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American Tax Officer-Chapter 755 - 378: White-Hot Phase_2
Chapter 755: Chapter 378: White-Hot Phase_2
Now, only 35 votes remained in the entire House.
Even if all 35 were added to their side, they would barely have 237 votes.
That is to say, they had lost at least two overt votes.
“The remaining 35 votes are all critical now, let’s hope for a good outcome!…”
Obadiah said this in a grave voice.
...
Those present, including David, held their breath and clenched their fists.
“Here they come!”
Following a prompt from a senior official, everyone cast aside their thoughts and turned to look at the big screen.
Live from Congress.
At this moment, all spotlights were on a suit-clad, bearded man.
He was a core congressman of the Kennedy Family in the House, named Snow Maxwell.
Snow Maxwell did not hesitate at all; he immediately pressed the “yea” button in front of him to cast his vote in favor.
Right then, the number of votes in favor of the bill in the House reached 203, only 15 shy of the threshold needed for passage!
Next, the spotlight moved to a middle-aged man with white hair.
His name was Bluel Dewitt, the Majority Leader of the House, and the second-highest-ranked person after Speaker Nancy!
As expected, he cast a “nay” vote.
Moreover, under his leadership as Majority Leader, nine consecutive “nay” votes were cast by his followers.
Now, the number of votes opposing the bill had suddenly surpassed those in favor, reaching 207.
Only 11 more votes were needed to defeat the measure.
At this point, the hearts of everyone in America were suspended to the utmost degree.
“Oh my God, oh my God, my heart can’t take this. I can’t watch anymore. Please let me know the outcome!”
“Currently, it’s 207 against and 203 in favor. It’s still a deadlock, but sadly it seems the Internal Revenue Service is falling behind!”
“No way, the IRS has to win this bill…”
All the citizens following the proceedings had rapid breathing and accelerated heartbeats, with some even too anxious to continue watching.
However, it wasn’t just them feeling the tension; the Big Three Groups, numerous capitalists, and those at the IRS were equally restless.
But there was some consolation for those at the IRS.
According to the voting order, it was Josh’s turn next!
Josh was not just one of their own, more importantly, he held the title of House Whip.
As long as he voted, his followers would certainly follow suit, and the “yea” vote tally for the bill should instantly catch up!
Under the gaze of all, Josh pressed the voting button.
Without any surprises, in order to fulfill his agreement with David and ascend to the Speaker’s throne, he had fought hard and cast his vote in favor without a moment’s hesitation.
Following his lead, his multitude of followers also pressed their buttons in agreement.
The original count of 203 votes in favor surged by eight, reaching 211. Now, only the last seven votes were needed to pass the bill!
And the remaining uncast votes in the House were down to just 17!
Whether it would be human or ghost, these 17 would decide!
But regardless.
The pressure once again fell on Nancy and the Big Three Groups.
Because for them, what was unsettling was that among the next 17 to vote were many swing voters.
Although the Groups had lobbied them repeatedly before and promised many benefits, many of these voters had not given a definite answer, having only replied that they would consider it.
So, at this juncture, they did not know how these swing voters had deliberated, whether they would ultimately stand with them and cast the crucial vote.
“Fake Yau!”
“These damn bastards!”
“Shet!”
As thoughts raced, the vote count continued to be displayed on the big screen; three more congressmen had cast three votes in favor, which immediately incited a barrage of curses from The Big Three Groups.
But regardless, the legislation was just four votes shy of passing in the House of Congress.
At this moment, Nancy clearly couldn’t sit still. If this bill passed under her watch, she would definitely face dire consequences.
So, before the next congressman even started to vote, her fierce glare had already swept over.
That look seemed to say, “If you dare to vote in favor, I swear I will make you regret it!”
“Who is Nancy glaring at? Is she trying to threaten someone?”
“Definitely, with that look in her eyes, she doesn’t want the bill to pass.”
“There have been rumors these past few days, claiming that Nancy is an opponent of the bill, and now it turns out to be true!”
“The Speaker of the House, daring to threaten members of the chamber right at the critical moment of voting and in front of the whole country, is simply lawless!”
And everyone could see Nancy’s threatening glare; how could they not?
Many supporters of the IRS had started incessantly hurling insults at Nancy, accusing her of openly oppressing congressmen in the House.
“Heh, Nancy seems to be really unsettled.”
“We’re just four votes away from passing the bill; she’d be a ghost to remain calm now.”
“Heh, let her struggle, we’re just four votes away!”
Although the senior IRS officials didn’t openly curse her out, they kept on mocking Nancy for her shameless behavior.
But like it or not, as someone who had shaken the American political scene for so many years, Nancy’s intimidating look did have an effect.
At least the congressman in question hesitated after jolting and ended up casting a vote against.
With that, the votes against reached 208, leaving the bill just 10 votes short of failure.
At that moment, the spotlight fell on an African American woman.
Her name was Amy Ingrid, the current Minority Leader of the House of Congress.
However, even though she hadn’t voted yet, many in America believed it would likely be a vote against!
Because after the bill was proposed, this Minority Leader had made some statements through the media and social platforms, clearly expressing her opposition to the bill.
Worse still, it was well-known that for many years, her campaign funds had always been provided by giants in Silicon Valley.
Hence, it seemed quite reasonable for her to cast a vote against.
In fact, even people from The Big Three Groups thought the same since the Minority Leader had repeatedly assured them she would do everything in her power to prevent the bill from passing!
However, just as they thought Amy would resolutely vote against, the following scene left everyone dumbfounded.
[Congresswoman Amy: In favor!]
The moment these words appeared on the electronic screen, the atmosphere at the site became instantly silent. Countless people were shocked by the scene.
“Oh my God, what’s going on? Wasn’t this Minority Leader always against the bill? How come she’s in favor of its passage now?”
“This is just absurd. When the Offshore Tax Avoidance Act was introduced, she was one of the strongest opponents. Now she’s voting in favor at the polling stage? What does this mean?”
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“I don’t know, but something unknown must have happened behind the scenes, or else Congresswoman Amy would never do this!”
As this result came out, the American public was stunned for quite a while; when they came back to their senses, they began to speculate and discuss with confusion.
“What… what’s going on?”
“What’s the situation? Did Amy press the wrong button?”
“Pressing the wrong button is impossible. If it were a mistake, she could now report it to Nancy face-to-face and then revote. But do you see her intending to make a declaration?”
And on the IRS side, the higher-ups were also surprised.
It would have been one thing if it were just an ordinary congressman, but this was the House Minority Leader, considered one of the key figures in the House of Congress.
Moreover, it was well-known that she was a direct-line congressman from the Freemasons; how could she suddenly switch sides like this?