The Fiery Trial

by Adam Yoshida

  "Mr. Vice President, I think that we can afford to defer such considerations until we have a clearer picture as to what is going on here and what happened today. Passions are running very hot in this country and, to be sure, there have been some people who have said intemperate things. Regrettable ones, even. But trying to exploit this situation for purely political reasons would serve to inflame those passions, rather than cool them."

  "Well," said Bryan, "you are the head of the Justice Department."

  "Mr. Vice President?" the Secretary of the Interior raised his hand.

  "Yes, Mr. Secretary?" said Bryan.

  "Mr. Vice President, it's been nearly three hours since the incident. He's still in surgery and we haven't had a positive update on him since he went in. We don't know what will happen or when – or even if – he will be fit to resume his duties."

  "Yes, we know this," said the Vice President.

  "Yes, sir," said the Secretary, "but, in light of these events, I think that it would be prudent if we were to invoke Section 4 of the Twenty-Fifth Amendment at this point in time."

  "As I recall, Mr. Secretary," said Bryan, "such an invocation would require the consent of both a majority of the Cabinet and of the Vice President."

  "That's correct," said the Secretary.

  "My concern," said the Vice President, "is that such an act might be taken by the public as showing a lack of confidence in the recovery of the President. Indeed, even as a sign that we have knowledge of these events that has been withheld from them."

  "I believe," said the Secretary, a former Governor of Nevada, "that it will be necessary for there to be a strong hand in the White House to guide the investigation and the response to this act. After all, what's happened today was not – however you want to spin it – an attack upon a single man, but an attack upon our government itself. In order for such strong measures to take place, there needs to be someone fully in charge, with clear lines of command."

  "If the rest of you believe that this is a necessary measure," said the Vice President, "I won't stand in the way."

  Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, DC

  "How soon can we come out swinging?" asked Representative Michael Nelson of Colorado asked.

  "I don't know," said Terrance Rickover.

  "We've got people on every single broadcast network going off about how the right – you included, Terrance – are supposedly responsible for what happened here today. We have to fight back," said Nelson.

  "We don't even know the condition of the President," said Rickover. "If anything, they're trying to bait us into saying something less-than-prudent so that they can jump all over us."

  "I don't think that really matters," said Nelson quietly.

  "I think," he added, "that they're coming for us. There's no way that all of this that we're seeing on television just happened. These people didn't all just have their personal copies of the U.S. Code fall open to the same section in their laps on the ride over to the television studio. Someone is driving this."

  The Oval Office, The White House

  "Thanks for staying behind, Madam Attorney General," said Acting President Kevin Bryan as the rest of the Cabinet filed out of the White House.

  "Of course, Mr. Vice... Mr. President," said Hassan.

  "I am afraid," said the Acting President, "that I am going to have to ask for your resignation and that of your deputy. I want you to understand that there is nothing personal in this. Simply put, it is clear to me that serious policy differences exist between us and we do not have the time to iron those out."

  "That is your right, Mr. President," said Hassan, "but I should warn you that I feel that such an action would look precipitate, both to the public and to internal stakeholders within Justice."

  "Yes," said Bryan softly, "thank you for that. I am aware of that. But – if I may be so plain – I don't give a fuck."

  The phone on the Resolute desk buzzed.

  "Mr. Vice President?" said the President's private secretary, "Mr. Anderson is here for you."

  "Let him in," said Bryan, making a mental not that that would be the last time that the secretary would fail to address him correctly.

  "I'm sorry Mr. President," said the dark-skinned man who walked through the door.

  "Not a problem, Jamal," the Acting President said to his Chief of Staff, "we couldn't all take the helicopter. Do you have it?"

  "Yes," said Anderson, "we put it together on the car ride back from Andrews."

  Bryan took the document from the hands of his Chief of Staff and, theatrically putting on his reading glasses, began to review it.

  "Basically, Madam Attorney General, it says that you – and your deputy – regret that you were not able to address the illegal climate of hatred that has led us to this tragic day and that, in light of this, you are offering your resignation to me. I have another statement being drafted right now where I thank you for your brilliant service to this nation."

  He took the document and set it down on the desk in front of her.

  "You can take a few minutes to read it. But not too long – I'm going to be going on the air in fifteen minutes."

  Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, DC

  William Townshend was sweating uncomfortably as he was hustled past Capitol security by one of the Majority Leader's senior aides. The pollster and former Hill staffer had been out of government service for nearly a decade – comfortably ensconced as a policy analyst over at the Heritage Foundation. Still, even out of the game, he knew that when the second-ranking Republican in the House of Representatives tells you to sprint to his office – traffic being such an unworkable mess as to make sending a car a non-viable option – there had to be a damned good reason for it.

  "Bill!" boomed Rickover, stepping towards him and extending his hand. The Majority Leader gave the soaked pollster an awkward up and down look before turning to another aide and saying, "can someone get him something to drink?"

  Someone fetched a water bottle and Townshend tentatively took a seat on a couch.

  "Bill," said Rickover, "we called you over here because we need to get a better gauge on how this is playing with the whole of the country. The whispers that we're getting out of the White House are dark... Pitch fucking black, Bill. We've already seen this Administration attempt to twist their way around the Constitution... Actually, since the impeachment failed I guess that we've seen them do it. Now we're hearing that they're planning on using this as a springboard to launch legal attacks against conservatives. That's what we're seeing all over the internet and no one is denying it. What we need to figure out is how strongly we can respond, in a rhetorical sense, without getting pilloried."

  The pollster steadied his glasses.

  "The first thing that you have to understand, Congressman," he began, "is how hardened the positions of both sides are in this country. On one side you have a coalition between a group of people, on one side, who believe that they are a divinely-ordained ruling class and, on the other, their clients. Their positions are ideological, but they run deeper than that. Basically you have the very rich, the idle poor, and those whose livelihoods depend upon servicing both groups. They can form a transitory majority by pulling in all of these other people with these side issues – abortion and what have you. What they share in common is that, for the most part, they don't really produce anything of value – but they believe that they have the right to be maintained in their accustomed standard of living anyways. Think of them as a large coalition of alimony-collecting former wives."

  "That's interesting," said Rickover, "but it doesn't really answer my question."

  Townshend waved his hands into the air.

  "I'm getting to it, I'm getting to it," he said.

  "There's another large segment in this country – perhaps 40% or so – of the people who are violently opposed to this system. They believe that they are cut out from making significant decisions about the governance of the country by the elites, tha
t their culture is being transformed against their will, and that they are being compelled, like feudal serfs, to labor in support of a system that is fundamentally stacked against them in every possible way."

  "Now, there are swing voters. People motivated by side issues. People who fall into one or another of the two broad camps when, from a demographic or economic point of view, they should really be in the other. But, broadly speaking, we have those two camps and there isn't much movement or crossover between them. Given this, elections and other political events become less a question of persuasion and more of mobilization.

  "What I'm saying, Congressmen, is simple: come out swinging. Be respectful of the President, of course, but you can't let them put you on the defensive. If they are determined to exploit this tragedy – and, having spent the day reading Twitter and the blogs, I fully believe that they are – you need to punch back immediately. Now, I can put in a poll into the field if you want to find a way to support that advice with numbers, but I just don't think that there's the time. Hit back as soon as they hit you."

  The Roosevelt Room, The White House

  "My fellow Americans," the Acting President began his address to the nation, "this is a tragic day. Some four hours ago, just after 2PM Eastern Standard Time, a bomb was detonated as the President and his aides exited a Washington, DC hotel ballroom. President Henry Warren was severely injured. Deputy White House Chief of Staff Alexis Jensen was killed. Four bystanders were wounded."

  "At this time, the President has been placed in a medically-induced coma. His condition remains very serious. Likewise, one of the bystanders – Ms. Jeri Corwin of Flint, Michigan – is in grave condition and not expected to live through the night."

  "Given the uncertainty that surrounds the condition of President Warren, just over an hour ago the Cabinet – with my concurrence – invoked Section 4 of the 25th Amendment to the Constitution, making me the Acting President of this nation until such a time as the President recovers and is able to resume his duties.

  "I ask that all Americans – and indeed all people of goodwill from anywhere on the Earth – to join me in hoping for the swift recovery of President Warren and all of those who were injured today as well as doing whatever we can to provide comfort to the loved ones and to honor the memory of those who were lost today or will be lost as a result of this terrible crime in the future.

  "That is the what of today. Tonight, I want to talk to you a little about the why.

  "You will have already seen the confession of the murderer and would-be assassin, Mark Varro. I directed it be released to the public in as expeditious a fashion as possible because I believe that you, the American people, have a right to know why this terrible crime occurred.

  "There is a cancer in America that we need to confront directly. There are elements in this country who fuel hatred for their own selfish ends. By such actions, these individuals can and have driven unbalanced individuals to rash and evil actions. The time has come that we hold accountable not only the direct perpetrators of these acts, but the indirect ones as well.

  "How can it be that, on a daily basis, a torrent of hatred is spilled out across the airwaves and the internet, and it does not have an effect upon some people? How can it be that those who spill out such hate – who use awful and emotive words like 'tyrant', 'criminal', or 'dictator' to describe our public officials – are allowed to persist in such actions?

  "There is a line between free speech and incitement to murder.

  "I have directed the acting Attorney General to begin an immediate and comprehensive investigation not only into those who committed this act, but also those who incited and encouraged it..."

  U.S. House of Representatives

  The new Congressman from California's 20th District brought down his gavel and declared the House in session.

  "The gentleman from Virginia is recognized," declared the presiding officer.

  "Mr. Speaker," said Terrance Rickover, "let us begin by saying a prayer for the President and everyone else who was killed or injured – or who has otherwise been effected by – today's brutal crime."

  The Majority Leader bowed his head, joined by every Republican member of the House who had been crowded into the chamber for the Congressman's speech. Direct addresses to the camera by non-Presidential figures, Rickover had always believed, lacked a certain gravity.

  "Almighty God, we beseech thee to receive the souls of those who have been lost, to heal the afflicted, and to unite our injured and divided nation. Amen."

  "Amen," repeated a chorus of other Congressmen.

  "Mr. Speaker, we have all heard the words of the Vice President this evening. I must say – and I will say – that I fully understand the strain that the Vice President is operating under. This has been one of the most difficult days in the history of the United States. I appreciate that he is, as we all are, doing his best insofar as his conscience permits.

  "Normally, one would begin an address such as this by disclaiming any political purpose. 'Now is not the time for politics,' one would say. Or some words to that effect. That is the old tradition, at any rate. I hope I may be pardoned, in light of the circumstances, if I do not make such a declaration. What I will say now is political. I wish that it didn't have to be, but I feel that it must be so after the performance this evening by the Vice President which, all things considered, must be ranked as among the most disgraceful acts of shameless political gamesmanship in the history of the republic."

  The assembled Republican members of the House angrily applauded Rickover's words, leading the House Majority Leader to raise his hands and ask for silence.

  "To begin with, conflating ordinary political opposition with the act of a madman is fundamentally wrong. Now we hear that the Vice President – I am sorry, the 'Acting President' now has an 'acting Attorney General' and they are going to 'investigate' those of us who allegedly 'incited' this act by opposing the actions of this Administration. Never have I seen a more disgraceful act of opportunism by the holder of a public office – let alone by the temporary steward of the most distinguished office in the land.

  "There is a very deep divide in this country. I will not deny that. What I will say is this: I, and many of the others whom the Vice President has gone so far as to accuse of being complicit in murder by virtue of our views alone, have never had any objective in public life but to serve the interests of the people. I believe – as I believe that most of you here tonight believe – that the highest and best purpose of this government and of this Congress is to secure and defend the rights of the people as set out in the Constitution.

  "Now, there is a contrary view in this land: a view embodied by the Vice President. If you take them at their word – if you attribute to them no deliberately malicious or subversive intent _ then our opponents believe that the highest purpose of government is to see to the material needs of the people. To the degree that the Constitution or the rights of individuals conflict with what they perceive those material needs to be, they believe the Constitution and those rights – as well as those who try to defend both – to be impediments to the fulfillment of their purposes.

  "There is no compromise between these two positions. We cannot meet halfway. Either you believe that government exists to secure the rights of the people or you believe that governments exist to take care of the people. It cannot do both. Ultimately one must give way to the other. Either the Constitution and the rights of the individual must be overridden, or you must accept that some things must never be done because they would transgress against the former. The division is fundamental and unbridgeable.

  "Both of these positions cannot be right. Both may be wrong. One must be.

  "Yet, if we look to the earliest days of our nation, we can know with certainty what the Founders thought."

  The Majority Leader pulled out a piece of paper and put on his reading glasses before continuing.

  "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal,
that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness – that to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed."

  Rickover took off his glasses and, holding them in his hand, turned to address the House.

  "Mr. Speaker, I apologize – my fellow Americans, I apologize for dwelling on philosophy at such a moment as this. But I believe that, regrettably, it is necessary that I do so because of the attempt by the Vice President – I am sorry, the Acting President – to so stigmatize and, yes, even criminalize those who disagree with him. But I believe that the American people ought to know – that most already do know – that our views are legitimate and founded in the best traditions of America. We have not opposed this Administration out of malice, but because we have a fundamental conflict of visions as to what government means and what the future of this country is to be.

  "Now, we can disagree. Americans have always disagreed about such things. But when disagreement is painted as criminal... when Americans are nakedly threatened with legal consequences for their political views, there comes a time when a stand must be made.

  "We are not enemies. We have no wish to be enemies. But we are proud defenders of the Constitution and we will go on being such.

  "Let us bring the nation together, not tear it apart..."

  CNN Headquarters, Atlanta

  "...It was definitely an unusually bold address that the House Majority Leader made this evening in response to the speech by the Acting President," noted the anchor.

  "Yes," agreed the theoretically non-partisan analyst, "though it hasn't been traditional for there to be an response speech on occasions such at this – when there is a national tragedy or what have you..."

  "The Acting President forced the hands of the Congressional Republicans in that," noted one of the panelists.

  "I have to tell you," said the analyst, "I've stopped reading my Twitter feeds this evening. The level of vitriol flying back and forth is utterly without precedent. I mean... for years, we've all read comments and blogs and Twitter feeds and what have you and we've thought – or at least I've thought – that some of these people are so passionate that they... well, I know that we're all familiar with the phenomenon of the so-called 'internet tough guy', but a lot of these people sound like they'd really like to do each other harm."