The Sum of All Fears.pdf - Delta Force

focused a little more tightly. 'Neither one of those things will happen, Dr
Elliot. We let them make up their own minds. If you even think of telling me to
interfere with Israel's democratic processes, the President gets my resignation
just as fast as I can drive down here to deliver it. If you're wishing out loud
for us to hurt that little old guy in New York, remember that such wishes fall
under at least two conspiracy statutes. My duty as an ordinary citizen, much
less an official of the government of my country, is to report suspected
violations of the law to the appropriate law-enforcement agencies.' The look
Ryan got after his pronouncement was venomous.
'Damn you! I never said – '
'You just fell into the most dangerous trap in government service, ma'am. You
started to think that your wishes to make the world a better place supersede the
principles under which our government is supposed to operate. I can't stop you
from having such thoughts, but I can tell you that my agency will not be a party
to it, not as long as I'm there.' It sounded too much like a lecture, but Ryan
felt that she needed it. She was entertaining the most dangerous of thoughts.
'I never said that!'
Bullshit. 'Fine, you never said or thought that. I was mistaken. You have my
apology. Let the Israelis decide to ratify the treaties or not. They have a
democratic government. It is their right to decide. We have the right to nudge
them in the right direction, to tell them that our continued level of aid is
contingent upon their agreeing to it, but not to interfere directly with their
governmental processes. There are some lines you may not cross, even if "you"
happen to be the U.S. government.'
The National Security Advisor managed a smile. 'Thank you for your views on the
matter of proper government policy, Dr Ryan. That will be all.'
'Thank you, Dr Elliot. My assessment, by the way, is that we should let things
be. The treaty will be approved, despite what you see here.'
'Why?' Elliot managed not to hiss.
'The treaties are good for Israel in any objective sense. The people will
realize that as soon as they've had a chance to digest the information, and make
their views known to their representatives. Israel is a democracy, and
democracies generally do the smart thing. History, you see. Democracy has become
popular in the world because it works. If we panic and take precipitous action,
we'll only mess things up. If we let the process work as it's supposed to work,
the right thing will probably happen.'
'Probably?'
'There are no certainties in life; there are only probabilities,' Ryan
explained. Why didn't everyone understand that? he wondered to himself. 'But
interference has a higher probability of failure than doing nothing. Doing
nothing at all is often the right thing. This is such a case. Let their system
work. I think it will work. That is my opinion.'
'Thank you for your assessment,' she said, turning away.
'A pleasure, as always.'
Elliot waited until she heard the door close before turning to look. 'You
arrogant prick, I'll break you for that,' she promised.
Ryan climbed back into his car on West Executive Drive. You went too far, man,