Saturday, December 4, 2010

Chapter 31

31
THE WHITE HOUSE

President Haskill's administration had been a successful one. He had enjoyed relatively high approval ratings and he had been blessed with four uneventful years of good economic growth and manageable foreign relations. He had initiated the mandatory hostilities with a toothless foes in Algeria and Libya to the day on the schedule of his reelection. He had even responded to this 'provoked' retaliation under the banner of patriotism and righteousness. The hem of that flag could only be sewn by a Republican Commander in Chief. His reelection committee had gone to great pains in their explanation that his undistinguished military service had been in peace time. The vast American electorate could understand his lack of combat experience in this context if it were repeated often enough.

Now a great wild fire of public unrest was raging across the heartland. It seemed that something had gotten into the water to make people simply take to the streets. When the interests of the average man were threatened by a tax bill or something environmental, something grave enough, they began to appear in the streets with signs and megaphones. If there were no relief to their concern, these might be exchanged for clubs and guns, but this process took weeks. It was a watershed, but it came with a warning.

Today, the common man and woman in America weren't worried about their money or their clean air. They were worried about their immortal souls. The United States was probably the most religious nation in the world. The roots of Christianity ran from the founding fathers right up into the daydreams of commuters on a subway. Sometimes it didn't show much.

This was not a crisis about a church. These were people desperate to do something to keep themselves from burning in hell.

Tom Hanneman entered the Oval Office without announcement. "Sorry I couldn't get here any sooner. Something, ah, came up."

"Tom, I just got off the phone with FBI. Jake has been turning over every rock he can find and coming up with next to nothing. These doesn't seem to be any kind of organized conspiracy where we can lay this thing. I don't like the election impact from actual grass roots conflict over this Guy in Brazil. I don't get it anyway. We haven't had anything like this since Vietnam, and at least that had a conspiracy. You were right when you said this thing was going to be like the Tomb." the President continued to speak as he paced back and forth in front of his desk. President Haskill bore the curse of all pragmatists. Sincerity was incomprehensible to him.

"Mr. President, if the administration winds up on the wrong side of this thing, the Party won't be able to elect a dog catcher by November. Congress is already beginning to climb the walls, you know, with all those polls." Hanneman stood still and spoke formally in hopes of calming the Chief Executive. It didn't work. President Robert H. Haskill was not famous for his nerve. "Every carpet bagging one of them is trying to figure out who is carrying the majority in his District. Some of them are switching from Neo-Apostolic to Anti-Christ once a week. Republican or Democrat means nothing. Party control is in shambles!"

Tom Hannemen continued, "One thing I think we must avoid is the appearance of being on either side. Yes, we have to calm down this civil unrest, and after that, keep it calmed down, but there must not be even a hint that we are lined up on one side or the other."

President Haskill finally sat down on the front edge of his desk. "Tom, I have to wink pretty damned hard to call this civil unrest. What happened in Detroit was not civil unrest, it was a damned riot. Atlanta and New Orleans were the same damned thing, too! These people don't want to protest and march and demonstrate. They want to fight. For Christ's sake, Tom, old men -- even old women scuffling in the street like a bunch of damned idealists or something."

"The worst of it is that they don't want anything, you know, there is nothing we can give them to quiet all of this down." Hannemen continued. The advisor had exactly one tone of voice. Russian missiles could be descending on the White House and he would still represent the same calm voice of sly cynicism. "Even if the government were to take sides, what would it mean? Hell, I don't even know how we could do it. The President could fall on one side or the other, but it wouldn't mean anything to them, just one more guy scuffling in the street. At least they don't seem to be looting televisions. They're just mad, that's all, just mad."

The President's advisor took a clean sheet of White House letterhead from the President's desk. Taking a pen from his shirt, he wrote the following so the man seated at the desk could read it. "I want you to authorize a full covert action aimed at the rioting here and at the situation in Brazil. Just authorize it, and then wait. If I need your help with anything, I'll ask. Otherwise you're not to know any details. You have to maintain deniability. If it turns out that we have to bomb, I can find someone to take the hit." Hanneman folded the paper and placed it in his coat pocket.

President Haskill looked at him for a moment. Then he nodded.

Tom Hanneman looked back as he walked out. "Now, go win the election."