By the time Strong caught up with his dog, he noticed that Grant was staring into the darkness, sniffing the air. The playful three-year-old was easily distracted by squirrels, cats, and mice. He barked. “Come on, leave them alone.” The dog barked again, but didn’t move. “Shhh,” Strong said automatically. There were no houses nearby, no neighbors to distract, but there was still something about a dog barking in the middle of the night that prompted the response.
Grant ignored him. Untethered, he took off into the darkness to chase down whatever was tempting him.
Strong continued his walk, feeling refreshed in the cool morning air. There was already a hint of fall from the north. Strong smiled inwardly. It’ll be okay in the morning. Another beautiful September day: one day closer to the next election.
He noticed that Grant had stopped barking. Strong whistled. His dog didn’t respond. He whistled again. No sounds, not even crickets. He clapped his hands and called out, “Grant! Come!”
The ELCAN SpectrlR SP50B Thermal Weapon Sight was designed for Homeland Security, police, the military, and other professionals. It utilizes heat-imagery technology: true “see-in-the-dark” infrared vision which can reveal what the human eye can’t. It works in rain and fog, dust and smoke, and, of course, in the dead of night.
The SpectrlR can distinctively detect a moving target up to 650 feet away. It works by separating living, breathing objects from their surroundings by reading their heat signatures.
Security forces at nuclear plants, oil refineries, and port authorities have added the night-vision scope to their arsenals. Interestingly, the scope can be hooked up with a wireless RF video-port to provide realtime remote viewing. Mounted on an AR15 assault rifle with an extendable shoulder stock, and in the right hands, it served as the perfect nighttime sniper weapon.
It was unfortunate about the dog. The shooter liked dogs. He had one just like him back home.
The man had been in the area for two days, scouting and determining how to complete his mission. No one had seen him. No one would. Odd, he thought, coming to this Lebanon. He had done the same thing in the country with the same name.
He wanted the perfect shot. The dog delayed his first attempt along the road. Now his target faced him full-on. He lined up the crosshairs between his target’s eyes. One bullet. One fraction of a second between life and death. One more voice silenced, caught on TV, beamed out on 2.46 Hz through a scrambled command RF link.
Elliott Strong looked off into the darkness. He had an awareness of a flash, like a firefly. It was something so uniquely American. He’d never seen it back home as a child in Syria, nor in Russia where he had been trained. So American…
The Israeli sniper slipped further into the darkness and disappeared. There were dangers working in the United States, but this time Ira Wurlin assured him everything would be fine.
Chapter 80
This was Katie’s meeting. In attendance were President Morgan Taylor, Bernsie Bernstein, White House counsel Brad Rutberg, Attorney General Eve Goldman, Secretary of the Treasury David Jaburi, and Lynn Myerson’s old boss — Office of Strategic Affairs chief Michael Safron. Everyone was seated in a circle. Katie shared the couch with Goldman.
She chose a conservative gray suit, her mother’s pearls, and low black heels. That was a conscious decision. The last thing she wanted to do was trip in front of the president.
Taylor welcomed everyone. “Thank you for coming. I think the events of the last year, let alone the past few weeks, underscore the need for this dialogue. Our goal is to formulate and advance a new approach to the line of succession; one that ensures that the objectives of an elected administration can withstand a crisis and the nation can count on a stable transition. We’ve weathered two rocky tests of the current law. I think we can all agree that in the post-9/11 era, the process needs reinventing.”
Katie had a simple yellow pad on her lap. The president set up the agenda perfectly, as promised.
“Ms. Kessler has, under my instructions, thoroughly researched the law and listened to learned opinion from the Hill. I dare say, she’s also probably gotten an earful of contrary, partisan viewpoints. We’re ready to hear your thoughts. Ms. Kessler.”
“Thank you, Mr. President.” Katie remained seated. It seemed appropriate. Besides, Roarke advised her not to stand over Taylor. “I appreciate the confidence you’ve expressed in me. I hope I live up to your expectations.”
“Oh, you will. I’m a good judge of character.”
Katie smiled inwardly.
“As you noted, since September 11, 2001, we have lived in an age faced with the possible decapitation of the United States government. Mass terrorism, or as we’ve recently seen, even smaller acts of executive treason, bring into question the flaws in the Succession Act of 1947.
“Of course, it will not be the Office of the President that makes any change. It is clearly Congress’s constitutional right, granted by Article II, Section 1, Clause 6, modified by the 25th Amendment. But I believe the proposal I have for you today takes partisanship out of the equation, and speaks to the greater need — continuity of leadership and continuity of policy.
“This is a new approach: a variation on earlier iterations, but clearly something different. It correctly addresses the longstanding constitutional debate over the definition of ‘Officer,’ and it eliminates a scenario whereby an acting president could be bumped. It sidesteps the potential for the Speaker of the House or president pro tem of the Senate from having to resign his position to serve as president, and it provides solutions for succession — should a president-elect be killed following an election and before the inauguration.”
In years past, such a notion would have been unthinkable, let alone unspeakable. Today it has to be considered.
“I weighed many of the ideas already on the table. There have been some very thoughtful bills offered up; notable proposals from Representative Brad Sherman, Senators John Cornyn and Trent Lott, as well as propositions from a wide range of groups, including The Continuity of Government Commission.”
Eve Goldman, the only one in the room making notes, raised her pencil tip. “Excuse me, but do you have a sense of whether any of these proposals would stand a constitutional test?”
“The fundamental question, Attorney General. In my estimation, the more carefully crafted bills would. But are they the right proposals and would they even get out of a conference committee? After all, many sidestep Congressional leadership, so why would the House or Senate leadership basically vote themselves out of a job?”
“Oh?” Secretary Jaburi responded. “How so?”
“Well, that’s the political side of this whole debate and well beyond my experience.” What experience? she thought. Katie reached into her attaché case and removed spiral-bound copies of a position paper. “Sticking to the basics, I believe what I’m about to propose is legally sound. My proposal addresses two main points: First of all, it preserves the Office of President from a catastrophic attack against Washington; second, it assures that a president can emerge to lead the nation.”
Katie had just cleared the land for the political bomb she was about to drop.
“I propose that the Speaker of the House and the president pro tempore of the Senate be removed from the line of succession.”