George Bush’S Great America [EN]: Chapter 72

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“Should we just throw that out for recycling?”

That was the first thing Bush said after lining up his aides related to North Korea. At first, the aides had no idea what he was talking about and just glanced at each other, but they soon realized he was referring to North Korea and clamped their mouths shut as if they had glue on them.

Surprisingly, this wasn’t because they were incompetent, but rather because they were too competent. They could tell from the President’s sullen expression that the answer had already been decided, and they were only being forced to give that answer.

However, not everyone was like that. No matter how corrupt and declining a country may be, there is always at least one or two people who speak their mind among the sycophants, regardless of time or place.

“Mr. President, that proposal is very attractive to our government, but the South Korean government would be very embarrassed.”

As the US-led policy of appeasement towards North Korea began to show results, the Kim Ji-hoon government was working to make reunions of separated families a regular event. If they messed things up here, all the blame would be directed at the United States, and even if the United States was capable of enduring that criticism, it would no longer be able to lead the construction efforts.

Most of all, the fact that things were going according to North Korea’s wishes was truly terrible.

“But isn’t there too big of a problem to just ignore?”

That’s right. If things continued like this, the light-water reactor project itself could be scrapped.

This would undoubtedly leave a significant stain on Bush’s career. Of course, the public might be angry at North Korea’s veiled rejection, but there was no telling how the evaluation of the failed light-water reactor project would change in the future due to those protests.

“I’ll be left feeling awful.”

‘Ah, it wasn’t about his career.’

Well, there was also this issue.

“We can’t stop the protests, and we can’t just ignore them and proceed. So, it’s ‘all-out war.’ That’s the conclusion I’ve reached.”

“Ah, um… are you talking about war?”

“When I say all-out war, I don’t mean we’re actually going to have a war. Wouldn’t it be fun if some fighter jets just loitered around the Chinese and North Korean borders?”

‘I’m going crazy.’

‘Only he and the newspapers would find that fun.’

This meant that the Bush administration, which would have to carry out that executive order, would be half-dead. Or perhaps the aides had already been dead since before they entered this room.

“We understand your intentions, Mr. President. But what if there’s a better way?”

When his words didn’t move the less experienced aides, the chief of staff, his closest confidant, stepped forward.

“A better way?”

“We could just give North Korea supplies. If they skim off enough, they’ll be quiet for a while.”

That wasn’t entirely wrong. Considering that North Korea’s main strategy was to talk about peace in front and plot war behind the scenes, if they received the supplies, they would at least be quiet for a few months.

Well, it might backfire or be useless, but it was certainly the policy of appeasement they had been pursuing. This would reduce the backlash against the South Korean government, and the US government could also achieve the same effect.

“I don’t like it.”

The only problem was that Bush strongly disliked it.

“I don’t care if the North Korean kids whine, but if supplies go in, they’ll just keep asking for more endlessly. And if we cut them off, they’ll use that as an excuse to nullify the light-water reactor project itself or engage in provocations against the South.”

Was this the first time he had experienced this? Kim Gap-hwan had read about it endlessly in the newspapers, and he had been educated about it endlessly in the military. Moreover, he had even witnessed the Yeonpyeong Island shelling firsthand because he had once received a construction order on Socheong Island. Socheong Island was close enough to see Daeyeonpyeong Island with the naked eye, but fortunately, Socheong Island was not hit by the shelling, so he did not suffer any direct damage.

However, until then, Kim Gap-hwan had mistakenly thought that the North Korean communists were finally invading and was waiting for the country to call him up. That’s probably why he felt a chill down his spine whenever he thought about the Yeonpyeong Island shelling provocation.

“Mr. President, if we take a coercive approach, the whole thing will fall apart.”

Of course, this was also a problem.

“Isn’t that why I called you all here?”

No wonder the person who had been whispering secrets with only the chief of staff since 9/11 had gathered the aides like this. It was to squeeze out some wisdom.

“The administrative power of the United States is the best in the world. I believe that.”

Bush was sincere about this, and it was actually true. The administrative power of the United States was so superior to that of other countries that the difference in the number of digits was clear. However, administrative power was not as overflowing as the United States’ unlimited budget, so the more it was squeezed, the more manpower was worn down and consumed. Even now, the Bush administration was testing the limits of its administrative power while cleaning up the messes that Bush had made.

But what did limits matter? Weren’t aides ultimately in a profession where they had to do whatever the president told them to do? They were being forced to break through their limits by the president, who had a nonchalant expression.

The aides were skilled at projecting the sharp administrative abilities they had hammered out based on the knowledge they had studied to the point of dizziness, the practical experience they had accumulated while working as bureaucrats, and the experiences they had lived through, but they were terribly weak at dealing with such intangible, ghost-like problems.

Well, would there even be an administration on Earth that could deal effectively with this kind of problem? Bush did not withdraw his eyes of trust and expectation from them.

“What if we just suppress them?”

“That’s exactly the scenario the communists want. It’s the perfect excuse to stop the light-water reactor project!”

In short, President Bush was urging his aides to find a perfect and exquisite political means that would allow the United States to avoid being screwed over while also not stopping the light-water reactor project.

“What if the bombers and fighter jets you mentioned, Mr. President, flew a few times through the airspace between the Chinese and North Korean borders?”

Normally, China would never allow that, but they were desperate to reduce the debt they owed from the Qing Dynasty era. If they were somehow appeased, they might even get something truly unbelievable.

“The problem is when that madman confronts the United States head-on. Many South Korean citizens will die.”

If the war went well, it would be over in an hour. No, it might end in less than an hour. The problem was the number of shells that would be exchanged in that very short time on that narrow Korean peninsula.

“The South Korean government, with all its major facilities and major companies destroyed, will have a hard time recovering for decades.”

“That’s why we have the light-water reactor project. Once the light-water reactor is completed, it will become a demilitarized zone like the Joint Security Area [a neutral zone where discussions between North and South Korea take place], where US troops will be stationed instead of the South Korean army. If we can solve that problem, we might be able to achieve peaceful absorption unification instead of unification by force!”

In addition, the Gaeseong Industrial Complex [a special economic zone in North Korea] had been under construction since 2000, the year before last, and was being built busily. If everything went according to plan, construction would be completed in 2004, and occupancy would begin in 2005, making it the vanguard of the North Korean economic invasion.

Even if it was an economic invasion, it wasn’t the same as other economic colonies, but rather an invasion of Western-style capitalism to destroy North Korea’s Juche [self-reliance] ideology.

In fact, there were many problems with both unification by force and absorption unification. If the former meant that the entire Korean peninsula would be devastated, with no dreams, no hope, and no future, the latter meant that the South Korean government would have to recognize the people who had been North Korean residents as equal citizens and start from there.

If that happened, the welfare costs and the administrative power required for them would suddenly jump dozens of times, and the South Korean government’s administrative power would have to be devoted to solving this problem for decades.

Even now, the South Korean government was not a group of optimistic people who were unaware of these problems. There were seriously crazy ideas being floated around, such as defining North Korean residents as second-class citizens upon unification, or temporarily discriminating against them and slowly resolving the issue.

Of course, where there’s smoke, there’s fire. It was certain that this kind of crazy talk was coming out in the face of realistic barriers, and that the South Korean government alone could not solve the problem.

However, this cost could be covered to some extent by the United States. This would give the world the impression that the Korean peninsula had been unified under the leadership of the United States, and as a result, the United States could solidify its position as the ‘world’s police.’

Long live Pax Americana [American Peace]!

“The point is constantly being blurred, but the important thing is how to disperse those protesters.”

“Protesters? Are those protesters? They’re North Korean soldiers disguised as protesters!”

It was true. Not only were there North Korean residents there, but about half of them were soldiers to control the North Korean residents. When this was pointed out, North Korea said.

“‘In our Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, soldiers also have the right to vote, so even if soldiers on vacation protest, the party has no justification to stop them other than simple recommendations.’ Isn’t that crazy?”

It was truly the height of nonsense. If a person could ascend to heaven with only nonsense, Kim Jong-il would already be a god. Maybe the fact that he could use teleportation and turn pine cones into grenades was because he had become a god. In fact, at that point, he wouldn’t just be a god, but an evil god.

“What if we at least try to keep them away from the light-water reactor construction site? Like, plaster the equipment with North Korean flags and Kim Il-sung’s picture.”

“Are you finally going crazy from dealing with a madman?”

“Then what do you want us to do? That way, at least they won’t kick the heavy equipment at the construction site!”

“Who will take responsibility if it backfires? What if they attack us instead?”

There was a possibility that the protesters would not simply end with a candlelight vigil, but would instead grab clubs and attack the construction site, claiming that Kim Il-sung’s portrait had been insulted.

“Then it’s a real war, as you said, Mr. President.”

“Hey, you!”

As ideas began to run dry, all sorts of strange things came out. They were the best elites in the United States, but the answer they had to find was contradictory, and the answer itself seemed to be non-existent. As time passed, their reason was worn away, and the ideas that came out became increasingly radical, and as a result, they were gradually going crazy from the madness they had created themselves.

“Mr. President? It doesn’t seem like we’re going to reach a conclusion here. How about giving us some more time?”

After 10 minutes, 30 minutes, and only a pile of useless ideas and opinions on paper, the chief of staff took the lead and suggested to President Bush that there seemed to be no more progress to be made today, and that they should adjourn and meet again.

“That’s a good idea.”

The aides and the chief of staff breathed a huge sigh of relief inside. They were so relieved that their sighs didn’t come out, but their expressions showed that they were thinking, ‘At least he’s giving us time to think.’

However, the answer that Bush gave next made them realize that it was far from the ‘time to think’ that the aides were thinking of.

“Rest time is essential for the brain to work! So, you won’t go home until you come up with an answer. That’s great! I highly respect your opinions.”

The aides had various thoughts, but strangely enough, their ‘first words’ were all the same.

That was the single word, “Huh?”

“The light-water reactor project is a long-cherished project of the United States and South Korea. That’s why every minute and every second is very important right now. But everyone seems to be well aware that we need to reach a conclusion by tomorrow at the latest, so as president, I couldn’t be happier.”

The aides all held their heads. Some began to pray with rosaries, while others began to calculate how to escape from the president’s grasp, rather than how to disperse the North Korean protesters.

“I’m counting on you all.”

With the soundless screams of the aides in the background, the conference room door was firmly closed by the agents Bush was moving.