Former President Rand Opens Up In New Interview
Minister of Communications HEM has a two-part interview with former President Rand that started prior to Rand's brief departure, and concluded with his return to Europeian citizenship later last month.
Written by HEM
June 11th, 2023
HEM: Hey Rand, thanks for joining us today and agreeing to this interview!
Rand: Thanks HEM, I appreciate the opportunity to chat.
HEM: It's now been almost a day since polls closed and your successor "rose to the teal," so to say. I assume that you are still processing everything that has happened, but with 24 hours or so to your back, how are you feeling?
Rand: I am definitely doubting myself a lot. I feel like I had victory within my grasp, and everything fell apart Friday morning. I keep running it over in my mind, wondering what I might've done differently. I basically gave up halfway through polling because I was feeling demotivated and dealing with a lot IRL.
HEM: Obviously a lot happened in the last 48 hours or so. We had (1) a major foreign affairs related event, (2) your RL family matter that understandably created a distraction, and (3) your opponent opening a few new lines of criticism on you.
Namely, in the hours before voting started, Pland Adanna asserted that your administration aimed too high and faltered — including, according to him, letting a lot of Ministers fend for themselves. Did you see these as fair criticisms of your term?
Rand: Honestly, I did not view these as fair criticisms. I checked in regularly with Ministers, and one of the things I asked them every week was "Do you need support from any 3rd parties?" I had an open door policy, I was quick to respond to DMs, and I would of course jump in if a Minister needed help. My leadership style was not hands-off, but it also was not micromanagement. My government had strong approval ratings and good vital signs, so I had no indication that a course correction was needed. Talking to other members of my Cabinet, it does not seem they felt this way either. There were times when I was much more hands-on with some Ministries or Ministers going through rough patches, but maybe Pland felt I was too hands off with him personally.
If Pland felt this way, I wish he would've raised it to me privately first. The only concern he raised to me this term was staffing. While I tried to help find additional staffers, I honestly felt like the EBC was producing a strong level of content. Maybe Pland had higher goals than I did, but I felt he was doing well and I didn't feel the need to micromanage him. I quickly answered his questions when they arose and gave my advice, but always concluded "It's YOUR ministry! Do what you feel is best!" My leadership style is to support success by trusting & respecting my people as much as possible.
HEM: I do know the contrasts came as a part of a response to a question, but it is always interesting when critiques come to the forefront in the final hours of a campaign. Before changing topics, is there any one single thing you would look at as the primary driver of your defeat?
Rand: I wouldn't say there was a primary driver, it feels like a perfect storm occurred. The main factors I would say are (1) inadequate GOTV compared to Pland and (2) inadequate anticipation of criticism. I didn't anticipate that Pland would be going so hard after my record (I didn't think he had any material to work off, to be frank) and I didn't anticipate that there might've been blowback to the decision to declare MadJack a persona non grata.
HEM: Well, to be fair, you also probably couldn't fully anticipate the need for a PNG designation! [chuckles]
Rand: No, I didn't! That was the other thing that blindsided me that morning - MadJack going public with our private conversation with Gorundu. I had to step out for a family issue but delegated the incident to Gleg. Usually, delegating to Gleg is a pretty safe bet.
HEM: He certainly seemed to do everything he could given how dynamic that situation was!
Rand: Indeed. I checked in a couple times to affirm the direction he was taking, and it looks like the current administration has affirmed that as well. So in the end, it all worked out.
HEM: Taking a step back, your term was really defined by explosive gameplay and foreign policy changes. On day one of your tenure, would you have expected so many shifts?
Rand: I mean, I knew the term would be unpredictable. That's why I set conservative platform goals last election, in order to leave flexibility as things arose. I certainly had no idea that we'd be injuncting TCB and repealing a treaty with SLU, or joining the Aegis Accords. I feel we accomplished more than our platform required so I am proud of that. We took things as they came.
HEM: Looking back, do you have any regrets on the term and how things played out?
Rand: I do not. I am proud of the results delivered by my team. I am proud that I stood up fiercely for Europeian interests. I am even more proud that I paid a political price for that stand, because in the end, I know I did what was best.
June 26th, 2023
HEM: The start of your successor's term has been dominated by a diplomatic brouhaha with The Rejected Realms. You handled the initial stages of this situation as President alongside your Vice President Writinglegend. What do you make of how things played out after you left office?
Rand: I have to keep in mind my own perspective here, as I've gone from President-level awareness to basically average citizen-level knowledge. That being said, the questions in my mind are how well the administration is keeping the citizenry informed, and what's happening to MadJack. I'd like to remind everyone that, aside from the unfortunate incident resulting from my administration's handling of a single post from TRR's citizen-only discussion, MadJack still made some extremely concerning comments, openly insulted me, and made this situation precarious to begin with. We need to make sure we're putting in as much work on our relationships with TNP and our MGC friends as we are with TRR and Aegis at the moment. Like I said, I have limited insight into the administration's current FA efforts, so I don't know exactly what's happening on those fronts.
HEM: Do you think President Pland Adanna has, to the best of your limited knowledge, handled the situation well?
Rand: I really don't know what sort of direction or strategy the President has implemented. All I know is he seems to be aware of the situation and things seem to be moving in the right direction.
HEM: Changing course a little bit, Senator McEntire just survived a recall vote. Some supporters of the Senator are calling it a triumphant upset, others are saying that 40% of the region wanting someone yanked from office is still not great. What do you make of the recall effort and the results?
Rand: I feel like the recall vote came down to messaging. The proponents didn't seem comfortable arguing their case with the same vigor McEntire argued his own. From what I gleaned, the Senator was threatening to publish a statement which would be very contradictory to the administration's public statements, and only serve to provide more fuel for the fire in foreign channels. This could've been extremely damaging to our diplomatic efforts, but we'll never know. The other defining moment seemed to be when the other Senators came out and said they would not be supporting McEntire's report and would be issuing a collaborative report instead. This reduced the threat level, even if it didn't change McEntire's actions.
HEM: Would you want to share how you voted in the referendum?
Rand: Honestly, I was planning to vote for recall, but after watching the tide of public opinion sway and seeing Senator McEntire back down from the ledge, I ended up voting for him to stay in office. I think he has been a great Senator except for this error in judgment and I'm hoping that the recall 'scared him straight.'
HEM: There's no question that the grey area between "oversight" and "regional security/politics stopping at the water's edge" is going to be a big topic in the next Senate election. How do you think we ensure robust oversight while also not shooting ourselves in the foot?
Rand: I think private oversight hearings are an appropriate tool, and the Senate should then use those to say "we affirm the executive's course of action" or "we have privately advised another course of action." If a 2/3 majority of the Senate advises an alternate course of action, the executive refuses to implement it, and the Senate believes there is risk of severe damage to our regional security, at that point I might consider going public.
HEM: So, you think that all initial oversight when it comes to foreign affairs should be behind closed doors?
Rand: If it's about an ongoing situation the executive deems sensitive, yes. If it's after the fact or foreign tensions are low, public might be appropriate.Basically, I don't think the Senate should force the executive to fight a war on two fronts.
It could be very counterproductive if the Senate chooses one course of action and the executive another, and then the Senate indirectly makes their wishes known to the other party in the diplomatic conversation. The Constitution establishes FA as solely the President's jurisdiction for this reason. The Senate cannot rightfully decide foreign policy, at worst they can remove the President if they are being reckless or negligent.
HEM: It's definitely tricky! As Speaker in the past, I've taken aggressive oversight actions, but more in the realm of domestic affairs. In the years since, however, when I'm on the executive side I definitely would love more benefit of the doubt!
Rand: I would definitely say I'm pro-oversight as well. It just has to be done very carefully when there's an unfolding diplomatic situation.
HEM: What do you think is next for you in Europeia? You've jumped back into the fray as a citizen, do you intend to stay Citizen Rand for a while?
Rand: I don't know. I'd like to return to the Senate but also I've felt a lot less stress since leaving the Presidency, and I'm afraid that any involvement could be a slippery slope into stressful situations like this one! So I'll have to consider if I can do it with appropriate personal boundaries, especially with some stuff that's going on in my own life.
I'm also moving and starting a new job in August, so that is a positive obstacle!
HEM: There are Presidential elections in August, is that the new job you are speaking about? [cackles]
Rand: Ha! Oh my gosh, don't give me any ideas.
HEM: We started this interview a while ago, just 24 hours or so after your defeat. Now that you've had more time to process, is there anything you would add on how you feel about the last election and your term?
Rand: At first, I felt sort of hurt by the election. Having a trusted Cabinet member come out and criticize your management style certainly hurts. Also, I felt like I needed a second term for my self esteem, since I so harshly lost re-election as First Minister. However, now that I've had some time to process, like you said, I'm honestly relieved. I know I didn't lose because I didn't do a good job. The polling beforehand and the messages I've received affirmed that.
On a larger scale, my personal life has benefitted from the time saved and, like I said, I definitely feel a good amount of stress lifted off my shoulders. Nobody should endure stress for a game! So, I don't envy my successor. I think I knew this deep down as I didn't fight for the job as hard as I could, even though openly I couldn't admit I'd had enough. Don't get me wrong, if I won I'd have given it all I could - but that's the problem, I guess. I needed a break.
HEM: Wrapping up: As we discuss your term and stepping back, what do you think keeps you coming back to Nationstates and Europeia?
Rand: Well most recently, I think it's because I felt like I turned it off in the middle of an episode! lol
In general, I think it's the same as all of us. One part is we have friends here and the community brings us back. The other part here is, you can feel larger than life in Europeia. I got to be the President, have my own Situation Room (understated perk!), and lead a small business basically. I know I gained some life skills and enjoyment from that!
HEM: Finally, any advice to offer new members or those new to Europeia?
Rand: Well, I suppose first, I should offer the same advice I got on Skype back in 2015, when I asked the original eurochat how to become President. Recruit (or welcome)! It's the easiest way to show your dedication and work ethic, and it has a measurable impact on our region's health.
Second, don't be afraid to stand out from the crowd. Stand up for what you believe in. We won't always agree with those who take a stand, but it's important that someone does. I've never shied away from controvery; sometimes it's paid off, sometimes it hasn't. I've become more controvery-adverse in my "old" age, and uniting people is important too. Still, I've learned a lot from those intergovernmental brawls, and I believe I've (usually) done the right thing.
Passion, idealism, and the merit of ideas are part of what has made Europeia what it is today. I hope we don't forget that.
HEM: Thanks for sitting down and chatting with me Rand, it's been a pleasure!
Rand: The pleasure has been mine, even in this extended format! Thank you for listening.
