Chapter 735: Chapter 368: The Bill Enters the Drafting Stage_2
Thinking of this, he nodded emphatically and said, “Just entrust me to draft this bill, and I assure you, I will not let you down!”
“We’ve known each other for over twenty years, and of course, I trust you, but, as I said, the decision isn’t up to me, it’s up to Inspector David, so now I will take you to see him and find out his final decision.”
Sean certainly trusted his old friend but, just as he had said, the decision of who was to draft the bill ultimately lay with David; otherwise, everything was just talk!
“Alright, then let’s go!”
Sean got into Church’s business vehicle and, escorted by two Cadillacs, headed toward the direction of the Internal Revenue Service.
Twenty minutes later, the two men arrived at the Internal Revenue Service and made their way to David’s office.
...
“Chief Inspector David, this is Congressman Church from the House of Congressman.”
“Good to meet you, Congressman Church.”
“Good to meet you, Chief Inspector David!”
As a Congressman, Church was of much higher status than David, a Chief Inspector of the Tax Bureau.
Yet facing someone who could change his destiny, where did he dare show any arrogance? His manner was exceedingly humble in his speech.
“Chief Inspector David, I have known Congressman Church for over twenty years, and his wife is even my cousin. He’s absolutely trustworthy!”
Afraid that David might not trust Church, Sean candidly revealed this familial connection after exchanging greetings.
David nodded, looked at Church, and said, “Senator Church, I believe you are aware of the situation. This bill is not just any bill. If you dare to propose and then draft it, you’ll face enormous pressure. Therefore, I want to ask you solemnly now, are you capable of taking on the role of drafter for this bill?”
“Yes, of course, I am!”
“If you, Chief Inspector David, entrust me with drafting this bill, even if it means risking my own life, I guarantee that I will complete the task!”
To gain David’s trust, Church was all in, assuring him with the resolve of a military order.
“Good, since you’ve said so, I think I can trust you. You will draft the bill, and the deadline is in two days!”
In fact, the reason David had decided to entrust Church with drafting the bill so quickly was that he had secretly scrutinized Church’s background and confirmed his reliability before making this swift decision.
“Thank you, Chief Inspector David!”
Church was overjoyed.
In the time that followed, David went into detail with Church about some of the work related to the bill.
It was nearly two hours later before he indicated they could leave to prepare.
Afterward, David headed to Donald’s office and reported the entire situation…
…
Two days passed quickly.
That day, a meeting was being held at the National Congress, and as usual, the Congressmen walked out the front doors after the meeting concluded.
“Congressman Dupin, how is the progress on the environmental bill going?”
“Congressman Saroyan, the Congress has been discussing healthcare reform for over half a year now. What areas still need improvement?”
“Congressman Maysfield…”
America’s various bills are all matters concerning the people’s livelihood.
Simply put, any bill inherently attracts significant attention.
Therefore, media outlets would send their reporters to cover the congressional meetings, aiming to gather story leads from the interviews with the Congressmen.
However, the media also had their preferences in interviews.
Generally, reporters liked to interview seasoned Congressmen or those with promising political futures.
The so-called seasoned Congressmen were those who had worked in the National Congress for many years and had considerable political capital.
As for the novice congressmen, they had just been elected to Congress without much political capital.
As for the congressmen with more dazzling political prospects, this was even easier to understand.
For instance, they had the backing of powerful capital, or they were the initiators of significant legislation.
Take health care, education, or welfare—legislation that nearly all citizens paid attention to. Being the initiator of such legislation would naturally lead to boundless prospects.
Therefore, reporters from various major media outlets would choose to interview these types of congressmen, which would also bring massive media attention.
As for Church, although he could be considered a senior member of the House of Congress, being part of the Kennedy Family faction had seen him suppressed and marginalized by the Freemasonry Group over the past few years, leaving him with few resources in the congressional chamber.
Thus, seeing him come out, reporters naturally showed little interest and had no intention of interviewing him.
They hurried past him to interview the senior and more distinguished congressmen.
“Shet, looking down on me, huh!”
If it had been in the past, Church might have been unhappy about being sidelined by the media, but he had no choice but to put up with it.
But now, he held in his hands the explosive bill regarding offshore tax avoidance, and these reporters were all acting oblivious, which naturally frustrated him immensely.
But frustration aside, Inspector David had instructed him to announce the drafting of this bill today, and he dared not neglect this duty. So, he began to actively seek an interview.
“Hey, Nicholas, I have this…”
“Sorry, Senator Church, I’m here to inquire about the progress of the environmental protection bill, and I have no time right now.”
“Hey Holmes…”
“Sorry, I need to interview Congressman Saroyan about the medical bill first. Let’s talk later, Senator Church.”
“…”
Church had hoped to announce the bill to a few familiar reporters, but none of them so much as gave him the time of day, which only stoked his internal anger.
Updated from freewёbnoνel.com.
Finally, he set his sights on a reporter from the Huffington Post.
In the world of mainstream American media, this outlet was almost, without any major news, often the last.
Although this media’s influence was somewhat minor, all he needed was a channel to announce the drafting of the bill; the size of the influence didn’t matter.
With that thought, Church immediately approached and said, “Hey, miss reporter, since you’re here to interview congressmen today, why not interview me?”
“You… Senator Church, as far as I know, you don’t have any ‘projects’ on your hands, right?”
Although Church was not very prominent in Congress, as a reporter from the Huffington Post, she was still a professional, and after a brief pause, she recognized his name.
“Yes, I didn’t have any before, but how do you know I don’t have one now?”
“What do you mean, Senator Church, have you got a ‘project’?”
“Yes, I’m preparing to draft a bill. Are you interested now?”
“Indeed, indeed, but Senator Church, if you are really going to draft a bill, may we, the Huffington Post, be the exclusive media outlet reporting it?”
The Huffington Post had not had any exclusive major news for a long time in the media world.
So, although the reporter did not know what the bill entailed, she felt it was better to secure the exclusive reporting rights first.
“Fine, then I’ll let you be the exclusive media outlet for this bill!”
The major media outlets had no time for him, so Church was, of course, not stingy with the attention from the Huffington, who was willing to give him coverage.
But at the same time, he was quite certain that once his bill was announced, those mainstream media would regret it so much that they’d be kicking themselves!
“All right, Senator Church, turn on the camera—give me the mic!”
As the words of the reporter from the Huffington fell, the nearby cameraman immediately started the live broadcast and passed over the microphone.
“Hello, everyone. I’m Janice from the Huffington Post. Joining us now is Congressman Church from the House of Congress. According to Congressman Church, he has a bill ready for drafting. Let’s hear what this legislation is all about!”