INTELLIGENCE FAILURE
Page 43
“Their Republican Guards forces are withdrawing completely from Syria and Lebanon,” added Simpson.
“We have agreed not to invade Syria or Iran,” Acosta threw out.
Simpson nodded, looking down at his tablet PC screen. “Mr. President, the navy says it might not be cost effective to repair the aircraft carrier George H.W Bush. We also lost two other ships, several aircraft and at least two-hundred and fifty military personnel.”
“And our image of invincibility,” added Alby.
“I hope the navy learns a lesson Alex, those carriers are just big floating targets,” said Acosta. “Today’s missile technology has rendered them nearly obsolete.”
“Well Mr. President, I doubt congress will approve funding for any new carriers in future budgets,” replied Simpson.
“I doubt it too,” said the President, adding, “Massoud says he’s going to resign and become an emissary for peace, and he still wants to have a face-to-face meeting soon. He told me that he truly felt that if we would have pushed the Israelis harder to resolve the Palestinian issue, none of this would have happened. But, he wanted to be perfectly clear that he was not justifying the attacks in any way. He said they were heinous crimes and those responsible would be severely punished.”
“Sir, the Israeli losses from the Haifa nuke blast will come in at around twenty-two hundred dead and another three-thousand seriously injured,” reported Alby. “The Jordanian losses are right at about eight-thousand dead, and another eleven-thousand seriously injured. Both cities will require years of very expensive clean-up efforts to remove contaminated soils and other materials. Complete recovery may take a decade, or longer.”
In the room, dead silence. It was broken by the President, “I don’t want seem callous, but as bad as this was, it could have been worse…a lot worse. Cooler heads prevailed and so far no new military engagements have been reported anywhere in the region. We have got to get these damn nukes under control… I’m not really sure how.” He looked down at his watch, then took off his glasses and put them into his shirt pocket. “I’m late for the press conference.”
Acosta left the Oval Office and was met in the hallway by his press secretary. “Mr. President, they’re ready for you,” he announced.
“Let’s do it,” he said, as they headed down the corridor. “I’ll have to keep this short… you’ll have to stay after and answer their questions.”
“Yes sir,” his press secretary replied.
Acosta stepped up to the podium to face the press hungry for the latest information. The clamor in the room quickly died down. This had clearly been the most demanding situation a President could ever face. He had managed to prevent an escalation into World War III. He was visibly tired with bags under his bloodshot eyes. He opened with the latest reported casualty figures from Amman and Haifa and summarized the damage done. He went on to explain to the world the details of the nuclear material theft in Pakistan. How the two bombs had been built by rogue elements within the Iranian government and then shipped by truck to Beirut. And how the senior officer in Iran’s Republican Guard force had gotten Hezbollah in Lebanon to train four suicide pilots to deliver the weapons. He added a stern warning that the world must work to eliminate nuclear weapons or risk total annihilation. Finally, he went over the terms of a ceasefire and how allied forces had achieved all their military objectives. A full-time presence of armed U.N. inspectors would answer the questions of whether Iran had any more nuclear weapons and ensure if they did, they would be found and destroyed. He concluded with a summary of U.S. and allied losses in heroic combat operations, before turning the podium over to his press secretary and leaving the room.
* * * *
Maddy watched the President’s news conference, deep in thought, when the phone rang. “Deputy Director Teagan here,”
“Congratulations Maddy,” offered the voice.
“Hello Lonny,” Maddy replied, adding, “I’m not sure I should be congratulated.”
“Maddy, you were of course, right about the Iranians and the bomb,” said Lonny apologetically. “My sources tell me you going to be appointed the Deputy Director.”
Maddy was silent for a few moments. “Lonny, I’ve withdrawn my name from consideration. Mark and I are getting back together and I have found a very boring job in another agency. Eight hour days and five days a week…no stress.”
“I can’t believe you will be happy in a mundane nine-to-five job, Maddy.”
“Well, I am going to try it, Lonny. Mark and I are going to travel…and try to make up for lost time. This whole thing made me realize how short life really is. Hell, we barely avoided a global nuclear holocaust.”
“Yes, you’re right about that Maddy. I don’t know how we missed all the signs.”
“They had a bomb program within a bomb program, Lonny. Their senior leadership was so busy trying to hide the main program they didn’t even know about the other program. So, Iran’s President’s denials of any culpability or involvement in the two nuke detonations were, in a perverse way, sincere.”
“I will deny I told you this Maddy, but the Israelis were less than fifteen minutes away from a large scale nuclear strike on Iran. NSA intercepted signals they were certain were pre-launch enabling codes.”
“My God,” Maddy replied.
“NSA immediately contacted the President. He contacted King Haddad of Jordan and put together a three-way call with Prime Minister Klein. The king asked the Israelis not to do it. He felt the Iranian President’s assurances Iran would never again be able to acquire nuclear weapons, were sufficient. In my opinion, if Amman had not also been nuked, the Israelis would have struck back. And I guess no one could have blamed them.”
“It would very likely have dragged the Russians into it, and then everyone else,” said Maddy.
“Well Maddy, so you sort of saved the world.”
“Right…so time for a long overdue vacation. Thanks for calling Lonny.”
“Goodbye Maddy…and good luck.”
THE END