by Bobby Akart
Julia studied the proposed chart. “Okay, Susan. Let’s play matchmakers, shall we?”
Chapter 17
3:30 p.m. ET
Taiwan Parliament
Legislative Yuan
Taipei City, Taiwan
James McBride, the U.S. ambassador to China, suggested to the Secretary of State that he address the Legislative Yuan in Taiwan as part of finalizing the $1.5-billion arms deal to the Taipei government. The newly elected president of Taiwan was appreciative of the deal, which was substantially smaller than past arms deals made prior to the collapse. Sarge was concerned with the geopolitical impact on China, and he felt the U.S. was not strong enough yet to fend off any serious blowback.
U.S.-Taiwanese relations were complicated by America’s acknowledgment of the One China policy from a geopolitical standpoint. By America’s actions, Taiwan was treated as its own nation-state. To prevent inflaming hostilities with Beijing, the U.S. did not maintain an embassy in Taiwan, but instead established a nonprofit organization to serve as a functional embassy. The American Institute in Taiwan, or AIT, was designed to advance U.S. business and political interests, but also to protect U.S. citizens who were in Taiwan.
As Ambassador McBride approached the podium to make his remarks, he recalled the scenes outside the building. The protestors on both sides of many contentious issues had ramped up their activities because of his arrival. They had gathered by the thousands in the streets surrounding the Legislative Yuan, attempting to out-yell the other side to make their point. McBride hoped the hostilities wouldn’t rise to the level they did in 2014 when the Sunflower Student Movement in Taipei resulted in the Legislative Yuan being occupied by protestors.
His speech was not intended to announce any changes in U.S.-Taiwanese relations, nor was it intended to slight the government in Beijing. If anything, his goal was to reiterate America’s long-standing policies and confirm the geostrategic significance of the players.
There were generally two kinds of American ambassadors. High-profile donors were often rewarded with glamorous posts like France, Great Britain, and Japan. Then there were the workhorses—typically career diplomats who were sent to hostile places as a reward for their experience and knowledge. Countries like China and Russia were different. They required skilled politicians who understood the impact words and actions had on their host countries. The ambassadors to these geopolitical foes were required to use finesse, deception, and at times, threats.
Ambassador McBride, the former republican governor of Tennessee, knew the Chinese. Prior to the collapse, Tennessee was the state most reliant on China for imports and exports, to the tune of nine percent of its gross domestic product. He’d held the post of U.S. trade representative at one time and was a logical choice for Sarge to appoint as ambassador to China.
After a few opening remarks, he began his speech. “Today, I wish to speak about the importance of U.S.-Taiwan relations and reaffirm the commitment of Washington to assisting Taiwan in maintaining its defensive capability. As we provide our final approval of the strategic defensive weaponry sales to Taiwan, we are sending a clear message to the region that the Taiwanese people have a right to live in peace, free from threats from its neighbors.
“It is true that the history of our two countries during the last eighty years has not been problem-free, but objectively, there is far more that unites our nations and joins our two peoples than divides us.
“Over time, both of our countries have worked hard to broaden and deepen our communications with one another and include the government in Beijing. The United States and Taiwan share more than military interests. We share economic goals, political values, and the challenge posed by China’s increased military modernization.
“As ambassador to China, I will continue to act as a liaison and conduit for open dialogue. In so doing, it is my hope that the two nations can coexist, separately, without the need to force unification upon the proud people of Taiwan.”
The members of the Legislative Yuan rose and provided Ambassador McBride a standing ovation as he made this statement. Eighty percent of the country preferred to maintain the status quo in its relationship with China. Only in recent years had the small minority in favor of unification become more vocal. They’d gained the attention of the media by performing outrageous, violent acts, hoping to portray a shift in the will of the people on the issue. Pro-unification demonstrators doused legislators with red paint, blocked them from entering the building, and allegedly engaged in cyber warfare to expose their email communications.
Ambassador McBride knew the tactic was working, hence his desire to make this speech. What the ambassador did not know was that during his remarks, a crowd of nearly six thousand demonstrators gathered outside, demanding a referendum and public hearings on China unification.
Several demonstrators scaled a wall and attempted to storm the building. One young man, dressed in the traditional garb of the samurai, brandished a sword and swung it around his head repeatedly. He was shot by security personnel with rubber bullets, but one struck him in the eyeball. This enraged the demonstrators further.
Protest leaders began to lead the crowd in chants supporting reunification. Chinese flags began to appear throughout the group. The next day, the event would be hailed as the largest pro-unification demonstration on Taiwanese soil since 1979 when President Carter signed the Taiwan Relations Act into law.
What Ambassador McBride and the State Department did not realize was this was the first step in a multipart plan by China to cross the eighty-mile body of water known as the Taiwan Strait and use its military strength to reestablish One China.
Chapter 18
4:00 p.m.
The Oval Office
The White House
Washington, DC
Sarge and Donald prepared for their meeting with four key governors in advance of tonight’s event. After the election, the Republican Party maintained a significant thirty-three to thirteen advantage in the legislative chambers. Republicans maintained thirty-one governorships, while the Democrats held fourteen. Two governors identified as independents, and both were libertarians in the Mountain West. If the four Pacific states were thrown into the mix, the Democrat column would increase by four for legislatures and governorships. For purposes of the Constitutional Convention, Sarge needed thirty-one.
The art of politics required looking ahead and reading the tea leaves. Sarge had the requisite number of state legislatures needed to call the convention, but he wanted the governors on board because they played a significant role in the policy making within those same legislatures. If he could gain the support of the governors of the thirty-one states, plus a couple, then he’d be able to push for the Article V convention.
Sarge was on precarious footing with his entire scheme. Ordinarily, states were admitted based upon the vote of Congress. However, the four states included in the Pacific statehood bill made demands beyond just readmission. They wanted their key political issues incorporated into federal law. Allowing this would circumvent the U.S. Constitution, which helped Sarge make his argument that a Constitutional Convention was necessary to approve the changes.
Getting the governors on board would accomplish two things. It would ensure that the convention would be held, and also, it would send a message that America was committed to the concept of states’ rights. Sarge had spent the last eight years decentralizing power from the federal government to the states. This final act of his presidency would put the exclamation point on his agenda.
Donald had a sense for the fence-sitters within the governors’ ranks. He didn’t bother attempting to sway the clear opponents of the Convention. He sought out the four most likely republican or libertarian governors to break ranks. Two of the governors were women. Currently, there were six women governors, four republican and two democrats—except one of the democrat governors was in Oregon.
The other two republican governors were from Wisconsin and Virginia. Both states
were evenly divided politically, and these two were up for re-election in two years. Sarge needed to keep them in the fold with a pep talk.
After some friendly conversation and a brief tour of the Oval Office, Sarge got right to the point. “All compromise is based upon give and take, something all of you have learned as the chief executives of your respective states. But there should be no give and take on your fundamental, core principles. Anytime you compromise your principles, then you’re surrendering. You’re capitulating. When that happens, you don’t have compromise. You have all give and no take.”
The female governor of Arkansas spoke first. “Mr. President, I can speak only for myself, but others might agree. We face a difficult decision in supporting a convention. Traditionalists within our state are outraged that these four states seceded to begin with. They are out of their minds at the prospect of allowing them back in, especially with the demands they intend to impose on Washington—demands that necessarily impact each and every one of us. For that reason, we’re asking our congressional leaders to vote against the bill before the House.”
“That’s what we want to hear,” started Sarge, “but I also need your support regarding the calling of a convention.”
“Mr. President, there are many pitfalls to a convention of the states, as you well know,” started the governor of Virginia. He had been present at the convention in St. Louis nearly eight years ago. “You were very successful in St. Louis, but you also had a nation that was desperate for a solution to our problems following the cyber attack. Sadly, the country has settled in and forgotten all about the crisis. I’m not so sure you’d have the consensus you seek.”
“I am aware that a convention could become a runaway jury of sorts,” said Sarge. “We may go into the convention for a single purpose, but once the delegates get a whiff of the power they hold, things could get out of hand. That is precisely why I need all of our republican and libertarian governors on board. Work with your legislative bodies. Be a big part of the delegate-selection process. Prevent a runaway convention by using due diligence.”
Sarge allowed his guests to reflect on what he said, and then he chose to remind them of what they’d accomplished in the last eight years.
“Prior to the collapse, we all knew the federal government did not function as it should. The administrative state was a significant part of the reason why. Nobody was watching over the thousands of administrative agencies created over the years. As a result, the federal government continued to encroach upon the rights of the states to govern themselves.
“We learned that this sad state of affairs was largely the fault of a lazy Congress, one that had weakened its own power over the decades by allowing too many laws to be written by lobbyists and administrative staffers. While in office, I learned there was no simple, administrative cure for what ailed our government. What we were provided as a result of the collapse was a reset, an opportunity to start over with a clean slate.
“I’m committed to bringing the Union back together, but I won’t do it with conditions imposed on the federal government that are not consistent with the will of the people in Virginia, Wisconsin, Arkansas, or Iowa. This is why we must reunify the right way, via a Constitutional Convention that takes up all of these issues, not just statehood.”
Chapter 19
4:30 p.m.
The Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC
Senator Rutledge sat tapping his fingers on the arms of his chair, simulating the ticks of his great-grandfather’s clock, one of the few pieces the family had saved when the Union forces led by William Tecumseh Sherman marched through the South and ransacked their family’s home south of Atlanta. He hadn’t moved in thirty minutes, which was his attempt to carefully weigh the pros and cons of a political decision.
He was slowly digesting the news he’d received from his contact in the House. It didn’t look good. Although he couldn’t put his finger on the source of the rebellion, the initial signs seemed to justify the confidence shown by Congressman Sánchez.
Senator Rutledge had to tread lightly. Although the upcoming departure of the president from office left him as a political lame duck, Rutledge suspected there were powerful forces behind the president’s ascension to power. The president’s handpicked team from Boston reflected a loyalty to Washington outsiders with limited or no governmental experiences. Rutledge’s own vetting indicated gaping holes in the résumés of some, and evidence of extraordinarily rapid advancement for others. This could only be explained by a more powerful political force behind the Sargent administration.
That, of course, wouldn’t surprise him. It had been true of most of the forty-five presidents. But this was different. The revelations of Congressman Sánchez earlier in the day had the potential to destroy much of what President Sargent had worked to build over the last eight years.
Rutledge knew he couldn’t get the president on the phone directly. His Chief of Staff, Quinn, kept that door well secured. Besides, Rutledge didn’t have anything concrete yet. If he relayed the information to Quinn, it wouldn’t give him the kudos worthy of such a magnanimous gesture.
Rutledge stared at the windows in his office as darkening skies crept into Washington. Something sinister was happening and he weighed several options as he decided the fate of his future and that of a president whom he considered to be a friend.
*****
After a lingering kiss, Congressman Sánchez pulled away from the willing intern and got dressed. The intern licked her lips and then presented a pout. “Are you sure you have to leave?”
“I’ve got work to do,” he quickly replied as he checked his text messages. The one he was looking for had not arrived. He was waiting for something, anything from the mysterious Mr. West, confirming that the deal had been struck.
The petite brunette took the hint and made her way to the bathroom. Sánchez took another look at his conquest and then checked his watch. Maybe I could spare another hour, but then his phone registered a new text message. Anyone monitoring his congressional phone account would think it was just another message from a constituent, but it wasn’t.
Utilizing an agreed-upon coded message system, Congressman Sánchez smiled as he deciphered the message from Mr. West. At some point between Thanksgiving and December 11, the future Majority Leader of the House of Representatives would be out of the picture, and he, Congressman Sánchez, would make a spectacular rise to the top. A leader seeking to give poor and downtrodden Americans a chance to enjoy what the wealthy had claimed for themselves.
He’d been reminded by his new benefactors that politics was a marathon, not a sprint. However, he had his running shoes on and was ready to make his way to the front of the pack. Once he was elected the new House Majority Leader, he’d immediately set his sights on the next rung of the ladder. In the meantime, he leaned to the side to set sights on his favorite intern standing nude in the hotel’s bathroom. Perhaps Congressman Sánchez would take a moment to celebrate his anticipated promotion.
Chapter 20
5:00 p.m.
PLA Unit 61398
Pudong, Shanghai, China
“The operation is under way,” said General Liu Fulian to the premier of China, Wen Peng. General Fulian had been appointed the head of the People’s Liberation Army Strategic Support Force. The men sat in a large operations center within PLA Unit 61398, the mysterious division of the Chinese military dedicated to electronic warfare.
“I trust this will go more smoothly than your prior attempts,” the premier responded dryly. “The risks attached to this operation are incomparably greater with the addition of the American ambassador in your plan.”
“Yes, Premier Peng, I agree. However, his abduction only enhances our deception. We will couple this event with the appearance of a direct threat to Chinese nationals within Taiwan to justify our rescue effort.”
“It will act as the perfect false flag, as the Americans say,” said the premier with a smile.
The premier of the People’s Republic of China was a man known for his steely demeanor, a type of detachment from others around him
“Thus far,” the general explained, “we have exposed nothing and we have lost nothing. The troop advancements to our ports at the Taiwan Strait have gone unnoticed by the Americans’ NSA. We have carefully monitored their communications and have found no evidence of detection of our plans.”
“As I understand it, you rotated troops into the theater, but you never rotated troops out as is our customary practice, am I correct?”
“Yes, Premier. This operation has been many months in the planning and implementation stage. It has been accelerated because of two factors—the presence of the ambassador and the distractions to President Sargent with an important vote on reunification of the four states bordering the Pacific.”
“Stupid Americans.” Premier Peng chuckled in a rare show of joviality. “I should cable them and offer to take the four states off their hands. We own most of California anyway.”
The general allowed himself a laugh and then focused on the mission. “The American ambassador made a speech to the Legislative Yuan, which inflamed the students in Taipei. We quickly mobilized our demonstrators to further incite the crowd. The timing is perfect for our own reunification by asserting our dominion and authority over Taiwan.”
Premier Peng grunted in agreement. “The announcement of the arms sale was an insult to Beijing and all of China. The next logical step is a mutual-defense treaty with a singular purpose of placing the American Navy in the Taiwan Strait between us. Perhaps the Americans will negotiate to place a permanent military installation on the island to be built, most likely, with Taiwanese money. This cannot happen, General.”