Honor Thy Mother & Thy Father Ch. 29

"I was so excited; I could have flown you here, without the use of an airplane."

"Kiss me you idiot. You still have trouble parallel parking."

*******

130. The Making of a President

The members on the right were so sure of victory; it did not look like they were going to choose the governor from Texas but the businessman from Utah. He was less controversial to the party's establishment. He was also richer than most of the 1%. It looked like he would win on the first ballot of their convention which was coming up in late October. The members on the left would hold their convention in early November. They were stuck in a quagmire with no clear contender.

On September 12, Julia Atwater appeared, 'RELUCTANTLY', on a morning television show called, "The Preview." It was supposed to be a cream puff interview, about her extended vacation, out of the political pressure cooker. For the first twenty minutes of the show that is exactly what it was. Then she dropped a political bomb. "I have to find something for that bored husband of mine to do. I have to get him out of my house. He's driving me crazy. If he brings one more contractor into my house to knock down a wall, or put in a bay window, I'm going to kill him. He has more time on his hands, and more energy than any man I have ever known. I am going to send him around the world on his boat, or force him to run for the Presidency.

He is driving Fred Hastings crazy also. They are collaborating on his biography. He calls him at 3A.M. with ideas. Fred has threatened to terminate all his phone services if he does not stop it."

The rest of the interview centered around that one word. Julia kept reiterating it was her words not her husbands, but at this point it was one of those two options, and whichever one he chose she was okay with it. She didn't want to see another decorator or contractor for another lifetime.

It was all over the news at noon. "ATWATER OKAYED TO RUN"

"In off-the-cuff remarks this morning, Julia Atwater gave the former Attorney General tacit approval to run for the Presidency of the United States or to be banished at sea to get him out of their home. In part of her remarks on the show she remarked: He has too much time on his hands, and he has more energy than any man she has ever known."

Local media started showing up at the gates to the Atwater mansion early in the afternoon and found the former Attorney General standing in front of his home a safe distance from the scaffolding that encompassed the first three floors of the mansion. He was wearing carpenter jeans, a long sleeve blue work shirt, and orange vest, and hardhat. He had the blueprints for the renovations to the front of the mansion in his hands. He was talking to the architect about some changes, when the security guard called and told him the press wanted to speak to him about Ms. Julia.

Clark ran as fast as he could to the front gate.

He asked, "Is my wife all right?"

A reporter asked, "Did you see her interview this morning?"

"Interview, what interview; she went into New York City with some friends to go shopping, and see a play this evening. I purchased the tickets for them."

"Mrs. Julia did a one hour interview on the television show 'The Preview' this morning."

"Damn that woman; we agreed there would be no television appearances or press conferences ever again. I am retired from public life."

The small press corps there laughed. "Well, Mister Attorney General, in that case I would advise you to start stocking up your boat for a very long trip."

"Why would I want to do that at the worst sailing time of the year?"

"I shall quote your wife at this point sir: I am going to send him around the world on his boat, or I am going to force him to run for the PRESIDENCY!"

"I am going to murder that wife of mine. I gave up that life because I was ignoring her too much. I did not want to lose her because she is so precious to me. Look back at the last four presidents and how youthful they looked going into that office and how happy they are wives were. Look at them four or eight years later. They are haggard and shells of their former self's. They have to fight and ungrateful Congress for every program they want to move this country forward. If you are a progressive the Right says all you care about is spending money. If you are Conservative, the Left says you do not care about the poor people. If you are Liberal the Conservatives use it as a dirty word in every advertisement they take out. Why would I want to subject myself and my darling wife to four years of that type of abuse? I'd rather sail around the world alone then run for the presidency. No let me change that. I am going to kidnap my wife and stow her away on my boat. As soon as we are 20 feet off shore, I will let her loose. She is not that good swimmer."

Clark opened his cell phone and called Julia as he slowly walked away from the press. "Are you out of your mind? I am not running for the presidency. I am going to put you on my boat and sail around the world with you on it."

He pulled the phone about a foot away from his ear, as if Julia was yelling at him at the top of her lungs. He stopped walking, and made believe he was listening to her conversation.

He wasn't, because he was having a conversation with a recording device in his office. He would move the phone towards his ear every few seconds, until he said, "Julia stop yelling at me. I will think about it okay. I will not promise you anything. I think you are wrong, and it will put a terrible strain on our marriage. I would do anything not to lose you."

He listened for a moment as she supposedly talked to him and then he laughed.

"Yes darling, I would even sell my baseball team to keep you happy."

He hung up his cell phone and turned to the press.

"Women should run this world. They are better negotiators than men are. My wife informs me that I will consider running for the Presidency or I will wind up like Fredo, in the Godfather III. I will go out fishing one day, and pray. However, the only prayers that will be answered will be hers, because there will be no more construction on this house."

The press corps laughed as he retreated towards his home.

**********

With one interview, the entire political landscape changed. The members on the Right who had seen sure victory in their grasp were now in for a dogfight.

The contenders on the left dropped out leaving only one possible undeclared candidate to fill their presidential slot.

Jim Green started doing his thing which was organizing state and local committees to gather around the coming candidate. They kept asking him when Clark was going to declare.

His standard answer was, "When The Time Is Right."

The time came the evening after one of the Right's Open debates among their three top contenders. The issues were divisive in their Party. A Woman's Right to Choose. Equal pay for Equal work. Immigration reform. Social Security.

These issues were meant to bring the party a wider base rather than the narrow rich, White Male, Anglo-Saxon Majority it now enjoyed. Without expanding into the growing Hispanic/American community, the Right wing was doomed to defeat in national politics.

On the evening of October 2, Clark Atwater held a news conference to announce that he was indeed running for the nomination of his party as President of the United States. He did so with Julia standing at his side. He told the nationally televised audience the only reason he was standing at the podium that evening, was the little powder keg standing beside him. I said no to everyone and anyone from the President of the United States, to the young man who delivers our newspaper every morning. There is only one person in this entire world I cannot say no to, and she is standing by my side. She informed me on September 12; I would either sail around the world, or run for the Presidency. I told her I was not going to run, because it would hurt our marriage.

She said, "The only thing that can hurt our marriage is another contractor. You will run for the Presidency and you will win." You cannot argue with logic like hers. Ladies and gentlemen, if God is willing your next first lady, Mrs. Julia Atwater."

*******

At the convention, there was no opposition to Clark Atwater, and he won by acclamation on the first vote. He stunned the audience both in the building and the hundreds of millions who watched on television when he repeated Fred's lines exactly.

"I know you expect me to promise you everything you ever wanted from the President. You want a balanced budget You want zero unemployment. You want Social Security to last forever. You want Universal Health Care that will cost a minimum amount of money out of everyone's pocket. You want a simpler tax code. You want, you want, and you want. I am going to tell you in the next forty minutes exactly what is not going to happen, and why.

He went through a list of what the last four presidents had promised and what had come to fruition. The list of promises sounded glorious. What came about was sorrowful. In the last ten minutes of his speech he told them WHY.

As President of the United States all I can do is submit requests to the Congress. When it gets there every interest group tares it apart, until it no longer resembles what the president requested. Every senator is beholding to some interest group that donates to his reelection campaign. Every Congressman's first speech after he is elected is a speech dedicated to his next reelection. It is a fund raising speech dedicated to those people who gave him money to get him the seat he now will enjoy for the next two years. This is our system. It is run by fear of losing power to make laws and sit in the halls of Congress. The Congress is owned by large corporations and big money. It is not the Left or Right, it is both. This is the reason the President can get nothing done the way he would like to see it done. There is only one way a president can block this logjam in the halls of Congress, and that is for the American people to give him a bulletproof Congress. If I do not have 60 senators, every bill dies on that side of the capital. If I do not have a filibuster proof House, the same happens there. I will sit in the White House twiddling my thumbs knowing there is nothing I can do about it. It is up to you fine people in this hall, and you the American people to make that decision. At this moment, we have in our possession to radically new programs that can rid more than 90% of the Earth's pollution within ten years of its installation throughout the world. Here is the problem. The coal industry, the petroleum industry, and oddly enough the Sierra Club and the Friends of the Earth will join together and fight to keep this from happening. Why, because it is so radically new they will be afraid of it. It will cost billions of dollars to install the needed hardware that will take the pollution from coal and make it into long strand carbon fiber, instead of pollutants that will go into the atmosphere. These fibers can be made into fabrics, chairs, automobile parts things that we cannot even imagine with today's technology. Every special interest group will fight against it because they are afraid of change. This will be the first bill I will send to the Congress. I will fight tooth and nail to get it passed. When it is passed, every job that is required to make the necessary parts for the machines to retrofit the oil and coal industries will be made here in the United States and not in any foreign country. I do not promise you this, I guarantee it. Good night ladies and gentlemen. May God bless all of you and the United States of America."

*******

The next year flew by, but when midnight passed on November 8, and the polls in California were closed, every major news organization declared Clark Atwater the winner by a wide margin.

In his Virginia mansion, Clark Atwater was celebrating with his dearest and closest friends and allies. Fred was at his side for the entire year, and was the first to say, "Congratulations Mister President." I'm taking my wife and children home, and I am going to get laid."

"You are not going anywhere Fred. You have to come to the convention hall with me."

"With all due respect sir, until January 20, I can still say NO."

"How much did I win by Fred?"

"I told you a year ago June your magnificence; eight points."

"If you are wrong, you are fired."

"Did you hear that kids, finally I will get some rest from this windbag. Who is driving?"

"Danni is driving dad."

"Sharon, let us sit all the way in the back of the van. If she hits anything, we stand a better chance of surviving."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence dad."

"Your nineteen years old, and we still have to put blocks on the pedals for you to reach them."

"Do not you start with me dad. We took the blocks off six months ago, when I learned how to move the seats."

"Which one of you showed her where the switch was?"

"It was an accident dad. We went through a car wash and the glove compartment popped open. She saw the owner's manual, and she actually read it."

"I loved it when she was wearing a skirt and had to bend over to put the blocks on the brake and gas pedals. It was truly a sight to behold."

"Dad, you are pervert."

"You have no idea how much I missed all of you this past year. Even the quick visits I was able to make home and the ones that you made to me made me feel alive and loved."

"Mom is dad getting sappy?"

"It's not possible; he must be overtired."

"You are all taking off from school tomorrow. I have some catching up to do. I have to check your grades, speak to your teachers, check your computers, and prepare the speech for the swearing-in ceremony. I am going to be busy all day."

Sandy asked, "Why are we taking off from school tomorrow?"

Fred grinned, "I am great at multitasking."

********

2 o'clock the next afternoon, five females are ganging up on Fred, when the phone rang. Sandy looked at the caller ID and told her dad it was uncle Clark. He told her to put it on speaker and for everyone to be quiet.

"What do you want at this hour of the morning?"

"It is the middle of the afternoon Fred. You are fired, its 8.4%."

"It has been nice sir. Can I go back to pleasing your niece now?"

"It must be nice to be young and virile Fred."

"Yes sir, just think back when you were chasing Ms. Julia, and you are taking all those little blue pills."

"I never took a little blue pill in my life. We have a little intimate dinner tonight at that big White House on Pennsylvania Avenue. Do you think you can get out of bed and be there at 7 o'clock tonight?"

"It all depends on your niece, sir. She has been sexually deprived for the last year, because her uncle was running for a very high position in the government. I will see if I can slow her down for a few hours."

"It will be just the two of you."

"Can I use the Lincoln bedroom for an hour or so if she is still horny?"

"Fred, do you ever run out of things to say?"

"I am sorry sir, did you say something?"

"Goodbye Fred."

"Good night Mister President."

*******

The seating arrangement in the residence was a little odd, but Fred did not say anything about it. He was sitting across from Sharon, Clark, and Julia, when President Collins said, "Clark, as you know two of the justices of the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit have reached 70 years old and have to retire. I have had Jim Green and several of your staff members vetted, and I am going to put one of them on the court, as soon as Congress goes into its Christmas holiday. They will be ticked off, but there is nothing they can do about it. Congratulations Judge Hastings."

Fred's eyes opened wide, his face turned white and he began coughing viciously. From the other side of the table, cell phones were taking pictures as rapidly as they could. So was the presidential photographer.

Clark Atwater was laughing as fast as Fred was coughing. A Secret Service agent walked up behind Fred and helped him stand. This was going to be one of the best nights Clark Atwater had ever had. Fred was quiet. He had no smart remark to answer the president, because he could not speak.

Sharon walked around the table, took her husband in her arms, and kissed him. "Fred stop this, you are embarrassing me."

"He set me up. Look at him gloating over there. He has been looking forward to this day since I got out of Harvard. Now he has pictures to hold over by head for the rest of my life. I cannot kill myself, because I would disappoint President Collins, who has appointed me to one of the highest courts in the country. I cannot disappoint him, and I cannot kill the next president of the United States. He got me, and I cannot do anything about it."

Sharon kissed him again and said, "Now you know how the girls and I feel when we are at home with you."

"I am not that bad."

"No darling, you are much worse."

"I love you Sharon."

"I love you more, Fred."

Fred said to the President, "Sir, I am honored by this appointment to the court. I will do my absolute best to make sure I honor your legacy."

"Fred, I have talked at length with your mentor, and I have no doubts that you will excel on the court."

Fred turned to the next president and said, "I do not know how many years it took Ms. Julia to come up with this plan, but I know it could not have been your brainchild. It was much too sneaky for your tiny brain."

President Collins started laughing as did everyone else at the table except the President elect.

"I will have you know motor mouth that I planned this all by myself. I asked President Collins to appoint you to the bench, because I wanted to see your reaction on a night like tonight. I am going to blow up these pictures and make them mural size. I will have them in the Presidential gym, and every other private area of the residence, just to see the look on your face, when I have a bad day. It will give me the strength to carry on, because I will laugh for hours."

Fred opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out.

Clark looked at him and laughed. "Cat got your tongue, Fred?"

Fred sat in his chair, and Sharon sat on his lap. She whispered in his ear, and Fred smiled.

"Mister President, my wife, and I would like to use the Lincoln bedroom for about an hour."

Her uncle Clark yelled, "You would not dare."

Sharon replied, "Oh yes uncle, after what you did to my husband, I certainly would."

Clark looked at his niece and no words came out of his mouth.

Fred said, "Cat got your tongue, Uncle Clark?"

President Collins asked, "How did you two work together for all those years and get anything done? All you seem to do when you are in the same room is argue."

"Mister President that is why the door between us is always closed. Our assistant, Sondra said if they ever tried to separate us it would be like splitting the atom. The explosion would be catastrophic."

********

As soon as Congress adjourned for the Christmas recess, the president announced the appointment of Fred Hastings, and Lillian Tomlin to fill the two vacancies at the Federal Court of Appeals, District of Columbia Circuit. The outrage from the Right Wing of the Government was immediate. They threatened to take the President to Court over these recess appointments. The president in his normal, mild manner, cited precedent from former presidents from the right side of the aisle.

Suddenly, the furor died down.

At the swearing in ceremony, Sharon held the Bible, as Fred was surrounded by is for gorgeous daughters. The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court swore both new judges in, and told them how sorry he was for them.