notebook Jan tromped into the Oval Office fifteen minutes before the White House spokesperson was scheduled to go on and joined the President for a light breakfast of sliced fruit, danish, and rolls. The fact that the President was having her breakfast then and there made Jan suspect that she had been unable to have it upstairs in her private quarters before coming down to the Oval Office. Odds were, Jan thought, President Wilson had come up from the White House War Room instead, where she would have received an update on the current fighting taking place in central Germany.
Looking back at the screen, Jan watched as her colleagues from the White House press corps jumped up, to a person, madly waving their hands and calling out as soon as the spokesperson finished reading the prepared text. The camera couldn't help but catch the crestfallen expression on the spokesperson's face as he surveyed the sea of waving hands and tried to pick the easiest mark in the crowd. Again glancing over to Wilson, Jan smiled to herself. The President was no fool. She knew that the White House press corps would react like that. She knew that it would be impossible to control them. Therefore she had sent her spokesperson out to deliver the message and take the full brunt of the initial volley of questions while she, safely tucked away in the Oval Office, could watch and listen to the questions that the media felt were most pressing. Then with a single trusted member of the media, Jan, she would be able to answer those questions at her leisure in a calm setting where she would be able to think without competing with shouts, flashes popping, and hands waving to gain her attention. No, Jan thought, Wilson was no fool.
Wilson's abilities and skill as a politician, of course, were well known. She was good. She had to be in order to survive in a world that was not only male dominated but one in which her abilities and conduct were measured against standards established by those who had gone before her, all of whom were male. Jan had in a way highlighted Wilson's problem when she had asked Wilson how she felt about questions like 'Is she tough enough to handle Congress?' or 'Will she be able to fill the shoes of her predecessor?' during her race for the office. Wilson pointed out to Jan that skill and cooperation, not strength, were just as effective in dealing with people and securing their cooperation. Then with a smile Wilson also pointed out that she had no desire to wear her predecessor's shoes, since their style was not to her liking.
Jan understood all of this, having had to deal with similar concerns and issues in her own profession. So it was with a sharp eye that Jan watched Wilson as she redefined the image and role of the President to fit her. Though often accused of being 'unpresidential,' Wilson seldom failed to carry the day and come out every inch a leader and a lady. Today, Jan thought, was a perfect case in point. Rather than throw herself into a situation that was already degenerating into a shouting match, one in which passions and tempers would run high and words could easily be misunderstood, Wilson had chosen to distance herself from that while still dealing with it. Jan watched Wilson's face and her manner. Her face betrayed no strain, no apprehension. Instead, Wilson sat there rather impassively sipping coffee while studying the television monitor as she listened to her press spokesperson field the press's questions. Jan would be able to record Wilson's own version of those responses in a few minutes and then be able to have them on the noon broadcast, showing the nation and the world that the President of the United States was both in control of herself and the situation.
Turning back to the television, Jan listened, writing short notes in a spiral notebook that sat on her lap while she too sipped her coffee. The spokesperson, after finally succeeding in getting only one correspondent to ask a complete question, responded with carefully chosen words. 'As I have stated in the text of the prepared statement, while President Wilson does not endorse General Malin's actions to date, she cannot ignore the fact that German reaction today, the resort to force of arms to stop General Malin, is placing innocent Americans in danger. The deployment of forces from the Mediterranean and the United States and the heightening of the readiness condition of Air Force units in England are all in response to the German decision to open hostilities and are intended to save as many innocent soldiers of the Tenth Corps as possible.'
Another correspondent took up where the first had left off. He didn't wait to be recognized or for the spokesperson to finish. He simply jumped up and shouted, 'But Chancellor Ruff of Germany is claiming that the soldiers of the Tenth Corps by obeying Malin's orders have made themselves willing accomplices to what he is calling a crime against German sovereignty.'
The spokesperson, with specific instructions on what to ignore and what to respond to, turned his attention to this comment. 'Chancellor Ruff might be right. Even if he were, however, the President feels that using the German Army to destroy the entire Tenth Corps, something that Chancellor Ruff has threatened to do, is the same as executing a person accused of a crime without a trial.' The spokesperson paused, then added, 'I would like to take this opportunity to point out again that even the duly elected German Parliament does not agree with Chancellor Ruff's decision. The call for an immediate cease-fire and an armistice negotiated by the European Council or the UN is a reasonable solution that President Wilson is more than willing to consider.'
This last comment led to the next question. 'Could President Wilson convince General Malin, who hasn't been willing to listen to Washington thus far, to agree to a cease-fire?'
The spokesperson, with a wry smile, responded. 'That, at this point, is mere supposition. So long as the German government insists on resolving the issue by force of arms, I expect General Malin feels he has no choice but to respond in kind. It is now the Germans who have the responsibility of making the first move.'
With that response, the balance of the press conference fell into a round of follow-on questions that attempted to draw out more details on the deployment of American forces to Europe. The spokesperson, not having this information, fended off these and other questions as best he could until they reached a previously determined time limit. Finished, he closed his folder and looked up; and over the chorus of shouts, he thanked the White House press corps and walked out of a room still reverberating from shouts of further questions. As she watched the manner in which her colleagues acted, Jan couldn't blame Wilson for opting to sit this press conference out.
Finished with her coffee and with watching, Wilson leaned over to the coffee table, put her empty cup down, and pressed the power button on the television's remote control. With a smile she sat up, looked at Jan, and told her that for the moment the show was over and she was ready to start their interview. Jan's cameraman and sound technician, who had been waiting in the outer office, were allowed in. While they prepared their equipment, Wilson prepared herself. She made no extraordinary efforts. Only a tug at her dark blue jacket, a smoothing of her skirt, and a quick check of her hair was all she needed. With a nod Wilson indicated that she was ready to start.
Well drilled, Jan's crew started to roll, giving her the thumbs-up when they were running. Skipping most of the preliminaries, Jan went straight to her first question. 'President Wilson, I would like to pick up where Tim Allen of the UP left off during the press conference that was just held. While your prepared statement made it clear that the deployment of forces ?including alerting the 17th Airborne, redeployment of elements of the Navy and Marine Corps into the Baltic Sea, and increased readiness of Air Force units in Great Britain?was in response to the German actions this morning and would be used to support the Tenth Corps, your statement said nothing about the conditions under which those forces would be used and did not set a timetable for their use. Have conditions, including a timetable, already been determined, and has the German government been advised of these?'
Without batting an eye, Wilson looked at Jan and began to respond. 'To answer the first part of your question, as far as I am concerned, the conditions that would dictate the use of additional U.S. forces from outside the theater have already been met.' Wilson paused to allow the implications of that statement to sink in before continuing. 'If you recall, Jan, I stated several days ago that I would respond to any hostile actions against the innocent men and women of the Tenth Corps by the Germans by doing everything in my power to rescue as many of them as possible. The deployment of additional forces to that theater of operations is the initial phase of that effort. As to when they will be employed, I am still taking that under consideration. It is still contingent on German reaction over the next day or two.'
'Then,' Jan asked, 'you are committed but it is not, in your opinion, too late?'
Wilson smiled. 'It is never too late for sanity to prevail. I will be more than willing to entertain reasonable proposals and enter negotiations with Chancellor Ruff's government, provided the fighting stops and I have some assurance that he and his government are dealing with us in good faith and not simply stalling while seeking a military advantage while we talk.'
'Then, Madam President, we have not crossed the proverbial Rubicon. Our forces have not taken any actions that threaten to escalate this crisis any further, for the moment?'
'That, as you know, is very subjective. For example, although our aircraft based in Great Britain have not violated German airspace, the Air Force has established round-the-clock patrols. They're already using aircraft based in Great Britain over both the North Sea and the Baltic Sea, including E-3 airborne early warning and command and control aircraft flying in support of the Tenth Corps. Down links, using satellites and other secure
