Federal Republic of California (Article 5)

California, officially the Federal Republic of California, is a federal republic in the former American states of California, Oregon, and Washington. It also exercises de facto control over Mexican Baja California and Western Nevada. California shares a border with and  to the East,  in the north, and the  in the northeast. California has a population of around 44.162 million people, making it the most populous nation in the former American southwest.

California is currently dependent on food aid from East Asia, and Canadian agricultural imports.

Russo-American Nuclear Exchange
Immediately following the Russo-American Nuclear Exchange on January 1st, 2009, California Governor declared a state of emergency, and mobilized the California National Guard, the California State Military Reserve (CSMR), and the rest of the California Military Department. Looting and crime was rampant following the strikes, and rioting ensued nationwide. California, far from the cities that were hit, was able to react quickly and stem the chaos before it could seriously affect public security; California is one of three states that did not declare martial law following the exchange. Over the next month, Governor Angelides organized the Californian security forces and coordinated closely with the local remnants of various federal agencies, frequently trying to make contact with the Federal Government. No such contact was made until mid-March, when California had already formally succeeded.

Refugees from the east began to pour into California. The mass exodus of Refugees came largely from cities that hadn't been directly affected by the exchange - the remnants of the federal government had determined that order could not maintained in the Midwest. With looting rampant, chaos widespread, and food supplies no longer reaching the cities in substantial quantities, people fled as far west as they could. This created a crisis for the Californian government - an estimated 30,000 people were being admitted into refugee camps weekly. Californian resources were already stretched to the breaking point, and so on February 5th, Governor Angelides closed Californian borders to the rest of the United States. This was the first step towards California independence.

Secession and Independence
In April, the situation for California looked bleak. California was not agriculturally productive enough to sustain its population absent substantial food imports, but with most of the former American midwest now relying on subsistence agriculture, and with no coordinated federal response to the crisis in sight, members of the California state legislature were beginning to whisper succession. Governor Angelides was already negotiating aid from the world Food Programme, with significant contributions pledged from China, Japan, and the EU. Canada had attempted to provide aid to the northeast but had stopped after its convoys had met armed resistance. Canada was eager to provide aid wherever stability could be maintained.

Thus, on February 27th, the California state legislature convened and voted to secede from the United States, forming the Republic of California. The California legislature's first act was to pass the, establishing the as the successor to the California Military Department, and subordinating the CSMR and California National Guard to the DoD. The act also authorized conscription.

After California's security had been dealt with, and with the food problem at least temporarily solved, the Californian government turned its attention towards the economy. The dollar had been in freefall since the exchange - the US Government hadn't even had time to freeze the NYSE before it was obliterated by a nuclear warhead. With hyperinflation approaching Weimar levels, and with the American financial system totally and completely destroyed, it was decided that California would need its own currency. On February 30th the Californian legislature passed the, creating the Californian Federal Reserve System, and creating the. The legislature also passed the, authorizing the creation of the and giving the new department broad powers.

Military
The California Armed Forces are divided into three branches - the Army, the Navy, and the Air Force. The Army is the largest of the three branches and continues to expand - in 2011 70% of all new conscripts were assigned to the Army. The Navy is large but rapidly downsizing; having inherited a large portion of the US Navy Pacific Fleet, it now has a large array of vessels it doesn't need and isn't capable of maintaining. The Californian government is selling destroyers, cruisers, and logistical ships to nations such as Australia and Japan at extraordinarily low prices. The Navy is also in talks with Taiwan to forward-stage one of two Californian carrier battle groups in East Asia, under the conditions that Taiwan would pay all associated costs (including salaries) and handle logistics. Taiwan is a close partner of California but no official alliance exists between the two nations.

The Army currently has a force of 250,000 personnel - this translates into 24 infantry brigades, one armored brigade, and assorted support assets. The Army primarily operates leftover US equipment; its primary service rifle is the M16A2. It operates a large fleet of M113A3s, Humvees, and Bradley IFVs. The Army has two M1 Abrams tank battalions numbering 84 tanks, with an additional 62 tanks in storage to be used as an attrition reserve, or mobilized as additional personnel become available. The Army also operates a large number of LAV-25s and AAVP7A1 APCs inherited from Marine units stationed at San Diego.

The Air Force's fighter force consists of three squadrons of 21 F-15C Eagles (each), and it plans to acquire around 40 F-16s from the US later in 2011. The Air Force has a substantial air rescue wing, operating a number of MC-130P C2/tanker aircraft, and HH-60G rescue helicopters. 12 KC-135 Stratotankers left over from the California Air National Guard are in storage but will be activated when the Air Force's fighter arm expands. It also possesses 8 MQ-1 predator drones that it is currently leasing to the for border control purposes.