The Senate (RP)

The Groupy McGroupface Capitol Building

The Senate was a roleplay that took place between August 19th, 2017 and October 1st, 2017. The roleplay revolved around the Frank Underwood and the Democratic Party's quest to pass GroupWorks, a bill that would create new jobs in the group chat at the cost of cuts to unemployment and elderly benefits. The roleplay primarily took place in The Groupy McGroupface Senate. It was the 14th roleplay the group chat and its members did.

## Plot

The roleplay opens as the GroupWorks bill passes the House of Representatives. Frank Underwood announces that the bill will be moving to the Senate in an address to the nation. The Democrats held a clear majority in the Senate. However, they needed 13 votes to pass the bill, and the Democrats only had 8 Senators. The Republicans, led by Minority Leader Hector Mendoza, Minority Whip Evan McMullin, and Senator Alexander Hamilton went around the Senate to recruit neutral or undecided Senators from various parties to vote against the bill.

While Republicans were asking other Senators to vote against the bill, Senators C. Auguste Dupin and Luke Atmy asked the party for money. If they gave the money to them, the Baker Street Party would agree to vote against GroupWorks. However, after the Baker Street Party asked for this, Alexander Hamilton blasted them and the Republicans walked away. After the incident, Hamilton and Mendoza both wrote statements regarding the matter. The media took wind of the incident, and the Baker Street Party was plunged into chaos. Leader of the Baker Street Party, Sherlock Holmes, then announced an investigation into the matter along with Greg Lestrade

On an episode of Senator Alex Twickenham's show, Alex's Monthly Round-Up, Holmes hinted that his investigation had led to findings that involved several prominent conservative politicians, including Donald Trump of Penguin Club. Holmes later held a press conference on his investigation. He revealed that Senators Mitt Romney and Alexander Hamilton had ties to El Banco De Mexico. This led to a stir among the Republican Party. Hector Mendoza held a counter press conference soon after.

A joint investigation was launched by the Groupy McGroupface and UKGC governments, led by Attorney General Richard M. Daley and Minister of Justice Hart Vortex. Hearings were held for the Dupin and Atmy cases, chaired by Daley, Vortex, Senator Hillary Clinton, and Mendoza. Dupin and Atmey's case was soon recommended to the Groupy McGroupface Supreme Court, in which they were both found guilty. However, a mustachioed Dupin was later seen in Mexichat, hinting at a possible escape from federal charges.

Later, arguments regarding the authenticity of Holmes and Lestrade's investigation on Hamilton and Romney's ties to Mexichat were heard. Eventually, the committee found out that Holmes and Lestrade found bank notes that were of doppelgängers of Hamilton and Romney, and not actually them. The two Senators promptly threatened to sue for defamation. However, Holmes later agreed to apologize in a written letter published in The Randst Magazine. Therefore, a lawsuit was never opened.

After the cases were decided, President Underwood called a meeting in the White House. The Senators invited included Batte S. Casey, Hyatt A. Kite, Zoltan Istvan, Larry the Cat, Garfield, David Cameron, and Vince Cable. The Democratic Leadership included Frank Underwood, Claire Underwood, Hillary Clinton, Damon Gant, Tim Kaine, Warren Buffett, David Axelrod, Rahm Emanuel, and a disguised Mycroft Holmes. Underwood catered to Istvan by promising that GroupWorks would lead to an increase in STEM-related jobs within the group chat. Cameron was already leaning towards voting in favor of the GroupWorks, though Cable wasn't. After being insulted by Underwood, Cable left the meeting and wasn't heard from again.

Eventually, Warren Buffett offered Larry the Cat, Garfield, Batte S. Casey, and Hyatt A. Kite a dinner at The Lasagna Factory™. All of them then decided to vote for the bill.

After the Democrats had seemingly clinched the amount of votes needed, the debate on GroupWorks began in The Senate. Opening statements were made by multiple Senators in from nearly all parties. Then, an open debate began. The debate got tense quickly, and eventually Larry the Cat and Hector Mendoza were ejected from the chamber. Hours after, President Underwood visited Vice President Kaine at his residence at One Observatory Circle. The visit came in the early hours of September 23rd. In the meeting, Underwood referenced William Shakespeare's *Julius Caesar* and urged Kaine to schedule the vote before dawn. Kaine reluctantly agreed, and the vote happened before the sun rose. Various Senators were notably absent for the roll call, including Hector Mendoza, Vince Cable, Pro Tempore Johnson and Ron Paul. The final tally is as follows:

**Ayes:**

**Hillary Clinton (D)**

**Damon Gant (D)**

**Ed Miliband (D)**

**Donald Blythe (D)**

**Bob Birch (D)**

**Cory Booker (D)**

**David Cameron (R)**

**Johnny Appleseed (G)**

**Batte S. Casey (L)**

**Hyatt A. Kite (L)**

**Alex Twickenham (I)**

**Zoltan Istvan (I)**

**Garfield (C)**

**Nays:**

**Alexander Hamilton (R)**

**Evan McMullin (R)**

**Mitt Romney (R)**

**Boris Johnson (R)**

**Larry the Cat (C)**

**Abstain:**

**Hector Mendoza (R)**

**Ron Paul (R)**

**Vince Cable (D)**

**Pro Tempore Johnson (D)**

Soon after the vote, the Mittenfestation occurred, causing the news to lose some focus on the passing of the bill. The Republicans saw this as a good thing, and quickly scheduled a meeting regarding the future of the party. In this meeting, Evan McMullin announced that he was considering a Presidential run in the upcoming election. All other Republicans agreed to back him except for David Cameron. Later in the meeting, multiple Republicans, including Boris Johnson and Alexander Hamilton, urged Mendoza to step down. Eventually, the Republicans, with the exception of David Cameron, agreed that it was time for Mendoza to step down. Later that day, Mendoza gave his position up to Alexander Hamilton.

Underwood eventually signed GroupWorks into law on September 30th. Soon after the signing, stock markets reportedly surged and unemployment rates gradually began to fall.

The next day, Warren Buffett, Damon Gant, Batte S. Casey, Hyatt A. Kite, Larry the Cat, and Garfield met at The Lasagna Factory™ in return for their decision at the previous White House meeting. At this dinner, "K. Octoberous Dove" was the waiter that served the group. Al Gore sat at a nearby table and Gordon Ramsey was present for a review of the establishment.

After being served lasagna and grass, the group ate their food. However, Ramsey was dissatisfied with the food, and went into the kitchen himself. "K. Octoberous Dove" then fled to Mexichat, while Gore pointed Ramsey into the direction of Penguin Club. This led to a mysterious shooting at the border.

Casey later began to choke, and Larry kicked him so hard that he went through a wall. This revealed Soseki Natsume in the neighboring room.

Eventually, they gang split up, though only after Casey crashed his unicycle into the pool in which Gant was about to swim. After the dinner, Al Gore went back to the Senate Gallery, where he spent most of his time during the GroupWorks process. Gore sees Mendoza's Senate desk being cleared. After the desk is cleared, President Underwood enters the chamber. He taps the empty desk twice with his class ring, and the lights in the chamber go dark.

## Cast and Crew

**Buttons:**

* **Tim Kaine**
* **Hillary Clinton**
* **Vince Cable**
* **David Cameron**
* **Alexander Hamilton**
* **Boris Johnson**
* **Evan McMullin**
* **Mitt Romney**
* **Alex Twickenham**
* **Zoltan Istvan**
* **Claire Underwood**
* **Doug Stamper**

**Debu:**

* **Pro Tempore Johnson (Mentioned, did not appear)**

**GrandPa:**

* **Frank Underwood**
* **Bob Birch**
* **Donald Blythe**
* **Cory Booker**
* **Hector Mendoza**
* **Ron Paul**
* **Johnny Appleseed**
* **Batte S. Casey**
* **Hyatt A. Kite**
* **C. Auguste Dupin/K. Octoberous Dove**
* **Garfield**
* **Warren Buffett**
* **David Axelrod**
* **Al Gore**
* **Stoh'k Ihmage**
* **Gordon Ramsey**

**Red:**

* **Damon Gant**
* **Luke Atmy**
* **Larry the Cat**
* **Sherlock Holmes**
* **Greg Lestrade**
* **Mycroft Holmes**
* **Rahm Emanuel**
* **Soseki Natsume**
* **Stoh'k Ihmage**
* **Hugo S. Catman**

## Behind The Scenes

The original idea for a roleplay based around the Groupy McGroupface Senate had been thought of as early as March of 2017, sometime before the Mars Operation began. It had been put on the back burner for several months, but the idea was revived in July 2017. GrandPa began to plan the RP shortly after The Adventure of the Empty House. After a RP break ended in mid-August of 2017, the Senate RP officially began.

## Notes, Easter Eggs, and References

* The Lasagna Factory™ was thought of on the spot by GrandPa. It was a play on "The Cheescake Factory," a real life restaurant chain.
* Al Gore and a mustachioed Jeremy Corbyn sit in the Senate Gallery at times during the RP. At one point, Gore and Corbyn say that they were once Presidents of the Senate. This is a reference to Al Gore's U.S. Vice Presidency under the Clinton Administration and Corbyn's Groupy McGroupface Vice Presidency.
* In The Lasagna Factory™ scene towards the end of the roleplay, Hyatt A. Kite and Batte S. Casey call Damon Gant the "Sun God" or "Sun King." This is a reference towards The Beatles song, "Sun King," which appears on the album *Abbey Road.*
* In the same scene, Batte speaks in different languages after he is kicked through the wall. The terms, "Quando paramucho mi amore de felice carazón, Mundo paparazzi mi amore chica ferdi para sol, Questo obrigado tanto mucho que canite carousel." and "Sont les mots qui vont tres bien ensemble, Tres bien ensemble." are both lyrics from "Sun King" and another Beatles song, "Michelle"
* At the end of the roleplay, Underwood taps his class ring on Mendoza's desk twice. This is a reference *House of Cards (Netflix)*. When asked why Underwood taps his ring twice everytime he leaves a table, he responds, "*Something my father taught me. It's meant to harden your knuckles so you don't break them if you get into a fight. It also has the added benefit of knocking on wood. My father believed that success is a mixture of preparation and luck. Tapping the table kills both birds with one stone.*"
* Johnny Appleseed repeatedly says that Al Gore promised to give his district new sources of renewable energy. This is a reference to the fact that Al Gore was appointed Secretary of the Interior in the Underwood Administration and his extensive history of being an environmentalist.
* Gordon Ramsey was seen reviewing The Lasagna Factory™ towards the end of the roleplay. After he's finished, he goes into the kitchen to talk to the chef. This is a reference towards Gordon Ramsey's usual behavior on his show "Kitchen Nightmares"
* Underwood talks about the assassination of Julius Caesar when at the Vice Presidential Residence. Caesar was assassinated by a number of Senators in 44 B.C. after many believed he was going to overthrow the Senate in favor of tyranny.
* Underwood asks Kaine to hold the vote on GroupWorks in the middle of the night. This is similar to the strategy used by the United States Republicans in their attempt to repeal Obamacare in July of 2017.
* Hugo S. Catman cameos in the gallery, eating popcorn with Al Gore while watching the Holmesgate trial of Hamilton and Romney.
* Later, he wears a wig and robes, rather like a barrister in an English courtroom, which is reference to the fact that the UKGC is a parody of the United Kingdom.
* Larry The Cat was thrown out of the senate after insulting Hillary Clinton with reference to The Lewinsky scandal, a major scandal that almost ended her husband Bill's presidency.

## Links and References

1. ↑ **Mendoza:** Al Gore was your husband's vice president. He will eat up any lies he throws at him.

**Larry:** That's not all he was eating.