Excerpt
The next day, Hilliard shocked the world by showing up at Kylie Keyes’s rally in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
When he grabbed the microphone, her fans were silent. They couldn’t believe he was there, but they were anxious to hear what he had to say. Hilliard paced, showing off his charisma. The same charisma that got him in the White House for eight years. “As I’m sure you already know, I became a Christian yesterday. When this happened, I also became a Republican.” He paused, waiting for the conservative crowd to cheer. They were too stunned. “I’m here to apologize to you for the problems I caused during my Presidency. I apologize for the White House Intern Scandal, the Stealing Furniture Scandal, raising taxes on the poor and middle class, not doing anything about education, health care and social security.
“On foreign policy, I apologize for not accepting bin Laden, not taking terrorism more seriously, giving nuclear warhead technology to North Korea, and letting Iran do as they please.
“Did you notice the only time I did anything positive during my Presidency was when my wife, Lynnette, was in the doghouse?”
The crowd laughed. They remembered.
“I signed welfare reform, NAFTA, lowered taxes, balanced the budget, had a surplus, thanks to the Republicans and I. Where was Lynnette?”
“In the doghouse,” the crowd shouted.
“When Lynnette did her job, she’d move me farther to the left and got me in trouble. Remember health care? What makes us think she’s qualified to be President when she failed as First Lady and Governor?”
The throng cheered.
“When terrorists attacked us, she begged me to do nothing. So, I didn’t. I’ll live with that for the rest of my life. Does this sound like she’s qualified to be Commander In Chief?”
“No,” the audience shouted.
“When I lowered taxes on the poor, she begged me not to. As Governor, she vetoed a bill giving the poor free medicine. Does she want to help the poor?”
“No,” the people shouted.
“When I signed welfare reform, she begged me not to, claiming it’d affect the poor. It did. It put them to work, so they could make something of themselves.
“When I signed NAFTA, Lynnette begged me not to. She claimed it’d ruin our economy. Our economy boomed in the 90’s, and the economy is even better now. It wasn’t Democrats who carried on my legacy, it was Republicans.”
The crowd cheered to an all-time high.
“Is Lynnette qualified to be President? No, that’s why I’m endorsing Vice President Keyes for President!”
Cory Vickers, the campaign advisor for Governor Jefferson, who ran Clint’s campaign for over a decade, was on The Big Show, a political show on CNN. They talked about the biggest betrayal in political history.
Zack Roberts looked at Vickers and said, “You’ve known Hilliard for over thirty years. What’s he doing?”
“This is a political tactic.”
“It always is with him,” Roberts interrupted.
Vickers continued. “Clint wants to take over the United Nations. Tu Tu Shabazz is in trouble. He’s going to resign. Clint wants the job, but the UN told him his wife can’t be President, because of conflicts of interest. He’s decided to sabotage her campaign, so he can take over the UN. He’ll deal with President Keyes later.”
Bill James, the liberal, scoffed at the idea. “That’s absurd.”
Vickers looked at James. “You explain it.”
James looked sick. “Maybe he really is a Christian.”
Vickers laughed. “That’s impossible.”
“Why?”
“He only loves himself. If he’s serious about this, he’d endorse Governor Jefferson. They think a lot alike. Since he’s endorsing Keyes, we know it’s one of his scams to fool Americans.”
“Will this hurt the Jefferson Campaign?” Roberts asked.
Vickers sighed. “Keyes is going to get a huge boost over this, which hurts the Jefferson Campaign from that standpoint, but I’ll guarantee you Lynnette will end up in last place, thanks to her husband.”
Vickers smiled brightly when he left the show. His smile disappeared as he walked to the backroom. Why can’t Clint be honest for once?
Clint Hilliard brushed his teeth, getting ready for his date.
When his associate told him he had a phone call, he came down the stairs with his toothbrush hanging out of his mouth. “Hello?”
Lynnette swore at him. “What’re you up to?”
“I’m getting ready for a business meeting,” Clint replied.
“Business meeting? You’re probably shacking up with Keyes.” Lynnette paused, choking on tears. “How could you do this to me? After everything I’ve done for you. I saved you in 1992, and I supported you. If it wasn’t for me, you wouldn’t have won the White House. I saved you in 1998. If it wasn’t for me, you would’ve been impeached. Why betray me now?”
“You saved yourself. I created your political career. If I died, you died. If I won, you won.”
Anger pierced her veins as tears rolled down her cheeks. The truth hurt. “Defending you was my only choice.”
“That’s right,” Clint said confidentially.
“Why betray me?”
“You lured me too far to the left and almost ruined me. Vickers had to clean it up. Did you notice I stopped saying good things about you? Ignored you? You stopped going to strategy meetings? You let me down and your advice was no longer needed.”
Lynnette looked down and sniffed.
Clint continued. “Look how great I am, and look at the Democratic Party today. They don’t have anything. Even I couldn’t save them. You’re not qualified to be President. You’ll ruin the Party.”
“Why can’t you understand I truly love you?”
“It’s not about love.”
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