Chapter 698 - 326: Taming Capital
"But you’re different. You have the title of ’Savior of the Rust Belt’ and the support of the Unions. If you were to say you could propose a plan to delay the legal retirement age by two years..."
"That means tens of millions of seniors would work for two more years and pay insurance premiums for two more years. During that time, they would continue to use lucrative commercial health insurance instead of switching to the government’s federal medical insurance."
"For the pharmaceutical giants and insurance companies, those two years represent an extra market worth hundreds of billions of US Dollars."
"Use that to trade for cheaper medicine for Pennsylvania."
Leo took a deep breath.
This was too ruthless.
This was selling out the retirements of workers across All of America in exchange for Pennsylvania’s immediate survival.
"This will destroy my reputation. What will the voters who see me as a savior think? I’ll be pilloried."
"Leo, don’t forget what you yourself said before."
Roosevelt’s voice was devoid of any emotion.
"Reform requires bloodshed. You can’t expect to enjoy the fruits of reform without paying any price. There’s no such thing as a free lunch in this world."
"Besides, this is just part of the process."
Roosevelt’s tone became even more certain.
"Do you think delaying retirement is some evil act? It’s just the trend."
𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮
"Europe is raising its retirement age, Japan is raising its retirement age. Every major country in the world facing an aging population is doing the same thing."
"This is a math problem, not a moral one. When there are more people collecting pensions than paying into them, the system will collapse."
"What makes the United States an exception? Just because we can print US Dollars?"
"Even if it’s not you, even if you give up this deal today because of your so-called moral purism, ten or twenty years from now, another Politician will definitely step forward and make the same proposal."
"And at that time, he won’t need to make a deal with anyone. He’ll just need to threaten everyone with national bankruptcy."
Roosevelt’s voice carried a hint of mockery.
"You’d be better off using this bargaining chip while you still have it to trade for something tangible."
"Trade an inevitable future for a present that can be changed."
"That is the wise choice."
...
「Three in the afternoon.」
George Vance walked into the hospital room, a bouquet of flowers in his hand.
Seeing Leo lying in bed, Vance plastered a look of concern on his face.
"Mr. Mayor, I’m relieved to see you’re recovering well."
Vance placed the bouquet on the nightstand, even though it was already piled high with flowers.
"We don’t need these formalities, Vance."
Leo pointed to the chair beside him.
"Sit. My wound still hurts. I don’t have the energy to beat around the bush with you."
Vance sat down.
"About the supply cutoff before..."
"That’s in the past," Leo interrupted him. "Let’s talk about the future."
Leo looked at Vance. Even though he was lying in bed, his gaze still carried a commanding, oppressive aura.
"Vance, have you seen the news? You know what position the Democratic Party promised me."
Leo was intentionally vague, but the implication was obvious.
"If I ride the Rust Belt vote to a landslide victory and really make it into the White House..."
Leo didn’t finish his sentence. The threat was clear enough as it was.
"Mr. Wallace."
Vance adjusted his posture and pulled a document out of his briefcase.
"We both know it’s only a matter of time before the medicine supply to Pittsburgh is restored. Since the White House has relented and public opinion has swung in your favor, we’re not foolish enough to continue a blockade we’re bound to lose."
Vance placed the document on the nightstand.
"But don’t think you can really do whatever you want. The resilience of capital is stronger than you imagine."
"We may have lost the battle for public opinion for now, but we still control the lifeblood of the entire supply chain. If you want to cut us out completely and establish a medical utopia in Pennsylvania, one entirely independent of the pharmacy benefit management system..."
Vance let out a cold laugh.
"That’s impossible."
"Perhaps you think you have control of the State Assembly now, but any system made of people is bound to have loopholes. We will use all our resources to ensure every decision you make faces a constitutional review and every appropriation is frozen by the audit bureau."
"Believe me, the agony of being sliced by a dull knife is far worse than the current supply cutoff."
Vance’s tone oozed the kind of arrogance and confidence that only comes from immense capital.
"So, I’m here to talk business."
"We acknowledge your victory and can resume supplies. But the condition is that Pennsylvania must retain the pharmacy benefit management framework."
"We can give you a discount, even the lowest discount in All of America. But the pricing power and management rights must remain in our hands. That is our bottom line."
Leo looked at Vance.
He knew Vance was telling the truth.
Capitalists can lose a battle, but they will never easily lose the entire war.
If Leo insisted on completely overturning the rules, he would face a protracted war of attrition—something Pittsburgh could not afford right now.
"Pricing power?"
Leo chuckled, which pulled at his wound, making him frown.
"Vance, you’re still too greedy. But I can understand that."
"But what you call your bottom line happens to be my bottom line as well."
Leo’s gaze turned icy.
"What you can’t win on the battlefield, you don’t get at the negotiating table. Since neither of us can back down, it means this fight has to continue."