think is more morally reprehensible… dislocating the arm of a terrorist who has intentionally lied on his immigration application so he can become an American citizen and help kill innocent people, or sticking a steel spike into the brain of an eight-and-a-half-month-old fetus and then sucking his brains out.”
“Nice try, Mr. Rapp… you are talking about settled law, and in front of this committee that is a big mistake. You are way out of your depth on this issue.”
“Undoubtedly, ma’am, but I don’t want you to get me wrong here. I am not condemning your position. I’ve killed far too many people to begin waving the pro-life banner. I’m merely trying to point out the hypocrisy that you have so perfectly displayed during your twenty-one years in the United States Senate.” Rapp recalled the numbers Lonsdale had provided. “You have a one hundred percent voting record when it comes to a woman’s reproductive rights. On thirty-eight separate occasions you have voted to protect or expand partial-birth abortions as well as provide federal funding for clinics that perform the procedure.”
“The people in this room are well aware of my voting record, and I can assure you that I am not the only senator on this committee who has a hundred percent voting record when it comes to a woman’s right to choose.”
“I wouldn’t know. I don’t follow it that closely, and again I’m not in the business of judging why all of you vote the way you do. I’m the one who has been accused by you, Senator, of being a morally bankrupt barbarian, so I’m just trying to figure out where all your outrage comes from.”
“You honestly don’t understand why I find torture so utterly offensive?”
“You’re an intelligent, civilized woman. I would never expect you to openly condone torture. But I’m confused about your outrage. A little over a year ago a Saudi named Abad bin Baaz emigrates to the United States, takes up residence in Washington, D.C., and begins receiving shipments of explosives and providing intelligence for the very same terrorist cell that last week used those explosives to blow up buildings and kill innocent civilians. I catch him red-handed, and in an effort to try to apprehend the terrorists who are still at large, I allegedly dislocated his shoulder and slapped him around and got him to spill the beans on his little band of thugs, and you find my behavior reprehensible.”
“I think any normal person would,” Ogden answered.
“How about sticking a spike through the top of a baby’s head, piercing the skull, and then sucking the baby’s brains out all because the mother gets a note from two doctors who claim she has depression, or some other mental issue that precludes her from giving birth to a full-term baby?”
“Mr. Rapp, the two issues are completely different, as I said-”
“I know what you said, Senator,” Rapp shouted, “and I’m sick of your manufactured outrage.”
“Mr. Rapp!” the jowly senator from Vermont jumped in, “You will watch your tongue! This is the United States Senate.”
“I’m well aware of where I am, sir. This is where we not only say it’s perfectly okay for a doctor to kill a full- term baby, but we think taxpayers should help pay for it.” Rapp shot daggers at Ogden. “And you call me a barbarian.”
“Mr. Rapp,” Ogden said, “for the last time we are not here to discuss abortion.”
“I’m well aware of that, Senator. We’re here to talk about your moral outrage over what I have allegedly done. And I’m merely trying to point out the hypocrisy that this esteemed body is so famous for.” Rapp walked back to the table.
CHAPTER 51
WHERE the hell did you come up with that?” Nash asked as soon as they were clear of the committee room. Kennedy was still inside having a private word with a few of the senators.
Rapp grinned, thought of Lonsdale’s note, and said, “Just popped into my head.”
“It was brilliant. I mean frickin’ brilliant. I’ve never seen Ogden that frustrated.”
“Yeah, well she opened the door pretty wide for me.”
“I think you actually got her to reconsider.”
“I doubt it.” Rapp shook his head. “She’ll make it about me. She’d rather shoot the messenger than confront her hypocrisy.”
“Well, there were sixteen other senators in there who all seemed to be agreeing with you.”
Rapp laughed. “Maybe fourteen or fifteen at the most. Probably enough to kill this thing before it gets legs, but she’ll leak it to the press and all of her buddies at Amnesty International and the ACLU. There’s no shortage of attorneys in this town who wouldn’t jump at the chance to try to drag our asses into court.”
They stopped to wait for Kennedy. “Yeah, but at least we’ll get political cover from the committee.”
“Probably, and we’ll have the president on our side.”
Nash waited for a couple of staffers to walk past and then said in a conspiratorial voice, “Wouldn’t it be nice if the president would just slip us a couple of blanket pardons?”
Rapp laughed. Nash the martyr appeared to be on break.
“We could tuck them away in Irene’s safe for a nice rainy day. No one would have to know.”
Rapp thought of their next meeting. “You should ask him when we get to the White House. I jumped on the grenade in there,” Rapp jerked his head back toward the committee room, “you handle the next one.”
Nash thought about it for a while and said, “Maybe I will.”
“Don’t hold your breath. I’ve been waiting to get one for years.”
Kennedy joined them in the hallway, and as she pulled up, she shot Rapp a look and said, “That was interesting.”
“Sure was,” Nash said.
“I think we can count on the committee dropping the issue.”
“What about Ogden?” Rapp asked. “Who cares,” Nash said. “You destroyed her.”
“She can still make trouble for us,” Kennedy warned.
“Yeah… she’ll be back to fight another day,” Rapp said. “She has to. Either that or admit she’s wrong, and she’s been drinking the Kool-Aid for way too long to admit that.”
“You were lucky in there,” Kennedy said.
“Lucky?” Nash scoffed.
“I know,” Rapp said.
“I don’t think luck had anything to do with it. If it was a prize fight they would have called it after the first round.”
“What Irene means is that under normal circumstances, they would have never let me get away with that. They would have shouted me down, and if it wasn’t for Lonsdale’s conversion there’s no way in hell I would have gotten away with it.”
Kennedy looked at Rapp and said, “I’ve never seen anything like it in my nearly twenty-five years. They’re scared to death.” She looked back down the hall at the doors to the committee room and in near-disbelief said, “Your friend from Illinois.”
“The one who likes to call us Nazis.”
“Yes. He just pulled me aside and told me whatever I want, just ask for it. He told me to take your leash off and turn you loose.”
“Unbelievable. The guy’s been busting my balls for two years. Thousands of people die in the Towers and the Pentagon, and planes fall out of the sky, and he wants me to Mirandize every piece of crap I come across. Now it hits a little closer to home and all of a sudden we need to take the gloves off and throw away the rule book. God… they’re the most egocentric fuckers on the planet.”
“Yeah… well, don’t look a gift horse in the mouth,” Kennedy said. “Isn’t this what you wanted?”
“Yeah,” Rapp snarled. “It’d just be nice if they did it for a reason other than self- preservation.”
“Well,” Kennedy said, “sometimes you have to take what you can get. Just be happy they didn’t launch an investigation. You could spend the next year sitting in conference rooms drinking weak coffee and eating stale doughnuts talking to lawyers.”
“You’re right.”
