“Damn it, Herb, we just can’t keep on playing policeman to the world
anymore,” West said harshly. “The last Administration tried that and ended up
screwing around with the budget so much that we may never get the deficit
under control again. And we came within a gnat’s whisker of an all-out war in
Korea … not to mention the mess in India.”
“And if we hadn’t been out there pounding the old beat,” Scott said
quietly, “India and Pakistan would’ve bombed each other back to the Stone Age
with nukes. The world’s too small a place for isolationism to work any more.”
“Gentlemen, this isn’t getting us anywhere!” Connally said loudly. “I
didn’t ask for a political debate.”
“You wanted to know why the Russians were able to push so far,” Vane
said. “You’ve just heard a few good reasons. Not all of them, by any means.
Without the English, supporting Norway is damned near impossible. The nearest
air base we’ve got is Keflavik in Iceland, and that’s just not enough to close
the GIUK gap, much less help out in Norway.”
“You’re still pushing for that, eh, George?” Connally said, raising an
eyebrow. “If it’s such a lost cause, why should we get involved now?”
“Mr. President, we’re already involved. The incident this morning–the
skirmish between our aircraft and the Russian recon flight–will guarantee
that much.” Scott looked grim as he spoke. “Unless you’re ready to back down
publicly in front of the Russians–and I mean the whole nine yards, public
apologies, acceptance of their exclusion zone, everything–then we’re in this
war up to our necks as of today.”
“Do the rest of you feel this way?” Connally asked.
Vane and Waring nodded. Vincent DuVall, the Director of the CIA,
shrugged. “That’s our best estimate, Mr. President,” he said.
“Well, I don’t agree,” West said. “I think all of you are a little too
ready to see the old Russian bogeyman lurking in the shadows again. We could
stop this crisis right now if we would just give diplomacy time to work.”
Secretary of State Robert Heideman looked up. “The Soviet Ambassador was
willing to arrange a conference on Norway when I talked to him last night,” he
said. “Unless this incident with the Tu-95 gets in the way, we still have a
foot in the door for some kind of peaceful settlement.”
“Sure,” Vane said harshly. “And in the two or three weeks it takes to
get the conference rolling, Lindstrom’s people get the crap kicked out of them
and the Russians occupy the rest of Norway. When are you people in State
going to wake up and smell the smog? Diplomacy works best when you can back
it up with firepower. Just compare the Carter era to the Reagan years.
Ronald Reagan put an end to the Cold War, Bob, even if it was Gorby who got
the awards.”
“I said I didn’t want a goddamned debate!” Connally exploded. They had
covered this same ground over and over again since the start of the crisis.
“Admiral, when you said we needed to show the flag in the Norwegian Sea I went
along with it. Now it looks like your precious career has landed us in the
middle of the war. But before we go any farther I need to know just what you
think those men can accomplish. You tell me Lindstrom’s not going to hold
out, that without British or German help we can’t deal with the Russian
invasion. So why should I let your people proceed if things are as bleak as
you people have been painting them?”
“Let me answer that one, Mr. President,” Vane said. “The time has come
to quit thinking in terms of incremental jumps. We can’t just keep on
reacting to each new Russian move, We’ve got to take the initiative.”
“How?” West demanded.
“I think our forces should go to DefCon Two immediately,” Van said.
“Start mobilizing a strike fleet and a Marine Expeditionary Brigade right
away, and put the 101st and the 82nd on alert. As soon as possible we need to
start putting men into Norway.”
“That’s suicide!” Heideman protested. “While they have air superiority
in Scandinavia we can’t possibly get the Army in place.”