Marty immediately called and asked his old team to assemble to assess the situation with the Heartland states’ actions. He asked Norma Harrison to call in Bill O’Hare, and do what she could to contact Pat and get her home along with Demetrious and Sammy. He knew he could count on J.P. Thomas, Sam Waters and Raymond Ramos.
“Marty, what do you need?” Bill asked when he got to Marty’s office.
“Hey, Bill, could you give Norma some help locating Pat, Sammy and De? Last I heard, they were in D.C. at their designated rendezvous. But they haven’t checked in at all, and I’m a bit concerned they ran into some trouble they weren’t expecting. You got any contacts in D.C. that might be able to do some digging?”
Bill furrowed his brow. This was not a problem for him; he knew exactly where they were, at least several hours ago. “Yes, sir, I think I might know a couple of folks who could do some discreet checking. Is that what you had in mind?”
“Yes, something like that.” Marty took off his suit jacket and tossed it over the back of one of the chairs, then went to the credenza with the coffee pot and poured a cup. “Want coffee?”
“I’ll pass, sir.” Bill finished up his notes. “You want me to start on this right away?”
“Yes, please,” Marty replied, sitting down at his desk with his coffee. “Keep Norma up to date on your progress.”
“Yes, sir, I will.” Bill walked out, and Marty heard him stop and talk to Norma. Then his footsteps faded away as he headed back to his office.
Several hours later, his three trusted advisors arrived with their usual flare. J.P. strode in, wearing the same old boots and carrying the same tired, worn Stetson. Aside from that, though, he wore a neatly pressed cavalry shirt with brass buttons up the front and a pair of likewise pressed jeans that looked new. The other two boys walked in, clad in their tailored business suits, their pants legs pulled down over alligator boots polished to a fine shine.
Marty welcomed them in and offered them coffee and some delicious cinnamon rolls Norma had provided. After they all had coffee and rolls, they took seats around Marty’s desk.
“I know you’re all aware of the reason I’ve called you together. We need to discuss any impact this new development with the Heartland states might have on Texas, and decide how to handle any negative consequences that might arise,” Marty stated bluntly.
Raymond opened up first. “If this had been almost any other group of states, it would have been far less painful for the remaining states and probably less costly as well.”
“Yes, the problem of borders is of far less concern to them than the loss of eighty percent of the Union’s oil reserves. They deal with crossing borders of other countries every day; it’s nothing new. But making the other states instantly dependent on foreign reserves again is another matter,” J.P. stated.
Sam said nothing, just waited for the rest to have their say.
Marty asked their opinion of the legal issues the Heartland states might face in their bid for independence.
J.P. took a big gulp of his coffee. “I’d guess it won’t be any different than us leaving, and that might be the problem. The D.C. powers couldn’t very well let us walk out and deny those states, so they will have to let them go, or prevent us from going. That’s the way I see it.”
“Is that the way you see it, Marty?” asked Sam, leaning forward in his chair so he could get a better read on Marty’s face.
“Yes and no,” Marty opined. “That could be the way it plays out, but there are some real differences between them and us.”
“How so?” asked Raymond.
“Well, for one thing,” Marty told them, “making a joint announcement and setting the same date to vote could be problematic constitutionally. Article 1, Section 10, clause 3 says, ‘no state shall enter into any Agreement or Compact with another state.’ So, if there was an agreement made or a compact signed to form any kind of partnership after independence, it could be a violation of the Constitution.”
“I see,” said Sam.
Marty took another sip of his coffee and added, “The real problem in trying to deny this kind of collusion is that none of these states can make it without the others. Interconnected power grids, pipeline and rail transport, even telephone and cable communications would be difficult for a state as sparsely populated as Montana to deal with alone. And, if even one of them fails in their referendum, the U.S. could make it impossible for the rest to carry on.”
“Well, I’m sure the Supreme Court will make that point moot anyway if Marty’s point is valid,” said J.P.
Marty rested his arms on his desk, deep in thought. Then he said, “I’m pretty confident the Heartland states have no real intention of leaving; perhaps they simply want to run their own affairs, and they’re trying to introduce this as a bargaining chip.”
The others agreed that might be the case.
* * *
The following morning was in chaos as President Barker’s press secretary announced a press conference to deal with these latest developments on secession.
“President Barker will make a few opening remarks and then he will take a few questions,” Julie Edmond announced to a packed Brady Briefing Room.
Just as Julie said that, the president entered and moved across to the podium.
“Ladies and gentlemen of the press, the president of the United States,” said Julie as she moved away.
President Barker wasted no time in getting to the point. “I’m sure you all heard the details of the joint press conference from the seven Heartland states yesterday morning. As I’m sure you can understand, we simply cannot allow these states to leave the Union. That would be the end of the Union as we know it, and would geographically split the U.S. down the middle. It would, in effect, leave us with two distinct bodies of states with another unaffiliated body of these seven states and Texas between us.” He looked out at the crowd, noting that every member of the press was listening attentively.
He continued. “In addition to that, it would leave us in a strategically untenable position of not only being divided, but removing eighty percent of our crude oil resources and forty percent of our strategic petroleum reserves. These problems, along with the logistical problems of rail, air, and ground travel across the states from our East Coast to our West Coast, place us in a position we simply can’t allow. I know you all have questions, but I only have time for a few.”
The president then called on Stephen Plummer from CNN to ask the first question.
“Mr. President, will this affect the separation of Texas and, if so, how?”
President Barker responded. “I’m meeting with my Cabinet and members of the House and Senate immediately after this press conference to discuss how we deal with the Texas issue in light of these new developments. We will make an announcement as soon as we find a way forward. We will certainly have to delay the departure of Texas, and see how this plays out as we go along.”
The president then called on a young reporter, Katherine Rosen, from Fox News.
“To follow up, Mr. President, Texas has a formidable military presence; do you anticipate any military action being involved?”
“Please, ladies and gentlemen, we don’t want to make this bigger than it is. I’m sure there will be no need for any military activity.”
The president then waved and walked out, leaving behind a bunch of frustrated news people.