I was a little past the fifteen-minute break before I was able to make it back to the news room. I had ignited a fire storm in Canada with my comments earlier. The Canadian prime minister had called wanting an immediate conference; he was going to wait.

            There was a tall stool for me to sit on behind the new podium. The podium had been changed while I was away to a wraparound one with three slightly elevated screens on it. The one on the left so my aides could update me while I was answering questions. The one in the middle a teleprompter.

And on right was a backup teleprompter. The middle section on the flat part was where I could write notes or place the folder if I was using one for a speech.

 There was also a second shelf with freshly made coffee pot with a warmer, napkins, ice bucket, hand wipes and small paper plates. There was also notepads and pens. Someone else must have been expecting the Q&A session to go long.

It had been in the hall for several weeks and I had gone through training on it several times to get the feel of it and how the things worked. I Liked some of the features, I hated some of them.

            I took one of the paper plates and started to the donut table down the level where the media was only to be met by an agent.

            ‘’Point out the ones you want boss I will get them for you,’’ he said.

            I guess I was never going to shake off the ‘Boss’ label. Everybody was comfortable with it so what the heck. I may have deserved the respect that ‘Mad-am President’ carried in a public setting. But I was comfortable with BJ or Boss with my staff and friends.

            I took a bite and a sip of the hot coffee and then several more sitting in the chair. I looked out over the media; they were waiting, getting fidgety while they were forced to wait. I was beginning to understand the power of the office.

            Were they a pack of blood hounds waiting for a bone to be thrown to them or pack of wolves waiting to pounce on the new born calf?

            ‘’OK ladies and gentlemen let’s get started. We are going to do this in segments with the first on the Kentucky incident. I’m going to start on the front row and work towards right.

            ‘’Charlie you’re first,’’ I said.

            ‘’The national desk wants to know how and where you think you have the authority to do this?’’ he said.

            ‘’Not being a constitutional expert or a legal mind, I consulted those that are. I have six of the most qualified constitutional experts that I routinely use to answer my questions on my personal staff. I made that call on Saturday when all this mess started to unfold. This time I also asked a very respected retired supreme court justice to sit in on the video calls. I said.

            ‘’The seven met at my eastern shore home on Sunday with me. I listened and learned. When the six – hour meeting was over I had two pages of instructions in an order that I had follow to be constitutionally legal’’ I said as I held up the two pages.

‘’Also, in those instructions were four emergency appeals to the Supreme court to challenge laws that past congresses had attempted to use to reduce the power and authority on an incoming president,’’ I said.

‘’Those appeals were hand delivered to the court Monday morning. The court has agreed to hear arguments on them tomorrow under an emergency request based on the events of the last couple days,’’ I said.

‘’Roger you’re next,’’ I said.

‘’There was a comment out of a Kentucky today that the agent said the gun just went off was the words used,’’ he said.

‘’No, it cannot happen that way there are several things wrong with that,’’ I said.

‘’Will a Secret Service agent bring me an unloaded MP5, please,’’ I said.

‘’An MP5 has a selector lever, one position is safe meaning it won’t fire if the trigger is pulled. The next position semi auto meaning it only fires one round when the trigger is pulled the trigger must be pulled each time,’’

‘’The next position is either a two or three round burst depending on the serial number and the agency that ordered the weapon each time the trigger is pulled. A field change of the selector can change the burst number. The final position is full auto, meaning when the trigger is pulled and held, it fires until it empties the clip,’’ I said.

‘’For it to operate there has to be a round in the chamber for the sequence of firing at any selector position other than in ‘safe,’’ I said

‘’The selector positions have a definite click that can be felt when it is changed plus the position indicator is stamped on the receiver and the safe position is marked with an S. When the selector is moved out of safe a red circle is uncovered indicating it is ready to fire,’’ I said.

The agent was back with the MP5 I double checked that there was no clip in it and no round in the chamber.

‘’If you want to see what I just stated the agent can show them to you,’’ I said as motioned the agent to the news group.

Every single reporter had to look at the markings and feel the clicks as the selector was changed.

‘’A JBG we own twenty thousand MP5’s and probably a hundred twenty thousand M16, Glock pistols and other rifles. In training the security department runs hundreds of thousands of rounds through them and to my knowledge there has never been one to just fire- go off,’’ I said.

‘’One thing that I taught to all JBG security was never use the full auto position. It is not needed unless you are storming pillboxes. It just eats up too much ammunition and most of the shots go wild. Another thing I stressed was never to ride with one in the chamber. Chamber the round after exiting the vehicle. I understand that there was a weapons discharge in a vehicle coming across the field,’’ I said.

‘’If it fires it was intentional, careless handling, or just plain stupidity,’’ I said.

I answered questions for ten more minutes on the Kentucky incident before shutting them down.

‘’The next questions are on the China Sea collision with the USS Nevada, are there any questions regarding that?’’ I said.

‘’Why was there a collision in the first place?’’ one asked.

‘’There were a couple possible reasons for that and I’m sure the investigation will give more and in more detail. What I do know was the Nevada was dealing with electrical gremlins with this voyage that were affecting various systems,’’ I said.

‘’The Nevada was traveling at that depth to take advantage of thermals that help with speed and masking abilities -all navies do not just us,’’ I said.

‘’As indicated earlier the 830.5 was a dead sub. From all appearances there were no mechanical or electronic signatures emitting from the sub. Even the newest sub emits something,’’ I said.

‘’When will a description or photographs of the debris be released?’’ one asked.

‘’That is up to the Department of Defense and the Navy, but I am sure it will only be after the investigation is completed and the final report written and released,’’ I said.

‘’How extensive was the damage and how long will it take to be repaired? ‘’

one asked.

‘’That’s being evaluated and I expect it to take a couple weeks for it to be completed,’’ I said, the pressure hull was not damaged is the important thing,’’ I added.

Fifteen minutes later there were no more questions on the Nevada.

‘’What are our options with Canada if they do not return the terrorists?’’ one said.

‘’I think that Canada will see the light and return them in a few days. To say ‘no’ is not in their best long- term interest and I am sure reasonable people will realize that,’’ I said.

‘’As for what options are available to me, I am not going to discuss that or speculate on that,’’ I said.

‘’Is this a new group of terrorists that been formed or a group that has been dormant and now coming active?’’ another asked.

‘’Pakistan is like the wild, wild west when it comes to terrorist,’’ I said.

‘’New groups are coming out of the woodwork over there weekly it seems,’’ I said.

‘’Why was the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security not included in the raids? You know they have more weapons than they need?’’ one asked.

‘’That question should have been asked when we covered that part of the news conference, but I will answer it,’’ I said.

‘’The purchase records of the FBI and Department of Homeland Security were checked. Those two parent agencies purchase for the last five years were level and consistent and were within reason when compared with previous years. There was no indication of unusual purchases of splurge buying practices,’’ I said.

‘’There has been no update in the last few weeks on the changes to the tax code. And new tax rules; are they going to be in effect for new tax year?’’ she asked.

‘’The new tax package will have to be passed by both houses to become law. Based on the input that I have and what I have seen I will sign it,’’ I said.

‘’The package is a ten percent federal sales tax eliminating all income tax brackets. The existing social security tax and Medicare tax and taxes on gas, diesel, Jet fuel and airline tickets shall be retained. Those taxes support specific necessary functions,’’ I said.

‘’The only exemptions there will be medicines and food including meals served in restaurants,’’ I said.

‘’Social Security will be revisited and there will be changes, there have been too many things shoved under the umbrella of Social security that should have been paid for from the general budget,’’ I said.

‘’Social Security was intended to be a little cushion for retirement for the poor, the self-employed who would have little or nothing set aside for retirement. As America became industrialized and mechanized there was stiff competition for skilled workers and keeping skilled workers,’’ I said.

‘’These demands led to worker benefits and labor unions that led to the major corporations and retiree benefits. Small employers and self-employed and the poor simply couldn’t afford the retirement plans especially in the early thirties and the following depression years,’’ I said.

‘’To help those that were needy Roosevelt created the social security system. The theory was everybody was to pay into the system based on income and everybody was to get a monthly check at retirement to help them survive,’’ I said.

‘’Along the way problems developed.  One was the congress started using the social security fund as a bank with the intention it would be paid back as the government had surpluses. We all know that never happens with government. If they think they have a dollar surplus they will spend twenty more,’’ I said.

‘’Then the workforce suddenly aged and a lot of people were drawing checks. How that snuck up on all those intelligent people no one knows but it did. Social security withholdings – taxes were raised for employee and employer to expand the fund. To compound the problem corporations went global,’’ I said.

‘’The benefits and union demands boomeranged. The result was jobs went to other countries with cheaper labor, no unions and few rules and regulations. Americans demanded cheap products. To add to the problem companies didn’t upgrade machinery,’’ I said.

‘’The foreign countries bought the latest machines, computer controlled, laser guided for accuracy and built for mass production as they built the new factories and ran it with cheap labor,’’ I said.

‘’Many U.S. factories today are just making the change from www equipment and technologies that they should have done twenty – five years ago or longer,’’ I said.

‘’Everyone knows the U.S. workforce and business is the most innovative, most productive in the world if government would just stop trying to fix every complaint with new rules and regulations. Companies are coming back, jobs are returning,’’ I said.

‘’But it is going to take time to replenish the social security trust fund. The new tax rules will prohibit congress from removing any monies from the fund. It also moves some of the programs being funded from the trust fund to the general fund. The social security trust fund is nearly broke. The funds saved by the temporarily closing the EPA and the ATF I have shifted to the Social security trust fund to help it remain solvent and return some of the borrowed funds,’’ I said.

‘’Changing to the new tax and eliminating most of the Internal Revenue Service will save two hundred billion dollars a year or the Washington standard of two trillion over ten years,’’ I said.

‘’There are those that say ten percent is not enough, but I disagree. Reductions in government spending, eliminating useless government agencies and outdated programs will make a major difference. Those people continue to underestimate the cash economy that under the current system pay little tax, will be paying ten percent under the new system,’’ I said.

‘’There are those that say the rich will not pay enough. Rich or middle class I don’t know anyone that does not spend all they make somewhere somehow. They are not hiding it under their mattress they are spending it on something, they will be taxed,’’ I said.

‘’As I said the tax plan still has some changes that must be investigated and tweaked along with enforcement issues to be addressed. Some of those tweaks will be in how stock sales and purchases will be handled,’’ I said.

‘’That’s all I have time for today,’’ I said.

Edit by Alfmeister

Proof read by Bob W.