“And don’t forget,” said Lee, “the Alamo garrison was begging for reinforcements. Authority in the form of Sam Houston’s government didn’t see the Alamo as defensible or the fight worth fighting, so they just let Bowie and Crocket and the others hang out to dry.”
“And die.”
“Yes. Patriots abandoned by their own team.”
“Another good point to make. We take care of our own, no matter where, no matter what.”
“That’s why your idea of launching at the Alamo is brilliant,” said Lee. “Handled right it makes points most Americans can agree with, and helps erase the sense of difference.”
“Brilliant, or lucky guess?”
“Does it matter?”
The advance team had only two weeks to make arrangements with the Alamo Foundation and to set up the stage, recruit high-profile speakers, work through details with city officials, contract for buses to bring in supporters, and publicize the event widely and well enough to draw a crowd that looked respectable in the next day’s media. Susan Cipriani had built a strong organization for Reed Guess. It seamlessly wheeled into service for Isabel Tennyson. Despite the short notice and hurried planning, a sea of humanity poured into San Antonio. Traffic came to a standstill on nearby Interstate 37. San Antonio was accustomed to large street crowds, but this one’s size and enthusiasm would be considered a new high-water mark in Texas presidential politics. Downtown San Antonio was all but shut down during the hours of Tenny’s campaign launch. Hotels and motels were sold out despite all of the chartered buses bringing supporters on day trips. Tenny fans rode all-night buses from as far away as California.
Tenny had served nearly seven years in the U.S. House, more than five in the Senate. Her career and popularity had been built on a platform of frequent and passionate speeches. She and the speaker’s platform were hardly strangers. But this was her debut as a presidential candidate. It would be the largest live audience she ever faced. Having the Alamo as a backdrop, with all its emotional symbolism, was risky enough. Compounding the risk was the one of first impressions. A weak, even a so-so performance could suffocate the campaign and her entire future political career with poor reviews even before it was out of its cradle.
Senators and governors, movie stars and other celebrity supporters had preceded her to the microphone. Bands had serenaded the crowd. Everything said to feed supporters hungry for rapturous adjectives drew rounds of cheers and thunderous applause. The bigger the buildup the higher the expectations. As she awaited her turn at the microphone, her anxiety level rose in tandem with those expectations.
Then it was time. She marched confidently onto the makeshift stage, a curtain of American and Texas flags draped behind her. Tenny’s outward appearance masked her growing inner terror. Her throat turned dry. Her confidence drained. She walked into an ovation lasting fully seven minutes while hands were thrust at her for touching, children were raised up to camera level by beaming parents, and chants of Tenny, Tenny, Tenny echoed for literally a mile around. The bedlam stunned her. The outpouring brought tears. When it was finally time to speak, her eyes were so misted from emotion that the teleprompter ready to guide her through her prepared speech was a washy blur. She tried to focus but could not read the words. The longer she remained silent, the more silent the crowd became.
Spontaneously, since it was the only thing she could think to do in her emotional state, she turned to an American flag and began, “I...”
“...pledge...”
The words came slowly, each with its own space.
“...allegiance...”
“...to the flag...”
“...of the United...”
“...States of America...”
As she continued, others joined in, at her pace.
“...and to the Republic, for which it stands...”
By now 100,000 were with her.
“...one nation, ...”
“...under God, ...”
“...indivisible, ...
“...with liberty...”
“...and justice...”
She hesitated, and raised both arms to the crowd.
“...for all.”
And she repeated.
“for All.”
She was regaining her voice.
“For all,” she said again.
This time the crowd joined her.
“For All!” she all but shouted.
And the crowd shouted back.
She had not intended to lead the pledge of allegiance when she took the stage. It was a desperate handle that kept her from making a blithering fool of herself. Neither did she intend to sing. But the song came so naturally after the pledge. A rich soprano honed in church choirs through her teens.
“This is my country,
“Land of my birth,”
Quick to respond, the band fell in quietly with her.
“This is my country,
“Grandest on earth.”
Once again the crowd lit up as a monumental chorus.
“I pledge thee my allegiance, America, the bold.
“For this is my country, to have and to hold.”
The crowd cheered wildly again as the verse ended. But Tenny wasn’t through. As silence resumed, she sang the second verse.
“This is my country, land of my CHOICE.”
Immediately seizing the political significance of that line, the crowd once again erupted. When she could, Tenny continued.
“This is my country, hear my proud voice.”
“I pledge thee my allegiance, America, the bold.
“For this is MY country, to have and to hold!”
Tenny’s impromptu opening and the crowd’s response became one of the most watched clips ever on YouTube. It dominated evening newscasts and next day headlines. Ben and Lee watched this unfold from behind a curtain to the left of the stage.
“A knockout in the first round,” said Lee.
Ben, amazed beyond belief at the brilliant spontaneity of this reluctant candidate, could just stare ahead, trying to etch the scene permanently into memory, a golden addition to a full basket of life experiences. Tenny’s brilliant opening perfectly set up the speech he had written for her.
“Greetings, my fellow Americans,”
The crowd responded with a roar.
“Saludos, mis compatriotas americanas.”
The roar was even louder.
“I am here to begin a campaign which with your help will result in my becoming president of the United States.”
(Applause and cheers lasting 2 minutes and 33 seconds.)
“And we begin on hallowed ground. Ground where so many brave Americans died. Why did they die? Because those living in Texas at the time would not tolerate losing their freedom to a Mexican dictator who had robbed that very freedom from the Mexican people. The Alamo heroes fought and died to be free and independent. As president of the United States I will do everything in my power to preserve and protect those freedoms and to extend those freedoms to all those who live without them.”
(Applause and cheering lasting 1 minute and 23 seconds.)
“Why else did those brave Americans die within the walls of the Alamo? Because others did not come to their defense. They could’ve had help and reinforcements. They should have had help and reinforcements. But they were left to fight this battle alone, two hundred against thousands. As president of the United States when it is necessary to place our brave military in harm’s way, they will not be abandoned. When we have to fight, we will. And those who we ask to fight our battles will never be abandoned. Not during the battle, or after the battle is won, or after they return home to a grateful nation. That is my pledge.”
(Applause and cheering lasting 1 minutes 46 seconds.)
“Let me tell you some things about myself—before others do.
(Laughter.)
“I was born Isabel Aragon, named for Queen Isabella of Spain. Isabella bought Christopher Columbus’s cruise ticket to this new world. Isa
bella was married to King Ferdinand Aragon, and so, yes, my friends it was my ancestors who helped make Columbus possible. That makes me an American don’t you agree?”
(Round of laughter and applause.)
“Here’s another thing that makes me an American. I was born in New York City and have the birth certificate to prove it.”
(Extended laughter and applause.)
“I’m proud of my family’s heritage. It’s a heritage that made possible emigration to this continent of so many others from Spain, and France and England, and Germany and Italy and Russia and China and Japan and Korea and Vietnam and Ireland and just about every country in the world.”
(Applause.)
“This is a big part of the exceptionalism we all feel for our great country. We live what we preach. So many cultures and talents temper our steel. So many cultures keep our national heart healthy and our achievements the wonder of the world.”
(Applause.)
“For many years I worked in the neighborhoods of Los Angeles. I helped the jobless find jobs. I worked to get living wages for those who had jobs. I helped care for the sick and elderly and those who could not care for themselves. I helped feed the hungry and transport those who could not otherwise visit doctors or stores, or attend schools or visit loved ones. Many of those I helped were U.S. citizens. Many were not. Many were of my own Hispanic or Latino heritage. Many were not. But they all had this in common. They were decent, loving, family-oriented, law-biding human beings who asked for little except for the opportunity to work, to educate themselves and their children, to get medical assistance when needed, and to retire, when the time came, without being hungry or homeless or to die untimely deaths for lack of money to pay for care. And for those who need such help, if I become your president, I will not just say nice words on their behalf, I will move heaven and earth to bridge the gap from hopelessness to opportunity.”
(Applause and cheers.)
“Liberty and justice for all! For all!”
(Crowd joins in.)
“For ALL!”
(Cheers and extended applause.)
“I’ve also spent years of my life with those who never had to worry about a meal, or a job, or a car, or the visit to a doctor. I managed the wealth of the wealthy. I suggested investments. I helped them buy businesses. I arranged for them to get huge loans. I directed them toward ways to save money on their taxes. I was successful in a business called ‘wealth management.’ Most of that wealth was honestly earned by those who had creative ideas, who worked hard, who managed enterprises well, and who invested wisely in growing businesses that created good paying jobs and strengthened their communities. This is the positive side of our economic system, the best economic system ever created to provide ladders of opportunity. “
(Applause and cheers.)
“But the rungs on that ladder are growing wider apart. And too many at the top are trying to pull the ladder up behind them so others can’t reach it. They’re not paying their just share to maintain our communities. They’re not paying their workers just wages for what they do and produce. They corrupt our political process with their wealth. I know them. I’ve worked where they work and know who they are, and I promise you this: As your president, I will treat honest business fairly and with all the support and encouragement we can provide to keep our economy healthy and growing. But dishonest tax evasion, financial intimidation, and business practices that devastate homes, neighborhoods, communities, industries, and that prey on workers, I will go after with no quarter.”
(Applause and cheers.)
“I’m a great believer in shareholder value. And I’m also a great believer in worker value, community value, family value, retirement value. Right now, our value system is dangerously out of balance, too richly rewarding the wrong things, starving living standards and opportunity for everyone else. We are better than this. We can do better than this. We will do better than this!”
(Applause begins to grow as she speaks.)
“This is America for all. For ALL! For ALL!!!”
(Thunderous roars of approval.)
For ten more minutes Tenny outlined what she had done while a member of the U.S. House and U.S. Senate to show that her words today were the culmination of years of action. She neatly interlaced policy with anecdotes from her years in Los Angeles and her extended family in Mexico. She closed with this:
“My brother, Federico, has dedicated his life to helping others as a Jesuit priest. I am so very proud of Federico. He could be sharing in the family wealth and living the life you see in glossy magazines. Many call him crazy to be living and working in poor Mexican villages rather than in a penthouse in New York or the beaches of the Costa del Sol. Federico is not with me here today because today he is in the Mexican village of Batopilas, one of Mexico’s poorest, waiting to assist with the birth of twins due to be born there any moment. He will help the midwives and bless the newborns.
“Federico has chosen a life of service. And so have I. A different line of work than the priesthood, but the same goals: Helping people to make the most of the lives God has blessed them with. Free of fear. Free of hunger. Free to enjoy what our own U.S. Constitution mandates for all of us, ‘the blessings of liberty for ourselves and our posterity.’
“For Federico, for our children, for those who find every day an unnecessary struggle, for all who ask only for opportunity for a fair chance to live their lives to the fullest of their capability and ambition, I ask for your support to be the next president of the United States.”
23
Officially, it’s the World Economic Forum. For most it’s simply known as “Davos,” the idyllic Swiss mountain retreat where the world’s rich and powerful assemble each January to play, plot, and deal. Among the 2,500 or so with official name tags are many who don’t really need them, immediately recognizable world leaders, entertainment celebrities, and captains of industry, finance, and commerce.
The media focus always divides between the official program of speeches and workshops and the epic drunken after dark socializing. But, as with most conference activity, whether the price of admission is $100,000 or $100, the real action is generally off site, in hotels and other venues where cards can be dealt beyond the eyes of those who don’t play for such stakes.
This year, Davos predated the Iowa presidential caucuses by two weeks, a collision of timing much on the minds of all who disembarked from their private jets. A select few found invitations to a private discussion of the U.S. political situation waiting for them when they checked into their hotels and villas. The invitation came not from an American, but a Mexican: Javier Carmona, CEO of Groupo Aragon, one of the largest conglomerates in Latin America, and for many, a major partner in sizeable finance, energy, agricultural and other pursuits. Carmona was a man you could not ignore.
Jack Hurley couldn’t ignore him, even though Hurley ran Blue Bancorps, one of the four largest financial giants in the United States. Neither could Pete Garner, CEO of Texas Global Oil. Irving Pounds was there. He was one of the few who knew that Carmona was the source of tens of millions of dollars spent in the unsuccessful campaign to defeat Senator Tennyson when she ran for election years earlier. There were four others in the invited group. Rene Delgado, like Carmona, leader of one of Mexico’s largest business conglomerates; Carlos Mungia, former president of El Salvador, known to be one of the 100 richest people in the world; Kurt Bass, executive director of the Swiss equivalent of the American Bankers Association; and Bassam Zaman, an under-the-radar figure known to be close to the Saudi royal family and a conduit for many high-level deals in the wide arc of the oil rich Middle East.
Carmona had chosen his invitees carefully, for their wealth, influence, and the vast army of intelligence operatives and political power they controlled.
“Be assured, gentlemen,” Carmona said, “we are together without ears from the outside. My security people have carefully swept this villa. We may all speak freely.”
“Abou
t what?” asked Blue Bancorps’ Jack Hurley. “It’s nice to see all of you, but looking around, I’m not sure what for and why us.” Hurley was blunt and manically protective of his time. He ran a behemoth with a market cap of more than $200 billion and a quarter of million employees. Hurley was a man without time or energy to waste.
“Let me get quickly to the point,” said Carmona. “I’ve asked you here to discuss Señora Tennyson, a woman who could well become president of the United States unless measures are taken to stop her. I have particular insight into this lady, since many years ago she worked for me and I was forced to dismiss her from our enterprise, even though Aragon was built by her family and she was one of our largest shareholders.”
“Twenty years ago, wasn’t it?” said Pete Garner. Not still holding a grudge, are you, Carmona?”
“It’s not the past that concerns me. She did no damage. But what happened long ago still matters, and all of you need to know why. She was not just an employee who was fired. Not just the granddaughter of Miguel Aragon. In his will Miguel specified that she should be groomed to be Aragon’s chief executive. And with respect to Don Miguel, we would have honored his wishes. In fact, having an American face as CEO would have been quite useful for us to compete with U.S. companies.”
“Glad it didn’t work out then,” Hurley smiled.
“Think about this,” Carmona went on, undeterred. “She was offered one of the most important positions in international business. And what did she do? She came to our board, the first board meeting after Miguel’s death, really just to be introduced so we could start her executive training program, and she demanded that Groupo Aragon totally change the ways we do business. Demands of the kind none of us could ever agree to. Ever. The board, of course, rejected them and we found ways to remove her from our organization.”
“What kind of demands?” asked Kurt Bass.
“The kind you and others in Swiss banking are feeling this very day. Demands to disclose depositor files, and to minutely track the flow of money. Demands you in America see from her since she became a senator, to remove your investment business from your banking business, to criminalize simple errors in business judgment. We all see how she would close benefits we all enjoy from our energy businesses. “
The Latina President...and the Conspiracy to Destroy Her Page 14
