Chapter 439: Chapter 205: Internal Tally
"He’s opposing it because the bill has Sanders’s name on it."
Roosevelt dissected Mannheim’s motives.
"If this bill passes, the biggest winner will be Sanders and the Progressives."
"Sanders will prove his theory of a green industrial revival is viable. He’ll build immense prestige in the Rust Belt, and his influence within the party will grow even stronger."
"That is something Mannheim absolutely cannot tolerate."
"Mannheim’s power comes from being the brakes of the Democratic Party. He represents the moderates and fossil fuel interests. His entire political career is built on containing the radical agenda of the Progressives."
"If Sanders scores such a major political victory, Mannheim’s own position will be shaken."
"So, he has to kill this bill."
"He’s solidifying his status as the leader of the moderates."
Leo looked at the old man slowly and deliberately cutting his steak.
This was Washington.
Here, the calculus of interests wasn’t just about money. It was about the landscape of power.
To stop his rival from scoring a point, Mannheim was willing to sacrifice his own state’s interests, willing to watch a provision that benefited him turn to dust.
Because a monopoly on power was more important than a few hundred million US Dollars in coal business.
The conference room erupted.
Sanders could no longer contain his fury.
"Joe! You’re betraying the Democratic Party!"
Sanders shot to his feet, pointing at Mannheim.
"You know damn well how important this is for Pennsylvania, for West Virginia, for this entire country’s industrial base! And you’re going to crush the hopes of our workers for the sake of your pathetic political scheming?"
"Watch your tone, Daniel."
Mannheim remained seated, steady as a rock.
"I am protecting this nation’s economy from the ravages of runaway inflation. You, on the other hand, are trying to hold the United States’ finances hostage with your socialist experiments."
"This isn’t socialism! It’s common sense!"
The shouting grew louder as other Senators began to join the fray. The situation was rapidly spinning out of control.
Creston tried to maintain order, but he found himself powerless to do so.
This was no longer a simple disagreement. It was an ideological battle, a schism between factions.
"I’ve had enough of this."
Senator Christo stood up, picking up her designer handbag.
"I have no intention of sitting here and listening to this pointless bickering. I have more important things to do."
She turned and walked toward the door, her high heels clacking harshly against the floor.
"I’ll be taking my leave as well."
Mannheim stood up as well.
"If you can come up with a plan that doesn’t increase inflationary pressure, then we can talk."
The departure of the two key figures signaled the complete collapse of the luncheon.
The door opened and shut, leaving the room in shambles.
Sanders stood there, his chest heaving, his face beet-red.
The whip attempt had failed.
This meant the Democratic Party’s vote count in the Senate had just dropped from 51 to 49.
They were now two votes short of the 51 needed to pass the bill through budget reconciliation.
In the math of politics, being short two votes was no different from being short a hundred.
The bill was dead.
The other Senators began to file out of the room.
Some came over to pat Sanders on the shoulder in a show of comfort, while others wore expressions of undisguised glee.
Leo sat there, motionless.
He stared at the empty conference room, at the half-eaten meals and leftovers.
So this was the long-awaited internal caucus meeting.
A complete and utter farce.
"Mr. President."
Leo thought to himself.
’Now what do we do?’
"What do we do?"
"Leo, do you really think we only lost those two votes?"
Roosevelt scoffed.
"On the surface, not counting Mannheim and Christo, the Democratic Party still has 49 votes. It looks like we could still salvage this with a little more effort or a few compromises."
"That’s an illusion."
"The moment Mannheim stood up to object, I’d bet at least ten Senators in that room breathed a sigh of relief under the table."
"They don’t want to vote ’yes.’ They’re afraid of being attacked by the Republican Party, afraid of being labeled radicals, and afraid of offending their donors."
"But they don’t dare openly oppose Sanders, and they don’t dare offend the party’s Progressive base."
"So Mannheim isn’t just representing himself. He’s representing all the cowards who wanted to object but didn’t dare speak up. He took the bullet for them. He did their dirty work."
"As long as Mannheim doesn’t budge, those people can conveniently hide behind him and wash their hands of any responsibility."
"Sanders thinks he’s relying on the strength of the Progressives, but he’s actually standing on quicksand."
"I knew this would happen."
"From the moment you decided to come to Washington, I never expected we could get this done by relying on the unity of the Democratic Party."
There was a ruthless edge to Roosevelt’s voice.
"Since we can’t rely on our own people..."
"...we’ll have to rely on our enemies."
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