The Tyrant Billionaire

Years ago, Hardy had made an agreement with the Rockefeller family to jointly support the Republican Party in this election. During this time, ABC Television had become Eisenhower’s main propaganda outlet, with his image frequently appearing on television.

Previously, Hardy had supported Johnson’s rise to power, gaining many benefits. But this time, such a situation was impossible. Eisenhower was backed by many interest groups, and he would represent the interests of a much larger group.

Hardy was just one of many supporters.

Even if Eisenhower won, he would not offer Hardy much attention, so Hardy had made a second-tier plan. @@novelbin@@

He communicated with other families and proposed nominating current Senator Nicholson for the vice presidency.

Through years of dealings, Hardy’s influence in these families had grown, and after negotiating the exchange of interests, everyone agreed to the proposal. As a result, Nicholson became a member of Eisenhower’s campaign team and would later become Vice President of the United States.

As for Eisenhower’s opponent, it was Stevenson from the Democratic Party. However, people were generally pessimistic about his chances.

During the Johnson era, the public had believed that the Republican Party should take power, but Johnson had been forced into office.

This time, no such surprise like Dewey’s would happen.

Stevenson was destined to be nothing more than a runner-up.

Apart from Nicholson, Hardy was also preparing to send Michael to Capitol Hill to become a senator, an important step for Michael’s future.

At the same time, Hardy’s assistant Regan had resigned from his position as Vice President of the Actor’s Guild and entered the race for California’s congressional seat.

By the way, MacArthur was also running in the election, and he was one of the candidates. He was full of confidence and spent heavily hiring biographers to write literary works about him. In just two months, three books were published:

"The Great MacArthur."

"The Genius Free Warrior MacArthur."

"The God-Given Hero MacArthur."

As a symbol of "old soldiers never die," MacArthur still had a group of loyal fans who campaigned for him every day.

Unfortunately, Big capital had no interest in him.

In the eyes of many capitalists, he was a madman, a ticking time bomb who could explode at any moment.

Even in business, it was advisable not to deal with unstable people, let alone someone running for president.

People were more inclined toward the steady Eisenhower.

At the White House, Hardy came to meet President Johnson. After dinner with the president and his family, the two took a walk in the garden.

They discussed the upcoming election.

Johnson said, "I also have great confidence in Eisenhower. He is now supported by many and I believe he will be able to effectively coordinate the various factions in the country, which will allow the implementation of policies that will benefit the development of America."

"I have been president for a few years, but I am still constrained by the Republican Party. In these years, very few policies have been implemented." Find your next read on NovelBin.Côm

Hardy shook his head.

"No, compared to others, you’ve done a lot. The Second World War ended on your watch, and you established the post-war global order. These policies made America stronger, and they will influence America for decades, even centuries."

The two then discussed the situation on the Korean Peninsula.

"The Korean Peninsula is still in turmoil."

"In the Far East, the U.S. doesn’t have many strong footholds, but I have a proposal. The Straits Settlements of Penang and Malacca could become military allies of the United States."

The next day, Hardy visited Marshall.

Historically, at this time, Marshall had already resigned as Secretary of Defense due to McCarthy’s attacks. But in this world, McCarthy had been eliminated by Hardy, and Marshall was still Secretary of Defense.

By the way, McCarthy had already died. After struggling for several months in a hospital bed, he passed away. However, by then, no one cared about him. The once-powerful McCarthy, who had influenced millions of Americans, received only a small obituary in the corner of some minor newspapers.

Hardy’s purpose this time was simple: to buy more weapons and equip the Cayman Islands and the Straits Settlements of Penang and Malacca.

Previously, the U.S. had sold him warships and aircraft but had imposed limits on the numbers. Hardy Group had already reached the maximum quota.

This time, Hardy was using the status of the self-governing territories.

Self-governing territories had the right to establish their own military forces. For the U.S., supporting a pro-American force was a good thing.

Hardy approached Johnson and Marshall, using the self-governing territories’ status to contact the U.S. Department of Defense, hoping to gain American government support for his pro-American faction.

To put it simply:

"Send me a batch of weapons, no need for money."

"I’ll align myself politically with you."

Even without this declaration, others wouldn’t place him in another camp. Even if he went to Stalin, that man wouldn’t want him. Hardy wasn’t just a U.S. businessman; he was a capitalist with deep entanglements in the current U.S. government. He held shares in almost all the major weapons manufacturing companies in the U.S., spearheaded the establishment of U.S. military bases in the Middle East and Malaysia, and was the number one supplier to the Allied forces fighting in the Korean War. He also held the position of a British governor.

Since the situation has already been solidified, Hardy decided not to miss the opportunity and planned to gain further support from the U.S. government before the next president took office.

Johnson and Marshall sat together and discussed the situation in Penang, a Hardy-controlled dominion.

"In the East, British influence is rapidly shrinking. We only have Japan and Korea left, and with the war in Korea still ongoing, it’s imperative to support forces in the East that are closer to our interests," Johnson said.

"Japan is unreliable. Useful but we must remain cautious. We can’t let them grow too strong. Korea’s future is unpredictable. Hardy’s territory is a good choice. It controls the vital sea routes in the East and can influence the surrounding countries."

"Penang and Malacca could be turned into a stronghold, a key strategic position to control the East."

Marshall pondered for a few seconds and replied, "I have no doubt about Hardy’s intentions, but I’m concerned that, as his dominion grows in strength, he may develop greater ambitions, such as the Johor incident we saw last time."

---