Chapter 553 Senator Roosevelt
"Where are you going?" Franklin Roosevelt asked puzzledly as he watched Sheffield stand up.
"Of course I have my own things to do. Prepare for your election, Franklin!" Sheffield waved his hand.
Haiti's foreign exchange reserves of 600,000 US dollars had just arrived at the Union Bank of New York. This made Sheffield feel relieved. No matter how small a mosquito is, it is still a piece of meat. As long as there is profit, no matter how small it is, it is worth being happy about.
When CEO Blair saw his boss coming, he did not dare to neglect him. On the one hand, he prepared to report on the recent business of United Bank, and on the other hand, he asked indirectly about the purpose of the visit. Only then did he realize that his boss was here to help with the election.
"Boss, do you think Franklin Roosevelt's campaign will go very smoothly?" Blair asked his assistant to get coffee, while he stayed in the office to chat so that his boss would not be too bored.
"It's not a big problem, Roosevelt is the pride of New Yorkers, you know this best." Sheffield put his hands in his trouser pockets and looked at the busy streets below the window. He said lazily, "The most important thing is that Mr. Franklin Roosevelt is a wealthy man with a rich family. His millions of dollars in assets are not fake. Successful people can always attract many people's support, even if his property is inherited."
Millionaires are definitely a plus, not a minus, in elections. Of course, nothing should be overdone. For example, if a slave owner says he wants to serve the citizens, no one will believe him, just like the descendants of Rockefeller Jr., who missed the presidency several times.
Perhaps the uncanny valley effect can explain this. A background that is too common cannot convince citizens. Since everyone is the same, you have no success as a candidate, so why should people choose you? But if your background is too good, it will cause widespread concerns. So it is not good to be too ordinary, and it is not good to be too powerful. You have to be in the right position.
The reason why he disappeared for a few days before the election was to have a good talk with the representatives of European capital in New York to clear up the misunderstanding. This was all because of the sequelae of the military operation that raided Port-au-Prince.
This is very much in line with the tradition of the United States, which is to first create a fait accompli, then lower our attitude to show that we have reasons for doing so, speak calmly, but hold the stick in hand. This is the essence of the carrot and stick policy.
Blair saw his boss unceremoniously deposit the entire Haitian treasury's foreign exchange into his bank. But now he had to lower his posture and explain to the representatives of European companies, which made Blair even more confused. Doesn't this make him look very guilty?
Although the slave owner was not good at socializing, he was sincere. He explained the concerns of some people, especially those of the representatives of French and German companies, with a smile on his face. Then he changed the subject and said, "I understand the contradictions between Paris and Berlin. Of course, the representatives of your two countries will definitely deny the hostility between each other, and I will not correct you."
"Dear gentlemen, I will assume that the three coups in the past two years have nothing to do with you. You can also regard them as the open and covert struggles between French and German capital in Haiti, which do not exist at all. But you cannot cause trouble to the United States. If you fight too fiercely, the victim will be the United States. Haiti is in turmoil every year, and a large number of Haitians will sneak into our southern land. And I have nothing to hide. Southern citizens are not very friendly to black people. This is a well-known fact."
Sheffield would never be so reasonable when facing his counterparts from the United States, but the people in front of him were not others, but Europeans. In this era, it was good enough that they did not discriminate against the United States. It was simply too much to think the other way around. Moreover, New York was a base for fawning on foreigners. What would you do to the slave owners?
Things are set in stone. It is impossible to bring the Marines back. Sheffield guarantees that the capital treatment of European companies in Haiti will remain unchanged, but they can no longer compete for control of Haiti. In fact, this is another excuse for open doors and equal benefits. Everyone continues to cooperate. Isn't it essentially all for money?
As for the arrogance hidden in the eyes of these Europeans, they pretended to cover it up. Sheffield was of course very tactful and pretended not to see it. In the end, this was still a matter for the French and Germans, and he just needed to ensure the overall stability of Haiti.
As for the 600,000 US dollars in reserves that were sent to the United Bank for temporary safekeeping, Sheffield would naturally return them when the time was right. It would be like a temporary interest-free loan borrowed by the United Bank for use first.
By now, the Haiti issue has come to an end. Of course, the official explanation is the responsibility of the federal government. Sheffield is just expressing goodwill to European capital on behalf of the business community and recognizing the legitimate rights and interests of European countries.
After the incident was completely settled, Blair asked in confusion, "These Europeans, any country, even Italy and Spain, look down on us in their hearts. I really don't know where their confidence comes from."
Hearing this, Sheffield subconsciously glanced out of the car window. While he was talking to Blair, Ford had quietly arrived at the headquarters of the Union Bank in New York. Now, the car was slowly driving into the main entrance of the Union Bank.
Blair was actually a little cynical. Sheffield looked at the street outside the car window and said calmly, "The reason why Europeans are arrogant is very simple. The great changes of the Industrial Revolution did start in Europe. The changes in the world in the past hundred years can be said to be greater than the changes in the past three thousand years. They are qualified to be arrogant. Although any small country in America respects the United States at the official level, the residents of these countries also look down on us in their hearts, even Haiti is like this."
"The fundamental reason is that the United States is powerful, but it is not the most powerful." Sheffield shrugged. "Many small countries under our noses think that they can kneel down to the Europeans in exchange for punching the United States. This is very normal and not a new thing."
How do Eastern European countries view Russia? Why do they feel hostility towards Russia, which is so close to them? Why do China's neighbors instinctively feel hostility towards this country? The reason is the same.
This problem will arise if your country is a strong country, but not the most powerful in the world. There is no way to solve this problem at present. Only when Europe is in ruins can this problem be solved.
In this day and age, we should eat as much as we can. It is not time to open our gluttonous mouths yet. Domestic public opinion alone is not enough. The United States can take the initiative to launch a challenge and bring Europe down. Isn't this announcing the arrival of the American century?
It seems that a large number of citizens of the United States in the country now believe in their hearts that Europe is the center of the world, but they also know that this is impossible. It is not that the slave owners look down on most of the citizens of the United States today, but that they are afraid when they see Europeans.
Before the formal election, Rockefeller Jr. received a telegram from China, which expressed optimism about the signing of the contract, but mentioned some unsettling factors. He heard that there was a plague in the country recently, and secretly lamented that he should not endure the coercion of the slave owners and go to such a dangerous country.
"The plague in 1910, the first large-scale use of masks." Sheffield remembered this incident when he saw the telegram. This should be the battle that made Wu Lien-teh famous. In fact, it is impossible to escape unscathed from infectious diseases. It depends on whether the losses can be reduced to negligible levels.
To put it bluntly, some people must be sacrificed for the sake of the overall situation. It is absolutely not okay to leave it alone. After hearing this news, Sheffield thought of the Spanish flu again, but he was not gloating. This flu, which had not yet seen any trace, collided with the Indian version of herd immunity at the beginning of the century, and unceremoniously harvested 18 million spoils.
With this in mind, Sheffield also tried to comfort his brother-in-law, saying that the authority of the Chinese government was far beyond that of ordinary countries. The government of this country had the final say on all matters between life and death, so the plague would definitely be eradicated, so Rockefeller Jr. didn't have to worry. The key was that the contract must be implemented as soon as possible.
Then Sheffield deleted the last sentence and replaced it with a more neutral tone, asking for the contract to be signed as soon as possible so that he could return safely. The previous telegram was a bit too demanding of money and life. Although it was the truth, Rockefeller Jr. might feel uncomfortable.
With Rockefeller Jr.'s telegram, Sheffield immediately contacted Pittsburgh to prepare steel for building battleships, gather materials, recruit workers, and embarked on a new round of busyness.
"I will see two battleships leave the factory within ten months. After precise accounting calculations, this is completely achievable. Since the goal can be achieved in theory, there cannot be any objective difficulties. As the first large-scale arms sale by the United States to a major Asian country, this honor falls to the San Francisco Shipyard. This is not only a matter of our shipyard, but also related to the influence of the United States. This is not an ordinary business. It must be fast and of good quality."
Sheffield contacted the Frege brothers directly. He himself had no time to work as a supervisor in San Francisco every day, and the women were not suitable for this kind of work. He could only put all his trust in his partners.
Slave owners, national influence, Trans-Pacific Partnership, and a bunch of other mysterious and powerful words were thrown together, which instantly made the Frege brothers feel that the matter was of great importance.
At the same time, the mid-term elections have also begun. This is a mid-term exam for both parties and has extraordinary significance. And for some individuals, this extraordinary significance is even greater.
Bang! The two glasses made a crisp sound when they touched each other. Sheffield took back his glass and congratulated with a smile, "Senator Franklin, from any perspective, it is a happy thing to become a senator from New York."
(End of this chapter)
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