Happy to have been given a decision that took him off the hook, the producer left with a smile on his face, leaving Jan free to go into her office and begin the task of preparing for her show at noon.

“Okay, Ann,” Jan asked before she even reached the sofa on which Ann had settled. “What do you have for me on Governor Thomas that I don’t already know?”

The thirty something Ann Warren was more than the news department’s token lesbian. A former congressional staffer, Ann had cultivated sources and contacts that would have made the CIA green with envy. Jan didn’t much care whether these sources were part of Ann’s circle of friends or traditional arrangements that people in high places delight in developing with key members of the media. Ann delivered grade A material in a timely manner. For Jan, that was all that mattered.

Ann’s inside political contacts were especially critical when they dealt with characters like George Oliver Thomas and his efforts to thwart a growing effort to revise the Constitution. As a popular governor, Thomas had managed to recreate a coalition of other conservative governors, senators, and congressmen in an effort to curb what he saw as an erosion of states’ rights. Through the use of guile and persuasion, charisma and bare knuckled politics, the native of Idaho had managed to become a force on the political plains of America. With a power that far exceeded the mandates of his office, he managed to block every effort that came out of the nation’s capital that he felt was intrusive or violated the spirit of the Constitution. His influence had become so pervasive, it was rumored that before the Senate Judiciary Committee voted for a candidate for the nation’s Supreme Court, the chairman of that committee had called a recess in order to call Thomas and consult with him on the matter.

“We have tons of material,” Ann started as she picked up a one page bio from the stack of file folders she had on the table in front of her and handed it to Jan. “In a nutshell, Governor George Oliver Thomas, popularly known as GO Thomas for his ‘go get ’em’ attitude and campaign slogan, was a very successful entrepreneur before he was elected governor of Idaho as an Independent.”

“That,” Jan snapped, “is old news.”

“Well,” Ann continued, unperturbed by Jan’s sharp response, “what is less well known are rumors concerning his ties to right wing militia groups.”

This caught Jan’s attention. “For years now both journalists and disenfranchised politicians from the left have been trying to make that connection,” she quipped as she settled down onto the sofa. “What do you have to offer by way of proof?”

Ann smiled. “Documents from the Attorney General’s office.” Pausing, she watched Jan’s reaction, pleased that she could still manage to get a rise out of a hard case such as Jan. Continuing, Ann connected the dots. “At the heart of the business empire Thomas built are various franchises and businesses that are run by people he hand picked. In turn these men have been quite careful when selecting their employees.”