THE MIDWEST & HER GOVERNMENT

“An arduous and unpaved path is ahead of us. Our fledgling nation stands against a mountain of roadblocks. Herein lays the necessity for this Great Lakes Congress, to overcome any obstacle in the pursuit of reaching our destiny.”

Former Executive Committee Member Thomas Westmoreland, December 2163

As a newly formed nation on the Great Lakes, the Midwestern Union has ditched the Coalition's inefficient system of "independent city governments" to create one, unified system that eliminates much of the bureaucracy and infighting that burdened the former alliance. With elements of the old-world United States and Coalition mixed together, the Midwestern Union's government is a unique take on a republic-style of government. While it has yet to ratify a framework document, the Midwestern Union is already making great strides in establishing a new government to rule the wastes.

THE GREAT LAKES CONGRESS

The Great Lakes Congress is the legislative body that governs the Midwestern Union, and is located in the renovated Field Museum complex in Central Lakeview. Composed of 100 elected representatives (known as delegates) from the newly drawn States and Districts of the Union, the Great Lakes Congress serves to pass all major legislation. Delegates within Congress currently serve 5-year terms and possess immense individual power. Currently, Congress is focused on creating a constitution, as well as passing budgeting for the various arms of the new government and helping support the war effort via NMA friendly legislation.

THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE 

Before the Midwestern Presidential Election, the role of the executive was filled by the Executive Committee, which consisted of 12 of the most powerful and well-connected delegates in the Congress who could secure a majority vote for their membership in the Committee. This "Gang of 12" manages all the Bureaus (government departments) within the Midwestern Union, including the Bureau of War (which manages the New Model Army), and the Bureau of Trade, which oversees all economic matters. While the Bureaus and the Executive Committee are incredibly powerful and essentially run the country, they still rely on Congress's approval and, now, the President for most matters. Membership in the Gang of 12 was reliant on the influence of the district a Committee member represents. This means that a majority of the Committee's members were from either large Urban areas or major Industrial centers, with the two most powerful members being a delegate from Lakeview and The Mill, respectively. This helped prevent any stagnation or collusion among committee members, as no single settlement was influential enough to dominate the others. The role of the Executive Committee has undergone significant changes following the election of President Joan Simmons, with the President now at the head of the committee and its members being forced to resign, replaced by Simmons's personal appointees. Many now question if the Committee will survive her Presidency.

FEDERAL JUSTICE CENTER, LAKEVIEW

WIP

POLITICS IN THE UNION

“Hand in hand, arm in arm, join the Workers of Bulwark Firearms!"

League Electoral Slogan, May 2164

Politics in the infant Midwestern Union often reflect those of the former United States. While there are dozens of notable local and state-level parties, there are only a rare few parties that have passed into the National spotlight and even fewer that can hold seats in Congress. The most notable national political blocs range from the massive League of Free Laborers, which represents the interests of urban workers, to the still relatively small Grain & Frontier Party, which advocates for the interests of Pasadales and rural Midwestern farming communities. The most controversial political party in the union by far is the Children of the Nation, which is neck and neck with the FMM and the League in the Great Lakes Congress in terms of seats. This party advocates for a strong, central government, with a powerful national defense and executive branch. The majority party of the Great Lakes Congress is the Forward Moose Movement, a "Big Tent" party of different left-of-center political parties and blocs that are struggling to unify under one party platform, especially with the wide range of different interpretations and beliefs of the free market.  The FMM currently holds the Presidency, with President Joan Simmons at its helm, and a very slim majority in the Congress itself. The League is the main opposition party to the FMM, though the CON has managed to garner significant power for itself, regardless of losing the election. The G&F Party has a decent number of seats but is heavily overshadowed by the other parties, with many speculating a merger with the FMM or the League.

POLITICAL SCANDALS

Even though the Union prides itself on effective governance, this is rarely the case in reality. Political scandals are widespread, especially in major cities with dozens of political movements competing for influence at once. Notable examples include Political Machines like Harding's Hall, a political scheme wherein mutant refugees from Huron would be given employment by a member of the League of Free Laborers, and they would be asked to vote for Harding and Congressional candidates in forthcoming elections. Harding, though not being directly targeted for his acts, has now been arrested and executed following the Harding Riots. There are even more outlandish scandals, such as the time during a political debate in the majority mutant settlement of Shanksville when a Mutant candidate for the Grain & Frontier Party accused his opponent, a human member of the CON, of being an "evil tree spirit sent to wreak havoc upon the people". Scandals will likely continue to be a significant challenge facing the Union in the coming years as the nation matures.

CORPORATIONS OF THE MIDWEST

“You gotta take whatever you gotta take in this dogfight.”

Chief Executive Officer Albert Kowalski of Melander A&M, January 2165

Being an industrialist nation intending to create a productive economy, the rise of monopolies and trusts was practically inevitable, as skilled businessmen and those wishing to make a fortune created companies that took a share in a particular industry and began to dominate it purely because of the lack of competition. Before the formation of the Midwestern Union, the economy of the Great Lakes was dominated by powerful trading guilds, conglomerates of tradesmen and merchants who employed vast amounts of contracted labor to dominate trade and industry. These trade guilds were often highly unstable, as anything that reached the state of monopoly would quickly collapse due to cutthroat politics and high competition. The Midwestern Union quickly moved to seize the assets of any trade guild in its territories and nationalized their properties and industries. In their place came the Corporations, with many quickly achieving near-monopoly status following the fall of the Trade Guilds. 

The Corporations have quickly risen to dominate the Midwestern economy and industries, with very little oversight do to infancy of the government, prompting them to control entire districts in cities, as well as subvert existing regulations, control prominent private security forces, as well as even have large degrees of control in the politics of the Union. Notably, the most prominent corporations in the Union are largely of the manufacturing, finance, and technology industries, with companies like RayTech, Melander A&M, Capital Insurance, Winton Consumer Products, Hales-Comer Autogroup, Eagle Group, Centerwest Bank, and Vergil-Bergmann Limited. Aside from gaining control through economic domination, a variety of companies also gained influence through contracts with the New Model Army and Midwestern Navy, both relying on corporate contracts to gain access to new weaponry and equipment. These companies are very diverse in number, the most prominent being Crusader Arsenal MWU, Madeline Island Armory, Heartland Arms, and Nicola Electric. There are still hundreds of companies in the Union that specialize in more niche industries, practically anything a citizen can think of.