And its terms would be reasonable.
The act of secession would recognize that there were federal properties within the state for which there would need to be reimbursement, most prominent of which were the massive federal land-holdings. Some citizens of Utah might not want to be a part of the new nation, so allowances for them to leave would be made, perhaps even compensation offered for any personal or property losses they would suffer. The same would be true of corporations and businesses, though the new nation of Deseret would offer an environment far more friendly to them than did the United States. Some arrangement for repaying Utah’s portion of the national debt—up to the date of secession—would also be detailed, but that would be countered by a credit for Utah’s portion of the remaining federal assets spread across the other forty-nine states. His team had studied this ratio and discovered that assets outweighed debt and Utah might actually be entitled to a claim on assets, which would be waived, of course, provided the federal government relinquished its claim on all assets in Utah. To solidify it all, the referendum would pronounce in no uncertain terms what a majority of the people in the state of Utah wanted.
Secession.
Would it all go so smoothly? He doubted that, but Saints had always been good at planning, administering, and improvising.
They’d get the job done.
“Of course,” one congressman said, “Washington will just ignore the resolution and the vote. You know that. And that’s when we turn up the heat.”
This would definitely be a fight of political wills. They’d quietly polled Utah and discovered that nearly 70 percent favored secession, a percentage that had remained unchanged over the past five years. That information had been used to quietly secure legislative support, which had been surprisingly easy to lock down.
People were ready to go it on their own.
But there was still the reality that the United States of America would not go away without a fight.
“We have a plan ready. Utah will immediately default on all federal obligations,” one of his colleagues said. “The enforcement of all federal laws and regulations will be suspended. Federal officials will be asked to leave. Nothing Washington says will be respected. We’ll take a hands-off approach. After the vote on secession by the people, all of us will walk away from Congress, no longer members. I imagine even our wayward, gentile Senate brother will join us, once he sees the support back home.”
He smiled at the thought of that. He and his fellow senator had spoken little during the past six years. “It’s a bold move. But necessary. While all of this is playing out, I’ll pressure the church to reassure everyone.”
“Washington wouldn’t dare send troops,” another of the congressmen said. “They can’t risk somebody getting hurt. That would be an international PR disaster.”
And history would work in their favor.
Over the course of a few weeks in 1989, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hungary, and Poland all seceded from their communist regimes with little to no violence. The Soviet Union never invaded, nor pressed the point militarily. It simply let them go. Only in Romania, where both sides had wanted a fight, had bloodshed occurred. The United States could ill afford to conduct itself differently. Invading Utah made no sense.
“No,” he said. “They’ll turn to the courts.”
Which was precisely where he wanted them.
The United States of America would file suit against what it would still label the state of Utah, seeking declaratory and injunctive relief to prevent the state from enforcing any portion of its secessionist legislation. The argument would be that, under Texas v. White, the state of Utah had no constitutional right to secede. Since a state was a party to that suit, under Article III of the Constitution, the Supreme Court possessed original jurisdiction. That meant the matter would be heard in a matter of weeks, if not days considering the implications. The last thing the federal government would want is time for more secessionist sentiment to spread.
But it would.
Texas, Hawaii, Alaska, Vermont, and Montana would quickly follow Utah’s lead. This movement would be national.
And he’d add the final ingredient.
Startling new evidence.
Enough to win both the legal and the PR battle.
Words from the founders themselves.
“The lawyers are ready,” he said. “I just met with them yesterday. And I’m closing in on the final piece. It’s merely a matter of hours or days.”
What encouraged him was the package that had arrived just before he left his Georgetown residence. A copy of notes, written by James Madison, hidden away at Montpelier, found last night by Stephanie Nelle, every word of which confirmed what he knew to be true.
Secession was legal.
One sentence in particular drove the point home.
The document would be given to Gen. Washington to hold and utilize as he deemed appropriate. The desire being that its existence need not be revealed unless necessary to secure the ratification of a State, or to later sanction the withdrawal of a State from the association.
How much clearer could it be?
Nelle had promised the originals when she had written assurance that Rowan’s interest in her department had ended. He needed those, but he needed the actual document the founders signed that Saturday in September 1787 even more. Thankfully, the answer as to its location lay with the church, not the government.
He stared again at the magnificent temple, the first one built by Saints on the eastern seaboard. The first, after the Salt Lake temple, to feature six spires. The tallest worldwide. One of five that featured the angel Moroni holding the golden plates. Its seven floors represented the six days of creation and the day of rest, and beautiful stained glass ran the height of the towers, reds and oranges yielding to blues and violets, all representing the unbroken progress toward the divine. So appropriate, with what was about to happen.
“We will change our world,” he said.
The other men seemed pleased.
“We will accomplish what Joseph Smith and Brigham Young, and every other pioneer failed to do.”
He paused.
“We shall finally be independent.”
FIFTY-ONE
OVER THE ATLANTIC OCEAN
SALAZAR SETTLED INTO THE LEATHER SEAT AND BEGAN TO enjoy the in-flight meal provided by the catering service. A combination of lamb and vegetables, which Cassiopeia had reheated, serving them both in the spacious main cabin. Of all his possessions, the Learjet was his favorite. He spent a lot of time moving from one place to another, so it was important he travel in comfort.
“I promised you an explanation,” he said.
She smiled. “You did.”
His two associates sat aft, near the galley and restroom, eating their own lunch. He kept his voice low, though the roar of the engines helped with privacy.
“It’s hard to know where to start. But the best way to summarize is that we intend to finish the establishment of Zion. What Joseph Smith and BrighamYoung began, we will complete.”
“The church is a vital organization,” she said. “A worldwide entity. Seems that mission is complete.”
“Not in the way they truly envisioned. We’ve always been required to conform—to be like everyone else. We migrated to the Salt Lake valley so we could live by the prophets, following the Book of Mormon, a true Zion on earth. But that never happened.”
“To accomplish that would mean having your own country.”
He smiled. “And that’s precisely what we intend to create. The nation of Deseret, headquartered in Salt Lake, encompassing the boundaries of the former American state of Utah, and other land that may want to join us.”
He could see she was intrigued. He remembered when he first heard Elder Rowan’s plan. His heart had been filled with joy tempered with confusion. But all doubts had been erase
d when Rowan described how the White Horse Prophecy would finally come to fulfillment.
“Remember what I read to you from Rushton’s journal? The White Horse Prophecy makes clear that Saints hold the key to the Constitution. In 1854 Brigham Young made a speech at the Salt Lake Tabernacle. He said, Will the Constitution be destroyed? No. It will be held inviolate by this people and, as Joseph Smith said, ‘The time will come when the destiny of the nation will hang upon a single thread. At that critical juncture, this people will step forth and save it from the threatened destruction.’ It will be so. Prophet Brigham said that fourteen years after the White Horse Prophecy was revealed and seven years before the Civil War. His words became truth during the Civil War, as Saints did save the nation from destruction.”
She listened as he explained about a bargain made between Brigham Young and Abraham Lincoln, one that was sealed by Lincoln when he provided a document, signed by the Founding Fathers, that said individual states possessed the right to leave the Union.
“Prophet Brigham never revealed that document to the South,” he said. “Instead, he hid it away and allowed the Union to survive. The American Civil War was fought over whether a state could secede. What would have happened if those wayward states knew that the founders of their nation sanctioned their act? I would say that the Constitution truly did hang by a thread. But the church, as the White Horse, allowed the United States to survive.”
“Amazing,” she said. “Considering how the federal government had treated them.”
“Which only demonstrates our commitment to the Constitution.”
“And that doesn’t exist anymore?”
“Of course it does. But the White Horse Prophecy makes clear that we should stand by the Constitution of the United States as it was given by the inspiration of God. That means the document, in its entirety, as intended by its drafters. The world has changed, Cassiopeia. The American government has changed. From all I’ve seen and read, there are many in the United States who would love to be rid of their federal government. We are just one group, but the time has come for the church to go a separate way. Elder Rowan will lead the secession of Utah. Those states you noticed on the map in my study? They will follow our lead.”