Executive Actions by Gary Grossman Read Free Book Online Page A

his aim ever so slightly and focused directly on his target. He steadied his weapon against his shoulder and a towel on the window sill. He had chosen this hotel, this hotel room, and this window. The St. Charles still had windows that could open. So many hotel windows couldn’t anymore. But that was all part of his detailed survey. That was the way he operated. Never quickly. Never foolishly. McAlister had decided a long time ago that this would be the place. It was only a matter of arranging the time with the people he served.
    “The United States is a leader among nations,” Lodge asserted. Make no mistake of that. No matter how much you hear that we cannot police the world, there is no one else to fulfill that role. And like the mean streets of America, this is a mean world.
    “Suicide bombers target Israeli buses, markets and streets. In retaliation, Palestinian women and children die as missiles seek out their homes and schools. Wars in Africa create more homeless, more hunger, more anger. Pakistan and India face each other with arsenals too deadly to speak of and too dangerous to ignore. And…America is attacked.”
    No one coughed. No one moved. Lodge controlled the crowd with the power of his voice and the conviction of his beliefs. “I do know one thing. Somebody has to take charge. Remember the past. Every time we thought we couldn’t, we had to. When we said we shouldn’t, we ultimately did. Before World War I Democrats said, ‘Stay at home.’ We couldn’t. Then, before World War II, it was the Republicans who said, ‘Stay at home.’ Again, we couldn’t. We helped before the war with aid to our allies. We helped by fighting and we helped with the European recovery through efforts like the Marshall Plan. And so it was for us through the decades. Earthquakes, storms or famine. We’ve been there to help…a world leader…a way of life. Yet wars continued; hatred needs no rest. In the 1990s, we believed terrorism was a world away…someone else’s problem. In 2001 we experienced it at home.”
    Everyone remained quiet; mesmerized by the candidate from Vermont.
    “But how do we change this angry world of ours?”
    “Oh, do tell, congressman,” McAlister whispered. “Do tell.”
    Teddy Lodge brushed the hair off his forehead.
    “We do it together. You and I…. In a partnership of nations…. A partnership of peace.
    “We strike partnerships by sharing food and building up economies. We give. We get. We educate the world’s uneducated, we make them intellectually stronger against dictators who would take advantage of their people’s lack of knowledge. We give and we get. ” He articulated the phrase precisely for his audience. They’d catch on fast.
    “And yes, we share our knowledge of arms and our technological know-how to fight emerging terror in third world nations. So we won’t have to rush in at an unacceptable cost of American lives. We give and we get.
    “We build bridges to former adversaries and make them our friends.”
    By now everyone joined in, “We give and we get.”
    Even McAlister was now mouthing the words. “We give and we get.” And he counted.
    The congressman stepped back and smiled.
    At his camera, Wheaton realized that Lodge was definitely into new material. He hadn’t heard this before. It was a different speech, not the typical stump drivel. He double-checked his camera load to make sure he had enough tape stock left. There really was no need for him to look, although he didn’t know it. Everything was scheduled to fit on one 30-minute videotape load. He was ten minutes into it.
    Jenny was impressed with the way Teddy handled the words and the crowd. “Yes, we give and we get,” she mouthed with him.
    And from across the street, McAlister caressed the trigger. Almost . The shot was nearly there for him to take. His mind was clear. McAlister didn’t really care one way or another about the election. And while everyone would look for the assassin’s