[Chapter 911: The Tragedy of the Scapegoat]
"What? What are you saying, Al? Those idiots have gone crazy?"
"Bill, honestly, I wasn't feeling much better than you when I heard the news."
As Al Gore's partner, he proved to be highly capable. His support for environmental and high-tech initiatives attracted many staunch backers for Bill.
However, Bill's actions in Arkansas did raise some eyebrows.
Was Bill killing to cover this up?
Cough, cough, this was clearly a clumsy political trap. But, Vincent Foster's death was indeed suspicious--there had to be something more at play here.
Bill's longtime friend and chief legal advisor had apparently committed suicide in an odd manner in Pentagon Town.
Well, everyone had their secrets, and so did the President. The question was, if you didn't share with me, how could I help analyze it? If you accidentally got killed, I could step in. If you went to jail, whoever wants that mess can take it.
The Gore family wasn't a bunch of amateurs; they were a standard political dynasty with a bright future.
Following you, Bill, was just trying to replicate the road that got old Bush into power.
If you got your family involved in your mess?
Haha, we weren't that close.
Bill felt a bit uneasy; that group of idiots was getting desperate. It really wasn't that I was burning bridges, but go take a look at those soldiers--they were all fired up. Who could they take down?
Those idiots, a small-time water company, were they worth sacrificing a good friend for?
If someone deserved to die, it was those guys at Madison Corporation.
This whole situation was just too strange; Madison was simply a small guarantee loan company. Whether they faked the accounts, how could I know?
Sigh, poor Vincent. Rest assured, I wouldn't gloss over the Leo Wanta matter. If you all wanted to play, we would play it big.
"Al, it's just a hearing. They only wanted to embarrass me. You can relax; I am absolutely not entangled in any interests, nor could I hinder judicial fairness."
Al Gore's expression was somewhat strange; was he not planning to compromise?
No interests involved?
You must be kidding; without that guy's support, how did you climb to the governor's seat? Before this, you were just a third-rate lawyer, right? If it were your wife, that might have offered some chance.
Al left. Since coordination failed, they would just have to follow procedure. If the key person wasn't embarrassed, then whatever.
"Damn, are they planning to make me the scapegoat? That's harsh."
Bill paced in the Oval Office, realizing these guys had truly crossed a line. No, he had to fight back. If they wanted him to take the blame, they wouldn't stop at just one; it was outrageous.
William White was setting up a Christmas tree at home; this Christmas was indeed something special.
He had to bring Nastassja back--some things were set in stone whenever Christmas came around.
You reap what you sow.
Well, they were actually envious. Such matters, as long as one had thick skin, wouldn't present too huge of a problem.
Cough, cough, there still were issues. Just because his wives kept quiet didn't mean his daughters did.
In such a situation, being obstinate was unwise. If his daughters had distorted values, he would have headaches down the road.
"Young Master."
"Tanner, what's up?"
"Yes, it's very important."
"Go wait for me in the study; I'll be there shortly."
Despite feeling overwhelmed, William White still found divine intervention. If there weren't pressing matters, Tanner wouldn't interrupt such family activities.
"Crap! This leaked out?"
"The information came in a very strange manner; someone did this on purpose. We weren't prepared, and our people lost track of it."
The more William White looked, the more alarmed he became. Although he knew of many things, he didn't realize they were this detailed. It seemed that the Vanta plan couldn't be hidden any longer.
"Tanner, are they planning to expose this to the media?"
"Can't see through it; normally speaking, under these circumstances, Leo Wanta shouldn't survive. But no one else should be this informed. Young Master, this situation is very, very tricky."
William White smiled bitterly; trillions of dollars at stake, and you tell me it's tricky? That's a treasure that could kill him a few times over.
"Crap, who's framing me here? Should I throw your kid down a well?"
"Young Master, how about we take some decisive action?"
William White felt a bit overwhelmed; he didn't want to handle this himself. If he had known it would come to this, he would have preferred the agony back home.
"Spill it; don't tell me you're planning to rescue that old man."
"Cough, cough, no way; that old man has outlived his usefulness. Too many people want him gone, and if this guy had luck, he would have been long dead.
Young Master, I was thinking these things shouldn't only be revealed to us. Since they intended to leak it to the media, they should give it to many outlets."
"I understand now; you plan for more people to know. Good, let's do it. But you all must be careful--from the choice of the copier to the delivery method, it has to be professional."
"Rest assured, Young Master; I'll handle it personally."
During the holidays, running into such matters would naturally be unpleasant. Since William White was irritated, no one would feel good.
He actually had a rough idea of what was going on. That bastard Clinton was actually starting to let things fall apart.
Watergate, also known as the Watergate scandal, had already entered the judicial process. How much Bill suffered was well-documented.
Just look at the media coverage; it was clear they had no intention of sparing Bill.
Anything with "gate" in the title typically wasn't good news.
William White surely knew about this; after Watergate, there were still other gates, right?
Bill, oh Bill, did you think anyone wanted to draw out Leo Wanta?
Hahaha, the intention was really to drag out that Skid fellow.
This was clearly a vicious cycle; using Watergate to extract your Arkansas mess, only to dig a grave for you through it.
Haha, this was crazy, right?
Unfortunately, Bill's judgment had significantly deviated. He didn't believe anyone plotted against his future. After all, Bill was quite timid, shaking and swaying, barely daring to step in.
To use Watergate to pull out Leo Wanta? To link Vincent Foster's death with his wife's charity fund?
Those who designed this for Bill, if they knew what he was thinking, would surely fall dead.
Damn, the Vanta plan could be touched, huh?
But what kind of nonsense was your wife's charity fund?
Wrong, completely wrong; Bill underestimated Leo Wanta's resilience. Or rather, if everything got exposed, Vanta might have dried up long ago.
But miscalculation was fine; let you wild dogs tear each other apart. The more people involved, the better. There would always be someone driven by greed; someone would never hold back.
For the president, his foundation was terribly significant. If this situation was happening to Al Gore, it would absolutely not have been handled this way.
That being said, they were just putting a little pressure on you; nobody wanted to bury you outright.
Have you considered how enormous the amount implicated in Watergate was?
Sigh, this was madness; what ten percent of the Vanta plan worth?
Of course, this would end as a muddled account, with all the wrong people dead. It was just like they say: people die for wealth and birds for food.
"Are the kids asleep now?"
"What time is it? You too..." Michelle Reis shot a glance at him; of course, a woman's cleverness showed at times like these.
Men were usually useless but still wanted to save face. If at this moment, one started rambling, that would be imprudent.
*****
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