Forging America: My Campaign Manager is Roosevelt-Chapter 101 - 69: Turning the Tables

"Since Carter Wright praised you, it means he’s admitting that your ’Pittsburgh Renaissance Plan’ is correct and that your ’work-for-welfare’ model is effective."

"And if he admits your way is right, he’s indirectly admitting that what he’s been doing for the past eight years has been wrong."

"And if he’s wrong and you’re right, then who should be listening to whom?"

Leo’s eyes lit up. He’d grasped the key point in this chain of logic.

’So I shouldn’t just thank him,’ Leo thought. ’I should guide him.’

"Exactly," Roosevelt said approvingly.

"This is the key to dispelling the suspicion. When your supporters see that you haven’t become humble and subservient because of the Mayor’s praise—that you’re instead taking the high ground, evaluating and even directing Carter Wright like a teacher with a student, or a future mayor with a retiring civil servant..."

"They won’t think you’ve been bought off. They’ll just think, ’Look! Leo even conquered that arrogant Carter Wright! Leo’s the real one in charge!’"

"This will deeply satisfy the voters’ desire for conquest and their vanity. They’re supporting you to see you beat the establishment. And making a symbol of that establishment bow his head to you is far more gratifying than just shouting a few insults at him on the street."

"As for the centrists and moderate voters, they’ll see your tolerance and magnanimity. You’re not engaging in partisan bickering or vicious attacks. You’re even willing to bring your opponent into the fold, setting aside past grievances. This demonstrates your caliber as a future mayor."

"Remember, Leo, leveraging human nature is the key to persuading voters in an election."

"Most foolish politicians think an election is a contest of who has the better policies or the prettier charts."

"Dead wrong." Roosevelt’s tone was tinged with regret. "Elections are about feeling. They’re about precisely flipping those primitive switches deep within the human heart."

"People crave change, but instinctively fear chaos. They worship the strong, but also want to see the strong show mercy. What you’re doing right now satisfies both of these seemingly contradictory aspects of human nature."

"With your aggressive, table-turning posture, you satisfy the radicals’ desire for change. With your magnanimous invitation, you eliminate the moderates’ fear of chaos. You are tapping into that subtle psychological need to experience both the thrill of a ’winner-take-all’ victory and the security of a ’graceful exit’."

"So, Leo, don’t reject his praise."

"Get on that stage and accept it, beaming. Then, in front of the entire city’s media, give him a ’gift’ in return—one he absolutely can’t stomach."

"Tell him that since he agrees with your philosophy so much, you are formally inviting him to join your team after he loses the election and leaves office."

"Give him a position. For instance... Special Advisor to the Citizens’ Advisory Committee."

"Tell everyone that on this committee, you are willing to personally teach the former mayor what true public service and genuine urban revitalization really mean."

"This is how you turn his attempt to kill you with kindness into your own coronation."

"You need to make him understand that on the chessboard of Pittsburgh, you are the only one who sets the rules. He wants to play these hypocritical political games? Fine. You’ll use a more advanced form of hypocrisy to corner him completely."

"If he refuses your invitation, he’ll be slapping himself in the face. He said he admired you just yesterday, but today he’s unwilling to work for you? That proves his praise was insincere and that he’s a liar."

"And if he accepts—oh, he can’t possibly accept, of course. That would be the same as admitting you’re the next mayor."

"No matter which option he chooses, he loses."

"That’s the art of politics, my boy. You catch the enemy’s bullet, repack it with more powder, and fire it back with even greater force."

Leo turned.

His eyes were bloodshot, but they shone with a terrifying light.

"Sarah, notify the media," Leo’s voice shattered the office’s silence. "I’m holding a press conference in two hours."

"What’s it about?" Sarah asked instinctively. "Are we going to refute the Mayor’s praise?"

"No." A corner of Leo’s mouth turned up. "We’re going to thank him."

「Two hours later.」

In the Mayor’s Office, the television on the wall was broadcasting a live feed from a local Pittsburgh news station.

It was the press conference Leo’s team had announced earlier, held in a rented television studio.

Carter Wright settled back into his chair, lit a cigar, and watched the screen with narrowed eyes.

He wasn’t worried.

In his mind, this was nothing more than the final struggle of his prey before the trap snapped shut.

He expected to see an exasperated Leo, a young man losing his composure on camera, furiously accusing the Mayor of conspiracy. He expected a political novice, cornered by public pressure into making reckless statements.

But he was wrong.

The Leo Wallace on screen was still wearing his signature worn suit, but his hair was impeccably styled.

He stood under the studio spotlights, poised and composed, his presence steady and confident.

Behind him, a massive screen displayed a high-definition screenshot of a newspaper article—the front-page headline from the City Forum Newspaper, the very story in which Carter Wright had called Leo "the pride of Pittsburgh."

Leo faced the camera with a confident smile.

"Good afternoon."

"I’ve called this press conference today, first and foremost, to sincerely thank Mayor Martin Carter Wright."