Story: The Nobel Laureate
Chapter 18
Disclaimer: See Chapter 1
Previously: At the embassy reception, the Swedish Ambassador told Jed that he and his former grad school rival, Yosh Takahashi, would be splitting the Nobel Prize in Economics
Summary: Jed allows Abbey to see his bitterness about Yosh; while in the White House, Jed remembers his trip to Washington as a young boy; the Bartlets meet with the President and afterwards, Jed tells Abbey he wants to take Congressman Floyd up on his offer to run for office
Jed and Abbey sat comfortably in the cushion seats of the large shuttle bus inside the White House gates as they waited for security clearance. Abbey scanned the faces of the other laureates, their spouses, and the handful of dignitaries and former laureates accompanying them during the visit while Jed read a copy of the American Journal of Economics he had bought from a newsstand just outside the embassy.
He had been cordial about splitting his Nobel Prize with his former grad school rival, but once the cameras stopped flashing and he was able to escape the prying eyes of the media, he allowed his resentment to fester, knowing that only Abbey would get a glimpse of how he was truly feeling.
"There it is," Jed declared, pointing to a full-page spread about the Nobel Prize with a picture of Yosh Takahashi. "Right there. This issue came out two weeks ago. How I missed it, I have no idea."
"Between all the press interviews you've been doing, your preparations for Washington and Stockholm, and shuttling the girls all around town, you've been running yourself ragged. I'm not surprised you overlooked the article. You had a lot on your mind."
Jed agreed with a nod. "Well, at least he's on page eleven."
Abbey grinned. "And what page are you on?"
"Ten," he replied smugly as he triumphantly turned the page. "And this isn't even the one that announced my award. I read that issue cover to cover."
"Seems appropriate. After all, you were ON the cover." She tweaked him lovingly. "Yosh's prize wasn't mentioned in that one?"
"If he was, it was in a small gray box on page forty-nine because I didn't see it. Small gray box is exactly what he deserves, arrogant son of a bitch."
"I thought we were going to keep the snarkiness to a minimum, especially while in the White House."
He looked up at her, ready to respond with a sarcastic retort, but when she raised her brow, he instantly changed his mind. "You're right. I should put it away."
"Good." Abbey took the coiled magazine out of his hands and put it in her purse.
"I want to buy a copy of the international trades after we leave the White House."
"Jed, you have all these journals at home."
"Yes, but as you so accurately pointed out, I've been too busy to even look at them the past six weeks. I'd like to catch up on my reading while we're here."
"You mean you'd like to catch up on Yosh Takahashi."
"That too."
All Jed wanted to do was brood about his nemesis, the man he was once certain he'd never see again. But as soon as a White House staffer came to escort the laureates into the building, he let go of that bitterness, boldly refusing to lose himself in the competitive rivalry that defined his past.
The guests were led past the marble floors of the entrance hall, through the corridors of the West Wing, and taken to the Roosevelt Room where they'd wait to be summoned by the President. How many meetings were held in this very room every single year, Jed wondered. How many legislative deals were secured? How many decisions were finalized? How many senators and representatives had taken a seat at the large conference table with the unified goal of engaging in discussions that could change the lives of all their constituents?
The room was empty now, except for the laureates and their spouses. But Jed stared at that table, his finger lightly touching the chairs, and in the back of his mind, he could hear a sampling of the heated debates that must have regularly taken place inside the four walls of this famous room.
He padded the carpet alongside his wife. "You know this used to be known as the fish room?" "Yeah?" Abbey replied.
"Yeah. Franklin Roosevelt called it the fish room because he kept his fishing equipment and aquariums in here."
Jed circled the flags that represented the four branches of the military. Above them, hung a portrait of Theodore Roosevelt and below that sat his Nobel Peace Prize - the first prize won by an American.
Noticing his awestruck expression, Abbey snuck up beside him. "Hey. This is pretty extraordinary, huh?"
"That we're here?"
"That we're here, in this building, in this room. We're waiting to see the President."
Jed turned to her with a bashful smile, his sweet blue eyes sparkling with the thrill of the moment. "Yeah. It's pretty extraordinary."
He spotted a stash of small White House lapel pins on a red sheet that draped the mantel and like an unforgotten symbol, it triggered a firestorm of memories. As a young boy, he had bought one with his allowance while on a family vacation in Washington, D.C. He was only seven years old during that trip. He could still remember the cool December breeze ripping through his hair as he clasped his pin to his coat, then stared straight ahead at the front lawn of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
Even at that age, Jed's thoughts were captivated by the sight before him. Something touched him deep in his heart that day. Perhaps it was the pride in his father's voice when he talked about the American flag snapping in the wind high above the exterior stone walls of the majestic structure. Or maybe it was the fact that they had just returned from a parade outside the National Archives where he peeked through the glass cases that sheltered the traveling Declaration of Independence and saw, for the very first time, the original inscription of Dr. Josiah Bartlett.
Whatever the reason, White House lapel pins mesmerized Jed thirty years earlier and it was obvious they still hadn't lost their charm. He walked over to the mantel and picked up three of them.
"For the girls?" Abbey asked.
"Yeah."
"Great idea."
She held on to his arm as they joined the rest of the crowd and mingled with the other guests for close to an hour while snacking on an assortment of Pepperidge Farm cookies and caffeinated sodas.
"A true White House feast," Abbey joked when Jed bypassed the Goldfish crackers in favor of the Milanos. "You had a large candy bar on the way to the embassy, you know."
"What's your point?" Her condemnation was written all over her face. "Leave me alone," he said. "It's a special occasion."
Finally, the laureates were called and taken through the bustling halls of the West Wing towards the Oval Office for a short meeting with President Reagan. Jed and Abbey walked side-by-side, their arms brushing against one another until Jed squeezed her fingers, clearly anxious yet eager to meet the leader of the free world.
"May I give you some advice?" she whispered softly.
"Always."
"You only have 15 minutes alone with him. Try to stay objective for that long. No arguing politics, okay?"
"I'm an economic laureate, Abbey. You don't think he might want to talk about the economy?"
"I'm saying you have a short time to make a good impression. The press will be taking pictures. Do you really want tomorrow's story to be you taking on the President of the United States?"
"I think I can hold my own."
"Undoubtedly."
"Was that a crack?" Jed narrowed his stare in her direction. "Rest assured, I'm going in there as a professional, not a rabble-rousing democrat who's hell-bent on going nineteen rounds with a republican president in the Oval Office."
"That's all I'm saying."
"But if he brings up his wacky Star Wars idea, all bets are off!"
Fortunately, the meeting went as smoothly as Abbey had hoped. As always, Jed was the epitome of class even during a quick round of political discussion. His powerful personality caught the attention of everyone in the room and when he opened his mouth, he spoke with such conviction that even President Reagan was a bit smitten with his oratorical style, despite his liberal opinions.
Beaming with pride, Abbey took his hand as they were led out of the room. "I love the blue carpet in there. It really brings out your eyes."
Jed furrowed his brows. "We just met with the President in the Oval Office and that's what you were thinking about?"
She was a sucker for his baby blues. "Yeah."
"Okay then." He shrugged.
After the Oval Office greeting, the Nobel laureates joined the President and the press in the East Room for interviews and photographs that would be plastered in news outlets across the world. Of the four distinguished Americans, Jed was the most approachable to strangers, the most receptive to the media, and the most articulate on camera. So it was no surprise that he quickly became the most popular. He didn't mind though. He was used to the fanfare by now. In fact, he welcomed it.
Forty-five minutes after his colleagues had filtered out, Abbey interrupted his twentieth interview. "Jed, Honey, I think we need to go."
Jed looked around at the few guests floundering around. "Where is everyone?"
"Most left a little while ago."
"Oh. We'll go in a sec," he replied as he extended his arm to invite Abbey into his discussion with one of the print journalists at the event. "Abbey, this guy's grandfather worked for the Union Pacific Railroad in Boise, Idaho back in 1925."
"Really?"
"Yes, Ma'am. My father too, until the layoffs about eight months ago. 'Rightsizing,' they called it."
"What does he do now?"
"He hasn't been able to find another job. There are layoffs all around town so a lot of his friends are in the same boat he is. Unemployment is running out and they're at the age now where they feel they're too old to learn a new trade. The economy's gone down the toilet and no one cares enough to do anything."
"Things are that bad?"
"They really are. I was telling your husband, I'm just a bureau reporter in a small town in Idaho. I thought I lucked out with this assignment. Coming to Washington to cover an Idaho resident's Nobel Prize, I was naive enough to believe I could also meet with one of our senators, discuss some of the economic problems not only in my home state, but surrounding states as well. But unfortunately, they were too busy to meet with me."
"You couldn't even get a meeting? That's incredible."
"It really is," Jed agreed. "Have you written to them? Have you tried working with your state senators?"
"Yes, Sir. I've done both. No one responds. It's irritating when even the people who are supposed to represent you call it 'rightsizing,' you know? Our U.S. senator came to a meeting to listen to my father and 300 of his colleagues who were laid off. I thought he was supposed to be there to help, to offer some assistance, but all he did was defend the railroad."
The man's story saddened Jed. Layoffs were common in many industries and it was quite possible the elected officials couldn't have persuaded the railroad to keep their employees, but the fact that they had made themselves unavailable to their constituents, the people who put them in office, was outrageous.
It was that kind of insensitivity that soiled the purpose of government and convinced everyday citizens they were on their own in the world, that politicians were just money-grubbing campaigners who couldn't care less about the people they were supposed to represent.
Motivated by an overwhelming desire to disprove the myth that it was only the power-hungry leeches that made it to Washington, Jed left the White House that day convinced he would take Congressman Floyd's suggestion and run for office. He wanted to live in a world where serving the country was important, not for the prominence or the accolades, but because being the microphone for the powerless voices out there was the only way to ensure that the rights and interests of all Americans were equally protected.
The fire had already started burning inside him and a trip to the Smithsonian later that afternoon only added fuel to the embers. A copy of the Declaration of Independence was on loan from the University of Virginia for a special exhibit at the museum. Sitting behind a wall of protection, the document provoked an undeniable passion in Jed's soul.
He pointed through the glass as he lectured his daughters. "Right there is the signature of Dr. Josiah Bartlett."
"Why isn't it the real one?" Lizzie asked.
"The original has been in the National Archives since the 1950s. It's hanging on a wall under an armed guard."
"Why an armed guard, Daddy?" Ellie wanted to know.
"So it'll always be safe."
Abbey stood beside her husband and wrapped her arm around his waist. "Girls, when your father was a little boy, he got to see the document being carried from the Library of Congress to its new home in the National Archives. He and his family were invited to stand along the parade route."
"Really, Daddy?"
"Really. My parents, my brother, and I stood right outside the National Archives, waiting for it to arrive. And when it did, I got to see it for the first time."
"What was the other Dr. Josiah Bartlett like?" Liz rested her chin on her palm as she looked over the railing at the signature.
"Well, he was a medical doctor. He started out as a state legislator from Kingston and was eventually elected to the Continental Congress. From all accounts, he was a selfless man who participated in the long sessions of Congress despite his health troubles. I have all kinds of books and letters about him at home, Lizzie. We'll go through them when we go back."
"Daddy?" Ellie called out him. "How come there are two T's in his name but only one in ours? What happened to the other T?"
"That's an excellent question, Sweetheart. How about we look it up when we get home?"
"Okay," the eight-year-old agreed. "Can we go see Dorothy's ruby slippers now?"
Liz's eyes lit up at her sister's suggestion. "Yeah! I really want to see them close-up."
"Go ahead. We're right behind you." Abbey took control of Zoey's stroller as her daughters began the journey towards a different wing in the museum.
"Abbey." Jed reached out for her arm. "Wait a second. I want to talk to you."
"Sure."
"Remember when we were at the embassy and you said you knew I had been preoccupied since my meeting with Congressman Floyd this morning?"
"Yeah."
"You were right." He walked in front of her so he could look her squarely in the eyes. "He posed a question to me that came out left field. I've been struggling with it all day and the more I think about it, the more I think that maybe..."
"What?"
"He wants me to consider running for Congress."
"Congress?" she repeated.
"Congress," Jed confirmed.
For several seconds, Abbey was speechless. Finally, she asked for more confirmation. "Congress as in the U.S. House of Representatives?"
"Yeah. Bradley will be retiring in 1984 and they need a democrat for his seat. He recruited me. He said the Speaker wants me, the New Hampshire democrats want me. He seemed really upbeat about the whole thing." Jed followed as she let go of the stroller and paced a few directionless steps. "Abbey, say something."
"I'm sorry. My mind is just racing with...I don't know what to say. I can't even get a clear thought." She stopped then and faced her husband. "Jed!" Her hands covered her mouth, but he knew she was smiling because the corners of her eyes crinkled softly. "Seriously?"
"Seriously." He smiled too.
"I'm just overwhelmed, I guess." Her hands fell from her lips as she cleared her voice. "I have questions. I have concerns."
"We'll deal with those. But you're not saying no, right? You're not totally against the idea?"
"Why in the world would I be against this idea? And why would I say no?"
"I don't know."
"You thought I was going to say no? Has this marriage ever been a dictatorship?"
"I just wasn't sure how you'd react this time. I mean, it'll change all our lives."
"It will, but I couldn't possibly stand in your way, not when I believe, in my heart, that you were born to do something like this. You're going to do so much good for so many people, Jed."
"If we do it, we'll have a lot to learn. Campaigning...we don't know anything about campaigning really. All I've ever done is just meet the people in our neighborhood. We're talking hardcore campaigning this time. Fundraising. Hiring a campaign staff. Hiring image consultants, speechwriters, press secretaries."
"We'll do whatever we need to," Abbey offered optimistically.
Jed's excitement grew with every passing moment. "I know living in Washington may not be easy."
"No, but it won't be permanent."
"No, it won't. I realize it's a lot to ask of you and the girls."
"God, Jed, we'll miss you so much." She crossed in front of him.
"Wait a minute. Miss me?" He stepped in front of her once again. "Why would you miss me?"
"With you living in Washington. If you win, you'll have to move."
"I was thinking we'd have to move. All of us. You, me, and the girls."
"Oh."
His enthusiasm deflated considerably with her lackluster response. "I can't do this without you. I can't do it without knowing you'd be with me in Washington."
"Jed, I just accepted a thoracic surgery position at a very prestigious hospital. This is what I've been working for since I started med school eleven years ago. You want me to turn it down?"
"That's what I meant when I said it was a lot to ask."
"That's an understatement."
"What are you saying now?"
"I'm saying we have a lot to talk about."
Their eyes locked. They stood there completely silent until they heard Ellie calling for them. Without another word, Abbey reached for Zoey's stroller and began to move towards her daughters.
"You were okay with it if it meant just me moving to Washington, but now that I said I'd rather we all move, you're against it?"
"I'm not against it."
"You're not for it."
"There's a lot to think about."
"You would rather be apart from me than give up a job?"
She stopped him just before they turned the corner. "Of course not! I never said that."
"You did a one-eighty when I mentioned all of us moving."
"I said from the start I had questions and concerns. If my mood changed, it's because that's when it hit me. That's when it became reality. Don't read more into it, Jed. Don't question my loyalty."
"I'm not, Abbey." Disappointed in her reaction, he sighed. "Look, I really want to do this. I think it's important that I do this."
"I want you to do it, but it isn't like I can blindly give you my blessing. It's not fair of you to ask that of me without any discussion."
She had a point, Jed acknowledged. While he battled the idea in his head for the past eight hours, she had been given only seconds to respond. "Okay. We'll discuss it tonight. We'll figure it out together."
He placed his hand in the crook of her arm, pulling her to lean against his frame as they pushed Zoey's stroller and joined Ellie and Liz at the Wizard of Oz exhibit.
TBC