Forging America: My Campaign Manager is Roosevelt

Chapter 255 - 129: Sherman Antitrust Law 2

...

For the next two weeks, the air in Pennsylvania was thick with the smell of gunpowder.

Every day, the phones at campaign headquarters rang off the hook.

Murphy himself was like a spinning top, jetting all across the state.

His voice grew hoarse and the bags under his eyes deepened, but the twilight aura of an old politician was fading, replaced by the frenzied excitement of someone who’d gone all in.

All the chips were in the pot.

Now, it was time for the showdown.

That morning, everyone gathered at the campaign headquarters in Pittsburgh.

They were waiting.

Waiting for the latest tracking poll data.

This data would tell them whether their last two weeks of frenzied spending and political attacks had been for nothing, or if they had actually managed to crack the stone.

"The data’s in."

Karen, who had been working at the computer, suddenly broke the silence.

All eyes instantly snapped to the large screen, which was projecting the election map of Pennsylvania.

Karen stood before the map and pointed to Montgomery County, west of Philadelphia.

It had always been a mixed district of Establishment Democrats and Moderate Republicans, and it was also Aston Monroe’s stronghold.

Karen began to analyze the current election situation.

"Our overall support there has risen by three percentage points. It’s not much, but it shows that the ’defensive voting’ ad is working. Suburban moms are starting to panic, and they’re leaning toward Murphy to protect abortion rights."

Her finger slid across the map to the west.

"And in the west, although we haven’t seen explosive growth, look here."

Karen circled several counties surrounding Pittsburgh.

"The influence is spreading outward like a ripple. Beaver County, Washington County... even as far as Butler County, Murphy’s approval ratings are slowly climbing."

"It’s not all thanks to the ads," Karen said, glancing back at Leo on the sofa. "It’s because they’ve actually seen it."

Leo held a cup of hot coffee, his gaze fixed on the map.

Yes, they had seen it.

The changes in Pittsburgh were real and tangible.

The cranes at the inland port roared day and night, dust swirled over the revitalization project’s construction sites, workers were getting paid, and the community had a new look.

These changes weren’t just confined to the city. They traveled down the highways, with the commuting workers, with the young people returning to their hometowns on weekends, reaching every small town in the surrounding area.

People talked about it in bars, at gas stations, and at church doors.

"Hey, did you hear? That new port in Pittsburgh is hiring. The pay is great."

"That’s the money Murphy brought in."

"Looks like the old guy is serious this time."

For these pragmatic blue-collar workers, this was the most powerful campaign slogan.

Murphy was the one who had actually brought change to Pittsburgh.

The situation was developing just as they had hoped.

Murphy had stabilized his base in the west and begun to radiate influence outward; in the east, he had successfully torn an opening in Monroe’s heartland.

"Although we haven’t snatched as many votes from Warren as we originally expected," Karen analyzed, her finger sweeping over the vast red area in the middle of the map, "that old fox has solidified his base. It was obviously too optimistic of us to think we could dismantle decades of Republican groundwork by exposing corruption."

"But—"

"The trend is on our side."

"Extrapolating from the current growth curve, as long as we can maintain this momentum until primary election day, the probability of us turning the tables is extremely high."

Leo took a sip of his coffee, his expression noncommittal.

Just then.

BANG!

The office door was thrown open.

Ethan walked in, tightly clutching a blue folder.

He walked to the desk without a word and placed the folder directly in front of Leo.

"Looks like our celebration is ending early."

Leo put down his coffee cup and picked up the folder.

On the cover, the seal of the Federal Court glinted coldly under the light.

The plaintiff line listed an unfamiliar name: the Pennsylvania Free Trade Promotion Association.

Leo frowned.

He had never heard of this organization.

His gaze moved down.

Defendants: The Pittsburgh City Government, Mayor Leo Wallace, the Morganfield Industrial Group.

"Leo, this time, we’re in big trouble."

Ethan tugged at his tie as if he was having trouble breathing.

"This is a nuke."

Leo put down the folder, sat down in his chair, crossed his hands, and looked at the Harvard Law Doctorate.

"Get to the point."

"The Sherman Antitrust Act," Ethan bit out. "Section Two."

The air in the room froze.

Even though Leo wasn’t a lawyer, he knew what this law meant.

It was the Sword of Damocles hanging over the history of American business. Over a hundred years ago, it had dismembered Rockefeller’s Standard Oil Empire and shattered the Morgan Family’s railroad trust.

It was the ultimate weapon in the American capitalist system, designed to fight monopolistic behemoths.

"What are they accusing us of?" Leo asked.

"Illegally creating a monopoly."

Ethan opened the folder and pointed to a passage.

"The plaintiff’s lawyers are directly attacking the legal basis of our deal—specifically, the exclusive franchise you created to bring Morganfield on board."

Ethan took a deep breath and began to break down the opposition’s logic.

"Count one: illegal monopolization."