When the hearing was over, Kyle and I walked out of the room in silence. Had Jim McGovern just promised to introduce a Magnitsky law? Yes, he had. It was so far above my most optimistic expectations that it seemed unbelievable.
When we got downstairs, I said, «Kyle, do you think Cardin would do the same thing in the Senate?»
Kyle stopped walking. «Given what just happened, Bill, I can’t imagine that Cardin wouldn’t».
Later that afternoon, Kyle called to confirm that, yes, Cardin would be happy to be the original cosponsor in the Senate. All of a sudden, there was a small but real chance of making a US law in Sergei’s name — the Sergei Magnitsky Act.
However, there was a lot of work between the idea of a law and making it a reality. First we needed an actual document that Cardin and McGovern could introduce. When this was ready, it would have to be approved by committees in both the Senate and the House of Representatives. After that, it would then go for a full vote in front of each chamber of Congress. If both chambers passed the bill, then it would go to the president for his signature.
Thousands of draft laws are brought before Congress every year, and only a few dozen actually make their way onto the books. Therefore it was essential that the draft document Cardin and McGovern presented to their colleagues be bulletproof against any potential detractors. Kyle spent that entire summer working on the draft law, and as he did, we developed a close friendship. We spoke every day, sometimes twice a day, as we both learned as much about US sanctions law as we could.
By early September, a good draft of the bill was ready.
When Kyle sent it to me, I asked, «How quickly can Cardin schedule a vote in the Senate?»
Kyle laughed. «It’s not as simple as that, Bill. To get any bill passed in Washington you need bipartisan support. We’re going to need a senior and powerful Republican senator to cosponsor this to get it off the ground. Only then can we begin the process».
«Will Cardin find that person?»
«Possibly, but if you want this to happen quickly, you could try as well. Your personal story with Sergei is very persuasive».
I didn’t want to leave it to chance, so after talking to Kyle, I began reviewing the list of Republican senators who might be cosponsors, and one name jumped right off the page: John McCain.
If there was one senator who could truly empathize with being tortured in prison, it was John McCain. He’d been a navy fighter pilot during the Vietnam War, and when his plane was shot down, he was taken prisoner. He was held and tortured at a POW camp for five years before being freed. He would surely understand the horror that Sergei had experienced and want to do something about it.
But how on earth was I going to get a meeting with John McCain? Access in Washington is closely guarded, and the more important the person, the more inaccessible he or she is. A whole industry of lobbyists has been built around this fact. When I started asking around for someone who could introduce me to McCain, people looked at me as if I were asking them to give me a million dollars for nothing.
But then I remembered that I knew one person who might be able to make this happen. Her name was Juleanna Glover, a tall, attractive woman with wavy auburn hair, impeccable style, and an easy manner. I’d met Juleanna through a mutual friend in Washington in 2006, shortly after my Russian visa had been revoked. She’d invited me to a large group dinner at Cafe Milano, a trendy Italian restaurant in Georgetown. We exchanged cards at the end of the meal, but only when I got back to my hotel and typed her name into Google did I realize I’d been sitting next to one of Washington’s most influential lobbyists.
Juleanna had quite a résumé. She’d served as Vice President Dick Cheney’s press secretary and then as Attorney General John Ashcroft’s senior policy adviser. She went with Ashcroft when he left government to run the Washington office of his law firm, the Ashcroft Group. She was so well regarded that in 2012, Elle magazine named her one of Washington’s ten most powerful women.
Apparently, after dinner that night she also went home and typed my name into Google and learned about my escalating problems with the Russian government. She called me the next day and offered to help in any way she could, and from that moment we became friends. When Sergei died, one of the first calls I received was from Juleanna and John Ashcroft to express their condolences. «We know how bad you must feel, Bill», Ashcroft had said. «But you should know that you’re not alone in this. If there’s anything we can do to help you or Sergei’s family, we’ll do it. Just call».
Now, I did need help. I needed help getting a meeting with John McCain.
I called Juleanna and told her the situation. She said that she’d have no problem getting me in with McCain. Was it really that easy for her? We hung up and she called back inside of ten minutes.
«Bill, Senator McCain will see you at three fifteen on September twenty-second».
Yes, for her it was that easy.
I flew to Washington on September 21, and Juleanna met me at my hotel the next afternoon. We shared a taxi to Capitol Hill, cleared security, and made our way to McCain’s office — Russell 241. Given his stature in the Senate, his office was in a prime location, taking up a series of high-ceilinged rooms. We announced ourselves and were ushered into a waiting room by an assistant. McCain’s chief foreign policy adviser — a tall, thin, redheaded man with a friendly grin named Chris Brose — greeted us and made small talk while we waited for the senator. After half an hour, Senator McCain was ready to see us.
McCain met us at the door with a hearty handshake and a warm smile. He led us into his office — a comfortably furnished room with a leather couch, warm lighting, and a long and full bookcase. It had a definite Americana West feel. If it weren’t for the soaring ceiling and the tall window framing his desk, it could have been mistaken for the comfortable home office of a bibliophile executive in Phoenix.
I sat on the sofa and he perched on a chair at the head of the coffee table. He cleared his throat. «Thanks for coming in, Mr. Browder. I’ve been told you want to tell me about some of the things going on Russia». He probably expected me to lobby him about some Russian business issue.
«Yes, I do, Senator».
I then began my story about Sergei, and it quickly became clear to McCain that this wasn’t going to be like his other meetings. Less than two minutes in, he held up a hand to ask the date of Sergei’s arrest. I answered and continued. A short time later he interrupted again to get clarification on Sergei’s prison conditions. I answered and continued until he interrupted me again. We carried on like this until my fifteen minutes were up, when his secretary poked her head in to say that his next appointment was ready. I froze. I couldn’t lose this opportunity to ask him to cosponsor the law.
«I need some more time with Mr. Browder», McCain said softly. His secretary left and McCain turned his attention back to me. «Please continue».
I did. More questions, more answers. After another fifteen minutes his secretary reappeared. Again, McCain politely waved her off. We repeated this sequence once more, and by the time I was finished, I’d been sitting in McCain’s office for nearly an hour.
«Bill, Sergei’s story is shocking, truly terrible. I am so sorry for what happened to him, for you and for everybody else involved».
«Thank you, Senator».
«Tell me — what can I do to help?»