[War] United States: Isaiah 6:8

[pentaj2 at Scranton.edu]

"Isaiah 6:8"
22 July 2006
Rep. John Williams (R-NJ)
United States
======
<Ramstein AB, Germany, 1730 local time, 1530 UTC>

    It was one of those events that could never have been expected. 
For it to occur required long odds to be beaten, and coincidences that 
verged on the ludicrously improbable.

   After a fairly turbulent G-8 summit, Air Force One headed home, 
landing at Ramstein AB to duck a fierce storm crossing the Atlantic.
 
   As the flight crew and passengers spent the day waiting out the 
weather, President George W. Bush decided to attend Protestant 
services at the Post Chapel. A security detail was hastily arranged 
from among the Bereitschaftpolizei battalion in the area, essentially 
composed of whomever could be pressed into service on what was 
supposed to be a quiet day.

   Among those called up this day was Polizeimeister (Police Sergeant) 
Jonas Bormann. Jonas had had a very bad week. Unbeknownst to anyone, 
he had been experiencing the classic signs of schizophrenia; They had 
started last Sunday, and he'd figured it was the stress getting to 
him. He was going on leave in two weeks, so he didn't think about it 
further. They'd come and gone during the week, but they'd come back in 
full force today.

   The voices, howling through his mind.

   KILLKILLKILLKILLKILL. SAVETHEPLANET. KILLKILLKILLKILLKILL.

   As he stood facing where the American President would be walking, 
something in him snapped. As Bush walked in front of his squad, he 
acted.

   In one smooth movement, he unsafed his M16, pointed it at Bush, and 
fired in his general direction.

   The Secret Service detail began to act as soon as the agents had 
seen his hands moving, and even before Bormann had pulled the trigger 
on his rifle, they had begun firing at him, aided by nearby members of 
the Bereitschaftpolizei.

   Unfortunately, it was not fast enough. Though Laura Bush was saved 
from harm by a diving tackle on behalf of a young German army officer, 
Tobias Penrod, the President himself was hit multiple times, despite 
his detail moving to "catch the bullets".

   Fortunately, Jonas Borman was a terrible shot; The shots themselves 
would not be fatal. Unfortunately, he himself would be cut down by 
gunfire from all directions, and George W. Bush would be rushed to 
Landstuhl Regional Army Medical Center with massive internal bleeding.
***
<Washington: Number One Observatory Circle: 1540 UTC, 1140 EDT>

   It had not been a good week for Dick Cheney, either. He'd gotten 
through another week without anything unduly distressing happening, 
but he'd had a hard time sleeping; Additionally, he'd been feeling a 
cold coming on. Little did he know that the phone ringing by his desk 
would only bring worse news.

   "Cheney speaking."
   ~Mr. Vice President, this is Major King with NMCC. The President 
has 
been shot. He's currently in emergency surgery at Landstuhl.~
   "Understood," Cheney replied, his face turning ashen. "I will be 
proceeding to the White House."
    ~Yes sir.~

   Click.

   10 minutes later, as the motorcade left the Vice Presidential 
residence, Dick Cheney had his fifth heart attack.
***
<Washington: St. Matthew's Cathedral: 1600 UTC, 1200 EDT>

"Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might,
Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest."

As the congregation chanted the Memorial Acclamation, then, Rep. John 
Patrick Williams found his mind wandering. He followed the Mass 
attentively, but his mind wandered.

His situation was definitely unique.

---
In the 2002 midterms, he had beaten Frank Pallone, Jr., a Democrat 
who'd been about for seven terms, in an upset. He shouldn't, in normal 
situations, have won. He was only 32, after all.

But he had, and he'd done it after a campaign run on a shoestring 
budget, relying on the Internet, including a website of his own 
design, to awaken the general election voters, the broad middle who 
tended not to vote in the midterms.

Yes, he was a Republican, he argued; But only because the Democrats 
had gotten fat, dumb, and happy in New Jersey politics. Party wasn't 
the issue; The fact that Frank Pallone had served for 14 years was. 
The fact that Pallone almost never voted against his party's whip, 
regardless of the opinions of the district he nominally served.

"We elected a -Representative-, sir. Someone who -Represents- us, or 
at least keeps our interests in mind when he stands against popular 
opinion. But, you don't seem to do that. Are you our -Representative-, 
Congressman, or just the warm body that the Democratic hacks in 
Trenton picked to be their sheep in a human suit?"

That had been the off-the-cuff remark that had won him the election. A 
totally unscripted shot at a debate, born out of frustration.

But it had captured the attention, and more importantly the 
imagination, of voters. No, this was not a Republican district, he had 
acknowledged. No, nobody in the district quite *liked* George W. Bush. 
Even him. He was the Republican nominee, but hardly a party loyalist. 

But this wasn't about party, or the President. It was about sending a 
shot across the bow in local politics. It was about scaring *everyone* 
in DC, Democrat and Republican, into focusing on what the folks back 
home cared about. It was about prodding the house of cards, and seeing 
what happened. And since the party caucus mattered in the machinery of 
Washington, the third-party and independent candidates would be 
ineffective.

Williams argued his case simply.

"I might have zero loyalty towards the Republican party, and I'll have 
minimal influence. Yes, I grant that. But at the same time, I'll at 
least be in the room when the majority party decides its policies. 
Better we have a tiny voice than no voice."

And somehow, he'd won. He'd spent less than $600 thousand dollars, the 
first $30k coming out of his own pocket and the rest raised from 
individuals of every political stripe in the mainstream of local 
political life. He'd won by a nose, not even 2 percentage points.

But that had been enough.

And so he'd served for the last 3 and a half years, winning re-
election on proof that, albeit in small ways, it helped at least 
lessen the damage when you were in the room. It had been mostly 
incumbency that had won him re-election in 04; Now that he was in, re-
election for one more term, at most two more terms, would at least get 
the area more influence. But in four years, if he was still in office, 
he would either head on to running for election to another post, or he 
would step away, letting the seat open up for whomever, of any party, 
could convince the voters they deserved the job.

And the unthinkable happened.

Denny Hastert had been forced to resign the speakership a week 
previously by a conflict-of-interest scandal related to the Prairie 
Parkway, an interstate connection project in his district, near which 
he conveniently owned real estate. And of course, he'd disclosed his 
real estate investments only through means which made it impossible to 
determine whether he'd had a conflict of interest. After Tom DeLay had 
been taken down by the Abramoff mess, Hastert had been forced out by 
the Caucus. The man who had been tasked with delivering the news to an 
enraged Hastert? Williams. He'd been sent because he was young and 
expendable. He'd wound up handling it with enough grace and diplomacy 
as to raise his stock in the eyes of his colleagues greatly.

But it had been enough. No conservative Republican would be able to 
take the Speakership. Too many had their own ethics issues.

So the moderates had, to his surprise, put his name forward. Soon 
enough, the Caucus had approved him, a development that shocked him 
even more than. Apparently, the greybeards had thought he was young, 
inexperienced, and therefore pliable.

The perfect choice for a caretaker, in other words.

And so, three days previously, the House of Representatives had 
elected him, John Patrick Williams, the 60th Speaker of the United 
States House of Representatives.
---

And so here he was. Possibly the youngest, certainly the most 
inexperienced, person to have ever become Speaker, at only 36. He 
shook his head, smiling inwardly at the odds that he had managed to 
beat.

It was at that point that he felt a tap on the shoulder. It was just 
after the Our Father, and he turned to see a young Marine officer.

"Sir, I've been asked to inform you that the President was shot at 
Ramstein 30 minutes ago. He is currently in emergency surgery at 
Landstuhl; Vice President Cheney was infotmed 20 minutes ago, and had 
a heart attack 10 minutes later. He is currently in surgery at GWU, 
sir," the Marine 2nd Lieutenant whispered.

Williams blinked. Then, he nodded, before taking out a small notepad, 
writing a note, and handing it to the Marine.

"I understand. See to it that the Archbishop gets this note, *without* 
disrupting the Mass, prior to Communion," he replied in a terse 
whisper.

"Yes sir."

Then, the Marine nodded and walked off smartly towards the nearest 
altar boy. Meanwhile, John felt a warmth on his right hand.

"What's wrong?" That soft whisper came from his wife, Kayleigh.

"President's been shot, in surgery in Germany. Cheney had an MI, in 
surgery at GWU," he whispered tersely. "We proceed like nothing's 
happened until the Archbishop gets the news. That note I wrote was to 
inform him of the situation."

Kayleigh nodded, some fear on her face, to which John responded by 
doing what came naturally: Leaning over, kissing her on the forehead, 
and squeezing her hand gently.

"It'll be okay," he whispered. "I'll be fine."

Then, the Mass proceeded. As Williams approached the Archbishop to 
recieve Communion, he found himself surprised by the churchman's nod. 
Apparently, he'd recieved the note.

"The Body of Christ."
"Amen."

And he took Communion on the tongue, as he always had since he was a 
little kid.

"The Blood of Christ."
"Amen."

And he took the wine. Even in times of trouble, the rituals of the 
Church were a constant.

Then, after Kayleigh also recieved, as the two walked back to their 
seats in a front pew, a priest approached.

"Mr. Speaker, the Chief Justice is also here. Should he...?" The 
priest asked quietly.

Administer the oath. Williams swallowed, he hoped not visibly. "Yes, 
if he believes the Constitution requires it. If him and the Archbishop 
have an idea as to where would be most appropriate, I would appreciate 
knowing it," he replied quietly.

Walking back to his seat and sitting next to Kay, he held her hand 
gently, turning the situation over in his mind. Then, he noticed the 
Chief Justice approaching.

"Mr. Chief Justice...How are you thinking we should handle this?" John 
asked. No sense beating around the bush.

Chief Justice Roberts replied quietly. "The Archbishop should announce 
it; The media is already putting out the word outside. Then, we 
continue with Mass, keep people from thinking us freaked out. After 
that, we head to the Capitol, and we wait for the news to come in."

Williams nodded. His nervousness must have showed, because the next 
voice he heard was Ted Kennedy's.

"Don't worry, Mr. Speaker. Nobody's *ready* to be President," the 
Senior Senator from Massachusetts offered.

"Yeah, but -" John began to protest. Then, Kayleigh squeezed his hand, 
silencing him before she spoke softly.

"But, what? John..." She smiled at him, the same gentle, comforting 
smile that had helped him through so many times. "'Then I heard the 
voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? Who will go for 
us?" "Here I am," I said; "send me!"'"

A gentle blush of embarrassment touched his face, then, but he let Kay 
continue. He'd mentioned that verse to her enough.

"John...No, you're not ready. You don't have the experience, or the 
age, or anything. But you're the one it's fallen to. Ready or not, 
it's your job now, and there are 300 million people out there who need 
you."

Kay was soft-spoken. But as he felt her hand caress his cheek, as he 
hugged her lightly, her words sank into his mind. Then, as he noticed 
the Archbishop approach the microphone, he nodded.

"OK, then. Once we're done here, someone please borrow a bible from 
the Archbishop," he replied softly. "Hopefully, I will not need to 
become 44." With that, Roberts and Kennedy returned to their families.

Then, the archbishop spoke.

The words, to John, were a blur. He barely remembered the end of the 
Mass, or being rushed into the official Suburban, his Capitol Police 
detail jogging beside the car. He did remember, though, the warmth of 
Kay's soft kiss on his lips, and the gentle smile she gave him as she 
squeezed his hands.

"You'll do fine, John," she assured him.

"I can't wait til I can give it back. To Bush *or* Cheney. Hopefully, 
I won't need to take it up."

"And if you can't give it back? You'll move on. I'll still be beside 
you."

"I'm trying to be an optimist for once, Kay."

She laughed at that, and he couldn't help but smile a tiny smile. 
Then, he noticed the car slow as they arrived at the Capitol.

"Almighty God, lift this burden from your unworthy servant," he 
whispered quietly.

And then the car stopped, the door opened, and he trotted up the steps 
on the West Front of the Capitol, Kay beside him.

At the top of the steps stood Chief Justice Roberts, Harry Reid, Bill 
Frist, John Boehner, and Nancy Pelosi. Both John and Kayleigh shook 
hands with all of them.

"John," Senator Frist began, "Try not to look so scared on camera."

Chuckles from everyone, and an innocent "Do I really look that 
scared?" from Williams.

To which Nancy Pelosi responded, with a smile, "You look like we're 
about to shoot you."

"It feels like it."

More chuckles, everybody clearly trying to forget why they were there.

"OK. Ted, alert the Senate to be ready to convene if need be. Nancy, 
Mr. Boehner, tap everybody in the House. Nobody's back in their 
districts that I recall, but if they are, yank em. If you need to use 
the Sergeant, go ahead. I'll sign whatever paperwork needs be signed. 
Other than that, let's retire to my office to await whatever news 
comes in." Williams decided.

Within 5 minutes, the Gang of 8, plus Kayleigh and the Chief Justice, 
were gathered around a big-screen TV in the Speaker's office. The 
channel picked was, neutrally, the BBC.

And that was when Williams's cellphone rang, three sharp beeps.

"Williams speaking."

~Mr. Speaker, this is Secret Service Ops. Vice President Cheney died 
on the table 5 minutes ago, sir.~

His face went ashen, then. "Understood. The Vice President's office 
should handle advising the media." He replied tonelessly. "Keep me 
advised as to the President's status."

~Yes, sir.~

Click. Then, Williams looked to the group.

"Cheney died on the table 5 minutes ago," he informed them 
quietly. "OVP will advise the media."

At that, everybody sat there silently for a bit.

Then, Roberts spoke. "May he rest in peace."

"Amen" was given by the group, then 5 minutes were spent by all 
advising their press staffs to send out the usual statements.

For the next few hours, they waited. Chatting moved on to family, the 
summer interns and their antics, sports, memories of Dick Cheney, 
planning the funeral, the situation in India. 

They debated more topics than John could remember touching since grad 
school. Eventually, though, the phone rang again.

"Williams speaking."

~Mr. Williams? It's Josh Bolten.~

Uh oh. "I'm hearing you. What's the situation?"

~The President just got out of surgery. He's alive, but we have no 
idea if he'll pull through.~

Williams tapped quickly, sending the same message to the other 9's 
Blackberries, advising them of the situation. "Understood," he replied 
calmly. "What's the status in regards to the 

25th?"

~We're drawing up the document as we speak. If the Cabinet agrees, 
then we'll all head to 

where you are to actually sign it.~

"Understood. Keep me advised."

~Will do.~

Click.

Williams then explained the situation to the rest of the group.

"And God help us all," he concluded.

20 minutes later, there was a knock on the door. In walked Josh 
Bolten, followed by the Cabinet.

Hands were shaken all around, before the group gathered around a long 
conference table.

Starting off with Chertoff at Homeland Security, each of the cabinet 
secretaries signed the document certifying George W. Bush's 
disability. Fortunately, it was unanimous. Finally then, Alberto 
onzales, Don Rumsfeld, Henry Paulson, and Condi Rice, in order, signed 
the document. Then, with a deeply depressed look, Ted Stevens signed 
it. Nancy Pelosi and the other Congressional leaders signed the 
document as witnesses.

Finally, the document was passed to Williams. Before picking up his 
pen, John looked skyward and crossed himself, touching his forehead, 
his chest, his right shoulder, and then his left shoulder, before 
bringing his fingers to his lips and kissing them.

"May God give me the strength to do this work, because I don't know if 
I have it," he said softly.

Then, he picked up his pen and signed. Chief Justice Roberts signed as 
a notary, and a notation was made to keep one copy for release to the 
press, and one copy for any future Presidential library. The original 
would have the Great Seal affixed and be stored in the National 
Archives.

"Done at Washington this 22nd Day of July, in the year of our Lord Two 
Thousand and Six, and of the Independence of the United States the Two 
Hundred and Thirty-First." Intoned Chief Justice Roberts.

"May God help us all," Williams replied. "Now, could our dear 
Congressional Members please authorize the use of the Rotunda for any 
such swearings-in as may need to be performed?"

"5 minutes," replied Ted Stevens.

"10 minutes," replied Nancy Pelosi.

"Right. I'll be waiting in the President's Room," Williams replied.

And for the next 10 minutes, that's what he did. With Kayleigh and the 
Chief Justice sitting next to him, he waited. Watching the press 
coverage, he was lost in thought.

"Nervous, Mr. President?" The Chief asked.

"Scared shitless. I'm too young for this, I'm too inexperienced." 
Williams replied, shaking off the shudders he got when he heard 
himself called that.

"You speak more languages fluently than most people can possibly 
imagine speaking badly. You have good instincts. The way Kay tells it, 
you taught yourself through grad school. Physically, you're in better 
shape than just about anybody in this town except the Marines, and 
you've *been* through stress already and handled it fine." Roberts 
retorted.

"Yeah, but like Congress won't eat me alive?"

Josh Bolten spoke up then. "You'll have at least your first 100 days 
as a honeymoon period, and probably longer, if you have to succeed 
permanently. And if you need any help, you'll have everybody in DC 
behind you, at least for a while."

A smile. "Yeah, until I do something people don't like," Williams 
replied.

"We're not that petty. Seriously, this country needs stable 
leadership, and everybody sane on either side of the aisle knows 
there'll be time enough to squabble when things die down."

"Sure you're not." Williams grinned widely then.

A knock on the door. Williams went over to open it and was greeted by 
two teenagers, pages from the House and Senate respectively.

"Mr. President, the House and Senate have agreed. The Rotunda is open 
to you," spoke the House Page.

"Thanks for the heads-up, Jimmy," Williams replied. "Greg, I see you 
have the resolution?"

"Yes, sir." The Senate page handed it over, and Williams handed it to 
the Chief Justice.

"Alright, we're good to go," announced the Chief. "Let's roll?"

Williams blinked. "Give the press time to set themselves up, at least. 
We'll swear in over the star."

"OK then, 20 minutes."

"Right."

"You got it."

At that point, everyone left, except for Kayleigh.

It was at this point that Williams let himself crack, letting the 
tears roll down his face.

"I admit it. I almost want to say no," he admitted. "I ain't qualified 
for this."

"You won't, though. You're stronger than that. Besides, the country 
needs you right now. Precisely because you're scared, because you 
don't want the job. They need to know that things are going to be OK," 
Kayleigh replied, looking him steadily in the eyes, before gently 
wiping the tears from his cheeks. "Besides, *nobody's* qualified to 
run this country. There's no manual, is there? There's nothing but 
your instincts, and you do have good ones."

"Me? You don't remember that I flipped a coin whether to run for 
Congress?" John replied with a smile.

"It worked, didn't it?"

"Point taken."

Then, with 5 minutes left, John shrugged. "Well, let's get it over 
with."

Kay smiled and took his hand as he opened the door. And so they walked 
out, turning the corner to the long hallway to the Rotunda and looking 
upon what awaited them.

Beyond the cameramen stood the Justices of the Supreme Court, the 
leaders of the House and Senate, and the Cabinet. The Archbishop of 
Washington, Donald Weurl, stood near the Chief Justice, in full 
clerical dress. As Williams approached and shook hands with everyone, 
the Archbishop smiled and quietly handed Kayleigh a Bible.

At that point, they turned and approached the star, John standing to 
the left of it, Chief Justice Roberts to the right, and Kayleigh to 
the West of it. At that point, before the microphones came on, she 
handed him the Bible and smiled at him warmly.

As she smiled at him, he opened the Bible.

"Where to pick...?" He asked himself.

"Given the circumstances, might I suggest somewhere in Isaiah or 
Psalms?" suggested Ted Stevens, standing next to the Archbishop.

"Hmm, yeah." Williams replied, flipping to Isaiah 6.

As Kay held the open Bible, he laid his left hand upon the page, then 
looked up at the Chief Justice.

"Mr. Speaker, if you would raise your right hand and repeat after me," 
The Chief Justice instructed.

John raised his right hand, looking into the Chief Justice's eyes as 
his face took on a mask of calm, collected confidence.

"I, state your name, do solemnly swear.." The Chief began. They then 
spoke the oath at the same time.

"I, John Patrick Williams, do solemnly swear that I will faithfully 
execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the 
best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of 
the United States, so help me God." Williams spoke clearly.

Then, without any clapping, he shook the hands of the assembled group, 
before turning to the cameras and beginning to speak.

"My fellow Americans. The oath I have just taken is one that I wish I 
never had to take. In the past hours, the President has been shot, 
apparently by a member of the German police, who was then killed by 
gunfire from both the Secret Service and his former comrades. He 
appears to have been afflicted with undiagnosed schizophrenia, which 
today led him so astray as to cause him to undertake an act of 
violence. May God heal his troubled soul, as I extend my condolences 
and the condolences of the people of the United States to his family. 
While President Bush is alive, the Vice President is not. At 1230 
Eastern Daylight Time, Vice President Cheney died during surgery 
following a major heart attack, his fifth. At 1250 Eastern Daylight 
Time, the Cabinet decided, in accordance with the Twenty-Fifth 
Amendment to the Constitution, that President Bush was unable to 
discharge the duties of his office. A document testifying to that 
decision was signed by every member of the Cabinet, myself, and 
Senator Stevens as President pro Tempore, with the other members of 
the Congressional leadership and Chief Justice Roberts acting as 
witnesses and notary, respectively. As such, in accordance with the 
line of succession to the Presidency set down by the Presidential 
Succession Act of 1947, I have had the unwanted responsibility of 
being sworn in as President. It is my hope that this Acting Presidency 
is as short as possible, and that President Bush may at some point 
resume the discharge of his duties.

"However, that is a situation which will develop over the coming hours 
and days. For now, I wish to say this: America will, and must, go on. 
Power has been transferred according to law. The violent act of one 
person will not cause troops to take the streets, nor martial law to 
be declared, nor the government to collapse. The Constitution remains, 
and what has occurred has occurred in full compliance with it. 
Tomorrow morning, as you wake up across the nation, the day will begin 
as Mondays do. Parents will wake their children. Dogs will need to be 
walked. Babies will be born. In short, life will go on. Though 
President Bush may lie in a hospital bed, the United States Government 
will carry on without interruption. If it may come to pass, against 
all our hopes, that he dies or is ruled permanently unable to 
discharge his duties, then I will have the unwelcome responsibility of 
assuming this post permanently, in accordance with the Constitution 
and this nation's laws. But life will go on. America will endure.

"In the coming days, more information will arise as to the events of 
this day, and as to the long-term condition of President Bush. I or my 
staff will endeavor, to the best of our abilities, to keep the people 
of this Nation, and of the world, as informed as we can.

"But, regardless of what time may bring, America will endure. May God 
bless the Bush and Cheney families, and may God continue to protect 
America."

Then, after looking into the cameras until he saw that they were off, 
he turned to Kayleigh.

"Well, here we go."

Then, he turned to the Cabinet.

"Full Cabinet meeting in 2 hours. Secretary Rumsfeld, alert the Joint 
Chiefs; I want them standing by for video conference. Also, I want 
Ambassador Negroponte available as well," he instructed.

"Mr. Bolten, get in touch with Mrs. Cheney as regards funeral 
arrangements; Also, talk to Major General Swan at MDW. After that, 
talk to Mrs. Bush, see what we can do for her," he then added.

After the instructions were acknowledged, he turned and walked out to 
a waiting Suburban, which took him to the White House.
---
Actions:
1. Bush goes down, Cheney keels over.
2. Williams succeeds as per 25th Amendment.
3. Calm the country. It'll all be OK.
4. Arrange Cheney's funeral, and comfort Mrs. Bush.
---
OOC: Yes, yes, I jumped the date a bit. Post had to occur on a Sunday, 
I realized, and then remembered that the G-8 ended on a Monday. I 
realized this all this morning. So I take some liberties with the 
spacetime continuum.:)