SHATTERED: The Broken Legacy of Harrison Richardson

Day 619, 11:04 • Published in USA USA • by Nick Everdale
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The crop fields of Kansas inspired us to sing of America's "amber waves of grain." Now those fields are scorched and barren. A coordinated assault by PEACE forces conquered the final high grain region of the United States, and with it placed a grim capstone on the U.S. President Harrison Richardson's first term.

In the final five days of his first term, Richardson cannot be happy. In the past 24 hours his young administration sacked Deputy Secretary of State and popular Congressman Chris Stanwick over a leaked peace treaty proposal, and lost Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Eugene Harlot, who resigned after America's catastrophic loss of Kansas.

Despite a heated July presidential race against Emerick, many in the United States had confidence in Harrison Richardson's leadership. A long-time Secretary of State under former President Scrabman, Richardson spent months cultivating the network of international friendships and connections necessary to propel an up-and-coming politician to the presidency. During the campaign, Richardson exuded confidence and a sharp knowledge of the issues, and few were surprised when he coasted into the White House.

Now, that White House is under siege. PEACE forces have conquered South Carolina, Tennessee, and Kentucky, and have recently invaded West Virginia on a march to the White House. With the forces of PEACE moving in from the South, West, and East, Richardson finds himself alone in the White House, his trusted advisers resigning or fired, and his administration leaking state secrets with abandon.

Many wonder what happened, and certainly President Richardson cannot bear all the blame for PEACE's march across America. Much of the groundwork for this invasion was laid under the Scrabman Administration. But that cannot absolve Richardson's scattershot leadership when PEACE opened multiple fronts and turned up the heat on the U.S. Military.

History will show, perhaps, that Richardson focused too heavily on defending Canada while PEACE made inroads through Alaska and South Carolina. By the time Canada was abandoned by U.S. forces, PEACE had the capability to launch three invasions per day on U.S. soil. While Kansas lay under siege, a strained Department of Defense issues orders to defend...Oklahoma? Miscommunications abounded.

Perhaps the coordinated efforts of PEACE simply overwhelmed President Richardson, for at every turn he found his administration outmaneuvered and outflanked by PEACE's tanking abilities. The stress got to Richardson's closest allies, who became snarly and accusatory towards critical members of Congress and the public. After posting a copy of Richardson's proposed treaty with PEACE on the eU.S. forum - the same treaty which Chris Stanwick was fired for revealing - veteran player NoneSuch found himself banned. With failures externally, Richardson's team turned the clampdown inwards.

In light of these setbacks, Richardson announced his plan to seek a second term as U.S. President. As the United States shrinks and its territories fall to PEACE, Americans are left wondering exactly what United States Richardson wants to lead. Chris Stanwick, once close to Richardson, announced a competing bid for the White House. More challengers are expected to surface in the next few days.

What remains of the shattered legacy of Harrison Richardson will be seen on August 5.