After the press conference, David makes his way back to the hotel suite. Tired but knowing he has a few more hours of work ahead of him before he can call it a night
( Read more... )
Jack's over by the bar getting a drink when Palmer walks in. Though he's not in the best of moods, it's been a while since he's seen Palmer--in person at least--so he heads over.
"Hello, David," he says, just catching himself before he can call Palmer 'sir'; it's a hard habit to break. "It's been a while since I've seen you in here."
Jack nods; the last time he remembers Palmer being in the bar was around Tony's wake, and even then he barley remembers it, those first few days back in the bar a blur.
"Do I even need to ask when you came in from?" Jack asks.
"All right, at least until the trouble started, though there are a lot of people worse off than I am at the moment," Jack says with a slight shrug. "I saw your speech."
"Can I ask what you thought?" It was one thing to have polls and pundits weighing in, another to hear it from a real person. Moreso when that person is someone he respects as much as he does Jack.
"I thought that it was something that needed to be said, and I agree with it. The problem, though, is whether anyone's going to listen," Jack says quietly.
That was the common worry among the few people who didn't think he was wrong.
"I think they will. I suspect there are a lot of people out there who feel the same way, they just need don't think anyone will listen to them," David muses, a wry note in his voice.
"Considering the latest polls, I can see why they would," Jack says, a little bitterly. Part of him still doesn't want to believe that around three-quarters of the country are dumb enough to think internment is a good idea.
Taking a sip of his scotch, he nods at this. It was hard not to get frustrated at a time like this and he hadn't always succeeded. Not when he was expected to pander to the baser whims of the electorate.
"Fear brings out the worst in people," David begins, weariness in his voice. Sometimes, he wondered if it was just fear or if that anger was always there, looking for an outlet. "And some of my peers have been all to eager to fan the flames for their own reasons."
Jack's seen how fear can bring out the worst in people too many times firsthand, but it's never something he wants to--or really expects to--see.
"I'm sure they have. There's more than one politician that would like to make people believe that they can keep them safe--as long as they're elected or re-elected, that is."
"There are a few whom I suspect would walk over their own mothers for a few votes," he muses, with a brief, mirthless smile.
"I think the real danger lies in not getting dragged down into the fray. It's easy to bend when you believe it's the right thing in the long run." A concession he'd been all too willing to make in the past.
"It is," Jack says, softly, knowing they've both done just that more than once in the past. "I'm sure some of your advisors tried to talk you into making that compromise."
While he'd hope that Palmer would have people with similar principles working for him, he knows there's got to be at least one person one his team that's looking more at the goal of getting Palmer back in office than anything else. That's just politics.
"They're worried I'm not seeing the forest for the trees," he admits. "That beating Logan is the priority and any concessions made would be worth it, in the long run."
Though there were things he wouldn't be swayed, sometimes David wondered if they weren't right.
Jack tilts his head to one side, thinking. "I guess I can see their point in some ways, but once something like that is in place, it can be harder than it seems to dismantle it. And that's months away; by then the damage will have been done. People who had nothing against the government beforehand will be pretty pissed off at them later," he says, thinking of his grandfather.
Though he hadn't talked much about the experience, it had been pretty clear to Jack, even when he was fairly young, that after being put in an internment camp for a good part of the Second World War, he had lost faith in the government after that, and had stayed mainly because there was nowhere else to go.
"And you can never undo the damage, even if you try. The trust that you've lost, the precedent you've set..." (the lives ruined) "can't be reversed." If history was any indication but this would be different then before. The group of people implicated were larger, more diverse, this could unravel entire communities.
"Sandra, my sister, works for the IAA. She's been advising me on this matter and locking horns with my other advisors," he adds with a slight smile. She'd many points similar to Jack's many times before.
"Hello, David," he says, just catching himself before he can call Palmer 'sir'; it's a hard habit to break. "It's been a while since I've seen you in here."
Reply
"It's been a while since I've been here. I opened the door to my hotel room and found myself here."
Reply
"Do I even need to ask when you came in from?" Jack asks.
Reply
Reply
Reply
Reply
Reply
"I think they will. I suspect there are a lot of people out there who feel the same way, they just need don't think anyone will listen to them," David muses, a wry note in his voice.
Reply
Reply
"Fear brings out the worst in people," David begins, weariness in his voice. Sometimes, he wondered if it was just fear or if that anger was always there, looking for an outlet. "And some of my peers have been all to eager to fan the flames for their own reasons."
Reply
"I'm sure they have. There's more than one politician that would like to make people believe that they can keep them safe--as long as they're elected or re-elected, that is."
Reply
"I think the real danger lies in not getting dragged down into the fray. It's easy to bend when you believe it's the right thing in the long run." A concession he'd been all too willing to make in the past.
Reply
While he'd hope that Palmer would have people with similar principles working for him, he knows there's got to be at least one person one his team that's looking more at the goal of getting Palmer back in office than anything else. That's just politics.
Reply
Though there were things he wouldn't be swayed, sometimes David wondered if they weren't right.
Reply
Though he hadn't talked much about the experience, it had been pretty clear to Jack, even when he was fairly young, that after being put in an internment camp for a good part of the Second World War, he had lost faith in the government after that, and had stayed mainly because there was nowhere else to go.
Reply
"Sandra, my sister, works for the IAA. She's been advising me on this matter and locking horns with my other advisors," he adds with a slight smile. She'd many points similar to Jack's many times before.
Reply
Leave a comment