novelnext Chapter 151 New Pennsylvania
Chapter 151 New Pennsylvania
Chapter 151 New Pennsylvania
Leo booked the entire conference room on one floor of a five-star hotel in Pittsburgh.
Around the long table sat seven or eight solemn-looking people: a group of economics professors from Carnegie Mellon University, financial experts from Wharton Business School, and several top lawyers specializing in Pennsylvania business law.
This is the "brain" that Leo Wallace hired at a high consulting fee.
Leo sat in the main seat, with a huge flowchart spread out in front of him.
That was the blueprint for the "regional credit closed loop" system that he and Roosevelt conceived late at night.
"We need to add a firewall at this node."
An economics professor with gray hair pointed to the "settlement center" module on the blueprint, speaking in a serious tone.
"Mr. Mayor, if you wish to use this Union Credit Note as a universal means of payment among the seven cities, you must circumvent the State Banking Act's definition of currency issuance."
"We can't call it currency, or even a note," the lawyer beside him quickly added. "We have to define it as a transferable supply chain receivable. Legally, this falls under the category of commercial contracts between businesses, and state banks and securities departments don't have jurisdiction over commercial contracts."
"But that's not enough." Another financial expert adjusted his glasses. "To ensure liquidity, we need a market maker. The city of Pittsburgh must commit to using that $500 million in cash reserves to guarantee the redemption of these securities under specific conditions, such as at the end of the quarter or the end of the year."
"Only in this way will Erie's steel mill and Scranton's cement plant dare to accept this piece of paper."
Leo listened to their discussion, his pen flying across his notebook as he jotted down notes.
That's what he's going to do.
He wants to carve out a moat outside the existing financial system.
He wanted to establish a set of financial rules that belonged only to the Rust Belt.
This is a crazy plan that's like walking a tightrope.
"very good."
Leo raised his head and glanced at the experts present.
"Design it according to this idea. I want a complete and compliant implementation plan without any legal loopholes. I want to see it on my desk within a month."
"But Mayor, this requires—"
"No buts," Leo interrupted the professor's hesitation. "I'm paying you to do this, not to come here and tell me about the difficulties."
Just then, Leo's phone rang.
The shrill ringing sounded particularly jarring in the conference room. Leo frowned and handed the phone to Ethan.
Ethan answered the phone.
"I am Hawke."
After listening for only two seconds, Ethan's expression changed.
He turned his head sharply and looked at Leo.
"Mayor, it's Yili."
Ethan covered the microphone and lowered his voice.
"Mayor Ron Smith is yelling that he's withdrawing from the league if he doesn't speak to you immediately."
Leo frowned slightly.
He gestured for the experts to continue their discussion, then went outside the meeting room and took the phone.
"Ron, this is Leo. The advance payment for the steel was transferred yesterday. Is there a problem?"
1
"Money?! You dare mention money to me?!"
Ron Smith's hysterical roar came from the other end of the phone, accompanied by a loud bang as he slammed his fist on the table.
"Leo Wallace! You've ruined me! You damned madman!"
"I shouldn't have believed your nonsense! I shouldn't have been greedy for that little order!"
"Ron, calm down," Leo's voice remained steady. "What happened?"
"Ten minutes ago! Just ten minutes ago!"
Smith's voice trembled.
"A special investigation team from the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development has arrived, carrying an administrative review order against our Regional Economic Cooperation Memorandum."
"They've got their hands on our steel purchase contract!"
"They claim this large-scale intercity purchase violates state fair trade principles and even suggests it's an illegal transfer of benefits!"
Smith took a deep breath, his voice rising eight octaves.
"Leo, you know we had our lawyers thoroughly study the legal provisions before signing the agreement. We're not afraid of investigations, or even lawsuits. I can play that kind of administrative wrangling for a year!"
"But those bastards are too insidious!"
"On this basis, they directly applied for preventative asset preservation! They froze the third-party escrow account specifically used to receive Pittsburgh procurement payments!"
"Frozen! It's all frozen!"
"You need to understand, to meet your order, Yili's joint steel plant is operating on three shifts, with the machines running 24/7! They're burning through cash every day! Raw material suppliers are pressing for payment, and thousands of workers are waiting to get paid next Friday!"
"The money is stuck in the account and can't be used. What do you expect me to give them? A Harrisburg investigation warrant?"
"If I don't get paid by next Friday, those workers will burn me and the factory down!"
"This steel deal is too risky, I can't afford to play it! I'm quitting that damn alliance! Quitting now, at least I can cut my losses!"
"Stop calling me! Go explain things to Harrisburg yourself, don't drag me into this!"
"Ron, listen to me—"
"Beep beep beep one"
The call was disconnected.
Leo held the receiver, listening to the busy tone.
Before he could hang up, the phone rang sharply again.
This time it's Joe Byers of Scranton.
"Leo—" Byers' voice sounded like he was about to cry, "The state attorney general's office is here. They've launched an anti-competitive investigation into the cement they bought from Pittsburgh."
"They say we're dumping below market price and disrupting the state's building materials market. Hell no hell, those are friendly prices to support the recovery plan!"
"The worst part is that they suspended all fund transfers and settlements. My cement trucks are still running on the road, burning through fuel, but my cash flow has dried up."
"I'm sorry, Leo, our cooperation must be terminated immediately. I need to call the team back, or we'll go bankrupt."
Next came Johnston, then Altuna.
The content of the phone calls was largely the same.
Investigation, audit, rectification, and fines.
Harrisburg's bureaucratic machine is in motion.
Leo held the already hot telephone receiver in his hand, his expression frighteningly calm.
He was thinking.
He was still replaying Ron Smith's hysterical outburst on the phone.
Is that fear?
Yes, that was fear.
But was it just fear?
"No."
"Leo said to Roosevelt."
"Mr. President, this doesn't make sense. If they really wanted to withdraw, if they were really scared, their reaction right now should be to cut off all ties with Pittsburgh, send a strongly worded official letter to distance themselves, and then hide in their offices and play dead."
"Instead of calling me one by one, crying and telling me about their experiences, describing in detail how terrible the state investigation was and how serious the funds freeze was."
"They are showing me their wounds."
Roosevelt's voice rang out.
"You see right through me, Leo."
"That's the language of politicians."
"They are threatening you, and they are also counting on you."
"They know very well what this alliance means to you, and what it means to Murphy's Senate campaign. It's the foundation of your record, the source of Murphy's votes, and they know you can't afford to lose."
"So, they've put the ball at your feet."
"They're forcing you to take action, forcing you to fight Harrisburg. As long as you can overcome the pressure from the state government, they'll be more than happy to continue making that money."
Leo took a deep breath and called out from the conference room to Ethan, who was looking in their direction with an anxious expression.
"Ethan, you'll be in charge of things here from now on," Leo said, pointing to the conference room.
"But Mayor, what about Smith—" Ethan pointed to the phone.
"Ignore them, they're not going to die anytime soon, they're just making noise." Leo interrupted him. "Your task now is to go back to that table and continue discussing our system with those economists and lawyers. You should know what our goal is."
"Go."
Watching Ethan hesitate as he walked into the conference room, Leo dialed the number of Adrian Payne, the city hall's legal counsel.
"Adrian, this is Leo. I need you to immediately investigate the boundaries of authority between the State Auditor General and the Department of Community and Economic Development."
"I want to know whether it's legal for them to freeze local government third-party escrow accounts solely through administrative orders without a court injunction, or is this just their usual tactic of administrative intimidation?"
"I need a definitive legal interpretation, right now."
After hanging up the phone, Leo went to the window, his gaze sweeping over the somber Pittsburgh skyline and heading east.
That's the direction of Harrisburg.
Pennsylvania State Capitol.
Aston Monroe was standing in front of that huge electronic election map.
The electronic map on the wall was originally a reassuring deep blue, representing his unshakeable dominance in Philadelphia and the surrounding suburbs.
That was the base he had carefully cultivated for ten years, a solid fortress made up of millions of middle-class people, intellectuals and ethnic minorities.
But now, some glaring spots have appeared on this perfect blue map.
In Pittsburgh in the west, in Erie in the north, and in Scranton and Bethlehem in the east.
Those forgotten industrial decline areas now glow with an unsettling rusty hue.
This color resembles a stubborn skin disease, gradually seeping outwards along the road and railway networks.
John Murphy's approval ratings have skyrocketed in these areas.
"Look at this, Paul."
Monroe pointed his finger and slammed it down on the spot in Pittsburgh.
"Our Mayor Wallace has quite the appetite these days."
"What is he doing? Is he building a new Pennsylvania?"
"He's throwing that $500 million around, placing orders with Erie and sending contracts to Scranton. Does he think he's living in medieval Europe, like the Duke of Burgundy who wants to carve out a kingdom from the Kingdom of France?"
Standing behind him, campaign manager Paul Turner flipped through the briefing in his hand, his expression serious.
"Although the analogy sounds like a joke, it must be admitted that he handled the legal aspects flawlessly."
"He exploited the Intergovernmental Cooperation Act, a law that allows local governments to sign mutual assistance agreements. He took advantage of this loophole, bypassing state government approval, and directly established horizontal economic ties with the mayors of those small and medium-sized cities."
"The situation is terrible, boss."
Turner pointed to the rusty areas.
"The mayors of those small and medium-sized cities now have very strong ties with Pittsburgh."
"This bond of interest is very strong; wherever Murphy goes, the mayors personally come out to support him."
"I've even heard that they've persuaded some Republican voters to switch to Democrats, probably just to get Murphy's vote."
Monroe adjusted his cufflinks, his eyes turning cold.
"Since that Duke of Burgundy wants to be granted a fiefdom, we must let him know that the king's sword is still sharp."
Monroe walked back to his desk, picked up the phone, and dialed the internal line of the Pennsylvania Attorney General's office.
As the lieutenant governor, although he does not have the power to directly order the attorney general, he represents the core will of the state government and has sufficient say on issues involving "statewide administrative order".
Moreover, the shadow of the midterm elections looms over every politician, and in Pennsylvania's current political landscape, unity within the Democratic Party is paramount.
Monroe is not only the current lieutenant governor, but also the Democratic caucus's unanimous nominee for Senate.
The race for a Senate seat has the highest priority, and anyone or anything that gets in the way will be crushed by the massive war machine of the state party headquarters.
The call was connected.
"I am Aston Monroe."
Monroe's voice was steady and authoritative.
"The state government has received some reports about the regional purchasing alliance recently organized by the city of Pittsburgh."
"Some have questioned whether this large-scale cross-regional procurement circumvents the core principle of open bidding in the Pennsylvania Government Procurement Act."
"Yes, although they cited Act 177, that's a gray area. If this pattern is abused, it could lead to serious insider dealings and corruption."
"I recommend that the Attorney General's Office immediately issue a formal compliance alert."
"A warning to all municipalities in the state: any participation in such cross-regional procurement that is not registered with the State Auditor General will face extremely rigorous legal scrutiny."
"At the same time, the State Auditor General and the Department of Community and Economic Development were notified to prepare for the initiation of a special investigation procedure."
"Yes, it's targeting those cities that have already signed letters of intent, Erie, Scranton, we'll investigate them one by one."
"First, freeze their money. We need to make sure that every penny of taxpayers' money is spent effectively."
After hanging up the phone, Monroe looked at Turner.
"Issue a press release."
"The state government is highly concerned about local fiscal security, and in order to prevent a repeat of the Pittsburgh-style debt crisis, we will strengthen the supervision of cross-regional economic activities."
"The tone should be stern and official."
"I want to show those mayors who want to follow Leo and reap the rewards what's what."
"That piece of meat smelled delicious, but there was a hook hidden inside."
"I think they want those orders, or they want to keep their jobs."
Turner stood to the side, listening to his boss's instructions, but his brows furrowed slightly.
He was a seasoned campaign manager, and he saw the collateral damage behind this move.
"Boss, there's a risk I must warn you about," Turner hesitated for a moment before speaking, "If we use the Auditor General's freeze on their accounts indefinitely, the consequences could be more serious than we anticipate."
"According to intelligence, several Erie and Scranton factories have already advanced large sums of money for raw materials to meet orders from Pittsburgh. If their cash flow dries up, they won't be able to pay their workers' wages next Friday."
“Those are thousands of angry blue-collar workers,” Turner said with some concern. “If they don’t get paid, things will escalate, and the media might accuse the state government of bureaucracy and of hindering local economic development.”
Monroe's expression remained unchanged after hearing this.
"So what?"
Monroe countered with a question.
"Paul, you need to find out who those people are."
"They are Republicans, and even if they switch to the Democrats, they will still vote for Murphy."
"They were never my voters."
"Even if they get paid, will they thank me? No, they'll only thank Leo Wallace and John Murphy."
"If they don't get paid, who will they hate? They'll hate Leo, who got them into this mess, and Murphy, who made a bad promise."
"So—what does this have to do with me?"
"Let them make a scene, let them go hungry."
"Their suffering is Leo Wallace's political liability, not mine."
"Let's get started."