What's in a VP?

Day 469, 09:46 • Published in USA USA • by PrincessMedyPi

I've noticed over the past few weeks that there has been some confusion over what exactly it is that the Vice President of the United States does. I would say that this varies greatly based upon the relationship between the President and the Vice President, but there are a few pieces of the puzzle that do remain constant.

I want to begin by clarifying some misnomers about the Vice President. This position is not a position that is recognized by game mechanics. The Vice President does not get an award or get to propose or vote on laws. The Vice President is not the person who assumes office in the event of a President's impeachment. (While this is true in real life, since the position is not recognized in eRepublik, it is awarded to the person who placed second in the Presidential elections.)

By clarifying these misconceptions of what the Vice President does, I imagine that many of you are left wondering what it is that the Vice President does. Well, the job of President is far too large in a country of this size for one person to do it alone. The Vice President is the President’s right hand man, so to speak. The VP helps the President fulfill his/her duties by being a confidant and tossing around ideas, splitting job duties, and stepping into the shoes of the President during times of need.

It is ideal for a Vice President to be a person who complements the President, and the manner of which they should complement the President is totally dependent upon the President's strengths and the relationship between the President and Vice President. To me, the qualities that make a good Vice President include dependability, organization, responsibility, and trustworthiness. Why? Over the past few terms, I have seen situations where things needed to be dealt with immediately and the President is nowhere to be found. This is a time when it is crucial to have a strong, reliable Vice President.

An Example...

This is a difficult situation to explain without me telling you a little story about what happened at the end of January and beginning of February. One day, Justinious McWalburgson III discovered his laptop charger had died. He was unable to make it on and fulfill his duties like normal, and was MIA for approximately 4 days. As he and I were really close and worked as a team, this would have been almost unnoticeable...until the Federal Reserve was hacked and drained. Simultaneously, the eUSA Forums went down. This left a panic stricken populous and called for some very serious intervention.

As Vice President, via IRC and various instant messaging programs, I was able to coordinate efforts to get a new forum up and running as soon as possible. This was my number one concern because this is a source of information and a mainline of communication for hundreds of active citizens of eAmerica, and it is also where congress meets. To provide this meant giving stability to a populous struggling through a very rough time because it allowed them an outlet for their anxieties, fears, and frustrations. It brought some consistency back to the everyday lives of many players, and the veteran players of this nation were able to help address some of the questions and concerns of many citizens. Once we had this up and running, I was able to post a quick status update to the nation informing them of the changes and letting them know that we were doing everything in our power to regain some sense of normalcy.

I was in no way a sole hero here. It took a valiant group of congressional and economic council minds to create an emergency tax plan (CTPA) to help restore our treasury and reserves, Killing Time’s genius to get the forums a home, the work of one brave man (Leroy Combs) to retrieve the Federal Reserve to make sure it didn’t fall into the wrong hands again, and scrabman, Publius, and I to help get the administration of the forums alive and kicking. This was a time when I feel it was my reliability, organization, and ability to communicate with others that allowed me to succeed in a very unfortunate situation. Because I had the support of so many people around me, I was able to take this responsibility and effectively coordinate the efforts to hold us together. Had I not been a respected member of the community and someone who had a good relationship with the individuals around me, this situation could have spiraled out of control.

What Exactly AM I Getting At?

Am I saying I'm a perfect specimen of a Vice President? No. I am far from it. I didn't pay a lot of attention to Atlantis during my last gig as VP because Justin was so active in it and debriefed me on the specifics. It was a conscious decision because saving that time allowed me to focus on running programs and doing double duty as a Chief of Staff. The way the administration worked last time, Justin and I just split duties on where our interests were and then went wild. I was still able to be an efficient congresswoman, spend time with the people to gather their opinions and views on the goings on of the nation, work with the new programs, and step in when the proverbial shit hit the fan.

Am I saying that no other candidate is going to be able to do the job? No, not at all. I am merely writing this piece to give you some food for thought when you are going to make your vote at the polls. The VP may not be recognized in the game, but they are still here to represent the nation and support the president. Anything they do can help the administration run smoother and be more efficient or hinder it and make everything run much slower.

I just wanted to write a little note to ask you to give this position a little consideration before you cast your vote on Thursday.


Cheers,
PrincessMedyPi

Chief of Staff
Welcoming Committee Director (Second Mandate)
Alaskan Congresswoman (Fourth Consecutive Mandate)
Ambassador to Finland
Former Vice President of the US

Vote Scrabby/Pi March '09