United States

Overview

Flag of the United States Empire

The United States is an Imperial Constitutional Democratic Republic led by Emperor RobotGamer__ I. The nation goes by two names, both the United States and the United States Empire. The capital city of the nation is Atlanta with a population count of over 300 as of the time of writing. The United States currently sits as the second largest nation in Aurora, amassing over 400 citizens. The official United States discord is: https://discord.gg/U5TDCtd4WN

Capital city of the United States, Atlanta.

Constitution of the United States (Empire)

This constitution, written by RobotGamer__, is for the in-game nation “United_States” whose official name is the “The United States Empire”, which may also be officially abbreviated to the “United States” or “US”. The Constitution must be followed by all citizens of the United States, including all members of Government. All towns in the United States must follow the Constitution.

The constitution was last amended on the 1st September 2023 with a 13-0 vote in favour in the Senate. The amendment amended Article IV of the Constitution, and it removed the codification of Presidential elections in favour of a more flexible imperial appointment process.

ARTICLE I - The Senate

1. All legislative powers shall be vested in the Senate with the President having the power to veto all and any legislation passed by the Senate.
2. The Senate shall be made up of all Mayors of all towns in the United States.
3. Senators have the power to propose and vote on decisions/laws affecting the United States in the form of bills.
4. Every town in the United States has 1 seat, and thus 1 vote, in the Senate by default - filled by their Mayor. However, towns gain a second seat once they reach 25 residents. This continues, adding a seat for every 25 residents. For example, a town with 75 residents would have the default Mayor seat, and then an additional 3 seats.
   1. A Mayor can choose to fill his additional seat/s with another/other resident/s from his town. This is the preferred option.
   2. Alternatively, a Mayor can choose to leave his additional seat/s vacant, and simply cast his additional votes himself. This is the default option.
5. For a bill to pass, it must receive a majority (50%+1) vote of approval in the Senate. Once passed the bill will be sent to the President for ratification. If a bill receives less than a majority, or it receives a tie, then it fails.
   1. Bills that have failed cannot be copy, pasted and then proposed again in the Senate until 30 days have passed from the time they failed. They may, however, be proposed again if they have been rewritten and undergone change/s.
   2. Bills that have been vetoed can be proposed again immediately through the process of a veto override. This requires a three quarters (¾) majority vote of approval in the Senate. If it fails then Part 5 (a) Article I of this Constitution applies. 
6. Upon receiving the President’s ratification, a bill becomes struck into law and shall be known as an act.
7. It is the role of the President and his Executive to introduce all acts that have been ratified.
8. The President may dissolve the Senate during a national emergency. A national emergency may only be called by the Senate with a two-thirds (⅔) majority.
9. The Emperor and/or President may pass acts by Decree when the number of town Mayors is below 5.
10. The Constitution may be amended with a two-thirds (⅔) majority vote in the Senate. Approval from the President is not required for Constitutional amendments.
11. In the event there is evidence of the President breaking the law, the Senate may hold a vote to impeach him. If the vote reaches a three-quarters (¾) majority in favour of impeachment, the President shall be removed and a new Presidential election held.

ARTICLE II - The House of Representatives

1. The House of Representatives shall be an advisory chamber to the Senate. This means Representatives may propose bills and if they receive a majority vote of approval in the House of Representatives, the bill then goes to the Senate for a final vote. If a majority of the Senate vote in approval, then the bill goes to the President to receive ratification.
2. All Representatives and Deputy Representatives are members of the House of Representatives. They are appointed by the Emperor in accordance to their loyalty and service to the United States.
3. A Representative and Deputy Representative may have their title removed by the Emperor if they have broken the law, or if a majority vote in the Senate instructs a removal. Representatives may vote on, and propose, laws, Deputy Representatives may only vote on laws and not propose any.

ARTICLE III - The Emperor and the President

1. The Emperor shall hold the in-game rank of Nation Leader of the United State at all times.
2. The Emperor shall be regarded as the head of state, and the President the head of government.
3. The Emperor may assume the position of President during times when both the offices of President and Vice President are vacant.
4. The Emperor may override vetoes and ratifications made by the President on bills passed by the Senate.
5. The first Emperor of the United States shall be Emperor Robot the First, also known as RobotGamer__, who may pass on his imperial title whenever he wishes and to whomever he wishes, so long as they are in the House of Robot Imperial Family.
   1. Members of the House of Robot are chosen unilaterally by Emperor Robot I, and once in the House of Robot, you may never leave it unless you wish to leave, or with a unanimous vote in the Senate approving of the removal, making you almost permanently in line for the throne.
6. The Emperor and President are responsible for holding votes in the Senate and House of Representatives. If a Senator or Representative wishes to put a bill up for vote, they must send the bill to the Emperor and/or President who must then place the bill up for vote. The Emperor and President are not allowed to refuse to put a bill up for vote.

ARTICLE IV - Presidential Appointment

1. The Emperor shall decide who to make President and Vice President, or whether he should assume the position of President himself.
2. It is up to the Emperor whether he would like to seek assistance with this decision, whether that be by public vote, a Senate vote, both, or nothing at all.

ARTICLE V - The Executive

1. The Executive shall be made up of the President, Vice-President and their Cabinet. The President wields the power to create cabinet positions and department leaders to help execute the duties of the Executive.
2. In the event the President resigns, becomes inactive for a period of 14 days without notification to the Senate, or is impeached, the Vice President is to assume his position as President.
3. If there is evidence of the Emperor, President or any member of the Executive breaking the Constitution, the Senate may hold a vote on whether or not the official in question has breached the Constitution.
   1. If the vote receives a unanimous vote of approval, they are to be removed from their position and permanently banned from standing for President, Vice President and entering the Executive.
   2. If the vote is on the Emperor and unanimously passes, then the House of Representatives is to hold a vote along with a vote in the Executive where the President, Vice President and all their department leaders are to vote as well. If the House of Representatives and Executive also vote unanimously in favour of removal, the Emperor is to resign as Nation Leader and hand their position to the next in line to the throne.
   3. Officials who have been removed for breaching the Constitution are not allowed to be appointed, or elected, back into the Executive unless the Senate votes unanimously in favour of allowing them.
4. Treason shall be defined as plotting or attempting to unconstitutionally seize power in any way that belongs to the Emperor, President and the Executive of the United States.
   1. Committing Treason shall be the highest crime a citizen can commit. Anyone found to have committed treason are to be permanently banned from holding a seat in the Senate, House of Representatives, becoming the Emperor, President, Vice President or any position in the Executive. This can only be reversed by a unanimous vote of approval in the Senate, House of Representatives and Executive.

ARTICLE VI - The Judiciary

1. The Emperor is the supreme judicial authority in the United States who acts as the sole judge in court. As the supreme judicial authority, the Emperor decides whether a citizen has or has not broken the law. The Emperor must use evidence to make his decision.
2. The Emperor must act impartially in all court cases. Failure to act impartially would be in breach of this Constitution.
3. The Emperor may decide what punishment to give a citizen that has been found to have committed a crime.
4. As the supreme judicial authority, the Emperor is responsible for upholding the constitution of the United States. They may decide when the constitution has been broken, and who is responsible for breaking it. The only exception to this is if the Emperor is suspected of breaching the Constitution, in which case Part 3 of Article IV of this Constitution applies.
5. The Emperor may choose to physically hold a court session in the Atlanta High Court, or hold the session via a discord text channel. The Emperor must let the defendant have reasonable time to defend themselves. All court sessions must be publicly viewable by citizens of the United States.
6. The Emperor may choose to not hold a court session at all for non-serious crimes which can be dealt with immediately.
7. In the extreme event of a court case where there is no evidence for either side, the Emperor may issue a "Imperial Declaration of Belief".
   1. This requires the Senate to review the case, and give their opinions by vote, with a simple majority to finalise their decision. This should only ever be used as a last resort.
   2. The Imperial Declaration of Belief shall state which side the Emperor, and the Senate, believes has the most compelling argument. That side shall be declared the winner of the trial, unless future evidence is provided.
   3. If future evidence is provided, the trial shall be reheard, and the decision shall be based on the new evidence presented.
   4. The “Imperial Declaration of Belief” shall be final and binding, unless the case is reheard.

ARTICLE VII - Bill of Rights

1. No citizen may kill a fellow citizen without their permission, unless it is in self defence.
2. In no town may there be unsafe conditions where it is easy for a citizen to die. For example, an exposed pit where a citizen could fall to their death, or die in lava.
3. In all towns of the United States, no plots may have PvP toggled without permission from the Emperor or President.
   1. Only once permission is granted may a plot have PvP toggled. It is required that PvP only be toggled for recreational purposes, meaning people engaging in PvP are doing so by consent.
4. The people of the United States hold the following to be true: Any town located in North America should have the freedom to choose whether to be in the United States or not. We will not force any town to be in our nation against their will. We believe that all other nations should also allow towns a freedom of choice. No Mayor should feel intimidated or pressured into joining a nation they do not want to be a part of just because a nation proclaims their land to be a part of their claims. If a nation wants to focus on nearby towns, then that is fine. But at no point should a nation intimidate or force a town to join just because they are within 'borders'. It must always be down to the town's decision.
5. Blackmail shall be defined as an act of forcing another person/s to act in an involuntary manner by the threat of revealing or publicising either true or false information about a person or people unless certain demands are met.
   1. It is an extreme offence to commit blackmail on one or more persons. Senators who commit this offence are to be temporarily suspended from the Senate for 3 weeks. If the President, Vice President or any member of the Executive is found to have committed blackmail, they are to be removed from office for 3 weeks.
   2. The person who has been found to be blackmailed may request compensation from the blackmailer. On a case-by-case basis the Emperor may decide the level of compensation the person blackmailed may receive, and whether it is reasonable they receive compensation at all.