{"data":{"id":15476,"title":"Congress Now","rsi_url":"https:\/\/robertsspaceindustries.com\/comm-link\/spectrum-dispatch\/15476-Congress-Now","api_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-links\/15476","api_public_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/comm-links\/15476","channel":"Undefined","category":"Undefined","series":"News Update","images":[{"id":207,"name":"CongressNowFI.jpg","rsi_url":"https:\/\/robertsspaceindustries.com\/media\/7exjwj1780k91r\/source\/CongressNowFI.jpg","alt":"","size":562093,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","last_modified":"2015-05-20T14:06:25+00:00","api_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-link-images\/207","similar_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-link-images\/207\/similar"},{"id":26463,"name":"source.jpg","rsi_url":"https:\/\/media.robertsspaceindustries.com\/weozjmuuh3hwh\/source.jpg","alt":"","size":843046,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","last_modified":"2019-09-19T15:49:32+00:00","api_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-link-images\/26463","similar_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-link-images\/26463\/similar"},{"id":27892,"name":"source.jpg","rsi_url":"https:\/\/media.robertsspaceindustries.com\/w3o9r4zgppm77\/source.jpg","alt":"","size":900916,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","last_modified":"2021-09-06T14:48:40+00:00","api_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-link-images\/27892","similar_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-link-images\/27892\/similar"}],"images_count":8,"translations":{"en_EN":"UEE CONGRESS (396)\n2946-8-23 SET\n\nSession AutoScript\nProofed and Admitted \u2013 Archivist Yates (#57573BDF)\n\n2946-8-23_09:04 \u2013 Session Begins\nSPEAKER MARSHALL MADRIGAL (U \u2013 Borea \u2013 Magnus Sys): Can all Senators please take their seats?\n\n< pause >\n\nSPEAKER MARSHALL MADRIGAL (U \u2013 Borea \u2013 Magnus Sys): Thank you. Now that we have a quorum, I call this session to order. The floor is open to new business.\n\nSENATOR RACHEL LESTER (T \u2013 Vann \u2013 Croshaw Sys): Speaker \u2026\n\nSPEAKER MARSHALL MADRIGAL (U \u2013 Borea \u2013 Magnus Sys): Senator Lester, you have the floor.\n\nSENATOR RACHEL LESTER (T \u2013 Vann \u2013 Croshaw Sys): Thank you, Mister Speaker. Eighteen months ago, the Concerned Citizens Foundation embarked on an ambitious project \u2014 to identify and itemize every government expenditure from the 2944 fiscal year directly related to the Synthworld. A valiant and thankless task only made more difficult by a lack of support from this government.\n\nLast week, the CCF released their report, which I have since forwarded to all members of the Senate. For those who have yet to read it, allow me to summarize. It details negligent management strategies, flagrant approval processes, and a myriad of subsidized objectives with only a passing relevance to the Project at large. The sheer amount of expenditures that could not be verified or even traced is shocking at best, and outright corruption at worst.\n\nFifteen million taxpayer credits down the drain because someone ordered the wrong types of screws. Another six million spent to upgrade functional holoscreens that were less than two years old. These are credits that could have been spent to ship more food to Hyperion or improve security for those living in Nexus.\n\nSimply put, the people of our great Empire are suffering, and we all know that this government lacks the credits needed to deal with every issue. This financial strain is forcing us to make difficult decisions. Do we prioritize system security so our people can safely fly between worlds without worry of an outlaw attack? Do we strengthen the social services so orphans of the Vanduul War get the support they deserve? Do we allocate the necessary funds to build the infrastructure needed to ensure the people of Tram have safe and clean water?\n\nOr do we stick with the status quo, where millions of credits are spent on the Synthworld with little to no oversight?\n\nIt is with this in mind that I have drafted the Sensible Synthworld amendment, designated AV4-3223, aimed at improving the accountability of the Project Archangel Initiative by changing its budgetary designation from \u201cmandatory\u201d to \u201cdiscretionary.\u201d So, rather than mandating that a percentage of the overall budget must be spent on the Synthworld each year, my amendment makes it a discretionary expenditure, empowering the Appropriations Committee to review and approve its budget every year.\n\nThat way, when reports like the one just released from the CCF reveal reckless spending, we can actually do something about it. In these strained economic times, it has never been more important to guarantee that every last credit spent by this government is being put to good use.\n\nThank you. I relinquish the rest of my time.\n\nSPEAKER MARSHALL MADRIGAL (U \u2013 Borea \u2013 Magnus Sys): Thank you, Senator. Archivist, please enter AV4-3223 into the record.\n\nARCHIVIST YATES: Yes, Speaker.\n\nSENATOR OCTAVIA BEATE (U \u2013 Asura \u2013 Ferron Sys): Speaker, if I may \u2026\n\nSPEAKER MARSHALL MADRIGAL (U \u2013 Borea \u2013 Magnus Sys): Senator Beate, the floor is now yours.\n\nSENATOR OCTAVIA BEATE (U \u2013 Asura \u2013 Ferron Sys): On the surface, Senator Lester\u2019s proposal sounds sensible \u2014 an exercise in good government. But make no mistake, it\u2019s a Trojan Horse. Last year, Senator Lester was quoted in the Terra Gazette as saying that the \u201cSynthworld symbolized Human hubris,\u201d and that she would have voted against the project if she had been a member of the Senate when it was first proposed.\n\nSo it\u2019s pretty clear that this amendment isn\u2019t really about providing greater oversight of the Synthworld. It\u2019s about putting the entire project\u2019s budget on the chopping block each year, forcing the hard-working scientists and researchers to have to justify every single expenditure, every single year, rather than focusing on the colossal assignment with which they have been tasked. That way, Senator Lester and others of the anti-Synthworld ilk can slowly bleed it dry, diverting its funding into pet projects until there is nothing left. Their eventual goal is to leave the Senate no other choice than to shut down the ambitious venture altogether.\n\nImperator Corbyn Salehi worried about this exact scenario when he first proposed Project Archangel. He understood that such a monumental project would require an unprecedented level of commitment from this government, and that there would be countless politicians who lacked the fortitude and the long-term vision needed for the Synthworld to succeed \u2014 politicians more worried about their reelection than what was best for their people.\n\nThat\u2019s exactly why Imperator Salehi fought for the Synthworld\u2019s funding to be mandatory. It was the only way to ensure that the project would not become susceptible to the whims of the Senate\u2019s budgetary process each and every year. Such a project can only succeed when everyone involved is confident that the necessary funds will be there.\n\nIn short, the Synthworld\u2019s success rests on two things: the strength of our conviction and the Empire\u2019s commitment to paying for the project. Changing its budgetary status from mandatory to discretionary jeopardizes the second part of that equation, and I fear, will eventually eat away at our resolve to accomplish this remarkable feat of engineering.\n\nThat\u2019s why I\u2019m asking you to reject this amendment. Stand with me in honoring Imperator Salehi\u2019s original, fearless vision for the Synthworld. Thank you.\n\nSPEAKER MARSHALL MADRIGAL (U \u2013 Borea \u2013 Magnus Sys): Senator Lester, any final comments?\n\nSENATOR RACHEL LESTER (T \u2013 Vann \u2013 Croshaw Sys): First, the quote Senate Beate referenced was from a lengthy interview with the Terra Gazette. While I did note that I probably wouldn\u2019t have voted for the Synthworld had I served back then, I went on to explain that there are already plenty of planets and moons where one can fly for hours without encountering any sign of Humanity. With all this unexplored and underdeveloped land still out there, why should we be building a world from scratch unless it\u2019s absolutely necessary?\n\nBut that was an answer to a hypothetical question. Right now, I\u2019m more concerned about the reality we all face. As the old adage goes, \u2018times have changed.\u2019 We\u2019re a very different Empire in a very different position than where we were in 2872. Back then, conflict with the Vanduul had settled back into sporadic raids, far from the active military campaign that we\u2019re currently engaged in. The UEE had recently approved a new lend-lease program with the Xi\u2019An, opening up opportunities for corporate ventures between our two great civilizations. It was a good time.\n\nI\u2019m sure if some of those Senators were here today, they\u2019d reconsider their vote. They\u2019d see that it had been almost a year since the attacks on Aremis left much of the planet in pieces. Yet, because of the Synthworld\u2019s mandatory spending status, more of the UEE\u2019s money in this next fiscal year will go towards building a fake planet than rebuilding one where Humans have lived for over 500 years.\n\nThis amendment is not some secret plot to kill the Synthworld. It\u2019s an appeal to this Senate to bring the ambitious project\u2019s spending in line with the Empire\u2019s many other priorities. But that can\u2019t be accomplished until its budgetary status is changed. Regardless of what anyone else says, this is truly what this amendment is all about.\n\nSPEAKER MARSHALL MADRIGAL (U \u2013 Borea \u2013 Magnus Sys): Any other Senators care to weigh in on AV4-3223 before we vote on whether to refer the amendment to committee?\n\n< pause >\n\nSPEAKER MARSHALL MADRIGAL (U \u2013 Borea \u2013 Magnus Sys): Quite a few, I see. Let\u2019s take a five-minute recess to properly organize the speaking order.\n\n< gavel bang >\n\nEND TRANSCRIPT EXCERPT","de_DE":"UEE KONGRESS (396)\n2946-8-23 SET\n\nSession AutoScript\nGepr\u00fcft und zugelassen - Archivar Yates (#57573BDF)\n\n2946-8-23_09:04 - Sitzung beginnt\nSPEAKER MARSHALL MADRIGAL (U - Borea - Magnus Sys): K\u00f6nnen alle Senatoren bitte ihre Pl\u00e4tze einnehmen?\n\n< Pause > Pause >\n\nSPEAKER MARSHALL MADRIGAL (U - Borea - Magnus Sys): Ich danke dir. Da wir nun beschlussf\u00e4hig sind, berufe ich diese Sitzung zur Ordnung ein. Der Boden ist offen f\u00fcr Neugesch\u00e4ft.\n\nSENATOR RACHEL LESTER (T - Vann - Croshaw Sys): Lautsprecher.....\n\nSPEAKER MARSHALL MADRIGAL (U - Borea - Magnus Sys): Senator Lester, Sie haben das Wort.\n\nSENATOR RACHEL LESTER (T - Vann - Croshaw Sys): Danke, Mister Speaker. Vor achtzehn Monaten startete die Concerned Citizens Foundation ein ehrgeiziges Projekt - die Identifizierung und Aufgliederung aller Staatsausgaben des Gesch\u00e4ftsjahres 2944, die in direktem Zusammenhang mit der Synthworld stehen. Eine mutige und undankbare Aufgabe, die nur durch mangelnde Unterst\u00fctzung dieser Regierung erschwert wurde.\n\nLetzte Woche ver\u00f6ffentlichte der CCF ihren Bericht, den ich inzwischen an alle Mitglieder des Senats weitergeleitet habe. F\u00fcr diejenigen, die es noch nicht gelesen haben, erlauben Sie mir, zusammenzufassen. Es beschreibt fahrl\u00e4ssige Managementstrategien, flagrante Genehmigungsverfahren und eine Vielzahl von subventionierten Zielen, die nur eine vor\u00fcbergehende Relevanz f\u00fcr das gesamte Projekt haben. Die schiere Menge an Ausgaben, die nicht verifiziert oder gar zur\u00fcckverfolgt werden konnten, ist bestenfalls schockierend, und die v\u00f6llige Korruption im schlimmsten Fall.\n\nF\u00fcnfzehn Millionen Steuerzahler kassieren Kredite, weil jemand die falschen Schrauben bestellt hat. Weitere sechs Millionen Euro wurden f\u00fcr die Modernisierung von funktionalen Holoscreens ausgegeben, die j\u00fcnger als zwei Jahre waren. Dies sind Kredite, die h\u00e4tten ausgegeben werden k\u00f6nnen, um mehr Lebensmittel an Hyperion zu liefern oder die Sicherheit f\u00fcr die Bewohner von Nexus zu verbessern.\n\nEinfach ausgedr\u00fcckt, leiden die Menschen in unserem gro\u00dfen Imperium, und wir alle wissen, dass es dieser Regierung an den Mitteln fehlt, die sie ben\u00f6tigt, um jedes Problem zu l\u00f6sen. Diese finanzielle Belastung zwingt uns zu schwierigen Entscheidungen. Legen wir Wert auf Systemsicherheit, damit unsere Mitarbeiter sicher zwischen den Welten fliegen k\u00f6nnen, ohne Angst vor einem Outlaw-Angriff zu haben? St\u00e4rken wir die Sozialdienste, damit die Waisenkinder des Vanduul-Krieges die Unterst\u00fctzung erhalten, die sie verdienen? Stellen wir die notwendigen Mittel f\u00fcr den Bau der Infrastruktur bereit, die erforderlich ist, um sicherzustellen, dass die Menschen in der Stra\u00dfenbahn \u00fcber sauberes und sauberes Wasser verf\u00fcgen?\n\nOder halten wir uns an den Status quo, bei dem Millionen von Credits f\u00fcr die Synthworld ausgegeben werden, ohne dass es zu einer Kontrolle kommt?\n\nIn diesem Sinne habe ich den \u00c4nderungsantrag Sensible Synthworld mit der Bezeichnung AV4-3223 verfasst, der darauf abzielt, die Rechenschaftspflicht der Projekt-Erzengel-Initiative zu verbessern, indem er seine Haushaltsbezeichnung von \"obligatorisch\" auf \"freiwillig\" \u00e4ndert. Anstatt also zu verlangen, dass ein Prozentsatz des Gesamthaushalts jedes Jahr f\u00fcr die Synthworld ausgegeben werden muss, macht mein \u00c4nderungsantrag dies zu einer Ermessensausgabe, die den Bewilligungsausschuss erm\u00e4chtigt, seinen Haushalt jedes Jahr zu \u00fcberpr\u00fcfen und zu genehmigen.\n\nAuf diese Weise, wenn Berichte wie derjenige, der gerade aus dem CCF ver\u00f6ffentlicht wurde, leichtsinnige Ausgaben offenbaren, k\u00f6nnen wir tats\u00e4chlich etwas dagegen tun. In diesen wirtschaftlich angespannten Zeiten war es noch nie so wichtig zu garantieren, dass jeder letzte von dieser Regierung ausgegebene Kredit sinnvoll genutzt wird.\n\nIch danke dir. Ich gebe den Rest meiner Zeit auf.\n\nSPEAKER MARSHALL MADRIGAL (U - Borea - Magnus Sys): Danke, Senator. Archivar, bitte geben Sie AV4-3223 in den Datensatz ein.\n\nARCHIVISTISCHE JAHRE: Ja, Sprecher.\n\nSenator OCTAVIA BEATE (U - Asura - Ferron Sys): Sprecher, wenn ich darf....\n\nSPEAKER MARSHALL MADRIGAL (U - Borea - Magnus Sys): Senatorin Beate, das Wort geh\u00f6rt jetzt Ihnen.\n\nSenator OCTAVIA BEATE (U - Asura - Ferron Sys): Auf der Oberfl\u00e4che klingt der Vorschlag von Senator Lester vern\u00fcnftig - eine \u00dcbung in einer guten Regierung. Aber machen Sie keinen Fehler, es ist ein trojanisches Pferd. Letztes Jahr wurde Senator Lester in der Terra Gazette zitiert, als er sagte, dass die \"Synthworld die menschliche Hybris symbolisierte\", und dass sie gegen das Projekt gestimmt h\u00e4tte, wenn sie ein Mitglied des Senats gewesen w\u00e4re, als es zum ersten Mal vorgeschlagen wurde.\n\nEs ist also ziemlich klar, dass es bei dieser \u00c4nderung nicht wirklich darum geht, eine gr\u00f6\u00dfere Kontrolle \u00fcber die Synthworld zu gew\u00e4hrleisten. Es geht darum, das gesamte Projektbudget jedes Jahr auf den Kopf zu stellen und die flei\u00dfigen Wissenschaftler und Forscher zu zwingen, jede einzelne Ausgabe, jedes einzelne Jahr, zu rechtfertigen, anstatt sich auf die gewaltige Aufgabe zu konzentrieren, mit der sie beauftragt wurden. Auf diese Weise k\u00f6nnen Senator Lester und andere von der Anti-Synthworld-Sorte es langsam ausbluten lassen und seine Finanzierung in Haustierprojekte umleiten, bis es nichts mehr gibt. Ihr letztendliches Ziel ist es, dem Senat keine andere Wahl zu lassen, als das ehrgeizige Vorhaben ganz abzuschaffen.\n\nImporteur Corbyn Salehi sorgte sich um genau dieses Szenario, als er zum ersten Mal Project Archangel vorschlug. Er verstand, dass ein solches monumentales Projekt ein beispielloses Ma\u00df an Engagement dieser Regierung erfordern w\u00fcrde, und dass es unz\u00e4hlige Politiker geben w\u00fcrde, denen die Kraft und die langfristige Vision fehlte, die f\u00fcr den Erfolg der Synthworld erforderlich waren - Politiker, die mehr um ihre Wiederwahl besorgt waren als um das, was f\u00fcr ihr Volk das Beste war.\n\nGenau deshalb k\u00e4mpfte Imperator Salehi daf\u00fcr, dass die Finanzierung der Synthworld obligatorisch wird. Nur so konnte sichergestellt werden, dass das Projekt nicht jedes Jahr f\u00fcr die Launen des Haushaltsverfahrens des Senats anf\u00e4llig wird. Ein solches Projekt kann nur gelingen, wenn alle Beteiligten sicher sind, dass die notwendigen Mittel zur Verf\u00fcgung stehen.\n\nKurz gesagt, der Erfolg der Synthworld beruht auf zwei Dingen: der St\u00e4rke unserer \u00dcberzeugung und dem Engagement des Imperiums, f\u00fcr das Projekt zu bezahlen. Die \u00c4nderung seines Haushaltsstatus von obligatorisch auf diskretion\u00e4r gef\u00e4hrdet den zweiten Teil dieser Gleichung, und ich f\u00fcrchte, wird letztendlich unsere Entschlossenheit, diese bemerkenswerte technische Leistung zu vollbringen, zunichte machen.\n\nDeshalb bitte ich Sie, diesen \u00c4nderungsantrag abzulehnen. Steht mir bei der Ehre von Imperator Salehis urspr\u00fcnglicher, furchtloser Vision f\u00fcr die Synth-Welt zur Seite. Ich danke dir.\n\nSPEAKER MARSHALL MADRIGAL (U - Borea - Magnus Sys): Senator Lester, irgendwelche Schlussbemerkungen?\n\nSENATOR RACHEL LESTER (T - Vann - Croshaw Sys): Zuerst war das Zitat, auf das Senat Beate Bezug nahm, von einem langen Interview mit der Terra Gazette. W\u00e4hrend ich bemerkte, dass ich wahrscheinlich nicht f\u00fcr die Synthworld gestimmt h\u00e4tte, wenn ich damals gedient h\u00e4tte, erkl\u00e4rte ich weiter, dass es bereits viele Planeten und Monde gibt, auf denen man stundenlang fliegen kann, ohne auf ein Zeichen der Menschheit zu sto\u00dfen. Mit all diesem unerforschten und unterentwickelten Land, das noch immer da drau\u00dfen ist, warum sollten wir eine Welt von Grund auf neu aufbauen, es sei denn, es ist absolut notwendig?\n\nAber das war eine Antwort auf eine hypothetische Frage. Im Moment bin ich mehr besorgt \u00fcber die Realit\u00e4t, der wir alle gegen\u00fcberstehen. Wie das alte Sprichwort sagt, haben sich die Zeiten ge\u00e4ndert. Wir sind ein ganz anderes Imperium in einer ganz anderen Position als 2872. Damals hatte sich der Konflikt mit den Vanduul wieder in sporadischen Razzien niedergelassen, weit entfernt von der aktiven Milit\u00e4rkampagne, in der wir uns derzeit befinden. Die UEE hatte k\u00fcrzlich ein neues Lend-lease-Programm mit dem Xi'An genehmigt, das M\u00f6glichkeiten f\u00fcr unternehmerische Vorhaben zwischen unseren beiden gro\u00dfen Zivilisationen er\u00f6ffnet. Es war eine gute Zeit.\n\nIch bin sicher, wenn einige jener Senatoren hier heute waren, w\u00fcrden sie ihre Stimme \u00fcberdenken. Sie w\u00fcrden sehen, dass es fast ein Jahr her ist, seit die Angriffe auf Aremis einen Gro\u00dfteil des Planeten in Einzelteilen hinterlassen haben. Aufgrund des obligatorischen Ausgabenstatus der Synthworld wird jedoch in diesem n\u00e4chsten Gesch\u00e4ftsjahr mehr von dem Geld der UEE in den Aufbau eines gef\u00e4lschten Planeten flie\u00dfen als in den Wiederaufbau eines Planeten, in dem die Menschen seit \u00fcber 500 Jahren leben.\n\nDiese \u00c4nderung ist keine geheime Verschw\u00f6rung, um die Synthworld zu t\u00f6ten. Es ist ein Appell an diesen Senat, die Ausgaben des ehrgeizigen Projekts mit den vielen anderen Priorit\u00e4ten des Imperiums in Einklang zu bringen. Aber das kann nicht erreicht werden, bis der Haushaltsstatus ge\u00e4ndert wird. Unabh\u00e4ngig davon, was andere sagen, darum geht es in diesem \u00c4nderungsantrag wirklich.\n\nSPEAKER MARSHALL MADRIGAL (U - Borea - Magnus Sys): Irgendwelche anderen Senatoren interessieren sich, um auf AV4-3223 innen zu wiegen, bevor wir \u00fcber w\u00e4hlen, ob man die \u00c4nderung auf Ausschu\u00df verweist?\n\n< Pause > Pause >\n\nSPEAKER MARSHALL MADRIGAL (U - Borea - Magnus Sys): Eine ganze Reihe, wie ich sehe. Lassen Sie uns eine f\u00fcnfmin\u00fctige Pause einlegen, um die Redezeit richtig zu organisieren.\n\nHammerknall >\n\nENDE TRANSKRIPT-AUSZUG","zh_CN":"UEE CONGRESS (396)\n2946-8-23 SET\n\nSession AutoScript\nProofed and Admitted \u2013 Archivist Yates (#57573BDF)\n\n2946-8-23_09:04 \u2013 Session Begins\nSPEAKER MARSHALL MADRIGAL (U \u2013 Borea \u2013 Magnus Sys): Can all Senators please take their seats?\n\n< pause >\n\nSPEAKER MARSHALL MADRIGAL (U \u2013 Borea \u2013 Magnus Sys): Thank you. Now that we have a quorum, I call this session to order. The floor is open to new business.\n\nSENATOR RACHEL LESTER (T \u2013 Vann \u2013 Croshaw Sys): Speaker \u2026\n\nSPEAKER MARSHALL MADRIGAL (U \u2013 Borea \u2013 Magnus Sys): Senator Lester, you have the floor.\n\nSENATOR RACHEL LESTER (T \u2013 Vann \u2013 Croshaw Sys): Thank you, Mister Speaker. Eighteen months ago, the Concerned Citizens Foundation embarked on an ambitious project \u2014 to identify and itemize every government expenditure from the 2944 fiscal year directly related to the Synthworld. A valiant and thankless task only made more difficult by a lack of support from this government.\n\nLast week, the CCF released their report, which I have since forwarded to all members of the Senate. For those who have yet to read it, allow me to summarize. It details negligent management strategies, flagrant approval processes, and a myriad of subsidized objectives with only a passing relevance to the Project at large. The sheer amount of expenditures that could not be verified or even traced is shocking at best, and outright corruption at worst.\n\nFifteen million taxpayer credits down the drain because someone ordered the wrong types of screws. Another six million spent to upgrade functional holoscreens that were less than two years old. These are credits that could have been spent to ship more food to Hyperion or improve security for those living in Nexus.\n\nSimply put, the people of our great Empire are suffering, and we all know that this government lacks the credits needed to deal with every issue. This financial strain is forcing us to make difficult decisions. Do we prioritize system security so our people can safely fly between worlds without worry of an outlaw attack? Do we strengthen the social services so orphans of the Vanduul War get the support they deserve? Do we allocate the necessary funds to build the infrastructure needed to ensure the people of Tram have safe and clean water?\n\nOr do we stick with the status quo, where millions of credits are spent on the Synthworld with little to no oversight?\n\nIt is with this in mind that I have drafted the Sensible Synthworld amendment, designated AV4-3223, aimed at improving the accountability of the Project Archangel Initiative by changing its budgetary designation from \u201cmandatory\u201d to \u201cdiscretionary.\u201d So, rather than mandating that a percentage of the overall budget must be spent on the Synthworld each year, my amendment makes it a discretionary expenditure, empowering the Appropriations Committee to review and approve its budget every year.\n\nThat way, when reports like the one just released from the CCF reveal reckless spending, we can actually do something about it. In these strained economic times, it has never been more important to guarantee that every last credit spent by this government is being put to good use.\n\nThank you. I relinquish the rest of my time.\n\nSPEAKER MARSHALL MADRIGAL (U \u2013 Borea \u2013 Magnus Sys): Thank you, Senator. Archivist, please enter AV4-3223 into the record.\n\nARCHIVIST YATES: Yes, Speaker.\n\nSENATOR OCTAVIA BEATE (U \u2013 Asura \u2013 Ferron Sys): Speaker, if I may \u2026\n\nSPEAKER MARSHALL MADRIGAL (U \u2013 Borea \u2013 Magnus Sys): Senator Beate, the floor is now yours.\n\nSENATOR OCTAVIA BEATE (U \u2013 Asura \u2013 Ferron Sys): On the surface, Senator Lester\u2019s proposal sounds sensible \u2014 an exercise in good government. But make no mistake, it\u2019s a Trojan Horse. Last year, Senator Lester was quoted in the Terra Gazette as saying that the \u201cSynthworld symbolized Human hubris,\u201d and that she would have voted against the project if she had been a member of the Senate when it was first proposed.\n\nSo it\u2019s pretty clear that this amendment isn\u2019t really about providing greater oversight of the Synthworld. It\u2019s about putting the entire project\u2019s budget on the chopping block each year, forcing the hard-working scientists and researchers to have to justify every single expenditure, every single year, rather than focusing on the colossal assignment with which they have been tasked. That way, Senator Lester and others of the anti-Synthworld ilk can slowly bleed it dry, diverting its funding into pet projects until there is nothing left. Their eventual goal is to leave the Senate no other choice than to shut down the ambitious venture altogether.\n\nImperator Corbyn Salehi worried about this exact scenario when he first proposed Project Archangel. He understood that such a monumental project would require an unprecedented level of commitment from this government, and that there would be countless politicians who lacked the fortitude and the long-term vision needed for the Synthworld to succeed \u2014 politicians more worried about their reelection than what was best for their people.\n\nThat\u2019s exactly why Imperator Salehi fought for the Synthworld\u2019s funding to be mandatory. It was the only way to ensure that the project would not become susceptible to the whims of the Senate\u2019s budgetary process each and every year. Such a project can only succeed when everyone involved is confident that the necessary funds will be there.\n\nIn short, the Synthworld\u2019s success rests on two things: the strength of our conviction and the Empire\u2019s commitment to paying for the project. Changing its budgetary status from mandatory to discretionary jeopardizes the second part of that equation, and I fear, will eventually eat away at our resolve to accomplish this remarkable feat of engineering.\n\nThat\u2019s why I\u2019m asking you to reject this amendment. Stand with me in honoring Imperator Salehi\u2019s original, fearless vision for the Synthworld. Thank you.\n\nSPEAKER MARSHALL MADRIGAL (U \u2013 Borea \u2013 Magnus Sys): Senator Lester, any final comments?\n\nSENATOR RACHEL LESTER (T \u2013 Vann \u2013 Croshaw Sys): First, the quote Senate Beate referenced was from a lengthy interview with the Terra Gazette. While I did note that I probably wouldn\u2019t have voted for the Synthworld had I served back then, I went on to explain that there are already plenty of planets and moons where one can fly for hours without encountering any sign of Humanity. With all this unexplored and underdeveloped land still out there, why should we be building a world from scratch unless it\u2019s absolutely necessary?\n\nBut that was an answer to a hypothetical question. Right now, I\u2019m more concerned about the reality we all face. As the old adage goes, \u2018times have changed.\u2019 We\u2019re a very different Empire in a very different position than where we were in 2872. Back then, conflict with the Vanduul had settled back into sporadic raids, far from the active military campaign that we\u2019re currently engaged in. The UEE had recently approved a new lend-lease program with the Xi\u2019An, opening up opportunities for corporate ventures between our two great civilizations. It was a good time.\n\nI\u2019m sure if some of those Senators were here today, they\u2019d reconsider their vote. They\u2019d see that it had been almost a year since the attacks on Aremis left much of the planet in pieces. Yet, because of the Synthworld\u2019s mandatory spending status, more of the UEE\u2019s money in this next fiscal year will go towards building a fake planet than rebuilding one where Humans have lived for over 500 years.\n\nThis amendment is not some secret plot to kill the Synthworld. It\u2019s an appeal to this Senate to bring the ambitious project\u2019s spending in line with the Empire\u2019s many other priorities. But that can\u2019t be accomplished until its budgetary status is changed. Regardless of what anyone else says, this is truly what this amendment is all about.\n\nSPEAKER MARSHALL MADRIGAL (U \u2013 Borea \u2013 Magnus Sys): Any other Senators care to weigh in on AV4-3223 before we vote on whether to refer the amendment to committee?\n\n< pause >\n\nSPEAKER MARSHALL MADRIGAL (U \u2013 Borea \u2013 Magnus Sys): Quite a few, I see. Let\u2019s take a five-minute recess to properly organize the speaking order.\n\n< gavel bang >\n\nEND TRANSCRIPT EXCERPT"},"links_count":0,"comment_count":125,"created_at":"2016-08-24T00:00:00+00:00","created_at_human":"9 years ago"},"meta":{"processed_at":"2026-05-07 23:11:28","valid_relations":["images","links"],"prev_id":15475,"next_id":15477}}