There was an altercation in the morning Production Meeting. Not fisticuffs, mind you, but farily intense compared to the usual sessions when we are still waking up. Section Leader DeMille had been determined to keep things in order and produce an accurate, semi-amusing and semi-non-biased account for the morning product dealing with the developments in the big trial up in New York.

The news about the verdict started to swirl around dinner-time yesterday. It was well after Happy Hour had commenced shortly after lunch. Emotions had been veering all over with uncertainty. How long would the deliberations last? What did that mean about the result? Would the controversy result in acquittal or conviction?

There was a brief delay between the announcement that the verdict had been reached and the revelation on what it was. The messaging streams were hastily yanked down in the various offices that produce them for release. The impending release of new facts had to be re-manufactured to tell us what to think about what had not yet been announced.

Splash was more than a couple fingers into his assessment when the result of the deliberations was announced. DeMille had been involved in a healthful plunge in the now-open pool and was still toweling his hair in wet trunks and flip-flops as he dorected a short an unemotional report to the small audience that has followed the intricate legal maneuverings. Now we had an answer.

“Guilty on All 34 Counts!” was a result that reflected one end of the spectrum of possibilities. Other results had been possible, and it will take some detailed analysis on what the consequences might be. Emotion is sufficient for this morning, favorable or not.

Splash took another couple of fingers of brown liquid in his glass and began to press wildly on the touch-screen of his phone. Apparently, he continued through the night and this morning dropped a sheaf of papers on the conference table. The pile seemed as thick as the 54-page package of instructions Judge Merchan had given the jury Tuesday evening when deliberations commenced.

Splash smiled at the sound of the impact of the paper on the table. He had directed to the printer we share but rarely use. “I have a detailed analysis of how this all came to pass and where it is going!” he declared, his voice betraying the amount of brown liquid and deep thought he had consumed.

“Knock it off,” said DeMIlle. “Everyone is going to be a little wound up this morning. We do not know what the actual impact is going to be. All we can do is analyze what the messaging streams say we are supposed to think and feel. And then how we are to react to it all.”

“Like the defendant-is-now-a-convicted-felon who got the righteous-punishment-his-sordid-career has earned?”

“Yep. Or the inverse, that the people who did this to him are revealed as un-convicted felons who are earning their own.”

There were some blank looks around the circle at the table. Rocket shook his head and said “Which is it?”

“Too soon to tell. But the messaging is deigned to have maximum impact on other things that have not happened yet. It is all part of a campaign plan in execution. The Debate in late June? We might expect a haughty “We don’t dignify convicted felons with public discussion,” and a dignified cancellation. Then, sentencing will happen right before the GOP convention in July, and the Defendant will be stuck in New York to deal with it. Is this a brilliant stroke to help a troubled campaign or a miscalculation of massive proportions?

DeMille put his coffee mug down, and asked for some of the brown liquid that helped Splash deal with the messaging in progress.

Copyright 2024 Vic Socotra
www.vicsocotra.com