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ОглавлениеState Senator Tim Barns took the glass of whisky and raised it with a forced smile.
“Congratulations, Senator,” said the man who had poured him the drink.
Lionel Granger was, in Tim’s private opinion, one of the most repulsive men he had ever met. He was grey, slightly overweight and balding. His suit was immaculately tailored and very expensive, and everything about his office screamed opulence, from the marble desktop to the Henkel Harris chairs.
“I owe it all to you, Lionel,” Tim replied, trying not to grimace. It wasn’t true. He’d put in a shitload of work himself, and had a small army of staffers who had worked similar long hours to help get him elected. Still, brown-nosing his biggest campaign donor was the expected thing to do, and Tim knew how to play the game.
“Nonsense, my dear Tim. The people love you. You’re a natural and I know you’ll be the best senator Virginia has ever seen. One day you might be much, much more.”
It was all bullshit of course. But Tim played along.
“Well I can’t say I don’t have ambitions, Mr. Granger, but for now I’m happy to serve the people of this state in any way I can.”
Granger raised his glass again, and Tim followed suit. They drank. It was damn good whisky, so that was a positive.
Truth be told, Tim had dreaded this meeting ever since Granger first offered to help finance his campaign almost a year ago. Without Granger’s dollars, Tim would never have become such a well-known presence in Richmond, and it would have taken a miracle to unseat the incumbent. But Granger helped him pull off a miracle, and now it was payback time. The wealthy owner of a national chain of big box retail stores had not voiced the conditions of his backing, but he’d made it clear that all he wanted was the ear of a young, popular senator clued in to how the next generation felt. Tim wasn’t naïve enough to expect no demands at all, but he hoped Granger would keep his word and just provide some suggestions and engage in a dialogue with him.
“Tim, please, take a seat.”
Tim sat down in one of the enormously expensive chairs in front of the unlit fireplace. Granger took the vacant chair next to him.
“I’ve become very fond of you over the last year, Tim. I like your energy and I like the platform you ran on. The people voted for you because they want real change, and they believe you’re the man to give it to them.”
“I’m just one senator,” Tim replied, eager to remind Granger that his sphere of influence was still very limited.
“For now. Play your cards right and you could be Virginia’s next governor. That’s what I see for you, and I’m willing to carry on putting up the cash to help you get there.”
“Well I greatly appreciate that, Lionel.” It had taken him six months and constant reminders from the old man to stop calling him Mr. Granger. Tim still didn’t feel comfortable using the man’s first name. They were not friends. They did not hang out at the weekends or go fishing together. Their occasional rounds of golf and meetings in Granger’s over-the-top office were always pleasantries followed by business. Up until now, that business was about the logistics and strategy of getting Tim into the state senate. Now, Tim feared, Granger was going to want a much larger say in policy.
“So Tim,” Lionel said, still smiling. “I love your platform and the voters love it too. I know you’ve been working hard since you were sworn in and you’ve started bringing other senators around to your way of thinking. That’s really good.”
“Right, well I think there’s a national movement now to cut down on private companies using state prisoners as cheap labor. Following the federal ruling last year, I don’t think it will be hard to get folks on board. I’ve drafted a bill and it’s doing the rounds. I’m hopeful we can get it passed in the near future. Then we can start working on the House. I’m meeting with the governor in two weeks to get his take on it.”
“That’s great, really great. I have just one small request.”
Tim gritted his teeth. “Sure, Lionel, name it.”
“Well, as you know, Ambley’s never uses inmates to manufacture our store brand goods, but we do stock a lot of brands that do. Since we started talking about this, I’ve been pushing them to stop doing it, but it’s going to take time and I need to get other retailers on board. This goes national of course, because most of the brands we stock aren’t manufactured in Virginia.”
“I understand that, Lionel, but I want Virginia to be a leader here. If we pass this bill, I’m sure other states will follow our lead.”
“Indeed, indeed, and that’s what I want to happen too. But it’s taking time, and I want the brands we stock to understand that this is the way forward before there are laws on the books forcing them to comply. So what I’m asking for, Tim, is for you to slow it down a bit. I never for one moment thought you’d make so much progress so fast, and I think we need to put the brakes on just a bit.”
Tim put down his drink. “With respect, Lionel, now is the time. We need to follow the Feds on this. Other states are moving in the same direction and I don’t want Virginia left behind.”
Granger held up a hand. “Of course, of course. I’m not asking for a big delay. Just a few months, until I’ve made some more headway. Is that all right with you?”
Tim tried to keep his voice level. Momentum was everything. Stalling now could mean all his work so far on this issue would have to start again from scratch as legislator’s minds drifted to other topics. But he smiled back and said, “Of course, Lionel. Shouldn’t be a problem. We want to get this right, after all.”
“Good man. Now, onto voting rights for former felons.”
Tim sighed without showing it externally. Granger was going to move through all three of the campaign promises that had gotten him elected and he was going to meddle with all of them. After tackling reinstatement of voting rights for former felons he would start on police reform. Tim might as well be the same man as his predecessor. He distantly wondered if Granger gave two shits which senator he was talking to as long as he got his way.
The conversation continued for another half hour, and by the end of it Granger had asked Tim to stall or gut the vast majority of the policies he promised to pursue when he ran. It wasn’t hard to understand how state and federal politics achieved so little, with so much money on the line and so many big name donors providing opinions.
Granger stood up.
“Well thanks for coming, Tim. I really appreciate you taking the time to come here.”
Tim stood also and shook Granger’s proffered hand.
“Of course, any time.”
“You will take on board my, er, suggestions, right?”
Tim shuffled awkwardly. “Well it is rather a lot to process. I can’t make any promises.”
Granger’s smile didn’t move. It was so fixed it was almost creepy. He still had hold of Tim’s hand, his grip firm.
“Oh I think you should do more than consider what I’ve said. I mean, you’ve kept yourself remarkably scandal-free thus far. It would be a shame if such a spotless record became tarnished.”
Tim blinked.
“Are you threatening me?”
Granger’s expression was one of shock. “Goodness me, no, I wouldn’t dream of such a thing. I just want to be sure we have an understanding.”
Tim nodded. His hand was finally released.
“Right, well I’ll pay your suggestions as much mind as I think they deserve. Have a good day, Lionel.”
Tim left the office. He didn’t stop to talk to anyone, and he barely breathed before he was outside on the street. He had to lean against a wall for a moment until his head stopped swimming.
Shit! What was he going to do? Could he rely on persuading fellow senators to support his bills without having to spend money on advertising to drum up public support? He’d just have to try, given that the alternative was none of his bills reaching the senate floor at all. Tim wondered how many of his predecessors, heck, how many members of the current Senate, received similar suggestions from Granger in exchange for financial support.
Well, dammit, he wasn’t going to be one of them. Enough Virginian’s knew who Tim was now that he could fundraise from other wealthy folks, perhaps even a grassroots funding campaign, if he needed money. The next election was a long way off – the last thing he wanted to do was stall all his plans until that time, or even indefinitely. He also had the uneasy feeling that his next meeting with Granger would be less about stalling what Tim wanted to do, and more about pushing what Granger wanted to achieve. Tim couldn’t crumble at the first hurdle. He had to stand tall and send the message that he wasn’t going to be intimidated. He might spend his entire political career in the pockets of lobbyists and donors if he didn’t make clear now he was incorruptible.
Screw Granger and his agenda. Tim didn’t need his money.
As he headed towards his car, Tim felt an aching in his gut. This kind of bullshit wasn’t the reason for his getting into politics. He wasn’t naïve enough to be surprised by it, but he hoped to have a few years doing what he loved before the inevitable outside corruption started to seep in. Such a pessimistic view, he mused.
These thoughts made him more determined to resist as long as he still had fight in him. And he would start by ignoring Granger’s suggestions and doing what he damn well intended to do in the first place.
