Even if he failed in his assignment, maybe something could still be salvaged. How much would his employers pay for combat footage of US troops slaughtering neutral Texan and Okie soldiers?
Governor Berry smashed down the phone so hard it bounced off his desk. “Those damn yellow-bellied bastards! It’s confirmed. The state legislature voted to delegate negotiating authority to me! They’ve dropped the hot potato in my lap. I’m supposed to decide, just one man, whether or not Texas stays in the Union. What a crock of shit. Did you… gentlemen have anything to do with this?” He toned down the vitriol in his voice when addressing the lobbyists lounging around his office. He couldn’t afford to bite the hand that fed him.
None of the lobbyists seemed perturbed. One even smiled. “The legislature didn’t need a push, Governor. They’ve straddled the fence since this whole thing began. Now that it’s impossible to stay neutral and skirt responsibility, well, of course they’d toss you the ball.”
The older suit rose and sat his laptop on the governor’s desk. “They’re only politicians; none of those fools are a real leader like you. Take a look at these poll numbers here. The state is evenly divided between USA and URA supporters, but there’s one piece of common ground: your mind-blowing approval rating. Every poll comes out with the same result: 75 % believe you are the best choice to navigate these stormy waters and do what’s right for Texas. Without a doubt, Oklahoma will follow Texas’s leadership as well. Excuse me, your leadership.”
The governor wasn’t immune to this ego stroking. After all, the humble don’t get into politics. On the other hand, he wasn’t completely blinded by his own awesomeness.
“Maybe people are enraged now, what with all this crazy footage on TV about US troops killing our people, but they’ll forget that outrage in a hurry. Those poll numbers will reverse quickly if I drag us into a shooting war against Washington. Folks are only happy because the fighting has been going on everywhere but here. If we take action, then we’ll be on the front lines.”
The lobbyist mulled that unusual insightfulness over. He fought the urge just to offer money and move on to his other assignments, but that might not work. It wasn’t the cost. Even after the millions he’d already fanned out to individual military officers, state legislators, media outlets and the occasional well-placed militia leader, he still had over $100 million left in the budget for this project. Every now and again, though, no amount of money could do the trick. Something his paymasters would never understand.
To be fair, he didn’t understand his clients’ objectives well either, but that wasn’t important. All that mattered was their deep pockets… and that they demanded results.
“Governor, the Feds are on the ropes. How much longer do you think they can hold out? Any day now the URA will depose the president and reunite the country. All under President Salazar’s leadership. You have a simple choice to make. You can be left on the outside looking in, or be one of the most revered insiders in the new Federal Government. What side of history will Texas be on?”
The governor had nothing to say. He just stared out the window at his huge crowd of supporters waving their anti-federal placards and marching in circles. Where were they all when he was running for the presidential primary during the last election? As powerful as he might appear, Governor Berry had learned a hard lesson about the fickleness of public opinion over the last few years.
“As tempting as you make this sound, I can’t lead my constituents into an unnecessary war. Again, all this support you’re playing up only exists because I’ve kept Texas neutral. That adoration will disappear like a fart in the wind if I declare war on the US. It’s also my ass on the line. Not yours.”
The lobbyist played it cool and didn’t gloat over his advantage. The governor was out of new arguments. “Sure, some people will be pissed off when we join California, but they won’t be for long. History and the masses only care about how wars end. Not how they begin. Damnit, sir, you could finish this war in days and save countless lives on both sides. With Texas and Oklahoma throwing their weight behind the West, the USA would have to cave. This will be a game changer. You’d tip the economic and military scales inexorably in the URA’s favor. The political shock alone will likely force the president to abdicate. You’d be the national hero that stopped this senseless war!”
The governor wouldn’t make eye contact with him. After dropping his last carrot, the lobbyist seized his big stick and swooped in for the kill. “Let’s face it, Governor. How long do you really think you can pull off this neutral stunt? Washington has only tolerated your stubbornness because they could afford to. So long as they held the upper hand they were willing to be magnanimous. Now? With their army in retreat, they’re desperate. Desperate men have no time for games. How long until you get an ultimatum to the effect that, ‘you’re either with us or against us’?”
He clearly landed a powerful blow. The governor couldn’t have missed the latest hawkish speeches by some fire-breathing Eastern congressmen on television saying the same thing.
“This war is coming to Texas regardless of what you do. Just look at the television. It’s already here. At this point, even doing nothing is doing something. Why not make your stand from a position of strength? With the entire weight of the West at your back! Seize the initiative while you still can. Don’t be a victim of history; ride that bull!”
Governor Berry slumped in his chair with his eyes closed for so long everyone believed he had fallen asleep. His chief of staff stood up. “All right, gentlemen. We need to take some time and think this through. Let’s meet again….”
The governor finally opened his eyes. “Fine. We’ll do what’s necessary, but there are some caveats.”
The lobbyists tried hard not to jump out of their chairs. “Of course, sir. Anything we can do to help.”
Governor Berry wagged his finger. “So you say, but I’m going to test your commitment. First, we need open lines of credit for the war effort. I will not bankrupt the state to finance someone else’s war. I want the same funding for our regular military forces you give those Freedom Brigade folk.” He crossed his arms as the suit opened his mouth. “Don’t give me any bull about them being self-organized. If your employers aren’t bankrolling them, they at least know who is. Shut up and make it happen.”
The governor rose and paced the room, a little of that famous swagger creeping back into his voice. “Second, all Texas military forces will be independently commanded. We’ll cooperate with the URA’s troops, without the offensive restrictions we had with the Feds, but our people will have their own officers deciding when and where to fight.”
It didn’t take long for the lobbyist to calculate the costs in dollars and, most painfully, power points. More than his masters expected to pay, but still within reason. “Absolutely, sir. I’ll make the necessary arrangements within 12 hours.”
The governor paused and eyed this strange creature. “Your bosses really have that much money and influence in California? Just snap your fingers and things happen, huh? Ok, then there is one final point. To make sure that Texas and Oklahoma are given a fair shake and not taken advantage of, President Salazar will immediately appoint me as Secretary of State. I also want one of my own cabinet members running her Department of the Interior. We’re going to replace some of her flunkies with Texas patriots.”