Messed up.
Everything was messed up.
When the president signed the document, he expected China to counterattack, but he didn't expect the China to act so quickly and directly!
Even though it didn't seem to cause any substantial damage to them on the surface, just like the ongoing antitrust investigation and patent case, the fatal thing was that this series of big moves directly hit Wall Street.
Even though this wasn't a substantial loss, it was enough to give them a headache.
Of course, this wasn't the real reason why he wanted to cry.
Instead, it was because the wise president suddenly discovered that China's high-tech companies had infiltrated their industry to such a terrifying degree.
They only had to rub against China for a bit, and two national super projects with more than 10 billion US dollars of investment instantly collapsed on the ground …
This was too horrifying!
Suddenly, the office door was pushed open, and the chief of staff, Kevin, walked in with a serious look on his face.
"I just received a call from the California state government. Local environmental organizations and other non-governmental organizations are organizing a campaign to appeal to the people of California for clean and cheap energy … If China's nuclear core can't be sent to the West Coast by this year, they hope we can think of a solution."
"Think my a * s!"
The president slammed his right fist on the table. This feeling of powerlessness filled his heart with anger.
He took a few deep breaths and finally calmed down. After thinking for a long time, he spoke in a slightly relaxed tone.
"Maybe we should restart the National Ignition Facility … Maybe controllable fusion isn't as difficult as we think."
Restart the National Ignition Facility …
Kevin had a bitter expression on his face.
He believed that the president himself knew how impractical this plan was. Otherwise, he would not have used two words to express uncertainty in one sentence. Not only did this mean that they had to mobilize thousands of scholars to participate in this project, but they also had to pay tens of billions of US dollars for this project. This was equivalent to opening up a third battlefield on top of the original two super projects.
Even the United States couldn't maintain three super projects at the same time. The huge financial pressure would bankrupt the federal government.
Not to mention, even if they restarted the National Ignition Facility …
Kevin: "… What about the SG-1 superconducting material? Without the SG-1 superconducting material, we can't complete the magnets needed to confine the plasma unless we can find a way to further optimize the plasma turbulence control scheme. I consulted the experts at the Academy of Sciences, and this is what they told us. We don't just lack the nuclear core. Without the SG-1 material, we can't do anything. "
President: "A.I. Chip! Restrict the export of chips to the Pacific Ocean! I want to see who can hold on first. "
Kevin held his breath.
"Sir."
The President glared at him.
"What happened?"
Kevin: "… We can do that at any time, but are you sure you want to do this?"
It was hard to tell whether the Chief of Staff's voice was persuasion or confirmation. It was like a basin of cold water splashed on the President, and he immediately calmed down.
"… Let me think about it."
A.I. Chip...
This was indeed a good idea.
China imports more chips every year than oil.
However, there was a price to pay. Not to mention, other than the United States, there were other suppliers for chips.
Even though the European Union could use physical lists to impose a chip embargo on some China companies, they could make them feel pain and stop what they were doing.
But …
Faced with the huge temptation of controllable fusion, were Europe's allies really that reliable?
Right now, Europe was like a rich old man, relying on the pension he saved when he was young to live for a few decades. From time to time, they had to face the extortion of their evil neighbor who controlled the natural gas pipeline. Other than controllable fusion, there was nothing that could help them recover. Even God couldn't do it.
China hadn't issued an official document yet. Once the President pressed this button, the conflict would escalate to a point of no return …
The President placed all of his chips on the table.
Do I really have a 50% chance of winning?
Thinking of this, the president could not help but feel a trace of sadness in his heart.
It wasn't like this a decade ago.
No, even two years ago, when the President was still in office, the situation was much better than it was now.
At least back then, they had enough means to force China to compromise. They also had enough technology to compete with China. Their international influence was large enough to kick those annoying people out of ITER. It wasn't an exaggeration to say that they could do whatever they wanted.
But now, they couldn't even take out a company that wasn't even listed yet …
Kevin looked at the President and went silent for a while. He then reminded him.
"Sir, we've done enough. From a long-term perspective, this is definitely not the right time to suppress China's high-tech companies. Our super project still needs their support. At least until the fusion power station in California is built and the Lunar Gateway can operate stably, we should exercise restraint. We have to admit that our super project is a weakness.
"Not to mention that alternative energy vehicles aren't our core interests. Our demand for alternative energy vehicles isn't as urgent as China's. Tesla's market value is nothing compared to California's economy. So what if we sacrifice Elon Musk?"
Not to mention, you've already moved your job to Shanghai.
Even though it's understandable that you want to earn money from China, for the sake of the workers in North America, you should sacrifice your own interests.
"What about ExxonMobil?" The President crossed his fingers and rested his forehead on his arm as he said, "Wall Street isn't easy to mess with, but neither are these oil giants."
He never cared about Tesla's interests.
The reason why he attacked Star Sky Technology was because this company's name was already on his memo. He had an excuse to use it. Not to mention that the SH standard was the most sensitive issue in the United States.
However, ExxonMobil was different. This giant wasn't just a funder that provided campaign funds, it also directly or indirectly affected a large number of jobs.
Putting it bluntly, if these people were unhappy, ExxonMobil could get back at them with the employment rate.
And the employment rate, more than any other data on paper, could influence the votes …
"They're just taking advantage of the situation. It's great if they can get it, but it doesn't matter if they can't. Also, the CEO of ExxonMobil needs to show his board of directors that he's not useless, the useless one is …"
Kevin noticed that the President was staring at him. He awkwardly gestured with his index finger for a while before he came up with the safest answer. "The useless one is the judge."
The President said, "But if we just give in like this, wouldn't that be too embarrassing?"
"It's easy to find an excuse." Kevin sighed in relief and smiled. He raised his index finger and said, "The investigation launched by the Ministry of Commerce will be revoked by the International Trade Commission. This is not a compromise to the threat of evil, but a correction based on our own laws … How do I put it? Yes, rules! "
"As for the Department of Justice, just tell them to submit an 'incomplete' chain of evidence. Of course, if ExxonMobil knows what's good for them, they'll probably withdraw the lawsuit, which will make things easier for us. "
"Rules …" The President's eyes lit up. He looked at the Chief of Staff and said in a serious manner, "Go contact the ITC."
"This is not a good time to attack China's high-tech companies, we'll do as you say!"
。
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