Chapter 719 - 336: Election Pressure

Leo looked Sanders straight in the eye.

"You can choose to oppose me. You can give speeches in the Senate denouncing me, even call on Progressive voters to boycott me. But you know full well what the consequences will be."

Leo laid his cards on the table.

"If the Progressives declare all-out war on me at this juncture, the election in Pennsylvania will collapse in an instant."

"I will make sure every single Union member knows that it was the environmental elites in Washington who blocked their chance at high-paying jobs. I will turn all their fear of unemployment into hatred for you."

"When that time comes, when the election is lost and the Republican Party retakes the White House and Congress, you can forget about passing any of your environmental bills. You will lose every political gain you’ve ever made."

Sanders’s hands clenched into fists, his nails digging into his palms.

He was keenly aware of just how much leverage Leo held.

This young man had grown into a powerful warlord capable of holding the entire Democratic Party’s election strategy hostage.

Leo truly had the power to unleash an electoral firestorm in Pennsylvania.

If the election was lost because of the nuclear power issue, the entire Progressive wing would become the villains of history, forced to bear the wrath of the whole party.

Sanders sat in his chair, his eyes fixed on Leo.

He didn’t explode with rage. The chips Leo had thrown on the table had forcibly suppressed his anger.

He needed to know the young man’s next move.

"Alright, Leo," Sanders said. "What’s your plan? Are you going to keep playing those tricks you learned on the streets of Pittsburgh? Exploit information gaps? Engage in backroom scheming? Or go and blackmail a few more Senators?"

"Plots and schemes are the tools of the weak."

Leo shook his head, his tone calm.

"Only those with no chips to play need to skulk in the gutters to make their moves. I now represent the industry of Pennsylvania, millions of votes, and tens of billions of dollars in investment from Silicon Valley."

"I can’t run a country on conspiracies, Senator. What I’m going to do is execute an overt strategy."

"I’m going to ride the winds of this general election and make both the Democratic and Republican Parties work their asses off for my nuclear power project."

Sanders frowned. "That’s impossible. The two parties are at each other’s throats right now. The only consensus is that there is no consensus."

"Wrong. They do have a consensus."

Leo looked at Sanders.

"We are in the final months before the election. Both parties are in a state of extreme anxiety, and that anxiety is my leverage."

Sanders crossed his arms. "Then explain it to me. How is your nuclear power project going to sway both parties?"

Leo began to break down his strategy.

"The Democratic Party is facing a severe identity crisis."

"On one hand, we have to maintain our image as climate pioneers to please the Progressives and environmentalists in the big cities. On the other, we absolutely cannot afford to lose the blue-collar Union votes in Rust Belt states like Pennsylvania and Michigan."

"It’s a contradiction. If we push for aggressive environmental policies, workers will lose their jobs and Pennsylvania will turn red. If we embrace fossil fuels, our environmentalist base will collapse."

"The core fear of the Democratic Party right now is being blamed for soaring electricity prices or deindustrialization in the name of environmentalism."

Leo looked at Sanders.

"Now look at the Republican Party. They aren’t having an easy time either."

"On one hand, they have to attack the Democratic Party’s clean energy subsidies as a waste of public funds, a massive socialist spending spree. On the other hand, they have to admit that providing energy for the AI race is a matter of national security."

"They don’t dare bear the guilt of obstructing technological progress and causing the United States to lose the AI race to the Eastern Power."

"That is their Achilles’ heel."

Sanders listened, his fingers tapping unconsciously on the table.

"So, I’m going to give them a solution that gives both sides an out—one they can even take credit for."

Leo held up a single finger.

"For the Democrats, I’m offering a zero-carbon transition and Union jobs."

"I will make a clear promise that the new nuclear power project will provide thousands of high-paying jobs protected by the National Power Union. Those are rock-solid Pennsylvania votes."

"At the same time, nuclear energy is the only power source that can support AI development without increasing carbon emissions. It’s the only realistic path to achieving our climate goals."

"For the Republicans, the bait I’m offering is a reduction in subsidies and energy independence."

"I will emphasize that this project will be primarily funded by private companies like Microsoft and Google purchasing the power, reducing reliance on long-term government appropriations and aligning with their small-government philosophy."

"Furthermore, nuclear power is the path to breaking free from foreign energy dependence and putting America first. Supremacy in computing power is the new oil supremacy. To not support nuclear power is to not support America winning the future."

"Only when both parties can benefit from this project at the same time will they stop dragging each other down."

The look in Sanders’s eyes changed.

He saw in Leo’s words the ability to construct a grand vision.

"In Pennsylvania," Leo’s voice grew heavier, "no one can ignore the votes. Although I’m a Democrat, if the Democratic Party leadership blocks my bill and sacrifices the livelihoods of workers for the sake of so-called environmental dogma..."

"...then I will be unable to stop my constituents from voting for the Republican Party."

Sanders was silent for a long time.

"Your plan is perfect," Sanders said slowly. "But the authority to approve nuclear power plants rests with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. That is an independent Federation Agency, and their approval process is measured in decades. You don’t have that kind of time."

"So, that’s the first step."

Leo walked up to Sanders, leaned forward with both hands on the table, his eyes blazing.