Uncivil Liberties (29 page)

“Over the next two days, as we examine America’s governing documents, her process of change, even her failures over the past century, I hope to be able to convince you of the error of your ways, and at the same time, demonstrate to you how you may bring about the change that you desire. Valid change.
Dramatic
change. But honorable change that results in a stronger, more capable and more vibrant United States of America. Do you want a more conservative America? Do you want not only a nation, but a nation
under God
? We can show you how to achieve that end. And I will make one further statement: beginning next week, The Montclair Advocacy will begin a public campaign against voter approval of the formation of the Republic of Western America. Obviously, if we cannot reach accord this week in our discussions here in Mexico, then Montclair will necessarily withdraw from participation in the process.

“Now, our remarks today are not what you were expecting to hear and you need a few moments to consider your reaction. Therefore, my colleagues and I will remove ourselves from the room and allow you to deliberate on whether or not you prefer to continue this discussion. If you choose to do so, and I sincerely hope that you will give us a chance to fully explain our position, we will return and I shall present the thesis for our argument against secession. Mr. Rawlings, as chair of this committee, is that acceptable to you?”

Dan glanced around the room and received a few affirmative nods from his associates, then turned back to look at General Del Valle.

“General, I think we
all
could use a twenty-minute break. But I hope I’m speaking for the remainder of my colleagues when I say we will be privileged to hear your opinion and conclusions when we return.  Sir, thank you for your candor this morning. As you mentioned last evening, it was not what we were expecting, but, with this twenty minutes to reflect, I think we will probably all agree that your position is not all that unexpected. Let’s meet back here at 10:45.”

During the break, Dan pulled up a chair next to Nicole, who was reclining on a sun lounger besides a sparkling, blue-water pool, a cool drink on her table and several towels, beach bag, and sun tan lotion beneath the table. A copy of Governor Jefferson’s
A Colored Cowboy
was lying open across her stomach. A
signed
copy, she would have said, had anyone deemed to ask.

“I’ve only got a few minutes on this break, Nicole, but I think the week is not going to progress as we originally thought. I’m going to text Governor Jefferson, but the general has just dressed us down like school children. Montclair, I mean Del Valle and the whole staff, are opposed to the formation of the Republic and are determined to spend the next couple of days convincing us of that fact. It’s an end run, or a sneak pass, or any other sports analogy that fits. I’m really surprised, and maybe a bit disappointed,” Dan said.

Nicole sat up in her chair and pushed her sunglasses back on top of her dark hair. “Are
you
surprised?”

“Are you kidding? I’m astonished. The general was opposed to the California issue, but to bring his team down here and try to reverse our purpose? That’s brazen. I respect the man, but good grief, he’s gone off the deep end. He said if we didn’t like what his group said, there would be no consulting fee. Amazing.”

Nicole smiled and lifted her drink, taking a sip and offering one to Dan, who shook his head. She replaced the glass on the small, round table, and took his hand. “How much time do you have?” she asked.

“About five minutes. I have to, uh, ‘
¿donde esta los banos?’”
he said.

“Okay, let’s put this together. General Del Valle knows Pug Connor, right?”

“Yes,” Dan said, a quizzical look appearing on his face.

“And Pug Connor knows President Snow . . .”

Dan hesitated. “Yes,” he said, a bit softer, the wheels clicking in his head before Nicole continued.

“. . . and Pug knows that General Del Valle was opposed to secession and he probably knows that Montclair was retained to provide consulting advice to our movement, and . . . he also probably knows that the general resigned as Adjutant General of California because he did not want to be part of the secession.”

Dan was silent for several seconds. “He’s here on presidential orders,” he concluded.

“That might be a bit strong. I think he’s here on his own business, his own initiative. But his interests and those of the president coincide. Dan,” Nicole said, raising his hand to her lips and kissing him. “Pure and simple, he’s here for America. He’s the same man you’ve always known and admired. What else could you expect from him? I tried to tell you in Las Vegas, but it’s hard to tell your new husband that he’s wrong about such an important issue, especially when you’re still on your honeymoon. I think you’ve gotten carried away with pride. Please don’t take that wrong,” she said, pulling his hand closer to her. “You’re all fired up about this new movement and what part you can play in its formation, but you’ve forgotten why you got here in the first place. You’ve forgotten the voices in your blood,” she said, echoing the title of Dan’s successful novel from the previous year. “And you’ve forgotten Jack’s admonition,” she said, referring to Dan’s recently deceased grandfather, who had told Dan that if he didn’t stand up against the militias and the secession nuts, his ancestors would rise up out of their graves and stomp all over him.

“How did I get such a smart wife?” Dan said, his smile now returned.

“Well, first, you got her shot while she was rescuing you, and second, you got her medically retired from the FBI, and third . . . you got her to fall in love with you. Go back in there and listen to General Del Valle. If he doesn’t make sense, go ahead and build a new nation. Who needs a unified America, anyway?” she said, lying back down on her sun lounger. “Oh, and don’t forget the
baños
, or the rest of the meeting will be uncomfortable.”

“I am going to open and close my comments,” Del Valle began, “with quotes from my favorite statesman, Winston Churchill. No other politician had his gift for either content or delivery. In light of my message this morning, one which none of you were prepared to hear, my request to you follows Sir Winston’s thoughts on courage. To me, Churchill was a man who admired, and personified, courage. He said: ‘
Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.’
I ask you to do just that for the next short period of time.

“For forty-two years, ever since my graduation from West Point, I have endeavored to honor my oath to defend and protect the Constitution, from foreign and
domestic
enemies. What has been proposed makes your group essentially a domestic enemy. I would not go so far as to say it’s treasonous, because you are calling for a public referendum, a national vote. If this were Britain, it would be a vote of confidence in the government that might just result in a change of leadership. We have no such system, so for some of you, and your associates in the states, you have chosen what you perceive to be the only legitimate alternative: form your own nation and leave the USA.

“Over the past sixty years, America has become the strongest nation on earth economically speaking, although that is waning quite early in our history. Our military strength has been amply demonstrated around the world—no standing army can successfully oppose us. Instead, we face a man with a suitcase bomb or a civilian army in residential neighborhoods. No army in history can defeat such enemies, willing to sacrifice their lives in exchange for a few dozen of us. But far more important, America has always been the strongest nation on earth morally. Many would find that hard to believe, given the trash Hollywood and television puts out as everyday life, but it’s true collectively, if not individually. We combine moral behavior with freedom of choice to a far greater extent than any other nation that has ever existed.

“Here is the simple fact: America, as we know her, cannot survive this secession movement. If that’s the basis of our political position, then why, you might ask, has Montclair accepted your commission to moderate the seminar and help develop a governmental structure for the new nation? I can answer that distinctly, ladies and gentlemen: we didn’t accept the commission to form the structure for a new nation. We came to help
you
examine the structure of our present nation, and see how we can apply it to our advantage. We are decidedly opposed to cradle-to-grave socialism. We are opposed to government in the state to which it has evolved. In that, we can agree. America is moving much too far in the wrong direction and removing freedom of choice in the process. That road leads to slavery.

“Montclair is conservative in philosophy. We
do
believe in free enterprise. We
are
opposed to the growth of government, excessive debt that even our grandchildren won’t be able to repay. But we are also opposed to running away from America’s troubles and finding our own little Utopia. For the sake of our discussion this morning, let’s examine the facts. Two Americas, no matter how closely aligned and coordinated their intent, will quickly become disparate in philosophy.
One
American is already disparate. The president can barely achieve fifty-two per cent of the vote in a national election. That means almost half of the country did not want him . . . or her. Within twenty or thirty years, there will be
four
, if not
six
Americas, philosophically, if not legislatively.

“But if America were divided and no longer the strongest force for good on earth—and, by heaven, I hope we can all agree that America has consistently been the primary force for good in the world this past century—but if we surrendered that title, that obligation to our role in history, who would replace us. China? Russia? A Pan-Arab confederation with government by Sharia law? Would
any
of those nations have the best interest of the world as their primary goal? Would they reach out to protect their neighbor if they were in trouble? Or would they join the invaders and take control over yet another country?

“These are all global considerations. Those of you in the room, I dare say, have not given much thought, education, or concern to global issues.  Replace America with
any
of those countries, and within fifty, probably twenty-five years, there wouldn’t even be a history book to laud the twentieth-century efforts of the United States of America. We would have ceased to exist. And the Evil Empire would have won.

“You are all very young. Frankly, you’re ignorant. You see America locally, not internationally. You see America’s drift to the left, a more liberal society, taxation run rampant, a system of takers and givers, and each of you is tired of giving. I understand that. But consider this, ladies and gentlemen: you are all selfish.”

Del Valle remained quiet for a long moment as the insult hung in the air.

“You ask, how can we be selfish when we are the
givers
? The ones who pay taxes. The ones
not
on welfare. The ones the takers look to for sustenance. I can answer that. The takers are easy to figure out. They’re greedy. They’re the ones de Tocqueville spoke about when he said America would fail economically when her citizens found out they could pay themselves from the public purse. But the givers are selfish because they believe that they’ve
earned
what they have through hard work, industry, free enterprise, smart thinking, and they want it all right now. How many of you live in a home nicer than your parents had? How many drive a ‘name brand’ car?

“Selfishness takes many forms. We constantly hear that America is actually a ‘center right’ country. If so, why do the left-leaning always turn out to put their candidates in office? I can answer that also—to assure their continued entitlement check. The ‘givers’, as we have called them this morning, are so engaged in pursuit of their personal fortune that they do not vote, they do not participate in community, they do not ‘give’ what the country needs, so we have elected people who will ‘take’ what they have and ‘give’ it to those who they promised to feed. Selfish? Yes, too damned concerned with ‘self’ to put in the time and effort necessary to keep the horde at bay.

“Don’t misunderstand me. Individual industry is what created America and without it, America will fail as surely as it will if the secession is implemented. America has gone off the rails. As surely as the sun rises in the east and sets in the west, the fifty percent of citizens who pay tax cannot sustain the fifty percent of citizens who don’t. But as greedy as those non-paying citizens might be, it’s not totally their fault.

“Let me give you an example. If I said that if you would come and listen to me speak for thirty minutes every Saturday night, I would put one thousand dollars in your bank every Monday, how long would you come and listen? Forever, I would predict. Politicians have been promising everything to everyone for over one hundred years. It’s the way to acquire public office. We call these people leaders. I call them loaders. Freeloaders. They take from you to give to them so they can stay in power, and then they claim to be benevolent. It’s a shell game, and you provide the pea.”

Del Valle ceased speaking and looked around the room, pausing to hold eye contact with each person in the room, nodding, smiling to ease the tense atmosphere and gauging the reaction.

“If you will give us three days, we will show you how to change America . . . the
United
States of America, the one and only nation in the history of the earth that guarantees, or used to guarantee, the right to teach correct principles. We must remain one nation. One nation dedicated to the core values established by our Founding Fathers. One nation standing as a beacon of light to the world. One nation under God.