Monday's House of Representatives was still buzzing.

Compared with the elite Senate, the House of Representatives is more down-to-earth.

They are not all very well educated like the senators, and their careers are often varied.

So, it's often like a wet market.

Especially after Cleveland lost the presidency, the Democratic Party also completely lost ground in the Senate and the Senate.

But the Democrats won't miss a single opportunity to disgust McKinley.

So the House of Representatives became such a place.

"The next proposal is the War Department's military reform plan." The Speaker put on his glasses, "War Minister Rout will explain to us the new plan they have developed." ”

Suddenly, there was a commotion in the House of Representatives.

The members of the House of Representatives began to talk to each other.

Under normal circumstances, the Cabinet communicates with lawmakers from both parties in advance about bills passed in Parliament.

Whether you pass or not, at least you will be informed to prevent the scene from being too ugly.

But no one has told them about this bill.

President McKinley sat quietly in his place, his expression dark.

Root didn't know this.

He stepped up to the front desk and began to explain his plan to the people below.

What Routter said was basically the same as what he told McKinley at the War Office, and there was not much difference.

The majority of legislators are not interested in the army reform package.

During the war, the domestic media basically reported good news but not bad news, so they only knew that the U.S. military fought valiantly in the Caribbean and the Philippines, and defeated the Spaniards.

In their opinion, their own army has performed well, and there is absolutely no need for reform.

The U.S. military now has won the Revolutionary War, the Mexican-American War, the Civil War, and now the Spaniards.

No one will credit the victory to the continent's excellent matchmaking mechanics.

The U.S. military is invincible and invincible! Glory to America!

The parliamentarians, of course, will not know how badly the US troops fought on the Cuban front.

Chen Jianqiu's excellent performance of the Chinese army became a fig leaf for them.

When Root began to talk about the chain of command reform, the lawmakers were calm.

After all, it was the army commanders-in-chief who were most affected by this matter, and they had nothing to do with it.

Most of them are bored at best, and some yawn.

But when he mentioned that he wanted to expand the size of the conventional army, the following suddenly exploded.

The parliamentarians began to discuss it vigorously.

This plan has had a huge impact on their existing understanding.

"We have the sea to the west and the sea to the east, whether it is Mexico in the south or Canada in the north, they will not pose any threat to us, what are we doing to expand our army?"

An Ohio congressman named Anthony stood up and voiced his dissent.

"If we need to be more involved in international affairs, we need more standing armies. These troops will be used to protect our rights and interests overseas. Rout explained.

"Intervening in international affairs? Isn't our country big enough? Let the Europeans take care of the affairs themselves, why should we meddle? ”

Anthony retorted.

"As long as they don't meddle with us, we don't need to meddle with theirs."

Root, who didn't bother to explain the national strategy to the group, looked at President McKinley, who was sitting below.

This kind of thing should be explained by him.

Surprisingly, the president was still sitting there, his face calm and motionless.

This surprised Root.

It was McKinley who used himself to reform the army, and it was McKinley who approved of this plan, but why is he silent now?

A moment of hesitation gave an opportunity to the opposition councillors below.

They began to attack them en masse.

"More troops means more taxpayers need to pay for it, how do we explain that to them? I don't think it's necessary! A Republican congressman from Virginia expressed his opinion.

His words represent the views of many other MPs below, and many are beginning to echo them.

"That's right! We should spend our money on what is more necessary, such as the construction of urban infrastructure, rather than using military force! ”

"It's stupid to spend money to build an army to maintain order for those Cubans, what else is there in that place but sugar and cigars?"

If these Republicans are all about "money" and put forward relatively moderate views, then Democratic congressmen are much sharper.

A white-haired Democratic congressman stood up.

This man's name was Bertrand Lambert, and he was quite prestigious in the House of Representatives.

His voice is rich and infectious.

"Since the founding of the United States, our country's armed forces have been dominated by militias."

"Why did the great men of our founding country do this?"

"Because they understand that the army, like the police, is the violent apparatus of the state."

"If one day there is no hope in this country, there is oppression, then the people should take up arms and resist tyranny!"

"And the presence of the federal army will make all this come to naught."

Lambert suddenly pointed at Root and asked:

"The army is trying to expand, is it taking this opportunity to strengthen its influence! Do you want to increase your voice?! Or is there something else going on? ”

He snapped:

"I tell you, the freedom of this country cannot be trampled on, do not try to build a hotbed of military dictatorship here!"

Rout was so angry by the old man's words that he went online.

He wanted to smash the manuscript in his hand in the face of the old man opposite.

Where is this?

He was merely making some corrections to the army based on some of the problems that arose in the army during the Spanish-American War.

The purpose could not be simpler.

But this old bastard stood up and went online, desperately buttoning his hat.

Judging from the expressions of those councillors below, many people still believe in this set! Started to heckle behind.

The boos below.

What a hell of a thing.

The House of Representatives is indeed full of all kinds of cows, ghosts, snakes, and gods, and it is not a place for people.

The besieged Root looked at McKinley again.

Mr. President did not stand up to relieve him as expected, but only looked at the Speaker.

The Speaker finally realized that he should maintain order in the House of Representatives, and after two shouts of silence, he began to organize a vote on the military reform plan.

Not surprisingly, the uncommunicated proposal was rejected by the House of Representatives.

Not only did Democrats vote against it, but many Republicans also sided with the plan.

Rout is a very cultured person.

But this time, he left the venue early in a gaffe and went back to the quartermaster building in a Ford car to sulk.

Democratic lawmakers were surprised to find out that it was a rare victory for them in Congress, and it was so effortless.

This gave them a morale boost, and at the same time ushered in the next bill, which is also the last bill to be passed at this meeting.

Standing on the stage was a Republican congressman from Massachusetts.

His name was George Hall.

Eighteen years ago, it was here that he spoke up for the Chinese, but in the end he was outnumbered and defeated.

Eighteen years later, Congressman Hall is still serving in the House of Representatives after repeated general elections.

His integrity was recognized by most people.

Since then, however, Hauer has been ashamed of the passage of the PAI Hua Act.

In his view, this is a disgrace to American democracy.

But today, here he is again.

Because President McKinley told him that he and his party would support him in repealing the bill.

So Hauer stood in front of the stage again, hoping to make up for his regrets, but the knot in his heart eighteen years ago.

His beard, which used to be black and long, is now gray.

However, the councillor's posture is still upright, like a pine tree.

"Eighteen years ago, a bill was passed here, which excluded an ethnic group from the confines of the country. It has brought decades of humiliation to the Chinese people."

"But it's also a shame for America! It is a blasphemy against the Constitution! ”

"But in the past 18 years, the Chinese who have remained in this country, and the Chinese with citizenship have integrated into the country with their own efforts."

"They are contributing to the construction of this country in various fields!"

Hauer glanced at the people below.

The lawmakers were at a loss, and as with the military reform plan, they had not received communication about the bill in advance, so they began to look through the documents on their desks.

"They, like people of other colors, work in factories and work in the fields; They go to school and contribute inventions and scientific and technological research to the country. ”

"In the recent war with the Spaniards, the Chinese soldiers performed extremely well, taking the lead in attacking the San Juan Heights, and they were shedding their blood for this country."

"They're no longer as politically mindless as they used to be, I've been in the House of Representatives for more than 20 years, and in recent years, I've seen Chinese people here."

"They are no different from us except for the color of their skin, and they are also conscientiously contributing to this country!"

"So, I propose to repeal this bill!"

By Mr. Hall, he was referring to the few Chinese House members who sat in the third row of Republicans.

Led by Wang Qingfu, they served as one of the representatives of several states, including New Mexico, Oklahoma, and California.

Wang Qingfu and several Chinese lawmakers glanced at each other.

They were also a little embarrassed.

No one had talked to them about the matter beforehand.

Chen Jianqiu privately gave them the goal of repealing the PAI China Act, and they are also working on it.

However, according to their analysis, the time has not yet arrived, so it has not been officially taken out.

Unexpectedly, at today's meeting, Hall took the lead in sponsoring this proposal in the House of Representatives.

Hauer then goes on to elaborate on some of the reasons and legal grounds, but they are discussed below.

Many of the members of the House of Representatives don't have much idea about this matter, especially in the eastern states.

In their eyes, the Chinese are not a problem, because the impact on them is so small.

Very few of them paid attention to it.

But today's words made them realize that the Chinese are really becoming a force to be reckoned with in this country.

Many of them walked to the front desk quietly and sat on an equal footing with them, such as the Chinese parliamentarians around them now, and the famous "national hero" Mr. Chen!

The Chinese are quietly influencing the country!

There was considerable disagreement among the parliamentarians.

Some agree with Hall's words, arguing that the Chinese are also legal citizens of the United States and should be respected;

Others have become wary, instead feeling that the development of the Chinese is beyond their imagination and will shake the foundations of the white race;

However, more people have more complicated emotions.

Some of them are friends with Chen Jianqiu or other Chinese, and feel that these people are actually worthy of respect, but at the same time they realize that if they are completely liberalized, it will bring great risks to the country itself.

After all, few of these people are Christians.

Unlike the military reform bill, no one immediately stood up to refute Hauer.

Because they do not eat the things of the Chinese who are not very accurate.

The resolution to repeal the bill was ultimately not passed.

The final vote was 95 in favour, 108 against and 44 abstentions.

The number of abstentions was staggering.

This result made Hall a little frustrated, but it didn't seem to affect McKinley's mood at all.

Mr. President breathed a sigh of relief and walked out of the House of Representatives.

Since the House of Representatives did not pass, there is no need for him to bother with anything more on the Senate side.

After the meeting, Wang Qingfu immediately returned to the headquarters of the "Chinese Political Participation Alliance" and got in touch with Chen Jianqiu.

On the phone, he told Chen Jianqiu what happened in the House of Representatives today.

"We didn't receive any communication at all about the two motions today, which caught us off guard."

"Alas, this is really a great opportunity! It's a pity it was missed. Wang Qingfu was a little annoyed.

On the other end of the phone, Chen Jianqiu was silent.

It took a long time for his voice to reach the receiver of the phone:

"Did the president participate? How's the reaction? ”

Wang Qingfu was stunned for a moment, and immediately replied:

"I did, but there wasn't much of a reaction."

Chen Jianqiu snorted.

"Keep trying, don't be affected by this incident."

Chen Jianqiu hung up the phone after speaking.

Putting down the telephone, he sat on a chair in his house and looked out the window.

At the moment it is raining lightly outside,

Chen Jianqiu narrowed his eyes and said to himself:

"It's kind of interesting." (End of chapter)