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campaign.’
‘That’s why I didn’t tell you about it sooner. I knew you’d want it. But we couldn’t have run a campaign that was all about moving beyond racial divisions and then shown people pictures of my great-great-grammy on a slave plantation.’
‘So why are we talking about it now?’
The President looked him right in the eye. ‘Because I aim to make the fight against slavery one of the central pillars of my foreign policy. I want to start a worldwide crusade for freedom, use the power of our great nation for good.’
Whatever Harrison James had been expecting, it certainly wasn’t that. ‘You know, you coulda told me this earlier. I mean, you just said we didn’t want to campaign on race. Well, we sure as hell don’t want to base our first administration on race.’
‘We’re not going to, because this isn’t about race,’ said Roberts, totally serious now. ‘It’s about humanity. Africans, Europeans, Indians, Chinese - all the children of the earth - are being bought and sold in every nation on the planet, including our own, in a slave trade worth a minimum thirty billion dollars a year. You know how many slaves were transported from West Africa to this country in the four centuries before the trade was abolished? About six hundred and fifty thousand. You know how many people are being trafficked across national borders every year, right now, in the twenty-first century? Eight hundred thousand. The current United Nations estimate for the number of men, women and children living in conditions of slavery today, worldwide, is almost thirteen million. Some people think the true figure’s twice as high. It’s an abomination, Hal, a stain upon all our consciences, and I aim to stamp it out.’
The President’s voice had been gaining in intensity as he spoke. He was tall and strongly built, blessed with the presence of a born commander-in-chief and the captivating oratory of a gospel preacher. Once he built up a head of steam Roberts became an unstoppable force. Harrison James tried to pull on the brake while there was still time.
‘But, Linc, it’s not like this is new. The State Department’s been issuing reports on trafficking for years. We’ve been putting pressure on other nations, spending hundreds of millions of dollars on enforcing action against criminals—’
‘Well, exactly, we spent hundreds of millions, in total, over several years,’ Roberts interrupted. ‘But we spend hundreds of billions on defence and the war against terror every single year, thousands of times as much. It’s time we looked at the world a different way. We’ve got to do something good, something that makes us feel proud of who we are and what we stand for. There are countless thousands dying and suffering every day because of slavery. What’s more American, what’s more patriotic, than standing up and saying, “That’s not going to happen on my watch”?’
Now, for the first time in a while, there was a rueful half-smile on Harrison James’s face. ‘You sound like you’ve been working on that speech a while. I guess we better work out a way to sell it to the Hill, the American people and the whole damn world.’
‘I already did,’ said Roberts. ‘There’s a conference on people-trafficking in Bristol, England, next month.’
‘Sure, we’re sending a delegation.’
‘I want to address that conference.’
‘Next month? But, Linc - Mr President, your schedule’s already fixed. I mean—’
‘Screw my schedule. Make it happen.’
The Chief of Staff’s face drained of emotion as friendship was forgotten and he became a subordinate taking an unwanted order from his boss. ‘Yes, Mr President.’
The room fell silent, the tension between the two men charging the atmosphere. Then the mood was broken by a knock on the door. It was already opening as Roberts said, ‘Come in,’ and a man with bland, clean-cut features, his mousy hair cut in a short, conservative, corporate style came
‘That’s why I didn’t tell you about it sooner. I knew you’d want it. But we couldn’t have run a campaign that was all about moving beyond racial divisions and then shown people pictures of my great-great-grammy on a slave plantation.’
‘So why are we talking about it now?’
The President looked him right in the eye. ‘Because I aim to make the fight against slavery one of the central pillars of my foreign policy. I want to start a worldwide crusade for freedom, use the power of our great nation for good.’
Whatever Harrison James had been expecting, it certainly wasn’t that. ‘You know, you coulda told me this earlier. I mean, you just said we didn’t want to campaign on race. Well, we sure as hell don’t want to base our first administration on race.’
‘We’re not going to, because this isn’t about race,’ said Roberts, totally serious now. ‘It’s about humanity. Africans, Europeans, Indians, Chinese - all the children of the earth - are being bought and sold in every nation on the planet, including our own, in a slave trade worth a minimum thirty billion dollars a year. You know how many slaves were transported from West Africa to this country in the four centuries before the trade was abolished? About six hundred and fifty thousand. You know how many people are being trafficked across national borders every year, right now, in the twenty-first century? Eight hundred thousand. The current United Nations estimate for the number of men, women and children living in conditions of slavery today, worldwide, is almost thirteen million. Some people think the true figure’s twice as high. It’s an abomination, Hal, a stain upon all our consciences, and I aim to stamp it out.’
The President’s voice had been gaining in intensity as he spoke. He was tall and strongly built, blessed with the presence of a born commander-in-chief and the captivating oratory of a gospel preacher. Once he built up a head of steam Roberts became an unstoppable force. Harrison James tried to pull on the brake while there was still time.
‘But, Linc, it’s not like this is new. The State Department’s been issuing reports on trafficking for years. We’ve been putting pressure on other nations, spending hundreds of millions of dollars on enforcing action against criminals—’
‘Well, exactly, we spent hundreds of millions, in total, over several years,’ Roberts interrupted. ‘But we spend hundreds of billions on defence and the war against terror every single year, thousands of times as much. It’s time we looked at the world a different way. We’ve got to do something good, something that makes us feel proud of who we are and what we stand for. There are countless thousands dying and suffering every day because of slavery. What’s more American, what’s more patriotic, than standing up and saying, “That’s not going to happen on my watch”?’
Now, for the first time in a while, there was a rueful half-smile on Harrison James’s face. ‘You sound like you’ve been working on that speech a while. I guess we better work out a way to sell it to the Hill, the American people and the whole damn world.’
‘I already did,’ said Roberts. ‘There’s a conference on people-trafficking in Bristol, England, next month.’
‘Sure, we’re sending a delegation.’
‘I want to address that conference.’
‘Next month? But, Linc - Mr President, your schedule’s already fixed. I mean—’
‘Screw my schedule. Make it happen.’
The Chief of Staff’s face drained of emotion as friendship was forgotten and he became a subordinate taking an unwanted order from his boss. ‘Yes, Mr President.’
The room fell silent, the tension between the two men charging the atmosphere. Then the mood was broken by a knock on the door. It was already opening as Roberts said, ‘Come in,’ and a man with bland, clean-cut features, his mousy hair cut in a short, conservative, corporate style came
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