   America faces many problems today, but that is nothing new.  Each generation has its own challenges to face, but those challenges have always been met by America with strength and determination.  Our own challenges are ready to be faced, and we must confront them, not cower behind walls of our own making.
   When it comes to military planning, despite the obvious failures of the Rumsfeld doctrine, the current administration refuses to acknowledge the elephant in the room, a fault no Republican should ever make.  That elephant is what changes do we need to make to avoid repeating the mistake of trying to occupy a country with insufficient force?  The pacifist solution of not making the attempt in the first place assumes wrongly that we can stay safe by burying our heads in the sand.  While war should always be the last option in diplomacy, that doesn't mean that it is not an option.  We need a military capable of applying force as needed.  We must not become so obsessed with Iraq that we fail to plan and prepare for future conflicts.
   The tragic flaw of the Rumsfeld doctrine is not its basic premises; it's failures have come from its application beyond the scope of the concerns it was developed to address.  We do not need a massive military force to fight a conventional war.  The cold war is over and the doctrine and equipment our military possesses is more than enough to deal with any conventional threat that they may face.  However, we do need sufficient personnel available to enable us to deal with the occasional need to fight or better yet, to prevent, an insurgency such as is going on in Iraq.
   That is why it is so painful to see the mistakes being made by the administration in the care and nurturing of our National Guard and Reserves.  Treating them as integral components of the Regular forces has been an inane attempt at cost-cutting that has seriously weakened our national defense.  Our Regular forces must be strong enough to deal with any conventional war they are called upon to handle, with the National Guard and Reserves called upon to serve in situations such as Iraq in the aftermath of Saddam, and strong enough to apply sufficient strength in the first instance that they need not be called upon to repeatedly uproot their lives and fortunes.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

I'm going to add another 100 hours of Iowa campaigning and bump the ad up from a Level 1 ad to a Level 2 ad.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Speech 3: Immigration
   America faces many problems today, but that is nothing new.  Each generation has its own challenges to face, but those challenges have always been met by America with strength and determination.  Our own challenges are ready to be faced, and we must confront them, not cower behind walls of our own making.
   Immigration is such a challenge, and it is one that cannot be faced merely by building fences.  We need to adjust the supply and demand for legal immigration so as far as possible remove the incentives for illegal immigration.  We need instead to encourage economic development abroad so as to enable those who come here for only economic reasons to stay home.  We need to alter our immigration system so that those who read and speak English and thus are better prepared to integrate into our society receive priority over others.  We need to enforce the already existing laws against the employment of undocumented workers.  All of these would mitigate the disruption caused by our current immigration policy.
Let's pull out the stops and fund that single ad I produced at Level 3, the maximum the game's rules will allow.  If I had some polling data to show where the voters are most disgruntled with politics as usual, I'd try to emphasize that, since that is what my campaign is focusing on, but absent that I'll hold off until New Hampshire to fund new ads.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

I thank the good people of Iowa for their support.  I've done much better here than most were expecting when I began this campaign.  Leaving here tied for the most delegates with Senator Wixted, who spent so much more time here, is effectively a victory, and I hope to carry this momentum on to New Hampshire where I hope to turn an effective vcitory into a total victory, and continue that until November.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

I hope I'm not too late. C'mon Joe you can let me in.

It's physically impossible to win a Republican primary with that platform.

Congratulations Colin, you've done the physically impossible!

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Five speeches, two which are revisions of ones I gave in Iowa, and three more that are brand new.

Speech 1: Military
   America faces many problems today, but that is nothing new.  Each generation has its own challenges to face, but those challenges have always been met by America with strength and determination.  Our own challenges are ready to be faced, and we must confront them, not cower behind walls of our own making.
   When it comes to military planning, we need to rethink our entire doctrine, so that when that last option of diplomacy, military force, is needed, America has what it needs.  We need a standing military to defend America and our allies from any potential attack by conventional forces.  We need a reserve component capable of providing the extra manpower needed occasionally for situations such as Iraq, and in sufficient strength and quality that those who have chosen to stand ready when needed, need not worry about being drawn into an endless cycle of deployments.  If our reservists and guardsmen had wanted to continuously serve, they would be in the regular forces instead.  The difficulty of so reorienting our military is compounded by the mistakes that have been made in Iraq, but it is needed.
   We need to refocus our military spending on the ground forces and away from our bloated navy and air force.  We have a navy and an air force not only better than the next two in the world combined, they are better than the rest of the world combined, a standard of military excess that not even the British Empire at its height had the audacity to attempt to maintain.  Looking to the future is good, but not at the sacrifice of being able to handle the present.

Speech 2: Immigration
   America faces many problems today, but that is nothing new.  Each generation has its own challenges to face, but those challenges have always been met by America with strength and determination.  Our own challenges are ready to be faced, and we must confront them, not cower behind walls of our own making.
   Immigration is such a challenge, and it is one that cannot be faced merely by building fences.  We need to adjust the supply and demand for legal immigration so as far as possible remove the incentives for illegal immigration.  We need instead to encourage economic development abroad so as to enable those who come here for only economic reasons to stay home.  We need to alter our immigration system so that those who read and speak English and thus are better prepared to integrate into our society receive priority over others.  We need to enforce the already existing laws against the employment of undocumented workers.  All of these would mitigate the disruption caused by our current immigration policy.

Speech 3: Taxation
   America faces many problems today, but that is nothing new.  Each generation has its own challenges to face, but those challenges have always been met by America with strength and determination.  Our own challenges are ready to be faced, and we must confront them, not cower behind walls of our own making.
   One of these problems is the self inflicted behemoth known as the Internal Revenue Code and the regulations that animate that foul beast.  It is a joy only for lawyers, accountants, lobbyists, and special interests.  We need to cut this Gordian knot that strangles our economy, and replace it with a tax system that is both fair and simple, simple enough to put Jackson Hewitt and H&R Block out of the tax preparation business.  There should be no need to keep endless records merely to file the current year’s tax form.

Speech 4: Federalism
   America faces many problems today, but that is nothing new.  Each generation has its own challenges to face, but those challenges have always been met by America with strength and determination.  Our own challenges are ready to be faced, and we must confront them, not cower behind walls of our own making.
   I don't know why so many Washington politicians seem to think that Washington is the only place problems can be solved.  There are any number of mandates where Washington tries to control what the States do, often by using the power of the purse, for no better reason than it can.  I intend to cut as many as possible of the puppet strings disguised as purse strings by Washington.  Not only will this help to restore the balance of power between the national and local governments, but it will also help to eliminate many of the places where pork and waste now hide in Washington.

Speech 5: Education
   America faces many problems today, but that is nothing new.  Each generation has its own challenges to face, but those challenges have always been met by America with strength and determination.  Our own challenges are ready to be faced, and we must confront them, not cower behind walls of our own making.
   Education is one of the most important issues facing our country today.  It is also one of the most local issues, and it is appropriate that it be that way.  While there is a role for the Federal government in research and development into better means of education, it is time for the Federal government to stop interfering in the administration of local schools.  That includes the provision of grants to States and school districts for the operation of schools.  To the extent that Federal funds are made available for primary and secondary education they should be done so in the same manner as for tertiary education, via the student, based on the choices that students and their parents make as to who will provide them with the best education.  Not only will this provide our children with a greater number of choices, it will also make available choices such as faith-based education that many parents desire, but which the government should not be directly involved in providing.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Level 3 organization ($600,000)

Two level 3 ads: ($300,000 each)

Ad 1 is my Iowa ad:

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Ad 2 is a new ad.

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And last but not least, 600 hours of campaigning

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

You've made it clear that organization assembled in the primaries will have some effect in the general election, can we also assume that will hold true for ads and campaigning?  (I'm trying to plan my spending  for the rest of the primaries, altho once past Super Tuesday, the warchest will be gone and I'll be depending on fundraising.)

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

When is the dead line for this turn?

As you've probably guessed, I'm not keen on setting deadlines.  But I guess it'd make things easier, so the deadline for this stage is Monday at 4pm EST.

As eager as I am to get to the next stage, given that the Democratic debate isn't any where near being completed, and not for any fault or delay on the oart of the candidates or the moderator, might it not be better to pick a different Monday than this Monday?

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

When is the deadline again?

Originally earlier today, but it's been pushed back by Joe to a time TBA so that the debates can have more time to be finished.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

A third Level 3 Ad: ($300,000)

<Voice 1> IT'S NOT MY FAULT!

<Voice 2> All too often, that's the refrain we hear today, and not just from politicians.  Lawsuits clog our courts.  Sometimes because they are frivilous.  Other times because of professional organizations that fail to ensure that their membership is competent and ethical, leaving the courts to sort out the damage caused by professional malpractice rather than preventing it.

<Voice 1> EVERYBODY ELSE DOES IT!

<Voice 2> Too many people are turning a blind eye to corruption and cheating.  Cheating and plagarism in our schools is at an all time high.  Improper stock options and other shady practices are shaking faith in corporate honesty.  Something needs to be done.

<Ernest Calhoun> I'm Ernest Calhoun.  I'm running for President because America needs a rebirth of personal responsibility.  That means more than just using the bully pulpit.  It means legal and corporate reform to throw sunshine on crooked deals and hidden finances.  It means to stop treating the symptoms of personal irresponsibility and change the laws so as encourge people to do the right thing rather than waiting to play gotcha and throwing them into our overcrowded prisons.  It means to reform our tax code so that it no longer has as its prime purpose rewarding losers and punishing winners.  Personal responsibility is what I'm running for, including being responsible for this commercial.

  If it's not too late to change things, I'd like to cut back from 600 hours to 480 hours of campaigning in New Hampshire.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Fine with me, I have my ads, campaigning, funraising, organization, and  speeches planned (assuming I do reasonably well in New Hampshire and mini-Tuesday)  if not I'll have to retrench.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Quick question, once we get to multi-state primary dates, will the limit be 5 speeches per state or 5 speeches per date?  I'm currently planning making 17 speeches in five different states for mini-Tuesday.  (It's not as bad as it sounds, five are simple repeats, eight are localized variants of existing speeches, two are local color speeches for individual states where I pay homage to a favored son, and the the last two are variants of my sole new policy speech for mini-Tuesday.)

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Be interesting to see if either the GOP or the Dems can manage to gain a frontrunner.  So far this campaign has been atypically nice, due in part to the lack of a frontrunner in either party.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

   Let me start off by congratulating Rep. Soult on his victory here.  Given the crowded field in New Hampshire this year, it's not surprising that a neighbor they already knew managed to eke out a narrow win here in the Granite State.  Considering where I began in the polls, I'm pleased with my performance so far. especially as it places the Calhoun campaign in the lead for most delegates so far.  Tonight I'll be looking at the analysis with my advisors so I can do better in connecting with the voters, and tomorrow I'll start campaigning in the seven mini-Tuesday states and see how things go.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

When do you expect to have the analysis ready?  I'd like to see if the pundits and spin have anything different from what I think they think the voters think.  It's possible I might change which ads I use depending on that. I have speeches ready for the TBD slots listed below, but I might change them if I need to respond to campaign events, so I haven't given them yet.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Arizona
96 hours of campaigning; Level 1 Organization; 5 Speeches (2C, 7, 8A, plus 2 TBD)

Speech 2C: Military
   America faces many problems today, but that is nothing new.  Each generation has its own challenges to face, but those challenges have always been met by America with strength and determination.  Our own challenges are ready to be faced, and we must confront them, not cower behind walls of our own making.
   When it comes to military planning, we need to rethink our entire doctrine, so that when that last option of diplomacy, military force, is needed, America has what it needs.  We need a standing military to defend America and our allies from any potential attack by conventional forces.  We need a reserve component capable of providing the extra manpower needed occasionally for situations such as Iraq, and in sufficient strength and quality that those who have chosen to stand ready when needed, need not worry about being drawn into an endless cycle of deployments.  Too often today, we focus on the latest widgets, rather than the people in the military.  We need to focus first on what our personnel can do, such as the contribution made by the Navaho code talkers in World War II.  We need to remember that you have to take care of the soldiers first before worrying about the fancy and expensive gadgets.

Speech 7: Goldwater
   I am proud to be here today in the home of Sen. Goldwater.  His strong libertarian views are what our party and our country need today.  I am proud to call myself a Goldwater Republican.  Indeed, the only fault I know of in his career as Senator, is that he defeated Ernest McFarland to begin it.  For obvious reasons, I feel we need more Ernests in office, not less.  <laughter>
   We have too many Republicans who like having the government be a nanny, regulating personal behavior and decisions, because they think they know best.  They have given us a government more concerned with law than justice, and forgetful of the second half of the Senator's famous quote: "... that moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue."

Speech 8A: Public Lands; Public Trust
   America faces many problems today, but that is nothing new.  Each generation has its own challenges to face, but those challenges have always been met by America with strength and determination.  Our own challenges are ready to be faced, and we must confront them, not cower behind walls of our own making.
   You can't know where you're going unless you know where you've been.  Too many politicians have forgotten where America began: on the land.  They treat the public lands as an afterthought, or worse, a playground for whichever special interest will reward them the most.  The public lands are a public trust, not to be buried away unused, nor to be squandered for today.  That trust requires a responsible balance that both preserves our natural heritage and beauty while at the same time providing the natural resources our country needs now and in the future.  As President, I promise that managing our national treasure will be a priority in my administration.  For a down payment of that pledge, the first cabinet official I name will be my Interior Secretary, who will be among my closest advisors and be given responsibility for coordinating policy with the Agriculture, Energy, and Transportation departments, as well as the EPA.  We have paid too little attention to our national assets for too long, and that will change under a Calhoun administration.