America 1982-Chapter 246 - 83 Powerful Figures_4
After discovering specific problems, he didn’t immediately take action but rather introduced computer networks to The Department of Defense and announced that all financial work and internal affairs within the department needed to be handled by computers. This addition made it more difficult for the military to falsify records, and since both computerized and paper-based ledgers coexisted, any fraudulent activity required manipulation twice. In under a year, he managed to uncover the network of corruption in The Department of Defense and quietly compiled a list of names and evidence. Instead of taking credit, he handed everything over to President Ford, leaving it to the President to decide how to proceed.
When President Ford received the evidence, his expression was quite remarkable. Indeed, he wanted Rumsfeld to scrutinize The Department of Defense, but he wasn’t preparing to meet a fate like Kennedy’s with wide-ranging consequences. As far as he was concerned, it should be Rumsfeld, the Secretary of Defense, to meet his end, not the President himself. Had he announced his responsibility for this investigation, he might well be lying in the morgue of a hospital the next day.
Therefore, he had no choice but to delegate power once again, indicating Rumsfeld was to deal with the situation fully. Rumsfeld seemed to have anticipated the President kicking the ball back to him; he just needed the President to grant him full authority. Once he obtained the power he wanted, he revealed his list to those higher-ups in the military who were completely unaware that they were already firmly in his grip.
After receiving the list, several military lackeys involved in corruption immediately perished in various bizarre suicides. Following their deaths, Rumsfeld applied for a presidential pardon, exonerating all those who seemed less culpable, primarily deceived by their subordinates, and announced the end of the investigation, earning the favor of the military.
So, in the end, The Department of Defense was cleansed, and instead of dying by suicide as he should have, he gained the friendship of the military.
"Rumsfeld’s method of cleaning The Department of Defense is quite excellent." After reading the file, Tommy said to Jim, "He just made one wrong move, which might be the reason Reagan didn’t use him. That is, he should have let the President gain the military’s friendship, not himself. He was a bit too eager, thus revealing his ambition, which is why Ford let him flounder in the business world for so long."
Jim nodded, "That’s right, even National Review agrees with that assessment. It’s probably going to be difficult for him to get the Republican presidential nomination in the future. When he was in power, he dealt with several potential competitors in the Republican party quite harshly—Kissinger, George Bush, and so on. George Bush is now Reagan’s Vice President, and Kissinger is now the chief of staff for the largest Republican Party donor, David Rockefeller. Do you think they’d provide him the opportunity to clear his name, after nearly being wiped out by Rumsfeld back in the day? That’s why I say his political life is over. Of course, being the youngest Secretary of Defense in the history of the United States is already quite a dazzling record. I think it’s enough to attract those students, to come and see the holder of this record for themselves."
"Counting Pete Wilson, we have four influential individuals; Rumsfeld and Mr. Hayward have strong appeal to military academy students, but since they are former officials, they lack the glamour to attract guests. People aren’t spending a thousand dollars for a ticket just to hope for a photo op and a chat with a former Secretary of Defense—we’ll have to find another reason to persuade them to willingly pay," Tommy, having reviewed the profiles, said to Jim. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂
Jim couldn’t be bothered to look at Tommy and turned his head away, "You only asked me to find a few influential individuals to attract the military academy students. You didn’t ask me to help you sell tickets to wealthy sponsors."
"I didn’t ask you. I’ve thought of it," Tommy said, "Con the nerds from Silicon Valley. The Veterans Association and SSD need tech products and only those tech firms that are keen on charity will get the contracts."
Jim turned his head back to Tommy, asking curiously, "So, what contracts?"
Tommy spread his hands in a shrug, "How the fuck would I know what contracts? Just make up some excuse, leak some rumors suggesting there might be a chance to get contracts to attract them to buy tickets. Besides, even if I did come up with some actual contracts, I’d only tell Jason or Holly. Earning money from the Veterans Association and SSD, why would I let others benefit?"
