Permanent Interests (27 page)

Finally, Corgan stopped, took off his glasses, sat back and pondered, inserting a bow of his spectacles between his teeth. His captive audience looked at their president expectantly and uncertainly. Then he spoke.

"Well?"

The curtness of this remark generated instant anxiety in the group. Like pupils seeking to avoid being picked on by the teacher, they averted gazes, froze and, contrary to their usual natures, sought to be totally inconspicuous.

The President looked right at Scher. The latter fidgeted, his trademark cockiness gone.

"Ahem. Ah…what we have here Mr. President is a case of…er…I mean…a situation in which it is apparent that…that, uh, any number of groups could be responsible.

We know, for example, that an Iranian cell has been active in Bangkok for some time." He turned quickly toward CIA 238 JAMES

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Director Levin. "Dave, why don't you give us a wrap-up of what your people have found on that cell."

Levin's eyes widened. He gulped. The surprise hand-off virtually paralyzed him.

"Yes. Well. In 1994, an Iranian terrorist cell attempted to make some big splash by loading a stolen truck with high-powered explosives. Almost by fluke, the Thai police uncovered the plot and arrested those responsible."

Silence. The President just looked at Levin, without comment. Levin shifted nervously in his chair.

Secretary of Defense Wilkins stared at the conference table top, his hands folded together as if in prayer. One could almost hear him imploring the Lord to spare him from attention.

"But the Marines are responsible for embassies' physical security," Levin blurted. Sweat poured from his brow.

"Perhaps the Defense Secretary has something to say on this matter." Levin appeared grateful that all eyes were now diverted to Wilkins.

The Secretary of Defense bolted upright, his eyes flitted around the room like those of a cornered animal.

"Uhuh. Right. We're, uh, we're, uh…" He adjusted his tie, which at the moment felt like a tightening noose. "We a-- a--" he stammered. Wilkins blew his nose. "We are awaiting full details from Bangkok."

Dennison interjected. "What the hell do you mean?

You received the same seven-page cable we all did from the embassy yesterday."

"I'm waiting for a report from the Marine detachment there!" Wilkins spat back.

"Are you kidding? What difference is that going to make? The RSO incorporated everybody's input--"

"Gentlemen." Corgan signaled an end to the bickering.

"Let me explain what's going on here." He placed his PERMANENT INTERESTS

239

reading glasses on the table and leaned forward.

"Somebody or some persons out there have murdered two United States ambassadors. Men I personally nominated.

Men who had my full faith and trust. I'm flying to Kentucky on Friday to personally give the eulogy at Ambassador Wells's funeral. I have to face his grieving family. Not only that, I have to face an increasingly critical press and American public. What do I tell them all? 'We have no idea who's behind these murders?' 'Maybe it was Iranians? Or perhaps al-Qaida? Or God-knows-who?'

You can bet your last government perk that Congress is going to get into the act big time. And I needn't remind everyone that it's an election year." He paused a moment.

"I need answers. First, I need to know whether there's a connection between the two incidents. Second, I need leads." He looked at Scher. "Solid leads."

"Mr. President, we at the Bureau see a pattern." FBI Director Frederick Karlson, a decorated ex-Marine and pioneering Illinois attorney general, was never one to hold back, be it before North Vietnamese bullets or Chicago Latino gang leaders.

The others reacted as if a hot stock tip were about to be revealed. Corgan nodded for him to continue.

"Twenty-four hours before Ambassador Wells was killed, the Russian intel chief in Bangkok was murdered.

Knifed in the abdomen and throat. Very professional job."

Levin's expression betrayed his ignorance of this event.

Dennison frantically searched his memory as to whether he'd been briefed on it.

"It could be pure coincidence," Scher spluttered without forethought.

Without acknowledging Scher's presence, Karlson told the President, "On August 14th, the SVR
Rezident
in Ankara was similarly murdered. Swiftly killed, cut up 240 JAMES

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almost beyond recognition. Messy, but a professional job.

The perpetrator, or perpetrators, clearly meant to send a message via the brutality."

"What's that to do with our ambassadors?" Dennison demanded.

Still keeping his attention on the President, Karlson continued, "Not long before that, we lost Ambassador Mortimer. Same m.o. But the brutal message in this and the Ankara incident was being directed not against us or Moscow."

"Who then?" asked Levin.

"We're not sure at this stage, but we've got some ideas."

The conference room was noiseless as its occupants processed this information.

"And you see a connection," Corgan said.

"I

do."

"Then what's the glue linking them all together?"

"Simple, Mr. President. Crime."

Corgan's interest was piqued. Dennison hung on this word and leaned forward as far as he could to catch Karlson's next words. As if in telepathic lockstep, Horvath and Selmur did likewise.

"Can you elaborate?" Corgan asked.

"Organized

crime."

"As in mafia?"

"Or variations thereof. We can provide details in a separate--"

"Mr. President. We simply cannot be pursuing every cockamamie conspiracy theory at this point," Dennison interjected.

"I have to agree with Secretary Dennison," Horvath chimed in.

Doing his best to put on an air of balance and fairness, chief-of-staff Selmur added in a deliberate, bass voice PERMANENT INTERESTS

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affecting thoughtfulness, "What we have here, Mr.

President, is a situation in which any number of possibilities present themselves. We know that there are terrorist organizations which have targeted American personnel. This is documented. Al-Qaida cells are operating in Rome and Bangkok. This is documented.

Then there is the theory that organized crime has targeted our ambassadors. This is
not
documented. What reason would they have? A connection between the murders of our envoys and those of SVR personnel? This is
not
documented." He banged the table with his knuckles to add emphasis.

His face transformed itself instantly into an expression of patient bemusement. "I can make the case that Mortimer and Wells were dispatched by…by Satanists. Or…bikers."

A contrived chuckle rumbled from Selmur's self-consciously smiling face. This was met by a few snickers around the room.

"We are not scriptwriters for the next Oliver Stone movie here." Selmur's chuckle became a mocking laugh.

Others followed suit. An atmosphere of levity permeated the room. Now putting on his best expression of grave solemnity, Selmur added, "But, Mr. President, to go chasing after a flock of wild geese at this stage would open the administration up to public ridicule as well as complicate the investigation."

Extending his right index finger to drive home his point, Dennison added, "Mr. President, nobody said that these cases would be solved overnight. Bernie Scher here is doing a fantastic job of pulling together the interagency investigation. He has at his beck and call all of the foreign affairs agencies, plus the military services. It's only a matter of time before we develop some leads. Just as we did with 9/11."

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Horvath nodded solemnly in agreement.

"Hear, hear," rejoined Selmur.

"Why assist the media feeding frenzy?" Dennison continued. "They will seize upon any doubts that we exhibit to call us all a bunch of fools. We need to tough it out and to show action. I suggest that Bernie Scher's team be expanded and that he be given more direct responsibilities and powers over all the concerned agencies.

The comparisons we want are with Truman, not Carter."

Corgan flinched at the last comment.

"But, Mr. President, we
are
developing leads, we think
solid leads--
"

Corgan cut Karlson off. "I think Secretary Dennison's observations make sense at this stage. I agree that Mr.

Scher should be given greater authority and resources to pursue his investigation. The FBI will coordinate with the Scher team, feeding it all reasonable leads it develops on these cases. Beef up security at our embassies, especially for our ambassadors. Furthermore, I want an expanded, more aggressive public relations and media campaign. The press and the public must be made to know how much effort we're putting into this. The 9/11 analogy is a good one." He turned to Selmur. "Howard, I want you to pull this all together. And I want all reports on these cases to come to me through the chief of staff."

Corgan betrayed for a fleeting moment an air of resignation. "My chief concern now is Congress. If this drags on, or, heaven forbid, if we lose more diplomats, we all hang together ladies and gentlemen." He rose, signaling an end to the meeting.

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With a discreet but sharp nudge, an aide prevented Senator Weems from nodding off and thereby giving the press another opportunity to have a field day at the chairman's expense. When he was a member of the House Un-American Activities Committee way back when he was a junior congressman, Weems once called for FBI investigations to ferret out communists in the TV media.

He'd never trusted journalists.

"I call this plenary meeting of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to order!" he declared in his rich Mississippi Delta drawl, interspersed with an occasional whistle as tongue met with dentures. He slammed the gavel down.

The chamber in the aging Dirksen Building was packed.

Reporters, Senate aides, academics and the curious jostled each other. Bob Innes and Colleen McCoy stood unassumingly in the back.

All twenty committee members were present, elevated in a semicircle at the front of the chamber. Called to testify were Dennison, Horvath, Levin, Wilkins, Scher and Karlson. A representative of the Foreign Service's labor group was invited to give the views of rank-and-file members.

After the usual welcoming courtesies, Weems began his attack. "Secretary Dennison, within the past six months, two United States ambassadors have been brutally murdered. No one has come forth to claim responsibility for either one. In fact, these slayings appear to be a total mystery. Now, unless you have some revelatory information for us, I think one could safely say that the State Department has failed to do its job in two areas: resolving these murders, and protecting this country's representatives abroad."

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In response, Dennison read from a prepared text which was heavy on the Scher "investigation" but predictably light on results. He made heavy hints that terrorists were responsible -- though one shouldn't assume a connection between the two cases, he counseled. He concluded by asserting that the administration was doing its utmost to identify the culprits of "these cowardly acts" and to bring them to "the justice they deserve." With a flourish, Dennison announced the formation of the "President's Select Task Force on Terrorism" under the "able and tireless stewardship" of Bernard J. Scher; it would have

"extraordinary powers" to use "whatever means, consistent with the law, within the U.S. government" to track down all leads and ultimately resolve the assassinations "just like we did in the 9/11 tragedy." Finally, he proclaimed a $2

million reward for information leading to the apprehension of the perpetrators of "these dastardly crimes."

"That's a very fine statement, sir," Weems observed.

"But until you nail the possum he's gonna get your garden, by which I mean that no matter which two ways you look at it, we're gonna be losin' some more of our people until the State Department gets its act together. So far as I can see, y'all are just hootin' down a gopher hole. Not only have you not narrowed down realistically the likely suspects, you don't have a clue of where to begin lookin'. Which gets to my idea of doing away with all of this elitist, separate Foreign Service nonsense -- fold it into the Civil Service!

And turn all security matters over to the Marines…" An exaggerated cough from the committee vice chairman brought Weems back down to earth.

Scher, Levin, Wilkins and Horvath were equally excoriated by the Chairman. A Fox reporter likened the scene to naughty third graders being brought before the school principal to have their knuckles rapped. The labor PERMANENT INTERESTS

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rep then read an erudite but cautious statement obliquely critical of protection efforts thus far. He pulled so many punches, however, that nobody quite understood what position his organization had and was dismissed. Then came Karlson.

In his couched statement, the FBI Director was careful not to challenge the administration's line. He nonetheless pointed to possible criminal motivations for the murders, but made no mention of the SVR connection, again not wishing to stick it in the President's eye.

"Mr. Director, am I to understand that you believe organized crime may be behind these killings?

Furthermore, would you agree that Ambassador Mortimer had some shady connections that may have brought him into danger? That Ambassador Wells was in the middle of trying to clean house in an embassy sullied by corruption?

And that there may be a link between the murders of these two officials and those of Russian SVR officers in the same timeframes?"

Dennison, et al. were stunned. There was a commotion in the chamber. Weems banged his gavel to restore order.

Horvath was on his cell phone to the White House.

Once the chamber had quieted down, Karlson answered curtly in the affirmative. He ended with a statement that details could be provided in a follow-on classified briefing.