It's Jim Webb when young. Bob Jackson is the only fictional politician to be nominated so far, all the others are real.Who is that being used for Bob Jackson's picture? I swear I know that face from somewhere glaringly obvious.
One of the most powerful INGOs, with a yearly budget in the hundreds of billions and hundreds of thousands of employees, the Zentrum International is a lead policymaker, superseding the the UN for conflict resolution and international dialogue for much of the West. The Zentrum has a great deal to offer its member parties, with multi-million dollar war chests and an army of campaigners and memetic engineers to help carry electoral campaigns to victory. In exchange, all that a party needs to do once in government is to sign onto Zentrum endorsed agreements and regularly implement International Legislative Exchange Center (ILEC) legislation. Of course, this means being beholden to the powerful multinationals and anonymous oligarchs that fund the Zentrum itself, as well as having Zentrum advisers breathing down one's neck. If worse comes to worse, the Zentrum has several Private Intelligence and Private Military corporations on retainer, ready to topple governments at a moment's notice.
In addition to the Legislative Exchange Commission, the Zentrum possesses several other organs that play a major role in world politics. The Common Defense Commission coordinates counter-terrorism efforts across the West, and is key in suppressing civil discontent. The Ecological Commission serves to enforce the Global Carbon Market, and direct funds from Carbon sales to ecological investments. The Commerce and Trade Commission serves to secure funding from private sources, as well as to develop framework for trade deals and amendments to the Pan-Oceanic Trade Pact.
The Zentrum's power is shakier than it used to be, with the Chinese political clubs and the Particpists (both Marxists and Muncipalists) gaining in influence. However, the Zentrum still plays a large role in propping up the western and Latin American security states, along with supporting facilitated-market policies in Africa.
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Sir John Roy Major, OBE, (born 29 March 1943) is the current Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, First Lord of the Treasury, and Leader of the Conservative Party. He is the Member of Parliament for Huntington. Major became Prime Minister on 9 September 2016 after winning the Leadership election following the resignation of Tim Collins, becoming Prime Minister three days later.
Son of a Music Hall performer, Major grew up in a working class household in Brixton and worked first at the London Electricity Board and later as an executive at the Standard Chartered Bank. He would serve on the Lambeth London Borough Council from 1964-1972, and unsuccessfully ran for election in 1974 before finally entering Parliament as MP for Huntington in 1979. Under the Goverment of Margret Thatcher, Major served in a number of junior roles, eventually serving from 1986 to 1987 as Minster of State for Social Security, and then as Chief Secretary to the Treasury from 1987-1989, before being promoted to Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs in 1989. Major would remain in this position until 1990, when he promoted to Chancellor of the Exchequer, which he would hold until the Government's defeat in the 1996 general election. As Chancellor, Major was initially tasked with tackling inflation and recession, perusing a tight fiscal and new monetary policy, as well as promoting British entry into the ERM and later the EC, becoming a leading figure in the successful 1994 Referendum. However, accusations of mismanagement and ineptitude would haunt Major during the second half of his tenure as Chancellor.
Following the Conservative Parties defeat in the 1996 General election, Major served briefly as Shadow Chancellor for Michael Howard until he left the cabinet in early 1997. Major would leave Parliament in the 2002, rejoining Standard Chartered and becoming a Managing Director. Selected as the Conservative Candidate for the London mayoral election of 2004, Major defeated incumbent Independent Candidate Ken Livingstone.
During his first term as mayor, Major pursued reforming community policing, longer service periods on public transport, championed London's financial sector, reintroduction of the defunct Routemaster's, and increased funding in public programs such as youth outreach. Perhaps his biggest triumph would be the London 2008 Olympics, which took place during his second term in office. Despite these successes, Major would be criticized for privatizing non-essential sectors of public transport, a failure on workers rights during the construction of the Olympic venues, and transforming the Metropolitan Police into what then Home Secretary David Miliband described as "more suited for the streets of Belfast than the streets of Camden". Despite this, Major's personal approval rating remained high, although he would choose to step down in 2012, declining a run for a third term and deciding to reenter Parliament on his old seat in the General Election that same year, gaining the seat from the Liberal Democrats in the Conservative parties electoral victory.
In 2013, Major rejoined the Cabinet, serving as Minister without portfolio under Prime Minister Tim Collins whilst also acting as adviser to the Prime Minister. In 2016, Major became a prominent figure in the unsuccessful unionist campaign during the Scottish Independence Referendum. Following Tim Collins resignation, Major would succeed him as Prime Minister following a Leadership contest.
I should like to note that, despite never having seen Gladiator or previously heard of Fall of the Roman Empire, I love this series.The Fall of the Commodian Empire (index)
Gotten through another 100 pages of Thread II: I liked the conclusion to the Grand Thaumaturgist of the United States series by @Georgepatton , @Archangel Michael and his AJND and Balkanized Parliamentary stuff (which was adopted by many others) AND the various other cool shit he teased us with, @lord caedus with his directly elected Canadian Prime Minister series and Ecce Homo Acadiensis. Sadly most of the Swedish Strangerverse by @Makemakean is gone. [sadface] I never knew what was going on, but I loved the series anyways. That big oneshot dump of wikiboxes by @psephos was something to behold. The challenge by @Thande to replicate old politics in modern settings was, sadly, not done too much. I also liked @machinekng and his future party stuff. Also the start of Hail Brittania by @LeinadB93 in addition to various one or two-offs.
Good stuff.
For reminding me of that (sadly-underused) concept of Thande's, let me introduce you to Minnesota, a state whose politics haven't changed in 80-odd years:
Well now I know what my next thing will be.The challenge by @Thande to replicate old politics in modern settings was, sadly, not done too much.
For reminding me of that (sadly-underused) concept of Thande's, let me introduce you to Minnesota, a state whose politics haven't changed in 80-odd years:
[snip]
I see your Minnesota and raise you an Arizona:
I see your Minnesota and raise you an Arizona:
Minnesota's politics certainly was interesting before the minor Democrats somehow consumed the major Farmer-Labor Party.For reminding me of that (sadly-underused) concept of Thande's, let me introduce you to Minnesota, a state whose politics haven't changed in 80-odd years:
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Minnesota's politics certainly was interesting before the minor Democrats somehow consumed the major Farmer-Labor Party.
Minnesota's politics certainly was interesting before the minor Democrats somehow consumed the major Farmer-Labor Party.
While Metropole Quebecoise' national efforts may be stymied by the Trudeauists' impressive electoral machinery and machinations, the party has had a great deal of success in its home province. While the powers of the provinces in Canada have been successively limited by the Liberals, the Metropole has still done its best to enact a Municipalist platform. Quebec civil society under the Metropole is exhilarating and exacting, with art, faith, science and government all wrapped up together. Under Metropole administrations, Montreal and other cities have flourished, bringing refinements of historicist architecture and art into the public space. The Metropole's ultimate agenda is bring the economic sphere into the civil society, to shatter the local branches of the multinationals and restore the petite bourgeois. However, these aims are currently beyond the party's reach, necessitating challenging the Liberals on a national front. Of course, if that too becomes out of reach, perhaps secession may be on the table after all.