"Carol, if Drew was an exam question, and there was only one right answer, I would have to say that his neurological presentation today and the history you've given me add up to some sort of stress disorder. That is not a desirable condition in the man with his finger on the big, red button. It seems like with each episode he's drifting farther and farther from reality."

"But in between these episodes," Lattimore said, "the president has been as focused and energetic as he's ever been, and I mean that. He's gotten the Koreans and Iran to back off and allow nuclear inspections. That's major. The new trade agreements with Mexico and China have already brought us the lowest unemployment in a dozen years. He knows that the only solution to the drug problem in our cities is to deliver hope for the future in the form of education, and already he's gotten more money for schools than the last two administrations combined. He's pushed through more legislation, more of the pieces of his populist agenda, than anyone ever thought he could, and with the polls predicting the shift to a friendly Congress, there's no telling what he could accomplish in the next four years. This is no ordinary man, Gabe."

"Magnus, this man"—Gabe gestured down at Stoddard, who had yet to move except for the rise and fall of his chest—"has the authority and the power to destroy everything. Everything! And he may be losing his mind."

"There's got to be something causing this besides stress," Carol said. "I'm certain of it. You heard him answer your questions. He's absolutely brilliant. You had barely asked the questions before he produced the answers. Gabe, you're worried that Drew has the power to destroy everything, but he also has the power and the vision to change the world for the better as no president—no person—ever has."

"This upcoming election is by no means a lock," Lattimore added. "Dunleavy still has a lead in most of the red states, and the religious right is starting to get mobilized and organized again. Their political machine weakened when Dunleavy lost the last election, but there's strong evidence they're regrouping. Do you remember Thomas Eagleton?"

"No. . . . Wait, maybe. Yes, yes, I do. He was McGovern's vice presidential nominee in, what, seventy?"

"Seventy-two. McGovern wasn't going to beat Nixon no matter what, so none of the Democratic biggies would run with him. So he picked Eagleton, a nice enough senator from Missouri. Only McGovern's half-baked research didn't uncover that the man had several psychiatric hospitalizations for depression, which included electroshock therapy. The negative press made McGovern seem like anything but fit to lead this country, and forced Eagleton to quit."

"He was replaced by Sargent Shriver, the Peace Corps guy. I remember now."