Sex and the Capital Ch. 11

"Sir, Senator Harris is here to see you."

Damn, I don't want to see that son-of-a-bitch. "Send him in, Debra," Bruce said as he hit the intercom button. What does that bastard want?

Bruce extended his hand but the expression on his face was anything but friendly. "Have a seat, Gary. You want coffee?"

He declined the coffee and sat down.

"What brings you here?" Bruce asked.

"I want to mend some fences with you; find some common ground."

Bruce looked at him, saying nothing.

"I know I can come across as, uh, obnoxious, in committee sometimes."

Bruce smiled at him and nodded his head. "Yeah."

"I've been some checking on your background and we do have some common ground; we both have environmental backgrounds; we both want to do what's best for the country."

Bruce looked at him suspiciously, "Where did you get your information about me?"

"I don't think any of it's a secret; I went online, Googled you."

Bruce shrugged his shoulders. "Okay."

Gary chuckled. "Besides me being obnoxious, and nosy now, what bothers you about the conduct of the committee.

Bruce looked at him firmly and said, "I'm glad you asked. The tone of these hearings and the meetings disturb me. I think we've gotten away from fairness; we seem to be taking sides, more so than just partisan politics. I think we're placing too much emphasis on the environmental side of an issue. And, don't misinterpret this, not just the environmental side, but the radical side of the environmental movement. It doesn't matter what ordinary citizens, the business community or academia say; we discount it."

Gary was watching Bruce closely as he spoke. Continuing, he said, "As you know, I've been an environmentalist all my adult life. I was the State Chairman of the Sierra Club, an organization you endorse. I believe that environmentalism is about helping people and nature live in harmony. I don't see that in our hearings."

Studying Bruce for several seconds, Gary finally said, "I hear what you're saying. Look, I've been an environmentalist since I was old enough to understand the term. And I agree with you, it is about having people and nature living together in harmony. I guess maybe I'm more cynical about the people part and it has to do with growing up in California. I've seen the damage that people can do when they don't care.

"It takes two to make this happen. Nature is going to be nature, not much we can do about her. People are a different story; we can make choices, either good or bad, but choices. I want people to make the right choice. That doesn't always happen."

"I understand what you're saying but I don't think the committee is allowing people to make choices," Bruce said. "We're making the choices for them."

"Well, when you know that people's choices are governed by greed and selfishness, does it make sense to let them have a choice?"

Thinking about what was just said, Bruce hesitated for a few seconds.

A cell phone rang. Gary pulled it off his belt and said, "I've got a sick kid and this is my wife, excuse me for a second."

After a few minutes of listening to what must be strep throat, Bruce wondered when he was going to get around to the real purpose of his visit, talking me into supporting his bill.

Gary ended the call and said, "Sorry about that, my daughter's running a fever and has trouble swallowing; my wife is taking her to the doctor. Now, where were we?"

"We were talking about people not always making the right choices when it comes to the environment."

"Oh yeah. You've got to be able to recognize when greed and selfishness are the driving force. Take businesses, for example. Most CEOs couldn't care less about clean air or drinking water; profits, that's all they're interested in. That's why I have no faith in studies funded by industry."

"Look, Gary, I can understand your cynicism, to a point. You're flat wrong when you say 'most CEOs' though. But now I know why you ignore industry studies. I still don't understand how you can be so dismissive of university studies. The university studies I'm familiar with are independent, no tie-ins. You discount those, too."

"I've been dealing with this for a long time," Gary said. "You don't understand how slick some of these CEOs are. Believe me, they can camouflage their involvement so even the professors aren't aware of it."

"Well, I don't agree with you. There isn't any way that business, no matter how clever they are, can manipulate all of these studies. That's nonsense, and you know it. What's really going on?"

Gary just sat there for a minute, before he said, "I'll level with you. We're the government; we're the parents here. We've got to do what's right for the country. If we're going to err, it will be on the side of the environment."

Bruce shook his head, "I don't like that analogy 'we're the parents here'. Parents, to be effective parents, need to consider all factors in making decisions. We're not doing that."

Gary sighed, "Look, we're on the same team. It's just that you're a moderate and I'm a bit more radical. We both have the same goals. Protecting the environment, making it better."

Bruce shook his head, "The environment is one part of the equation. The other parts deal with people: their right to live; raise their children; own property; make a living; pursue happiness; you know the American dream."

Gary didn't say anything for a few minutes; he just sat there. Finally, he said, "Good point. That's what my bill is about. Removing welfare recipients from the dole, letting them be responsible for themselves. Teach them to become self-sufficient. Give them the property, training, and tools to do the job and let nature take its course."

"You don't have a farming background, do you?"

Gary shook his head. "Not like yours, certainly. But I do own five acres down in the Shenandoah Valley. I have a couple that lives there year round, successfully living off the land. We go down there occasionally, long weekends mainly. They do a remarkable job. They raise all their own food."

"Subsistence Farming."

"I prefer Self-Sufficient Farming."

"Semantics," Bruce said. "Most subsistence farmers can't handle one bad year."

"I think you're wrong, Bruce. With the proper training in crop selection and irrigation there doesn't have to be any bad years short of a hurricane or tornado wrecking havoc."

"You're really serious about moving us all back to the land, aren't you?"

Gary's face brightened in a wide smile. "Yes! It's the future of the country. What can be more divine than self-sufficient people living in harmony with nature?"

"You do know how many people live in this country, right?"

"Of course, about 300 million."

"And where is all this land coming from?"

"We're studied it, it's available. Between what the government and the factory farms own, there's sufficient land.'

Bruce just stared at him. He really does believe this bullshit.

"Well, are you with us?" Gary asked.

Bruce shook his head and said slowly, "No. No I'm not. With my intense background in farming, I'm telling you it won't work."

The smile faded on Gary's face. "Okay, maybe I got a bit grandiose. I don't expect it to happen in my lifetime, but it will happen. Look at this bill as a trial run, look at it as moving people with no farming skills to the land, giving them the opportunity and training, and then letting them tell us how effective it is. Would you support it on those grounds."

Bruce chuckled. "Using the power of the government to end government on the road to an agrarian utopian society. You ever heard of Pol Pot and Cambodia, Year Zero?"

"Yeah, I've heard of him but this isn't like that. Are you going to answer my question? Will you support the bill?"

"No, I won't support it."

Gary got up to leave. "It won't come up for a vote until Friday. Will you at least think about supporting it?"

"Okay. I'll think about it, but I doubt I'll change my mind."

* * *

"Harris came to see me this morning," Bruce said as he sat down in Fred Waring's office.

"Is that right?" Fred said as he handed Bruce a beer and then sat down in the chair across from him. "What did he want?"

Bruce took a drink and replied. "He wanted to find some common ground with me on environmental issues."

"He wanted your vote."

"Yeah. That was the purpose of his visit."

"What'd you tell him?"

Bruce took another swig. "No."

Fred frowned. "Be careful. I got on the wrong side of an ethanol issue in the Energy Committee during my first year. I think you should record anything he says in the future for your own protection."

"What?"

"I'm not going to get into the details of what happened back then. I'll just say it wasn't good for me."

"So I should use some kind of—digital recording device?"

"Yes, definitely. You may need it to defend yourself one day."

Bruce looked at his friend, noting the seriousness on his face. "And you didn't have it, and you couldn't defend yourself."

"Exactly."

"Tell me what happened. We're friends, it won't leave this office."

"I can't. I promised myself I would never speak of it. Maybe Harris just wanted to ask you to vote for the bill and that's the end of it. And maybe it's not. If you have another private conversation with him, record it just in case."

Bruce nodded his head and then finished off the beer.