Chinese drones harass Grassadellian aircraft carrier in international waters

 MAVOCKE -- A Grassadellian aircraft carrier sailing through international waters in the South China Sea was harassed by Chinese drones last week.

The incident occurred on Tuesday, 5 July, as the GNS Pierce Kearney -- Grassadellia's largest aircraft carrier -- sailed peacefully through the South China Sea southeast of Hong Kong and northwest of the Philippines.

Two drones, believed to be dispatched by China's defense forces, hovered closely to the Pierce Kearney.

Sailors aboard the Pierce Kearney responded by spraying a water hose at the drones, which eventually retreated.

In a statement, Grassadellian Secretary of Defense John Schauman said Grassadellian ships have a right to sail through international waters, like every nation.

"Grassadellia will not be intimidated or bullied into avoiding international waters. The Grassadellian Navy will continue routine Freedom-of-Navigation exercises in the South China Sea and in international waters around the globe," Schauman said.

Navy High Commissioner Brett Alder reiterated Schauman's comments.

"Grassadellian Naval Forces will never continue to defend the neutrality and navigability of international waters in Asia and across the world. We will never back down from protecting commerce and free navigation for all countries."

In an article published by the Communist state-owned South China Morning Post, the People's Liberation Army (PLA), China's defense forces, warned Grassadellia's government against sailing near China.

"China will not tolerate foreign powers encroaching on Chinese territorial waters," the PLA said.

A spokesman for Grassadellia's Royal Navy responded by emphasizing that Grassadellia's Navy only patrols international waters in accordance with international law, and naval forces never enter sovereign waters of other countries unless with express permission.

Jude Weimer to challenge Jared Lanman in Remmington governor's race

 REMMINGTON CITY -- Businessman Jude Weimer announced his candidacy for Remmington's governorship on Saturday.

Weimer (pronounced "Why-mur"), is a self-made millionaire who previously ran unsuccessfully for Federal Senate under the Democratic-Reformist Party in 2010.

He's seeking the governorship because he says Remmington's incumbent governor, Conservative Jared Lanman, has lost his way.

Lanman admitted back in March to an extramarital affair, and has faced calls from fellow Conservatives to either step down as governor or to not seek re-election in the fall.

But the governor, who has served as governor since winning a special election in 2016, has refused calls to resign or stand down.

He announced in April he would, in fact, seek a third (but second full) term.

"I have made mistakes in my personal life, and I admit that and own that," Lanman said at a campaign press conference. "But my personal life is my personal life, it does not affect my ability to be governor and to lead our state."

Lanman added that he and his wife Hannah are "working through" his infidelity. The two remain married, and neither has filed for divorce, though Lanman admitted their relationship was going through a "rocky period."

Weimer said his candidacy is not just about Lanman's personal problems.

"That's a factor," Weimer said of Lanman's affair.

"But I'm running also because we just need new leadership, fresh leadership in Remmington City," he added.

Many Conservative party leaders, including current Lieutenant Governor Raqual Marquez, had called on other top-name Conservative candidates to challenge Lanman.

Marquez herself has been mulling a run, although she has been accused of bullying and abusive behavior toward her staff and members of the state legislature.

Some possible contenders who could still run are former Governor Jen Stevens, Federal Senator Curt Blaisek, Attorney General Andy Kirkpatrick and Secretary of State Kimberly Welch.

The Nationalist side is still uncertain.

Former Federal Senator Matt Hoffbourn could run again. He narrowly lost to Lanman in 2016.

Jim Weatherby, a state senator from Shanogowee and the party's nominee in 2018, could also run again.

Former Remmington City Mayor Graham Alton and Shanogowee businessman Dale Lucie are also considered possible contenders on the NAT side.

Remmington is considered once of the most conservative states in the country, but moderate NAT candidates have had some success, while hardline liberal candidates usually are soundly rejected.

Lis Helpin, chair of the Remmington Nationalist Party, expressed optimism at the party's chances in this year's election, given Lanman's scandal.

"If there's ever a year for Nationalists to have a shot, it's this year. We have a governor in disarray following his personal issues being released and revealed to the public, and we have an economy that is not great while he's presided over it, we also have a lieutenant governor who is in the tank with voters over abusive and unprofessional conduct, so this may very well be a great golden opportunity for Nationalists to step up and lead."

Expectedly, Remmington Conservative Party Chairman Caleb Elmech played down Helpin's commentary.

"Yes we have had some uncertainty on the Conservative side this year. But a few bumps in the road are normal during a campaign, and the voters of Remmington are going to remember that the Nationalist Party is running in the show nationally. This is Jim McCaren's economy, with gasoline at six dollars a gallon and milk at almost four dollars a gallon. This is Debbie Madronas' economy. The Nationalists are in charge in Mavocke, they control our nation's government. Nationalists shut down the economy during COVID and stripped Grassadellian citizens of their God-given Constitutional rights. And the voters will remember that. It was Conservatives like Governor Jared Lanman who did NOT shut down the economy and who let Remmingtonians have their freedom, and the voters will remember that too."

Weimer agreed that Nationalists are to blame for the economic downturn, but he reiterated that new blood is needed in the governor's mansion.

"I agree that the NAT has put our economy on a cliff. There's no doubt about that. But that doesn't change the fact that we need accountability and authentic leadership in Remmington City."

The Lanman campaign responded by email, calling Weimer a "faux-Conservative" and a "political opportunist."

"Jude Weimer is not even a real Conservative. He ran for office in the past as a Democratic Reformist candidate. He's been openly critical of the Conservative Party. He's been hostile toward Conservative ideals, and he is not a good fit for Remmington."

Remmington's primary election will be held on September 6.

Anxious Conservatives unite behind nominee Mike Shannon in Marchenay gubernatorial race

WATERBURY, March. -- It's been a wild ride in the Marchenay Conservative primary for governor.

After two recounts and a drawn out primary contest, Conservatives have finally united behind their nominee, state Sen. Mike Shannon (Waterbury), although many in the party's moderate wing remain skeptical of Shannon's chances in the December general election.

On election night, the race was extremely close, with former ambassador Bill Kindle leading, Bankcorp CEO Burke Azurjean in a close second place, and Mike Shannon in a close third.

In general elections, when election results are too close to call, state law mandates an automatic recount.

But that rule does not apply in primary elections, so recounts must be paid for by the parties, individuals or campaigns who request them.

Since Bill Kindle was in the lead, his campaign did not request a recount. But all five of his fellow Conservative candidates jointly requested an automated machine recount at a cost of $1.5 million. The five campaigns split the cost equally at $300,000 apiece.

After the machine recount, the tally changed. Bill Kindle fell to third place, Mike Shannon took the lead and Burke Azurjean remained in a close second place.

At that point, Kindle conceded, but the Azurjean campaign requested a more thorough, time-consuming hand recount. This time, Azurjean had to pay the $1.5 million fee on his own.

The hand recount found no change in the lead -- Mike Shannon held onto first place, Azurjean remained in second place.

Businessman and Conservative talk radio host Bruce McGruen climbed to third place, narrowly edging Bill Kindle.

Marchenay's acting-Secretary of State Brian Gadley explained the changes in vote tallies were due to absentee ballots that were not initially counted due to postal delays.

"The ballots were all postmarked by the required date, however, so they can legally be counted, and they were counted in the final recount," Gadley told the National Press Federation (NPF), adding that he was "100 percent confident" in the final results from the hand count.

After two recounts, more than a week after election day, Burke Azurjean finally conceded.

"It hurts to lose by such a small margin, but after two recounts, Mike Shannon is still in the lead, and even if I won at this point, through another recount or through litigation, I would be winning under unfavorable circumstances and we wouldn't have a united party behind us, so I accept the results and I congratulate Mike Shannon on his win," said Azurjean.

The final official results show Mike Shannon with 17.78%, or 340,071 votes.

Burke Azurjean received 17.75%, or 339,503 votes.

That's a difference of just 568 votes separating Shannon and Azurjean.

Bruce McGruen followed with 17.57% or 336,144 votes; Bill Kindle with 17.45% or 333,765 votes; Mavocke businessman Tom Marino with 16.56% or 316,814 votes; and state Rep. David LaSaria with 12.89% or 246,623 votes, respectively.

Shannon held off on declaring victory until the results from the hand recount were released.

"The past week has been stressful and uncertain as we've had three counts of the ballots. But the count confirmed what the second count found, that we are in the lead and we have won this primary," he said at a press conference in Stronton.

"Now that we have this close race behind us, it's important to unite together, for our party to come together so we can win the governorship in December and make sure Dan Rattner is a one-term governor," Shannon said.

Later that week, at his first major campaign rally in Madagen's Barclays Stadium, Shannon took a jab at incumbent NAT Governor Dan Rattner's handling of COVID-19.

"It's so good to be able to gather together in a stadium, with no masks, no temperature checks, no vaccine cards, just everyday Grassadellians getting together and being normal. Isn't this great?" he asked the crowd, which applauded their agreement.

Shannon then promised to adhere to his Conservative tenets without alienating moderate and independent voters.

"I am a Conservative. I believe in Conservative values. I will never apologize for that," he said, as the crowd cheered.

"But I want my campaign to be more than just me. I want independents and even frustrated Nationalists to join with us. This isn't just the Mike Shannon campaign, this is the campaign for Marchenay's future, and that means we will work with whoever is willing to come alongside us."

The crowd then booed as Shannon mentioned including Nationalists.

"No I mean it. I'm not going to water down my values, I'm not going to go Conservative-lite or 'faux Conservative' like candidates in the past have done, or candidates in other states. I'm a Conservative now and always will be and I will not change or dilute my beliefs. But I don't want us to be so rigid that we don't reach out to people who think differently."

He ended his rally by saying Marchenay's gubernatorial election isn't just "Conservative versus Nationalist," it's "common sense versus insanity."

"It's big government that controls every aspect of your life and shuts down businesses and schools versus freedom and liberty and limited government that gets out of your business and lets you run your own life."

"That's what this election is about," Shannon said, to wild applause.

While all five of his former Conservative opponents have endorsed him, privately, some moderate Conservatives are concerned about Shannon's campaign style and personality.

"Mike Shannon is a nice guy, but he is quiet, he's not particularly charismatic, he's not particularly exciting. He's kind of boring. And his rock-solid Conservative views are probably not going to play well in the Madagen suburbs or in the suburban areas of the downstate region," said Mike Robbins, a political consultant who is not working for the Shannon campaign but has worked on other multiple statewide Conservative campaigns.

During the primary race, Burke Azurjean and Bill Kindle both expressed concern about the party nominating a candidate who is too right-wing for the state's electorate.

"Marchenay has more Nationalist voters than Conservatives, so in order for our party to win, we have to pick a candidate who is able to appeal to a broad spectrum of voters," Azurjean said back in May. "We can't win a statewide election with just the right-wing David LaSaria voters," he added, referring to the race's ultra-conservative candidate.

Kindle also cautioned against "fierce partisanship," and added that "whoever wins this race needs to be a communicator and a uniter."

But allies of Shannon, including LaSaria, say Shannon's blue collar roots and demur personality are exactly what Marchenayans want.

"Marchenayans are not pretentious. They're down-to-earth people who work hard and just want the best for their families. We're not looking for flashy, we're looking for practical, and Mike Shannon is very practical and down-to-earth. He plays very well in northern Marchenay and in suburban homes where people just want a decent standard of living."

Katy Peer, Shannon's campaign manager, said the likable state senator from the state's northern timber country is still introducing himself to voters in central and southern Marchenay.

"The general election campaign is just now starting, and already people are prematurely judging Mike Shannon and making pronouncements about his chances," Peer told STAR-TV.

"Everyone that knows Mike Shannon likes Mike Shannon. So once voters get to know him more, they will like him, and more importantly, they will like his agenda and his style of governance, which is limited government and personal autonomy, instead of big government mandates and nanny-state policies like Dan Rattner," said Peer.

In a statement, the Rattner campaign described the Conservative primary race as "a circus" and Shannon as "a right-wing religious zealot who will strip women of their right to reproductive freedom, who will lower taxes for the rich and raise taxes on the working class, and who will let guns run unrestricted in Marchenay."

The Shannon campaign responded with a video on its Facebook and Twitter pages. In the video, Shannon tells his supporters to "expect these kinds of desperate political attacks from Dan Rattner."

"Honestly, are you surprised that his campaign releases these slimy, hate-filled, fear-mongering attacks against me? Expect more of this in the future because that's how the Nationalist Party operates."