The congressman didn’t look half as embarrassed as he should have. “Come on, you know wars can’t be led by a committee. We are in dire need of true leadership. Someone to do the dirty, grey area of the Constitution work. Just the type of terrible decisions that no politician worrying about reelection can make. Plus, let’s face it, you are either the most beloved or hated man in this country. No one alive today, for better or worse, can shrug you off as a weakling.”
The president said nothing as he wandered away from the sofa and towards his desk. He produced a pack of Newport Menthols from a bottom drawer, took one out and tapped the tobacco far longer than necessary. There was a lighter in there too, but he didn’t touch it. He hadn’t had a cigarette since the reelection over four years ago. Sure, he made a promise to his wife, his kids and to himself, but come the hell on! That was all before this shit popped up. Twirling the cancer stick, he bought some time.
“Let’s make it clear from the start, Mr. Speaker, so there are no false perceptions. You realize that I’ll have to slap Florida under martial law, right? It may even be necessary to suspend Habeas Corpus temporarily and the right to bear arms in much of the country. Hell, for rebel-held and occupied lands, the Constitution will be an extremely flexible document. I don’t want to do it, God help me I’ve tried everything to avoid getting this far, but I won’t hesitate to use every ounce of power that you give me.”
The congressman didn’t hesitate before answering. “We all know that. It’s not something we relish either, but someone has to assume the role. You’re now that someone.”
The president wrestled with his disgust. “So that’s it? With the stroke of a pen, you’ll hand the delicate virtue of a 240-year-old republic into the hands of a dictator? All to avoid assuming a little responsibility.”
“Beat your chest all you please, but ending this war quickly and with minimum destruction for both sides is going to be an epic challenge. You stand the best chance of pulling it off.”
The president leaned back, digging his head into his chair. “Yeah, I bet they told Caesar the same thing.”
He didn’t mention his primary fear. The real challenge of giving up that absolute power when the job was done. The president snatched the lighter from his drawer. He sucked deeply on the delicious, minty tar air. He prayed he was strong enough to give up at least one of these vices eventually.
Havana, Cuba
Donaldson basked in herodom and sunshine on a Cuban beach with thousands of other runaway Florida fighters. They all tried to avoid watching television. They also tried to ignore their leaders always walking around in deep conversation with their Cuban counterparts and some wild-eyed man in a Hawaiian shirt.
Out West, the population and their leaders slowly woke up to the novel idea that the Federal Government wasn’t even close to falling, no matter how much hopeful rhetoric they told themselves. All those fence sitters were finally forced to pick a side. That helped the fledging new government more than the old. Every day brought new regular military desertions to their cause. Often in whole bases with much of their equipment and most of their personnel. Most of the staff, but never all.
More civilians were also migrating west than east. That was far more important than the raw numbers suggested. Someone willing to leave their home and strike out for something new is the most loyal and motivated type of citizen you could find. At least most fanatical, as some critics pointed out.
So many people, both in America and America 2.0, wondered when the other shoe would drop. The weakness of the central government was a driving force behind the referendums in the first place, but when they didn’t fold people got worried. Why weren’t they stomping on the West? Crushing these people they so vehemently called rebels?
The baby new government consisted of just 14 states: Alaska, Washington, Oregon, California, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, Idaho, Wyoming, Montana, Colorado, Kansas and Nebraska. Barely a third of the population of the United States, and that was only paper strength. Here in the early stages of the separation, the reality was less impressive. In every state loyal to the new nation there existed vocal and sometimes militant minorities threatening the new system. Some towns and whole counties, especially along the nebulously defined border, were more hostile than the real USA.
Not that the Feds were in much better shape. Their sweeping military advantage existed only in the media’s imagination. A large chunk of the Armed Forces, especially air and naval assets, were still deployed overseas. To redeploy them stateside would take weeks. Large losses, particularly in equipment, during the “low intensity domestic operations” in Florida took yet another big bite out of immediately available resources. Garrisoning a tropical land of 19 million hostiles drained even more.
Concerns, well, panic over the loyalty of the various state reserves and National Guard forces ensured they would not be committed to battle any time soon. This paranoia, arguably justified, nevertheless resulted in the United States voluntarily removing half their army from the equation. When you consider the gargantuan defections to the west, from individual soldiers going AWOL to whole brigades assimilating into the new rebel command structure, the military balance between the two sides approached equality.
Besides the lack of military options, the single biggest concern holding back both US governments was political. More accurately, no one had a clue what the hell to do. This stuff was all so damn new. Breaking away from the crumbling old government was one thing; figuring out what to do next was something else. Not to mention that, so far, military action hadn’t paid off so well. Something the Feds could attest to.
The two sides continually cast about for quick solutions to this incredibly difficult strategic situation, but kept coming up short. Neither leadership camp could accept that the only way to win this fight was to launch a long, protracted land war to subdue and occupy the enemy. A massive, continent spanning war appeared necessary, but also impossible. The politicians couldn’t imagine the population of either side stomaching such a war. Of course, a negotiated peace settlement was even more unimaginable.
Unlike the Florida fiasco, the two sides would not stumble into this fight. They’d have to approach the slaughter with their eyes wide open. Every day of political inaction strengthened the cohesiveness of the new nation’s military and government while sapping the power of the old. Well, draining power, but not resolve.
The West represented 40 % of the American land mass, not something that could be blitzed even if the US military was at full strength. They were no banana republic to be steamrolled in a day’s campaigning. A gargantuan buildup would be needed. A generation defining type of expansion to the Armed Forces not seen since the Second World War.
So, with surprisingly little reluctance, that’s what the leadership on both sides set out to do. What needs to be done must be done. If it just so happens that billions could be made in the process, well, there’s no reason that patriotism can’t be profitable.
Oh, and profitable it was. Shortly after the new nation’s foundation, thousands of Preppers “bugged out.” They were ready for the widespread disruption to the financial institutions and trade infrastructure. Civilization did not implode; that would have been easier. No, it was more a sizzle. Sure, for a time, luxury goods were in terribly short supply. New smartphones, fancy cars and overpriced sports jerseys were hard to find at any price. To quite a few Americans, that alone was a sign of the Apocalypse.