Forging America: My Campaign Manager is Roosevelt

Chapter 35: Chapter 30: Washington’s Bad News

By afternoon, things had spiraled even further out of control.

Some angry Pittsburgh citizens started searching online for Coleman’s personal information.

His personal cell phone number, his wife’s social media accounts, and even the phone number of his child’s school were all doxxed.

Coleman was forced to turn off his phone.

His wife was also forced to shut down all her social media.

This storm of calls from Pittsburgh was now severely affecting his professional and personal life.

And this was only the first day.

The next day, the situation grew even worse.

The "Pittsburgh Heart" video began to spread nationwide.

A number of national left-wing news sites and bloggers with millions of followers started reposting the video.

They framed the incident as a classic case of "the people of the Rust Belt resisting Washington’s bureaucracy."

The phone blitz from Pittsburgh began to receive support from all across the country.

Auto workers from Detroit, coal miners from West Virginia, the unemployed in Ohio...

These people, who also lived in the Rust Belt and shared a deep resentment for Washington, began dialing the number as well.

Deputy Secretary Robert Coleman’s office was completely paralyzed.

His secretary, Susan, submitted her resignation to the personnel department in tears at ten o’clock the next morning.

Coleman had to personally borrow two interns from another department just to handle the tsunami of calls.

But it was completely useless.

The incident soon caught the attention of Washington’s politically savvy news reporters.

That afternoon, the well-known political news site "Capitol Hill Insider" published a story.

The headline read: "How a Community Project from Pittsburgh Unleashed a Tsunami of Calls Against a Federal Department."

The article detailed the "Pittsburgh Heart" video and everything that had followed.

The author of the article wrote in a half-joking tone.

"It seems that in future elections, candidates won’t need to worry about their opponents’ TV ads, but rather about the angry army from the Rust Belt blowing up their office phones."

The name Robert Coleman made political headlines in a way he never would have wanted.

Far away in Pittsburgh, Leo sat in his office, watching it all unfold.

"Now, it’s time for our ally to take the stage," Roosevelt said.

「On Capitol Hill, in John Murphy’s office.」

Representative Murphy seized the opportunity Leo had created for him.

He immediately had his press secretary contact reporters from all the major media outlets, announcing an emergency press conference in half an hour regarding the "Pittsburgh incident."

At the press conference, Representative Murphy portrayed himself as a tragic hero who fought for the people, only to be ruthlessly obstructed by Washington’s bureaucracy.

"I am incredibly proud of my constituents!" Murphy declared righteously to the cameras. "Their voices are filled with power, filled with love for this land! Their voices deserve to be heard by everyone in Washington!"

"As for the actions of that bureaucrat at the Department of Housing and Urban Development, I am personally and profoundly disappointed and outraged! I cannot understand why a plan that could bring hope to our Pittsburgh would be rejected for such a preposterous reason!"

"I will immediately go to the Department of Housing and Urban Development myself. I demand that they give Pittsburgh a proper explanation!"

Murphy’s performance was nothing short of perfect.

He had successfully transformed himself into a warrior who dared to challenge federal bureaucrats for his constituents.

His approval rating in Pittsburgh skyrocketed by ten percentage points the very next day.

Meanwhile, the pressure was now being transferred to the office of Republican Senator Warren.