Lethal Trajectories - Michael Conley [34]
“In 2016 Lyman Burkmeister, a moderate Republican, tapped Clayton to be his running mate, and the rest is history. Jack told me that Burkmeister and Clayton became good friends as fellow governors of large states, and Clayton accepted the job under one condition: he wanted to restructure and consolidate the various federal energy, transportation, and environmental departments into one megadepartment with a full span of controls, similar to that in his California model. Burkmeister not only agreed to his request, he one-upped Clayton by making it a major platform issue. Like Clayton, he was deeply concerned with America’s energy dependencies and thought it might help address the challenge. It also speaks volumes for Burkmeister’s independent streak in getting a man outside his party to run with him—one reason I’m not totally surprised by his position on Chunxiao with regard to Japan.”
“As you can see by my pages of notes, Peng, your comments on the McCarty brothers have been most interesting. What else can you tell me about Clayton McCarty? How does he think?”
“Clayton McCarty is not the usual type of politician. He’s not taken in by the hype that goes with the office. In some respects, I see similarities in the ways that both of you view the world and approach its challenges. He looks first at the big picture and endgame he wants—at least that’s how I remember his approach in the discussions we used to have. He’s not afraid to go against the grain and is a man of personal courage, as evidenced by the medals he won as a combat officer in the Gulf War. He’s usually calm and dispassionate, though I’ve seen him riled by what he viewed as incompetence.
“He has an intense dislike for short-term, bureaucratic thinking, and my guess is he’s probably a little frustrated in his vice-presidential job, as he’s used to leading and not following.”
“Thank you for your observations, Peng,” Lin said. “You’ve given me a good insight on what makes Clayton McCarty tick, and who knows, it might come in handy someday.”
Lin looked down at his notes for a couple of minutes, and Wang could sense he had something else to say.
“Peng, I’d like you to consider accompanying Prime Minister Chen Shenglin on his upcoming trip to the United Nations in New York toward the end of September. Perhaps when you are there, you could re-establish your contact with Jack McCarty. If President Burkmeister is indeed ill, it is possible that Clayton McCarty’s role will be enhanced. If this is the case, it wouldn’t hurt for you to stay close to the McCartys. Would you be able to make that trip, comrade?”
Wang knew this was not a request. It all made sense now. Lin Cheng was a shrewd observer of people, and sensing there might be a change of command in America, he wanted to get a better handle on what he was up against. It made perfect sense.
“Of course, Mr. Chairman, I will do anything you ask.”
As he agreed, he was torn by the idea of crossing a boundary in his relationship with Jack McCarty. They had always managed to maintain their friendship by keeping political agendas out of the picture, and the thought of doing otherwise now was troublesome.
He said good-bye to Lin Cheng after advising him he would call to set up a “casual” visit with Jack McCarty.
12
IEE Headquarters, Georgetown
17 September 2017
Although it was a Sunday, Jack McCarty and his team of IEE scientists spent the better part of the day poring over the raw diagnostic data delivered by the recently launched climate-change satellites. An air of tension and gloom hung over the room, for their worst fears were being systematically