Using mechanics from other games

Mechanics aren't copyright-able. Talent borrows genius steals. If your game is more approachable to new players it may even look like Twilight Imperium is copying you.

What mechanic were you going to use before that one?

Yeah it's dubiously attributed, TS Eliot I think.

I believe there is a better mechanic for your game.

In politics, initiative isn't balances and based on calculated weighted decisions, It's based on randomly doing crap that other people will need to react to.

I'm beginning to make some very broad assumptions about your game now, but I imagine a turn based game around News cycles (If I'm way off I'll just go and design my own game instead)

To get the first move in the next news cycle, you have to be satisfied enough with your standing to do something newsworthy, when you decide it's time for a new cycle you play a card to say something insensitive that polls well nonetheless, or do a publicity stunt, or get into a sex scandal.

For the rest of that cycle all the other players strategy will be dictated by your actions until somebody does something more newsworthy

Using someone else's mechanic is the ultimate complement. As long as you don't copy the whole game, you're not trampling on anyone's creative domain. Use bits and pieces from all over the place that work well, because they're proven and fun.

Here's another thing: Sometimes, I come up with an idea for a game or a mechanic and I think "Hey, this is original! This is fun! Why has nobody not done this before?" And then I go out and look for games that have that mechanic and try them out to see if they're fun. Most of the time, when I think of an idea, I eventually find that it's already been done before.

the vast majority of games I know of, have a mechanic that is similar to one degree or another to at least one or two other games I can think of. its like a book or a movie. If you think hard enouf there are other books or movies, that share the basic plot. Just with details changed.