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have hit a few snags along the way, I do believe that by and large our foreign policy, specifically our aid packages, hold up well under intense examination.”
    “And what about our supposed allies?” Bloodgood asked, his droopy eyelids never moving.
    “What about them, Mr. Bloodgood?”
    “Do you believe that our allies have taken advantage of their favored statuses and have, at times, turned right around and thrown our goodwill back in our face?”
    Wheatley chuckled. “Yes, as I mentioned before, I have witnessed such inconveniences in my time overseas.”
    “And what did you do to stop those transgressions, Ambassador?”
    Wheatley’s face reddened for the briefest moment. Wick noticed it immediately and hoped the moron behind the camera had caught it too because the ambassador’s outward congeniality quickly returned.
    “As with any discrepancy I or my staff reported them through the proper channels.”
    “And do you believe that reporting those discrepancies helped improve the system as a whole?” Bloodgood asked. Nothing but the man’s mouth and jowls moved.
    “I am sure they did,” Wheatley replied, returning to Wick.
    “But how do you know?” Bloodgood pressed. “Can you give us one example of how the system righted itself?”
    Wick saw another crack in Wheatley’s demeanor. The Ambassador was staring at him like he needed to moderate the conversation. Wick obliged.
    “I’m sorry, Mr. Bloodgood, our time is limited. Let’s move on to the next question. This time we’ll begin with you.”
    Bloodgood nodded. He looked almost bored.
    “Mr. Bloodgood, how do you think the president should respond to the accusations leveled by fellow world leaders following his U.N. address?”
    “I think he should stand his ground.”
    “Would you like to elaborate?”
    Bloodgood leaned forward.
    “I think the president’s correct. If the American people knew the extent to which we’ve been seduced and abused by our allies, I am sure there would be quite the outcry for accountability. It is the taxpayers' dollars being abused. We give away trillions without a good system for tracking its usage. Sure, we say there are checks and balances, but in reality, sometimes we’re just going on blind faith.”
    “Should we not have faith in our allies, Mr. Bloodgood?” Ambassador Wheatley interjected. “We are all human after all, and no system is perfect.” He chuckled but Bloodgood did not return the laugh.
    Instead he said, “ We are human , Mr. Wheatley, and a government-run system is far from perfect.” Wick saw Wheatley bristle but his face was turned from the live camera. “That is why we need a periodic reevaluation like the one the president has proposed.”
    Somehow Wheatley held back a snort. “So, you’re saying that we should throw away decades, and in some cases centuries, of diplomacy just so that you can feel better about the system itself?”
    “Not for me, Ambassador, but for the American people.”
    “Excuse me?”
    “Like the president, I believe that the American people have to feel better about where their hard-earned dollars are being spent.”
    “Well, of course they do, but the time…”
    “The time it takes is irrelevant. You said it yourself, the abuses are real. They will always be real. What President Zimmer has said is that if you intend to be our ally and receive the enormous benefits of an alliance with the U.S., you’d better do your best to make sure you and your citizenry are doing what you’re supposed to be doing. I don’t see why that’s so difficult to comprehend. It is not an unfair requisite either.”
    This time Wheatley did laugh. “Mr. Bloodgood, I don’t think you fully understand the implications of such an undertaking.” Even Wick thought the ambassador sounded like a snob with that comment and he was on Wheatley’s side. It was time to step in.
    “Well, gentlemen, it seems that we have much more to discuss after we take a quick commercial break.”