George Bush’S Great America [EN]: Chapter 254

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“I’m not sure if it’s okay to take up your precious time like this.”

Hearing that, the Chief of Staff sighed inwardly while making coffee. He thought he could get away from work for a while, but he had momentarily forgotten that he was at the center of power.

Unless a person standing right next to the center of power secretly hid somewhere, the Chief of Staff’s leisurely afternoon was almost impossible.

“No, not at all. I didn’t expect you to visit privately during your vacation.”

His name was James Oliver. Befitting a common name in the United States, his nationality was perfectly American, but in terms of race, he was Jewish. And at the same time, he was a member of AIPAC [American Israel Public Affairs Committee], one of the largest lobbying groups in the United States.

If Bush heard this, he would probably say, ‘Who the hell is this unheard-of guy?’ That’s because he was a *nouveau riche* who had suddenly risen in the last three years or so. However, although his name was not famous, the influence he had on American society was enormous, thanks to the immense wealth he had amassed, which made it difficult to simply call him a *nouveau riche*.

In other words, he was an existence that had risen to the surface as ‘history’ changed. The land he initially owned was practically wasteland and quite insignificant, but after the Bush administration announced a new highway construction plan, the land price soared, and he used that money to start a business, becoming the head of a huge conglomerate in just three years.

“Espresso?”

He openly wondered if he should kick him out, or try to appease him, alternately looking at the coffee in his hand and the Chief of Staff of the United States—Andrew Card, who had taken a vacation and briefly stepped down from his duties.

“Ah, I see. Lately, when it comes to coffee, the image has solidified as espresso, so I made that. Should I change it to an Americano?”

This was the unvarnished truth, and as evidence, the Chief of Staff looked genuinely embarrassed. However, even if this was a mistake and not intentional, it was an undeniable fact that Andrew Card had committed a discourtesy. That Andrew Card, of all people, made a mistake in treating a guest! If Bush knew, he would laugh for a long time until the Chief of Staff told him to stop.

“No, it’s okay. Then can I think of this as the same espresso that the President drinks?”

“You can think of it that way.”

‘Normally, I could have tolerated it even if the introduction was a bit longer, but…’

No matter how self-absorbed a person is, their personality changes a little when they spend time with other people, and it was impossible for the Chief of Staff, who was originally a good listener, not to change. Especially if that person bulldozes everything in their path.

“I don’t have time for this. Tell me the main point without beating around the bush.”

“Oh-. No time on vacation. The Chief of Staff has a really hard job.”

What he brought up was empathy, which is the basis of conversation, but the Chief of Staff, the object of empathy, did not want to be empathized with at all.

That was because James Oliver was the cause of his busy schedule. Therefore, his empathy felt like he was teasing the Chief of Staff.

“What do you want me to do to help you? I don’t think you came here to have idle chatter.”

“You’re so cool. Like president, like chief of staff. But if the conversation is to be more flexible, wouldn’t a little more conversation be necessary? And today, I came to meet Andrew Card as an individual, not as the Chief of Staff of the United States.”

He waved his hand with an exaggerated gesture as if it were a misunderstanding, but that rather trampled on the Chief of Staff’s last remaining patience.

“Don’t lie. What kind of idiot in the world would fall for such ridiculous words? So please tell me quickly, before all the sand remaining in the hourglass inside me falls to the bottom.”

It was truly direct. It was nothing more than pressure. But there was not a grain of hesitation in the conversation. A troubled expression was drawn on James’s face.

“I guess you don’t like metaphors. Then I’ll do this.”

The Chief of Staff took out a real hourglass from the drawer and turned it over. Whether he knew James’s feelings or not, the sand began to fall downwards due to gravity. Now the Chief of Staff’s warning had firmly bound James both mentally and materially.

“You’re too much. The two-page A4 paper decorated with rhetoric has become useless.”

“If you ever have a chance to meet the President, you shouldn’t prepare such things. He hates beating around the bush.”

“Oh, thank you for the advice.”

“To be honest, I’m busy these days. Since around the 9/11 terrorist attacks, I’ve been working so hard that I don’t even have time to breathe—all for the future of the country. Do you know what this means?”

He nodded as if to tell him to continue. It was a discourtesy in political circles, but this was a private meeting. It’s just that the conversations going back and forth are a bit political.

“Do I need to say more?”

“No. That’s enough. I’ll tell you.”

He continued the conversation and picked up the coffee cup. The espresso in the coffee cup rippled like pudding.

“Our AIPAC—no, Israel—wants to know the President’s true intentions. That’s all. Originally, I was going to poke around and find out, but, well, as you can see.”

He finished speaking and savored the aroma of the espresso, and then, as if there was something wrong with the aroma he had savored, he frowned with a puzzled expression and tilted his head, and then reluctantly swallowed a sip of something presumed to be espresso. It was so bitter and thick that he couldn’t help but frown.

He thought that he had mixed too much sugar because of the serious thickness that was visible to the eye, but he had no idea that it would be so thick even though he hadn’t added even 1g of sugar. James hesitated for a moment, then quickly took out two sugar cubes from the container and put them in his mouth.

The Chief of Staff also didn’t have such a good expression. He felt that what was coming had finally come. It wasn’t that he was mistreating or neglecting Israel. It’s just that he didn’t move at all according to their intentions.

‘AIPAC, huh? I expected it, but they came surprisingly late.’

The reason why he, not someone else, came here was because of his influence, but surely it was because Israel couldn’t say it openly, so they sent him.

The reason why it was the Chief of Staff on vacation, not the President, was probably similar. He told me to speak directly, but I never imagined that he would speak so directly without hesitation.

“You’re being direct.”

“You told me to talk directly. Above all, I judged that you wouldn’t care about such things.”

As expected of the chairman of a rising conglomerate, he didn’t just win his position by luck or poker. He certainly had an eye for people.

If it had been the Chief of Staff a few years ago, such directness would not have worked at all, but thanks to someone who only spouts directness without turning around, his personality has changed like this.

‘Now, how would the President answer here?’

When he closed his eyes, he seemed to see the image of George W. Bush. And then he erased it. That’s because the answer he would give was already out before he could even imagine it.

“Just because America is a country of lobbying doesn’t mean we have to follow the intentions of AIPAC or Israel.”

More precisely, it was ‘What the hell do I care? Screw it.’

That’s what it meant. That’s probably what it meant. At least the Chief of Staff decided to believe so. He’s been a bit quieter lately. Until just two years ago, he was a human being who whined that he wanted to ride a bomber.

“And we are also treating Israel well enough. Aren’t we?”

That was actually the case. Bush didn’t have a very good impression of Israel, but he was still doing his best as an ally.

No matter how reckless Bush was, he did not completely ignore the national policy stance that had been going on for a long time simply because he did not like the country.

Except for the F-22s and other strategic assets that were just starting to come out, all the latest weapons were generously handed over to the Israeli army at low prices, and diplomatically, at least for now, he was siding with Israel.

“Perhaps you are misunderstanding me. We have no intention of questioning lobbying. And I have no intention of criticizing it either. I’m just curious about the President’s intentions, as I said before.”

As the Chief of Staff judged, it didn’t seem like he was turning the conversation because he was at a loss for words. He sighed inwardly and said this.

“Intentions. To be honest, I wish I could know that. Even though I’m serving him the closest, there are many times when I don’t know his thoughts well. Still, I just guess his intentions while watching him from the side.”

It was a lie. Except for a very small part, Bush’s intentions could be predicted about nine times out of ten times a day.

It’s just that the very small part is an idea that I can’t tell whether it’s a genius or a madman. It’s because he wasn’t such a unique person.

“But there will be no reason to be at odds with Israel.”

That alone was an answer for James. It may have been a formality or a good-looking lie, but he got a positive answer. From the beginning, this was not a diplomatic affair, but just two people who were unrelated to politics talking. The conversation between these two could not have any impact on the political situation.

“Then this is purely personal curiosity. I’m worried about whether I can ask.”

“Please tell me.”

After saying that, the Chief of Staff drank the espresso. The conversation was not long, and the hourglass had just reached the bottom with the last grain of sand.

The coffee cup was still warm. James was watching the scene with a disgusted expression, but the Chief of Staff didn’t care.

“Is the President really a split personality?”

Hearing that, he almost spat out the slime he was drinking. No, it was espresso. However, perhaps because his body had been trained for many years next to that George W. Bush, he was able to control his emotions well without showing them on the outside.

“Outwardly, the President doesn’t have any mental illness. Not only his mind but also his body is very healthy.”

“Outwardly, that is.”

“Yes, outwardly.”

In fact, the Chief of Staff is working hard to preach that he is normal, but the Chief of Staff himself is one of the people who thinks that Bush has a mental illness.

For example, mania accompanied by mild depression. It was what they called bipolar disorder. But every time he was tested, he came out normal, so I had no choice but to believe that he was normal.

And there was also a reason why he already knew about the ‘George W. Bush split personality theory’. Was it a research result released in Europe? The research result was really convincing.

“I enjoyed the coffee.”

“Next time, I’ll give you an Americano.”

“…I would really appreciate that.”