- Jul 12, 2018
- 9,342
Private
"Over fifteen-thousand Jews? Their own citizens?" President Gore asked the CIA director as he sat back in his leather chair in the Situation Room and slowly contemplated the number.
"We thank the number may be closer to twenty-thousand, possibly as well as Armenians and Kurds. We have an idea of where they're being held, but we're going to need to have significant assets in the area to even think of doing anything about it," one of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Jackson Fitzgerald, the Secretary of State, leaned forward and rested his elbows on the Mahogany table in the room. "Mister President, the Turks responded to our notice of expulsion. They've informed us that any American left in Turkey will be arrested starting midnight tonight. The State Department thinks that the number of Americans left in Turkey could be around three hundred, while the number of Americans with both Turkish and American citizenship could range from five-hundred to nine-hundred. They've also publicly threatened violence against any deployments made into the Mediterranean."
"Where are the British on this?" Gore asked to the room.
"They're part of the coalition I was telling you about," John Glass, Secretary of Defense said. "It looks like they've changed gears. We've been asked to deploy fighters to a Royal Air Force base in Cyprus as well as air defense assets. We're asking them to commit to deploying the Royal Navy into the Mediterranean, since we're going to have to do the same. From what I've been told by our representative to the coalition at the Pentagon, Vice Admiral Osborne, the British are going to be pretty heavily invested in this. We need to get our fleet into the Eastern Hemisphere as soon as possible. Sir, I think you should begin considering the deployment of American boots on the ground in England, Cyprus, and eventually Turkey."
President Gore sat back and looked at the map of the Mediterranean Sea on the wall across from him. "The Roman Lake" as his 11th grade World History teacher called it.
"Well we can send over the air assets without much issue, but our carriers and boots on the ground are going to be a different story... Jackson, I think we've done everything we can to reason with these people," the President said. Everyone in the room, including the President, sat uneasy. Gore looked to his right and saw that Benjamin Sinclair's chair was empty.
"Does anyone know where the Vice President is?" Gore asked.
"Yes sir," Fitzgerald replied. "The Pope called twenty minutes ago and asked to speak to the Vice President. He told me he would meet you in the Oval once we concluded the briefing."
"Alright, I'll see you all again in an hour. I want some options on how we can do these deployments," he said as he stood up. Everyone else in the room stood up as well. Two Marines stood at attention and opened the doors to the Situation Room for the President as he walked out. His chief of staff, Duncan, and his press secretary walked and talked with the President until he got to the Oval Office. He entered the room and closed the door behind him. Vice President Sinclair was standing next to one of the windows near the Resolute Desk and looking out, eerily similar to a picture of John F. Kennedy that Gore walked by every day.
"How's the weather?" Gore asked as he walked to Sinclair and stood next to him. They both looked out into what felt like an abyss.
"It's turning into a blizzard," Sinclair said. "It just keeps getting worse."
Gore slipped his hands into his pockets and nodded. "Yeah... that's what I keep hearing."
The President walked over to the Resolute Desk and took a seat. He reached for the phone on his desk, but then stopped. "What did the Pope say?"
Sinclair turned his head. "Do you really want to know, sir?"
It felt strange when Sinclair called Gore "Sir". The Vice President was over twenty years older than Gore.
"Yes," Gore responded to his Catholic friend, "I do."
"I asked him what he thought about the situation. He told me that you already know what you need to do, but you're stuck on looking for a reason not to do it. Then he said he was praying for us. That's about it," Sinclair said as he continued to admire the snow.
Gore picked up the secure phone on his desk and hit zero. "Barbara, get me the Speaker of the House," he said into the receiver. Sinclair walked away from the window and sat in one of the chairs next to the Resolute Desk. Sinclair didn't need to ask what he was doing. After a minute or so, the phone picked up on the other line again.
"Mister President," Barbara, the President's personal secretary said, "I have Speaker Bush on the other line."
"Put him through, Barbara."
"Mister Speaker?" Gored asked after a couple seconds.
"Mister President, it's good to hear from you," George W. Bush responded. He was with his family at their ranch in Texas, some twelve-hundred miles away from D.C.
"I'm sorry to interrupt your time with your family," Gore said. He delayed for a few more moments, thinking if there was any other acceptable decision to make. Then he spoke, "Mister Speaker, I have the Vice President in the Oval Office with me. I wanted to inform you that I'm calling the Senate and House of Representatives back to Washington for a special joint session. I expect both of you to be at the Capitol by Friday night," he said.
Sinclair already suspected this was coming while Bush, who was favored to get the Republican nomination for President, was quiet on the other end of the line for ten or so seconds. He too understood exactly what was going to happen. "I'll be there, Mister President."