by Van Torrey
Before the last echo of taps over Arlington faded at Lou Nicholas’ state funeral, Jonathan Braxton himself, as well as his Chief of Staff, Philip Johnson, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Clement Sturgis, were inundated subtly, and in some cases, not so gently, by surrogates of certain current and retired congressmen seeking meetings to discuss strategies for the nomination of Nicholas’ successor. Of course, most of these were thinly veiled requests for an audience with the President himself, or with someone of influence in his inner circle, to promote the potential candidacy of a specific individual. Most of these were deflected out of hand, albeit courteously so, by the gatekeeper to the President, Philip Johnson.
Braxton did understand that he was politically obligated to meet privately with the Speaker, the Senate Majority Leader, and the Chairperson of his political party to hear suggestions about strategy and qualifications of specific individuals to be considered. In the end, however, Braxton knew the decision would be his alone, with the advice and counsel of his Chief of Staff.
Three days after the funeral, at dinner in Braxton’s private quarters on the second floor of the White House, Jonathan Braxton and Philip Johnson discussed the options open to the President for selection of a new Vice-President.
“Phil, I have an opportunity to bring someone into a position of influence in this administration who, perhaps for the very first time, is not merely a political animal. While I agree that it helps to know one’s way around this city, I think we can do something unique here by bringing someone on board who has no political baggage, no political enemies, and no philosophical agenda...someone who can engage the many foreign and domestic issues we face with a keen intellect and rational thought processes, without having to consider prior political loyalties or debts to cronies, financial contributors, and special interest groups. For the first time in years we can place a person in a position to serve as an activist Vice-President and to be potentially elected President who can serve with unbridled integrity and genuine transparency.”
“Well, Mr. President,” replied Philip Johnson light-heartedly, “that leaves out everyone except Mother Theresa, and she’s not with us anymore.”
“Okay, Phil, a little test here. Think of someone who served this administration extraordinarily well, was often correctly identified by all of us as the smartest person in the room during crunch time, and is completely uninfected with the political disease.”
Still speaking light-heartedly in the privacy of the moment with the man who had become a close friend as well as an admired colleague, Johnson answered, “Sir if we were living back in the days of the King Henry the Eighth my answer would be you. But since we are in the here and now and I’m safe from the gallows, I would have to say, applying your criteria, Rachel Hunter.”
“Go to the head of the class, Phil. Exactly who I had in mind!” responded Braxton cheerfully. “She’s perfect.”
Philip Johnson got up from the table and began to pace the room as he often did when he was sorting through a complicated issue. Braxton knew and respected his friend’s habits and allowed silence to envelop the room while they both considered the implications of Braxton’s revelation. The President knew how important it was for his Chief of Staff to accept this idea intellectually, with a minimum of salesmanship on his part. Braxton didn’t want to make his suggestion seem like a Presidential order or a fait accompli.
This interruption was an opportunity for Braxton’s personal chef, Maurice, to clear the table and suggest that the two might be more comfortable in the Yellow Oval Room where they could take dessert and possibly have an after dinner drink.
As Philip Johnson stood looking out over the Truman Balcony at the twinkling lights of the Nation’s Capital, he spoke to Braxton in a matter-of-fact tone. “Mr. President, it might just work.” Johnson turned and faced the President with a genuine smile and continued, “I like it, I really do!”
After further animated discussion, as both men warmed to the idea of making Rachel Hunter the nominee, the question of the logistics of the process came into focus. First, of course, would have to be Braxton exploring the idea with Rachel and actually offering her the position. If she accepted - not a foregone conclusion - then there would have to be the vetting and confirmation of her nomination with Congress. This was as much a political dance as anything else, as members of Congress were jealous of their prerogatives and wanted validation of their self-importance when it came to vital issues. This was known constitutionally as “advice and consent.” The vice-presidential succession aspect of the 25th Amendment had been tested twice; the first time when Vice-President Spiro Agnew resigned and was replaced with Representative Gerald Ford, and second, when President Richard Nixon resigned, elevating Ford to become President. In turn, he nominated former Governor Nelson Rockefeller to be his Vice-President. It would be unrealistic to think that Congress would block the desire for a sitting President to select a reasonably qualified nominee to be his vice-president for the remainder of his term. This situation was dramatically different than a Supreme Court nominee, a lifetime appointee who could potentially serve and forge policy well past any sitting legislator’s tenure in Washington.
Braxton could approach Rachel Hunter in a number of ways, but given the events of the past month and the sensitivities of the selection, he decided that this was best done in person. How the President would be able to do this without drawing the attention of the media and raising speculation about this potential blockbuster appointment became the key question on the minds of Braxton and his Chief of Staff as they planned well into the night. This was not made any easier by the fact that Rachel Hunter lived a high profile life outside the beltway. Any personal meeting discussing this subject would likely have to be held outside the White House.
The answer for President Braxton came fortuitously in the form of a previously scheduled two-week break in the Beijing nuclear talks during which his chief negotiator was scheduled to return to Washington for routine consultations. Under the pretense of reducing travel for the American negotiating team, Braxton decided to meet with them in Honolulu, and subsequently stopover in San Francisco to do a fund-raiser on his return. This would give him the opportunity to meet privately with Rachel Hunter to discuss the Vice-Presidential nomination away from the prying eyes of the Washington press corps.
Within the week, such arrangements had been made and Braxton was on his way to Hawaii to meet with the senior members of the negotiating team, who were only too happy to be taking their break in the islands with their families rather than Washington. The President called Rachel Hunter and after making small talk, asked her if they could have a private dinner during his stopover return from Hawaii. A secret service driver would pick her up at her home in Palo Alto and drive her to the city where they would dine alone in the President’s hotel suite.
*
In Honolulu President Braxton received a cautiously optimistic report from his chief negotiator about the progress of the talks in Beijing.
“Mr. President, for the first time in all the contacts I have had with the North Koreans over the past three years, I am beginning to sense some conciliatory responses to our proposals,” reported Seth Bainbridge, Braxton’s Chief Negotiator. The South Koreans are telling me privately that they have received news of violent demonstrations in Pyongyang due to shortages of food and supplies of fuel. We have known of such shortages in the outlying countryside for a long time, but the capital has been generally immune from this. This may portend strategic change there.”
“Are you sure this is accurate and not something trumped up by South Korea?” asked a cautiously interested President Braxton. “They are not above stirring the pot on the Korean Peninsula, you know.”
“Very true, sir. My Chinese counterpart claims to have the same information. I think there may be some authenticity to it. If so, it might mean the North Koreans may be being pushed by internal economic realities to make some concessions.”
“So
, what are your suggestions when the negotiations resume after the break?” asked Braxton.
“Well sir, the format is such that each party to the negotiations; China, the United States, North and South Korea, Japan, and the Russian Federation, makes an opening statement prior to resuming actual negotiations. Japan is first in the dock. I suggest we formulate a strategy and then see if we can get Japan to be our surrogate starting off. After all, Mr. President, this is a matter that is actually between North Korea, Japan, South Korea, and us. In my opinion, the others are merely observers, strategically interested to be sure, but they don’t have a dog in the fight.”
Jonathan Braxton and his military advisors spent the balance of the day conferring among each other and ended with a dinner meeting wargaming potential scenarios and coming up with a series of guidelines and talking points for the negotiators. Braxton’s Secretary of State, Alexander Randolph, flew off to Tokyo to meet with the Japanese Prime Minister and Seth Bainbridge’s negotiating counterpart to work on implementing the strategy. With a new negotiating strategy in place, the next morning Braxton and his entourage left Honolulu in Air Force One enroute for San Francisco.
*
Rachel Hunter was escorted into Jonathan Braxton’s Presidential Suite by Philip Johnson, who promptly excused himself.
Jonathan immediately put down his encrypted satellite telephone, rose from his chair, advanced across the room, and gave Rachel a warm two-handed handshake, looking at her for several seconds before speaking. “Rachel, you look wonderful. I must admit I expected something less considering what you’ve been through. How are you getting along?”
“I’m fine, Mr. President, no worse for wear. I have to admit it was tough for a couple of weeks.”
President Braxton and Rachel Hunter walked across the room and took seats facing each other in the spacious living area of the large Presidential Suite. This time Rachel took the initiative for beginning the conversation.
“Quite a shock about Lou, Mr. Presi...”
Rachel was gently interrupted by Braxton who said, “Rachel, it’s just us here. Please call me Brax. You and I go so far back that when you address me formally I sometimes think you are patronizing me. I don’t need the validation.”
Rachel Hunter smiled demurely and nodded in response.
“Rachel, I wanted to come out here to speak to you about a couple of things in person and privately. Your service to me and the country makes you deserving of at least that much respect.”
“I appreciate your personal visit and kind words, Brax.”
“Rachel, before we have a drink and dinner, there are two things I want to tell you about, and at least one of them may require some consideration on your part. First, I want you to know that the men who ambushed you and Doctor Ryan have been found and brought to justice.”
“Really?” replied Rachel with astonishment, “I’ve seen nothing in the news about this.”
“And you won’t, Rachel,” answered President Braxton with a certain finality. “It’s a long story. The FBI and the San Francisco P.D. gathered a ton of circumstantial evidence about the culprits. They were sure that these guys, they were Pakistanis here on student visas that we subsequently traced back to a domestic terrorist cell, were the perps. It wasn’t a federal crime and, due to a lack of strong direct evidence, the D.A. here was doubtful that he could even get an indictment, let alone a conviction. In the end however, they made it easy for us, as they fled to Mexico. I can’t go into the details - I’m not even sure of all the specifics myself - but the FBI used some of what they call unconventional resources to track down the Pakistanis in a Mexican resort town and... well, those guys are “swimming with the fishes” as they sometimes say in certain New Jersey social circles.”
“Brax, that sounds so...so brutal.”
“And the attack on you and Doctor Ryan wasn’t? Rachel, this will have to stay in this room, but there was another aspect of this operation that was designed to send a clear message to those who may be planning something of this nature again. If certain things contained in a DVD recorded by the people sent by the FBI to deal with these terrorists reach the right people on the other side, I believe they will think twice about trying to pull something like this again. But I wanted you to know that justice has been served. Unfortunately for Doctor Ryan’s family, they can’t know.”
The only reaction from Rachel Hunter was a gentle nodding of her head as she looked with silent understanding at President Braxton.
For several minutes Braxton and Rachel conversed on a number of subjects of mutual interest as the President skillfully steered the discussion around to the fundamental reason for this face-to-face meeting.
“Rachel, I would like your advice on the Vice-Presidential nomination I will soon have to make. I took a little heat, even from my own party, for going to Hawaii without a V.P. in place. I’m afraid if I don’t have someone in place before I have to take a perhaps more extended trip, there could be some constitutional repercussions. I want to avoid that.”
“I appreciate you asking, Brax. I haven’t given it much thought. How about Speaker Sturgis? He’s certainly qualified politically and he’s technically the next in line anyway.”
“The point you make is correct, but is exactly what I want to avoid, Rachel. Sturgis, in spite of his years of service, is precisely what the country does not need in the Executive Branch at the moment. The guy has so much political baggage after all these years it would take a platoon of porters to carry it. Besides, because of the way he browbeats and intimidates members of the House, I don’t know if he could get a majority there, let alone the Senate. If not, then I have another political sideshow to deal with and have to start over from square one. No, I want to do something different, and dramatic, perhaps even idealistic with this nomination.”
Knowing Braxton as she did, Rachel Hunter knew he was a think different guy who had a vision for a better America with only a few short years to move it forward. His rationale about Speaker Sturgis only served to reinforce that.
“You know, Mr. President, serving as I do at Stanford, I’ve had the opportunity to meet so many exceptional people from many academic and professional disciplines who don’t have a political bone in their body. I often wonder what the world would be like if we could focus the combined intellects and sense of integrity of these people on our collective problems instead of looking at every issue through the lens of competing political or social ideologies and religions. Nothing against these cultural foundations mind you, but our collective focus on competing philosophies and a lust for power of many individuals has been and is an impediment to solving problems.”
“Spoken like a true statesman...er, woman, Rachel. That’s the reason I’m here today.” Braxton paused for dramatic effect and then proceeded. “I would like you to consider accepting the nomination to become the next Vice-President of the United States,” announced Jonathan Braxton as the echoes of history bounced off the walls of the room.
Rachel Hunter stared at Braxton for a moment in stunned silence and finally responded, “Mr. President, surely you are not serious!”
“I’ve seldom been more serious in my life, Rachel. For several reasons you are the ideal candidate, and I believe the timing is right. Now that I’ve had my say and your head is presumably reeling, let’s have a drink and we’ll have dinner. Phil Johnson is aware of this of course, and I’ll ask him to join us now that we have had our private conversation. Unless it’s “Hell no,” I won’t press you for an answer until tomorrow. If you’re going to consider a potential positive answer, I must ask that this remain between the three of us. I’m asking you to keep your own counsel. And by the way, I couldn’t blame you for saying “no”, and if it is, we’ll just have a pleasant dinner and I’ll let Phil know later.”
Rachel Hunter rose from her seat and walked over to the window looking out over the famous San Francisco skyline that suddenly held such conflicting memories based on what she had heard a few moments a
go. She momentarily reflected on the events of the last month and projected forward as she frequently did with her analytical mind. In a moment she turned and faced the President and said softly, “Mr. President...Brax, it’s not “Hell no”, so perhaps you’ll ask Mr. Johnson to join us.”
Philip Johnson joined them in a few moments and Jonathan Braxton spent fifteen minutes addressing his plan for the Vice-Presidential transition in a dispassionate and business-like manner. “Due to the unique nature of this situation from a Constitutional standpoint, there is a huge potential for this to turn into a media circus, particularly the opportunity for posturing by some of the more ideologically committed members of the opposition and even my own party. I intend to nominate a person who, first of all, is known by the Congressional leadership to be intellectually capable and patriotically trustworthy enough to assume the office of President if I should not be able to serve. Although some of the junior members of Congress may not be on a first name basis with you, Rachel, nearly all the senior members are aware of your bonafides when it comes to the area of National Security. It would be disingenuous of me not to acknowledge your gender may also play a significant role here as well. I hope you are not offended by that.”
“Certainly not, Mr. President,” replied Rachel.
Braxton continued. “As Phil and I have discussed in great depth, we see a unique opportunity to fundamentally change the mentality surrounding this position with this nomination by nominating someone with no political background or strong ideological bias, but who instead possesses considerable experience in foreign affairs as well as a keen intellect and knowledge of the nuances surrounding our national defense.”
“All that sounds very idealistic Mr. President,” remarked Rachel, “but could this backfire on you with Congress as a whole, who will be expecting a career politician?”
“Although I am aware that this is a lofty political position in an uberpolitical town, I am willing to take the risk the idealistic positives of the latter will overcome the potential negatives of not honoring the former. I have come to firmly believe the fact that just because a politician has survived many political battles in Congress over many years, that is not much of a prerequisite for anything except surviving more political battles of debatable importance.”