Schliefenism

Schliefenism is an ideology that centers around a certain form of rule in government. In a practical sense, Schliefenism describes the nature of the state of the Prussian Empire as well as Hungary. In the Schliefenist state, government is distributed between two branches with the Executive Branch holding near-absolute power over the operation of the nation. In terms of the political compass, Schliefenism is considered a centrist-authoritarian ideology.

Etymology
The name "Schliefenism" comes from the man who intellectually gave birth to the ideology, former Tenarran Minister of Justice and current Chief of General Staff of the Prussian Empire, Alfred von Schliefen. The term is widely used among Political Scientists in the dominion and around the world, and has also been endorsed by the Dominion's government. Hungary, which is under a form of Schliefenism, refers to the ideology as "Military-Monarchism."

History
Schliefenism was created as a doctrine of government during the rule of the King of Tenarra Wilhelm VI by then Minister of Justice Alfred von Schliefen. In 1992, von Schliefen wrote a hugely popular book called "On Potentates and Prosperity," detailing the steps necessary to establish a working dictatorship that would be capable of greatly influencing the prosperity of the nation. He followed that with a book in 1995 called "On the Path to Change," which described what could be done to use the democratic institutions of Tenarra to achieve the goals he set out in his previous book. Originally, Schliefenism, which he had branded then as "Potentatism," was not designed for any other nation besides Tenarra.

The ideology of Schliefenism was finally put into practical form in 2009, when Alfred von Schliefen's Imperialist Faction won the Tenarran Civil War and established a new state based on the principles in his book. It has since then spread to Hungary, which became a client state of the dominion since the end of the Slovenian Conflict.

Principles and Application
Schliefenism is an ideology based on the idea that the government is capable of making all decisions necessary to insure the survival and prosperity of a society, without interference and instability caused by citizens through democratic process. Countries like the collapsed, incapable of making the decisions necessary to prevent such from happening. Von Schliefen, observing the slow decline of the United States, decided that a form of stronger leadership would be necessary to defeat any attempts by civilians to prevent (or even bring though) change that may help (or harm) the nation. However, he also saw the problem of dissent being difficult to overcome in such a government. As such, he took what he saw as the all-powerful Executive and siphoned off a small portion of that power to the Legislative Branch, which would give the citizens of the country some way in which they could play a part in politics and not feel as if the government is beyond any of their control—though the Executive has essentially full control over the Legislative in the Schliefenist state. It should be noted, however, that while the government of a Schliefenist state must not find itself bound by the citizenry, it should be respectful of their desires and implement wanted change so long as it will not harm the direction of the nation.

Knowing the importance of maintaining a face of populism, von Schliefen split the Executive into two, creating the Monarchy; a single ceremonial head of state who would serve as a symbol for the civilian population and would have some control over the proceedings of government as well as the appointment of the Chief of General Staff. The other branch of the Executive would be the General Staff, led by the Chief of General Staff who would serve as the head of government for the nation and would hold ultimate power over government and military. The General Staff is also tied directly to the military. Splitting itself further, power is also given to the Chancellor and the Emergency Procedure Organization. Of course, by von Schliefen's desire for more centralized control, the Chief of General Staff essentially serves as the center of the nation and its governance. As the motto for the Prussian Empire goes, the government serves "Indivisibly and Inseparably."

Power of the Executive
The Executive is distributed in a top-down manner, with the Chief of General Staff at the top, the Chancellor below, the Emergency procedure directly attached to the Chancellor, the Council of Ministers below them, the Imperial Governors of the States below them, and finally the bureaucracy spread beneath the Governors. This ensures that while the Executive has a center power-base, it is able to operate efficiently and without the need to consult the central leader with every decision that must be made. Each level of government may override any of those below.

Power of the Legislative
The Legislative is a generally flat branch of government. At the top is the Vice-Chancellor, who serves as the Executive's representative in legislative decision-making, and below them lies the actual Imperial Senate, the legislative body of the Empire. The Senate is made up of 100 members, representing the populations of each state with constituencies distributed fairly among the states. The Legislative Branch is fairly lackluster, usually only being able to make minor decisions regarding certain regulations and laws without interference by the Executive.

Schliefenism and Political Parties
Schliefenism is generally considered to be forgiving of other ideologies, but in its manifesto it is considered to be against central Schliefenist ideology to allow any political parties other than those which are directly endorsed and controlled by the Executive. In the Prussian Empire, for example, the only political party that is allowed in the Senate is the Monarchist Faction, of which all members of the top Executive are members and which is a direct endorser of the Schliefenist state. Those not running with the MF there must run as independents instead.

Schliefenism in Other Nations
Schliefenism is unique to the Prussian Empire and Hungary, being the only two countries where there is an actual Schliefenist regime in power. However, there are many nations where Schliefenism has a strong base and operate their own political parties in different democratic nations. While they are affiliated to Schliefenism, and maintain contact with the Dominion's government, none of the organizations receive funding from the Prussian government or its affiliates.

Symbols of Schliefenism
Schliefenism, being created by a Tenarran man and an advocate of the German Empire of the 19 Century, uses a variety of symbols of German imperial power and government. The main symbol is the Prussian Eagle, which is often coupled with the three main colors of Schliefenism; white, blue, and black.