Republic of Superior (1983: Doomsday)

The Republic of Superior is an American survivor nation in what used to be the upper peninsula of the former American state of Michigan.

Post-Doomsday
The only target in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan was K. I. Sawyer Air Force base, garrisoned by the 410th B-52 Bomber Wing. Shortly after the nuclear-armed bombers took off for their flight over the North Pole into the Soviet Union, all remaining base personel fled outside of what was deemed a certain target. One Soviet did hit the base through an air burst, completely destroying everything in a 10-mile radius from the epicenter. Marquette itself suffered significant damage, but most was able to be repaired quite easily. No other major settlements were seriously harmed by the detonation.

Robert S. Stowe Sr., mayor of Marquette, John O. Harrington of Sault Ste. Marie, and a delegation from Escanaba. Plans were made that, in order for their communities to survive, the borders with the former states would have to be blocked off, including sending those with experiance as soldiers to block off the Northern and Southern ends of the Mackinac Bridge.

Birth of the Republic
Knowing that there was little likelehood that the American goverment surivived the war, Robert S. Stowe, on May 19th, 1984, declared the formation of the Republic of Superior, claiming that it was time to put aside the idea that the United States existed. Though there was some opposition to the idea of what was considered seccesion, many agreed that a goverment of their own would be best until communications with the outside world could be reestablished.

Each of the cities and towns sent delegations to the consitutional convention in Marquette, held on the 4th of July of the same year. There, they adopted a virtual copy of the American Consitution. The only major exception was that in the text, in order to be a natural-born citizen of the Republic, one must be born on national soil, and also be the child of another citizen of the Republic. Though controversial, more radical elements prevailed, claiming that by keeping out potential refugees, it would not force the nation's hand into helping them.

The Years of Stabilization
It was quickly assumed that the county lines would form the basis of the new "states", each of which would elect Representatives and Senators to Congress in Marquette. Due to the difficulties of holding an election outside of county lines currently, Robert Stowe was elected by the Congress to be the first President of Superior. There were two major problems immediately facing the Republic upon the formation of the goverment. One was that there were refugees leaking through the patrols along the former border with Wisconsion. The other was the expected food crisis once the stockpiles within the cities ran out. Under the direction of President Stowe, Congress quickly passed the Kerin-Casey Act. The Act impressed former seamen into the remains of Michigan's fishing fleet in order to establish a reliable food source for the nation's population. Farming would also be reestablished, though it was considered more a temporary measure, as there was little possibility that they would thrive in Superior's enviroment. Regarding immigration of the refugees, the Act established a National Army, in order to regulate immigration into the Republic at a respectable rate. At the same time, a major refugee camp would be established at the Southern end of the Mackinac Bridge, in former Mackinaw City. Seen as a way to possibly stem the flow of the refugees, it only made it worse as word spread in the Lower Peninsula. Eventually, the situtation got so bad that they had to start turning out refugees from the refugee camp. From the refugee camp, those deemed with skills that would be useful to the Republic, such as doctoring, teaching, etc., were allowed across the bridge into Superior Proper, and sent through a naturalization program. Those who had formerly been in the army or law-enforcement were immediatley put into the militay.

By beginning of 1985, the food crisis had been solved, following the expansion of the fishing fleet and personal, and despite the failure of the farming community to kick-off, despite having been expected. At the same time, control over the Western Frontier was strong enough to stop almost all illegal immigration, including the establishment of several minor refugee camps. However, problems were only growing in Camp Mackinaw. Despite the military presence, crime and murder rates began to soar, and a feeling of resentment toward the RSA (Republic of Superior Army) in keeping them in such squalid conditions.

Camp Mackinaw Riots
As dissent increased in the Mackinaw Refugee Camp, so did the nervousness of the camp's administrative officials. Order's were soon sent out that gave emergancy powers to the military, hoping that the increased freedom of the Army would be enough to stem the riotous behaivor that was increasingly common. Col. Lewis Poulat infamously fired into an open crowd after they rushed a food convoy heading to the east sector. Despite calls for his court-martial by some Congressmen upon hearing of the incident, nothing came of it. On April 23rd, 1985, a squad of RSA soldiers moved in to close a warehouse. Several refugees, including a women and her child, approached and begged for food and blankets. Nobody knows who fired first, but apparently two of the refugees pulled guns on the soldiers and tried to force themselves inside. The soldiers immediately opened up on the group, killing them all. A few second after this, the refugees rushed en masse upon the squad and overwhelmed them. The warehouse was broken into and picked clean of all of its holdings. The 14th Company was rushed to the area, and demanded the release of the squad. When several refugees pulled weapons, the unit opened fire into the crowd. The riots quicky spread throughout the entire Southern sector of the camp by the end of the day, and, by order of the President, contained within the Sector. Robert Stowe hoped that the situation would cool off enough within two days to allow the redeployment of military units in the area. At the same time, dissenters in any other part of the camp were immediately ejected outside of it, in hopes of containing any further thought of rebellion.

On April 25th, the 2nd Army moved into the ruins of the Southern sector, expecting little to no resistance. Suprisingly, the rebels were well fortified, and well armed. It was later learned that they had somehow managed to break into one of the minor weapons caches hidden within the sector, specifically in case such a riot occurred. It would take until the next day before the riot was finally crushed. In all, some 12,000 refugees were dead or wounded during the riots, about half just fighting amongst themselves. 87 Superior Soldiers died, with another 265 wounded. The main squad that was positioned to guard the warehouse was later found hanging from the lampposts along the main street. Their bodies had been riddled by bullets, and there was not much left for identification. Public opinion for the camps fell dramatically, and it would take another ten years before proposed representation for the camps in the Republic's government were to be passed.

Return to Calm
Shortly after the riots in Mackinaw, support for the refugee camps plummeted among the public. Votes came just short of a full withdrawal of support for camps both in Mackinaw and along the Western Border, even with the veto from President Stowe. Fears of further rioting died down after rationing limits were lifted after the end of the food crisis, and law and order had been reestablished, or rather reinforced, by additional deployments within Mackinaw. Mackinaw itself would quickly develope by 1990 into a fledging city, unrecognizable from the slums that had dominated five years ago. As a result, Mackinaw become both the most populous, and the most prosperous settlement within the Republic. The refugee zones were moved outside of the city in early 1989.

Along with the success of the city, there grew demands for representation in the Republic's Congress. However, public opinion was still largely against Mackinaw's admission as a full state, and as a result, much of Congress. One of leaders of the opposition, Republican Robert P. Griffin, claimed that the refugees had yet to earn back the right of being citizens of the Republic, and it would be better if they were apart. President Stowe disagreed, and campaigned endlessly across the nation in favor of Mackinaw's admission. The initiative would fail throughout the remainder of the Stowe administration, but it would remain a major issue within the nation into the next decade.

Another topic that began to dominate Congress was when an expedition was going to be sent into the outside world, as some communication was being picked up, but nothing that was understandable. James Whitney Dunn, a Republican Congressmen from Escanaba, eventually proposed that an expedition be sent into the Lower Peninsula, in order to see if any other goverment developed in the area, or if anything remained at all. A similar expedition would be sent west, into what was the former Canadian state of Ontario. Several outposts had been establsihed on that coast, but there had been only a few patrols into the main interior. President Stowe quickly supported the plan, but in private voiced doubts that anything would come of either of the expeditions.

Results of the RSREF (Republic of Superior Recon Expeditionary Force)
Both elements of the RSREF were given 500 men, each with enough supplies to travel for about 6 months round-trip, though they were encourageed to increase their supplies whenever they could. Both left Mackinaw on April 3rd of 1991. The expedition to the East had little to no luck of finding anything resembling civilization, though they did manage to pick up a few groups of survivors that had not made it to established nation(s). They made it as far as the ruins of Ottawa before any form of government showed. Ottawa appeared to be ruled under a fascist dictatorship under the leadership of Capt. Giraud Leppe. Meeting between the expedition and the Ottawa government proved fruitful, though the conditions in Ottawa appeared to be less then humane. Journalists traveling with the expedition estimate that less then 10,000 people lived in the city itself, though the government could have had extensive control over the countryside. The only hints of the outside world given during the meeting were rumors of scouting parties from further east: the Canadian Remainder Provinces. RSREF West returned to Mackinaw on August 16th of the same year.

RSREF South expected to find little, if anything, in the Lower Peninsula. Fewer and fewer refugees were coming in from that direction, and many stories told tales of now mythical proportions. Many tales also involved what was considered a rouge group of National Guardsmen, known as the “Night Watch”, led by someone known as “Sarge”, based in Lansing. They were attributed to many attacks upon refugee convoys trying to reach Superior. As a result, the convoy was prepared for military action, expecting to engage the group at some point on its way past Lansing to former Chicago.

As it so happens, Detroit and Lansing were found to be almost, if not completely, depopulated, having been taken back over by nature. “Sarge’s” grave was found in the ruins of Lansing surrounded by many of his spoils, with signs that the “Night Watch” had since disbanded. By records, it appears as if there had been an attempted coup among the leadership, in which “Sarge” had been killed. In former Indiana, the expedition came across several nomadic clans that traveled over most of the Midwest, and told that there were many such groups both South and West of their current location. Meetings with the “Rico” clan did not go over well, as a soldier by the name of Pvt. Neville Gregory had apparently fallen in love with, and removed the virginity of, the Chief’s daughter. A firefight ensued as warriors of the clan tried to take both Pvt. Gregory and the daughter, who had been disowned, back to the camp. As a result of this incident, strict rules were put upon expedition member’s interactions with natives, and Pvt. Gregory was removed from active duty.

Chicago had been expected to be in the same state as Detroit and Lansing. When the RSREF finally arrived outside the city, they were surprised to find it in a full-blown civil war. Not much was found on why the situation within the city existed, as Col. Perry did not want the expedition to get heavily involved in the fighting. After reconnaissance patrol in the city’s suburbs came under fire, resulting in the death of one of the soldiers, Perry ordered that the force head away from Chicago. RSREF returned back to Mackinaw City on November 9th of that year.

The Ottowa Question
Two major issues arose by the time 1992 came around, the first, and most important, was the 1992 Presidential Election. Robert Stowe had won the last two elections largely unopposed, in 1984 and 1988. However, he was bound by term limits within the constitution, and was forced out of office. As a result, the Republican and Democratic Parties both held mini-primaries within the Republic to find nominees for the Presidency.

The Republican Party eventually nominated Lewis Poulat, now a General in the SRA. Running on a platform of expansion and strength, he advocated that relations between Ottawa and Superior be formalized, and that a military force should be sent south to liberate Chicago. The Democratic Party quickly found its candidate in Vice President Joseph O’Hara of Escanaba. Though relatively conservative, he did not believe that the Republic should send aid to Ottawa at all, and that taking Chicago would be a needless waste of lives and resources, for little gain.

Polling between the two candidates almost always had Poulat ahead by five to six points, and it appeared that he would win the election comfortably. However, the Marquette Press released information regarding his term of duty while serving in the Mackinaw Refugee Camp, specifically the infamous “February 3rd Massacre”. Despite attempts to remove the issue from the election, Poulat plummeted in the polls, and O’Hara won in a 57-43 landslide.

President O’Hara regarded the government in Ottawa as being nothing more than “a Canadian version of Hitler’s Nazi Germany, and Mussolini’s Fascist Italy!” The Republican Congress tried to pass legislation that would aid the Ottawa government, but the President’s veto power, along with Democratic opposition, resulted in naut. Eventually, Secretary of State Russ Feingold convinced O’Hara that it would be better if they tried to change Ottawa by offering aid with conditions such as Democratic reform, and a return of basic civil liberties. Congress quickly passed a relatively large aid package, that at the same time formalized relations with the Ottawa government.

Cpt. Leppe, however, was against any form of Democratic government being created in the nation. Instead he promised to increase civil liberties, and promised that a Parliament, albeit weak and virtually powerless, would be formed. O’Hara almost canceled the deal, but Feingold and many Republican Congressmen convinced the President that the seeds of Democratic government had been planted, and it would be better that Ottawa were an ally rather than an enemy. In late 1993, a SRA convoy arrived, completing a transit link between Ottawa and Merille Base on Lake Superior. A embassy was constructed in the city, though and Ottawa(n) embassy would not appear in the Republic until 1996.

Expansion
As expected, the issue of Representation for Mackinaw again became a major issue in the Republic. Adding a new state to the nation did create some excitement, but there was also a certain level of resistance among the old guard who remembered the Mackinaw Riots, and still refused that such a proposal even be considered. President O’Hara, however, agreed with many fellow Democrats that Mackinaw was culturally a part of Superior now, and that they had no right to run their lives while denying them citizenship. As a result, Congress passed the Mackinaw Status In Regard to Superior Act. Basically, a referendum was set for July 4th of 1995, where residents would determine whether Mackinaw was to become an independent nation or a state in the Republic of Superior.

As the date for the referendum approached, both President O’Hara and Mayor Fredrick Cullen campaigned in favor of statehood, which was chosen overwhelmingly, 67-33. The debate in Congress was more heated and controversial, however. Veteran Congressmen Robert P. Griffin lead a filibuster against Mackinaw’s admission, but Democratic gains in the 1994 Congressional Elections were enough to win cloture. A star was added to the Flag of the Republic a month later on August 6th, the day Mackinaw was officially admitted into the Union. Elections were held the next month to elect Senator and Representative to Congress, among them Socialist Representative Dennis Kucinich, a member of the recently created Socialist Party.

Another major issue that was arising was overpopulation, specifically in Mackinaw. There wasn’t a problem with food, resource, or anything like that; it was simply a lack of space. Congressmen James Dunn quickly proposed that the government give people incentives to move into the now open countryside just outside of Mackinaw City along the Upper Portion of the Lower Peninsula. Other Congressmen included the establishment of enclaves on the now abandoned Manitou Islands in Lake Michigan, on the Leelanau Peninsula, and the outposts on the coast of former Ontario. Known as the Dunn-Keithmen-Theriualt Act, it was rapidly passed in September of 1995. Settlements have since expanded to cover much of the Great Lakes region, though most remain within close proximity to the Upper Peninsula.

Another major Act passed in 1995 was the Capital Relocation Act. The idea was that, due to the rapid expansion of the Republic, a central Capital would be required other than the state of Marquette, which still had trouble accommodating the large Congress of the Republic. Despite his initial refusal, the capital was ordered to be named after former President Robert S. Stowe, in honor of his guiding the Republic through the early year, in which it was least stable. Following a building plan reminiscent of the Washington D.C., a short drive out of Manistique, the capital was not entirely completed until 1998, though Congress and the Lake House were completed by early 1997.

To Be Continued......

Contact With the Outside World
In mid-2009, the WRCB expedition reached the frontier of the Republic via the North American Union. It was the first time since Doomsday that the government found itself facing an actual civil entity from beyond the immediate region.

The realization of the Earth's(nearly unrecognizable) political landscape - including the dissolution of the original United States - shocked the nation, yet provided an opportunity to rebuild anew.

Politics
Immigration remains a major issue today, even following the major expansion on the Lower Peninsula. The issue has died down in recent times, and the growing issue is becoming what the future of the Republic is going to be. The Republican and Democratic Parties have survived largely intact, and still dominate the Republic's politics. There is a major Third Party movement, the Socialist party, that is gaining steam, but has largely been stemmed by the existance of the left-leaning Democratic Party, and charges of it carrying "extremist" ideas similar to the former Soviet Union. As a result, they still remain upon the fringe of national politics, despite having several congressmen in office.

CRUSA (Committee to Reestablish the United States of America) has also established a relatively large presence within the Republic, as many people still view themselves as American. In relation to this, the Republic seeks to establish cordial ties with the Provisional U.S. entity of the North American Union.