John Childress - The Beirut Conspiracy

“Nicole?.” He jerked when he saw Elijah standing at the back. “I don’t understand.” His arms remained around Maha.

She pulled her hand away, embarrassed.

A marine brought Matt to his feet. “The President, sir.”

President Pierce waited while Matt gathered his faculties. He tried not to look at Maha. Or Nicole.

“I’m very glad to meet you, Dr. Richards. I’m sorry it’s like this.”

“Yes, sir.”

“We should leave the room now. Let those who know how to handle these things take over. I need you to come with me, Dr. Richards. I want to talk with you about the Middle East. Karl and I need to know what you know and your ideas will also be welcome. Will you stay here at the White House for a few days? In fact Ms. Delacluse and Mr. Tajikian should stay also. You’ll all be my personal guests, of course.”

Matt nodded.

“I’ll stay if you want me to, Matt,” said Nicole.

He stared at Nicole. “Please stay.”

The President was quiet as the marine guards picked up the body of Maha Hammad and carried her out of the Oval Office. “Noubar?” he said to Dr. Melikian. “I’m asking you to stay also. I have a feeling you may wind up playing a pivotal role.”

“I’d stay anywhere I can get some rest, Mr. President.”

“And Matt? Nicole?”

They waited.

“Give it time.” Pierce walked over to his desk and pressed the intercom. “Miriam? Tell the vice President to stand in for me at tonight’s dinner. Tell them I’m not feeling well. Hell, tell them anything. And get Ms. Black, the secretary of state, the directors of the CIA and FBI, and the attorney general into the situation room at once.” The President picked up his treasured tin cup. “Yes, it’s time we made the decisions everyone has been avoiding. And I believe with what we have from Senator Stevens, Ambassador Barak, and William Fisher, we may have found a way to a lasting solution.”

The President of the United States leaned over to the intercom and buzzed his secretary. “One more thing, Miriam. Tell the White House Press Secretary that my address to the nation will take place in five days, from right here in the Oval Office.” He looked up. “Now let’s get out of here.”

The Oval Office

The speech came five days after Maha Hammad’s death. Since that evening the White House had seen Cabinet members, Senators and Congressmen coming and going at all hours and lines of limousines filled with ambassadors and dignitaries from the world’s nations. Extra phone lines were set up in the Oval Office so President Pierce could move efficiently from one conversation with a foreign leader to another. Time was the enemy now. Ross Pierce couldn’t wait for the normal process of debates and consensus. He pressed hard for immediate decisions and got them. This was the opportunity the world had been waiting for. The opportunit that peace loving people had prayed for. The time the supporters of terrorism feared.

“Is my tie straight?” The President sat behind the massive Resolute desk in the Oval Office. President Pierce understood the power of visual imagery. He had personally placed a model of a Grumman A6 Intruder, the airplane he flew in Vietnam to his right. To his left were carefully arranged photos of his wife, three grown children, and grandchildren. At the edge of the desk stood an illuminated globe, turned so the Middle East could be seen by the cameras. Directly in front was his tin cup.

From behind the camera and cables crowded into the small office someone respectfully whispered, “It’s time, Mr. President.”

“No, it’s past time.” President Roswell Clayton Pierce stared straight into the camera.

“Good evening, my fellow Americans and those of you from other nations around the world who may be listening this evening. Many of you have been waiting for me to make an official statement concerning the path the United States of America will take in helping eliminate terrorism, restoring peace to the Middle East, and stabilizing the world political situation. This evening I’d like to take the opportunity to update you on our efforts in this direction. As I said in my campaign speeches over a year ago and during my inaugural address I am committed to bringing about peace in the Middle East. This was not just campaign rhetoric but a solemn commitment that I intend to keep.

“As you can well understand bringing about lasting peace is easier said than done. The reason I have been silent for the past several months since the tragic events surrounding the suicide bombing in Washington is that I do not take my pledge to you, the American people and the world, lightly. So behind this apparent silence my staff and I have been working day and night to find a workable and lasting solution.” Reaching out and picking up his tin cup, the President continued. “I believe all the elements are now in place for the fulfillment of my commitment.”

Matt, Nicole and Dr. Melikian stood off to one side behind the cameras, cables and engineers who filled the Oval Office. They looked at each other knowing full well what was coming next. Karl van Ness stood further back in the shadows. He nodded, briefly catching Pierce’s glance who nodded back. Quietly van Ness turned, closing the door as he left the Oval Office. He turned to one of the senior White House aides. “Call down and have my driver bring the car around. There’s still some unfinished business.”

The President followed the red light on the active camera. “The decisions I have had to make in the past few days have not been easy and some will weigh heavily on my conscience for many years to come. However I have made these decisions with the utmost thought and deliberation and at all times for the greater good of all nations and the future of all our children and grandchildren.” As he spoke the camera panned across the photos arranged on his desk.

“I have consulted with many foreign leaders and heads of influential government agencies, world organizations such as the United Nations, NATO, and the European Union, as well as trusted business, religious and academic advisors. I have followed American and world opinion polls and reviewed the mountain of e-mail I receive here at the White House every day. As I address you this evening I am at peace with these decisions and I trust that you will support our actions for global peace and security for all peoples of the world.

“Let me begin. First, I must inform the American people that at the end of my term in just over two years, I will not be a candidate for re-election.” The camera pulled back, revealing a wide angle shot of the President at his desk, the Presidential seal emblazoned on the oval carpet. Slowly, it zoomed in again.

“Why am I standing down? The reason is simple. Too many times elected officials avoid making the right decisions for fear that they will not be re-elected. The thirst for votes has turned many a good leader into a so-so follower. I have never been a follower and I won’t start now. I am also not running for re-election because I want to assure all of you, no matter what your political affiliation, that I have absolutely no political agenda in the statements I am about to make and the decisions we have taken here at the White House. My only interest is for a lasting and peaceful solution to the terrible conflict in the Middle East and in putting a stop to the rise of global terrorism.

“For the past several decades the Palestinian people have either been living in refugee camps on foreign territory or in their homes surrounded by soldiers. Like all people they deserve the opportunity for a homeland, a nation, a place to raise their families, to worship their god and to pursue their dreams. Today I have asked Congress to officially recognize the nation of Palestine and the rights of the Palestinian people for a homeland.” The image on the screen switched to a picture of a Palestinian flag flying in the breeze.