Thursday I spent some of the day in meetings, reviewing the California and Washington martial law orders and the progress. Progress was being made but entrenched liberals were doing everything they could to create roadblocks.
Planning and zoning rules that had been used to stop low income housing for decades were being purged along with the planners who were still digging in their heels.
The generals had purged four thousand administrators in California that had taken immovable positions for refusing to accept or implement the changes. The outcome was that thousands of new housing permits and permits for low income developments had been approved.
One well known tech billionaire pledged one billion dollars to the construction fund. He was also advocating other Silicon Valley billionaires do the same. The homeless battle was going to be won – one affordable housing development at a time.
Another result was criminal laws under martial law were being enforced to the letter. Shoplifting that had been rampant by and with organized gangs had stopped. Under the old system they had to steal over seven hundred and fifty dollars’ worth to be arrested. The new system – any amount was enough to go behind bars.
The military judges had no sympathy. When individuals were arrested now they were held instead of being released. The downside – the jails were filling up quickly.
But California was slowly being normalized. It was now safe to walk the streets in San Francisco without being accosted by drug addicts and the homeless. The rioted areas had been cleaned of debris and rebuilding had started.
As with all things it took loans, grants and property tax cuts to motivate the property owners. That was easy to understand after being burned out four times in the last four years. There was growing confidence that it wasn’t going to happen anymore. When there was confidence, banks and businesses were more willing to take a chance.
As expected the powerful unions were filing lawsuits to regain their control of the government. Those unions were going to get a wakeup call from the Justice Department very soon.
Investigators were nearly finished going through the state and politician financial records, plus the politicians in Gitmo had decided it was time to start singing like a canary if it would help reduce jail time. Union officials were soon going to get served with warrants containing hundreds of charges with bribes, payoffs, intimidation and threats against family – and those were only the beginning.
By lunchtime I was done listening, or at least I thought I was – only to be found by Dick James with a large folder.
The Emirs advance team had delivered the general topics they wanted to discuss during his visit starting on Thursday of next week. This was going to be a new area for me. Usually I followed some else’s lead with an outline to follow. Now I had to develop the outline for others to follow.
The result was an intense planning session with Secretary James, General Ingram and others in a full blown cabinet session. I was going outside precedent established boundaries on foreign aid and develop my own. In the process I was going to piss off the UN world soon enough. Ever since the Obama administration, foreign aid needed to be funneled through and coordinated with the UN.
When I signed the budget I ordered a freeze on all payments to the United Nations. Those payments were made through the State Department and part of the State Department budget. It wasn’t enough that we were paying the lion’s share of their operating budget – three times as much as China and twice as much as Russia.
But under the Obama administration during his great apology tours, he had agreed to fund many separate agencies through special grants and grants from the executive – for the lack of a better term – slush fund.
Every time the President promised money for some particular reason that was not coming from ‘say’ disaster relief funds or the agriculture department funds, it came from his discretionary budget. Billions of dollars were allocated in the budget for the fund – same as there were billions in the Congressional slush funds.
It was money that simply went under the table and over the dam to be spent with little public accountability. The Congress was never going to challenge the President’s money because their own fund ran the risk of being exposed. All state and federal agencies and departments ran a slush fund in their budgets. That is why the last month of the year they went on a spending spree – to make sure it was used so it would be replaced in next year’s budget.
Obama ordered funds from his slush fund to be given to the UN as well as money from the State Department, the USDA, NASA, NOAA, the transportation department, even the DOD was on the hook to give funds to the UN under all kinds of peace keeping agreements. Once started, that type of funding always continued.
According to my researchers it added up to seventy five billion above the public disclosed amount we gave to the operating budget.
Two days after I signed the budget, the UN treasurer called and asked when they could expect to receive the funds. He already knew I had frozen them including the operating funds. He also knew US laws regarding our budget and its dispersal as well as anyone.
We received no information on what or where the UN directed funds were spent even when we asked in writing. There was zero accountability from the UN, other than they were always short of money.
China – one of the largest economies in the world – had just received billions in no interest loans from the UN development agency for infrastructure improvements.
China had over a Trillion dollars in cash reserves – they never should have gotten any loans from the UN. It should have been reserved for countries that truly needed infrastructure funding.
When asked, the development agency refused to discuss the issue. There was no accountability and the UN was out of control.
But they did have money to hold massive meetings all over the world – France, Germany, Tokyo, Australia and Africa – with hundreds and sometimes thousands of UN employees as attendees, all expenses paid.
The US was always bashed for one thing or another, the list would take dozens of pages. There had always been anti-American countries in the UN but now they were organized to eliminate the power and influence of the US.
Organized into three groups: Russia and the bloc they controlled, China and the bloc they controlled and the Muslim bloc. Together they voted against anything the US tried to do and did, if all three were together on the issue.
The result was many committee chairs were from one of the three groups. Even violently oppressive countries delegates were in control of human rights, development, aid, health and many other committees.
When my cabinet meeting finished today, the die would be cast. Not only was the UN getting cut, so was the international monetary fund, payments to the world bank, payments to the international carbon fund eliminated and several more. Let the crying begin.
I was to go to the G20 meeting in Amsterdam during next week and I would inform the world in my speech. We would expand our own international aid program by direct programs where there would be accountability.
We could follow and track the progress of projects and keep their cost within budgets. I envisioned far better results with our foreign aid dollars.
The decision of our withdrawal from the UN in such a way would be like putting a penny on the railroad track. No longer recognizable but destroyed.
I felt sure that Russia and China would not pony up funding to cover the cuts.
Friday started out with a working breakfast with invited leaders of the House and Senate, both conservative and liberal. House and Senate party leaders, Foreign Affairs, House and Senate intelligence committees, House and Senate armed services, committees and finance committees. My staff was there as was General Ingram and State Department Secretary Dean.
The breakfast went fine and after the dished were cleared and hot coffee poured, I reminded them that the following conversation was now classified.
”I informed them of my decision to cut all funding for the UN to the level of an average of the China and Russian dues and the reasons why. I also delivered the message we were withdrawing from the IMF and the World Bank. Those three things consumed over three hundred billion dollars of our budget last year,” I said.
”There is no accountability and much of the funds we send them are sent to violent dictators and countries that counter decades of our foreign policy and our national interest. It is time for change in how we dole out foreign aid funds and international development funds. Our national interests are far better served by doing it ourselves,” I said.
”Many of you know that on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday I will be at the G20 meeting. What you don’t know is that the Emir of Nigeria Akram Bello will make a State visit next Wednesday evening, Thursday and Friday. ”
”The discussions will cover foreign aid for infrastructure development, industrial training and possible trade agreements and whatever else we can openly discuss, along with possibly expanding anti-terrorism agreements. As you know, Boko-Haram is getting active in the area.”
”This will be the first under the new aid programs and policy. I am looking to assemble an oversight and advisory committee – management team from select members of the House and Senate. Those of you that want to be on the board can submit your names or the names of other qualified individuals. It is a work in progress,” I said.
I had learned how to play the political game. Just making them think they had a part to play in the process added smiles across the room.
”Secretary Dean is putting together the state dinner for Wednesday evening. Some of you will be on the guest list. I plan to be back in time to make the opening toast,” I said.
”Nigeria will be our first foreign aid program under the new plan, changing twenty years of bad policy and failures,” I said.
The general conversation lasted until lunch. After lunch I had a meeting with the presidents of one hundred energy giants and utilities in the country.
I thought it would be a simple informative meeting but instead I got an earful and a verbal beating about the Federal Energy Commission, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the National Energy Cooperative Association and the Federal Utilities Regulatory Commission.
I wasn’t prepared nor apparently was my staff. I felt betrayed and like a fool. I didn’t know these agencies were so out of date, micro-managed, poorly run and also run with an immovable iron fist by their governing boards.
They had their presentation planned out with a spokesperson for each segment of the industry. They knew they had an opportunity to vent their frustrations to someone who just might make changes without worrying about political repercussions and had the balls to do so.
The meeting was filmed and recorded. That was a good thing as there was no way a clerk could take shorthand that fast.
Finally when they had finished and I had a chance to make a statement, ”Wow – is the best I can say. I didn’t know these agencies were run in such a fashion and so unresponsive to the needs of the public and producers.”
”I think the best way to sort all of this out is to meet with each group of you independently and get a better vision of the facts. I am assuming you have supporting documentation that I can drag someone’s ass into the fire with.”
”I have international meetings for the next two weeks. Troy can schedule a full day with each group after that before you leave here today. I will look into corrective solutions, especially if it is in the public interest. I look forward to getting results that are needed,” I said.
I was glad the day was nearly over! I was looking for a beer and stress relief in the gym at home.
The Secret Service was already packed and many had already left for Summers Road. I pulled my portable office to the step of Marine One, saluted the officers and climbed aboard.
Thirty minutes later I was giving my mates and the boys the first hugs in a week on the tarmac at Morton. The Secret Service refused to allow Marine One to land in the big over flow parking lot behind the office parking garage, even though President Thomas had done so several times.
Edit by Alfmeister
Proof read By Bob W.