DCD Commemorates 250 Years The Democratic Capitalist Delegation, Telamon's largest party, held a large gathering of 60,000 at their headquarters in Telapolis this week to celebrate the party's 250th consecutive year in Parliament. Every major party dignitary was in attendance, including President Herman Gustav. Also present at the DCD's anniversary celebration were notable national figures, including Jewish Defense League chairman Barry Cohen and newly installed Foreign Affairs minister Martin Lebowitz.
Prime Minister Hershey served as the keynote speaker for the event, offering the following comments: "The DCD has faithfully served Telamon for 250 consecutive years now, the past 50 of which we have served as the largest party and the leader of the government. This kind of consistency is unmatched by any party in our country's history, and is made possible only by the undying support of the people of Telamon, for whom we have fought to empower from our first day in Parliament. We can only dream that our next 250 years will bring as much positive change to Telamon as the first 250."
The DCD's anniversary parade marches down Main St. in downtown TelapolisPresident Gustav also gave a short speech, but gave a greater national focus in his words. "For 250 years now, we have fought alongside many good parties to make Telamon a better place for the next generation. For 250 years, we have fought against many tyrannical parties who have attempted many different ways to manipulate power. I think we are all satisfied to see that after 250 years of dedicated fighting, the nation has been left in the hands of four very capable and ethical parties."
In addition to the speakers, the DCD held a parade and festivities for the rest of the night. The commemoratory celebration came as a pleasant distraction from the recent political turbulence experienced by the government. In an interview following his keynote remarks, Chairman Hershey had very little to say about the recent cabinet shakeup. "I would prefer not to talk about [the new cabinet]," he said. "President Gustav has already presented the facts-- he felt that continued positive relations with the Lodamese Union were contingent on a change in the foreign affairs department, so he did what he had to in order to make the change," he added.
With the controversial cabinet change passed into effect, it is now highly anticipated that the DCD may be facing problems with the RRP at home for years to come. "I'm not trying to take stabs at anyone or start a partisan war in Parliament, I just tried to do what I thought was in the best interest of our country," President Gustav commented in an interview after the rally. "It is understandable that Vojislav Krkljus and the Rightful Radical Party are upset, but I have no regrets about my decision. They were offered new cabinet positions of equal merit and refused to accept them. They left me no choice."
The TBC was also able to pull aside newly installed Foreign Affairs minister Martin Lebowitz for a short interview after the rally. "I have nothing but the utmost respect for my predecessor. Mr. Krkljus has worked his entire life for Telamon. I think that the situation Telamon was put in was very difficult for everyone, especially President Gustav. We were caught between a rock and a hard place. When President Gustav approached me and asked if I would work toward resolving the conflict with the Lodamese Union, I felt obligated to help," he commented. After being asked about the necessity of ejecting the RRP from the government, he added, "Actually President Gustav initially did not kick the Rightful Radical Party out of the Cabinet. He proposed a new cabinet that gave the RRP the Defense Ministry among other cabinet positions. The RRP decided to not vote for that cabinet. It was my understanding that the RRP would not vote for any cabinet that did not give itself the Foreign Ministry. The point of the new cabinet was remove Mr. Krkljus from the Foreign Ministry. The only clear course of action was for President Gustav to take the entire RRP out of the Cabinet."
The RRP could not be reached for comment on this story.