After Simon nodded slightly, the secretary continued, "Additionally, there's a report on campaign funds. It's estimated that each Senate candidate will require about $4 million this year, and the average campaign funds for House candidates will be around $500,000 to $600,000, which is a doubling trend compared to 1992. This is very favorable for us."
Simon had been carefully organizing information about the 1994 midterm elections in his mind.
He recalled that the 1994 midterm elections were notable for the Democratic Party's unprecedented defeat after decades, and most importantly, for highlighting the influence of money in political campaigns.
In California, two Senate candidates, veteran Democrat Dianne Feinstein and energy tycoon Michael Huffington, spent a total of $41 million on their campaigns, which was ten times the average $4 million campaign funds for Senate candidates that year. Even this $4 million was more than double the average campaign funds of less than $2 million for Senate elections in 1992.
Similarly, each House candidate's campaign funds in 1994 were $600,000, also a significant increase.
It was from 1994 onwards that American political elections re-entered an era dominated by money. To secure more campaign funds, legislators from both parties accelerated the push to loosen restrictions on political fundraising.
This trend clearly favored Simon, as he currently had no shortage of money.
Seeing no objections from Simon, the secretary continued, "Additionally, there's another issue. Among the seven Democratic candidates on our sniping list, three are also targets of the National Rifle Association (NRA), and among the sixteen Republican candidates, one is a target of the NRA. Their Democratic opponents also include three similar cases. In simple terms, we have four common targets with the NRA, and three conflicting targets. The NRA's actions are mainly because these individuals voted for the Brady Bill last year."
The Brady Bill was a gun control law with core provisions requiring a waiting period and criminal background checks for gun purchasers.
For decades, there had been efforts in both parties to push similar legislation, but it was only last year that the bill finally passed.
The passage of the Brady Bill and another assault weapons ban to be introduced later this year, which Simon remembered, greatly angered the powerful NRA. The NRA played a significant role in the Democratic Party's defeat in the 1994 midterm elections.
After 1994, the NRA reached its peak political influence, with both the White House and Congress avoiding them, leading to a long period where no politician dared to touch gun control laws. Moreover, when the assault weapons ban expired ten years later, despite public outcry to extend the ban indefinitely, both parties chose to ignore it, resulting in various high-powered assault weapons returning to the market and a subsequent increase in shooting incidents.
Simon's "Sniping Plan" this time was essentially modeled after the NRA's operations.
Although the NRA had over a century of deep-rooted influence, their financial power was still not comparable to the current Westeros system.
Therefore, through this "Sniping Plan," Simon hoped to achieve a deterrent effect similar to the NRA's influence post-1994 midterm elections.
Considering these, Simon then thought of another matter.
Among the politicians already supported by the Westeros system, some might also be on the NRA's target list this year. Regardless, these core members of the Westeros system were even more important than the current "Sniping Plan" and needed to be safeguarded.
Simon looked up, intending to say something to the secretary, but then said, "Get me Joseph on the line."
Larry Ellison had left at the end of the workday on the West Coast, which was 8 PM on the East Coast, but Simon could not be too concerned about the time difference.
The secretary sensed the urgency in Simon's tone, nodded, and turned to make the call.
A few minutes later, Joseph Schlapp's call was connected to Simon's office phone. After exchanging greetings and learning that Joseph was at a senator's dinner party in Washington, a core member of the Westeros system's political "base," Simon mentioned the issue he had just thought of.
Joseph Schlapp had also realized this issue and had intended to discuss it with Simon in the next few days. Since Simon brought it up now, they discussed countermeasures over the phone.
Passing a bill in Congress required more than half the votes from the legislators.
The NRA couldn't possibly target all legislators who voted for the Brady Bill and other gun control laws, focusing instead on specific targets, which left room for maneuvering.
Joseph Schlapp stated that removing most of the Westeros system's "base" from the NRA's target list wouldn't be too difficult, though it would inevitably involve some bargaining and exchanges. Even if unsuccessful, both sides would showcase their capabilities in the campaigns.
Since Joseph still had social engagements, Simon didn't extend the call. They agreed that Joseph would fly to the West Coast on Sunday for a detailed discussion on various matters, and Simon greeted the senator before ending the call.
Simon then continued to browse through the stack of documents in front of him, noting some key points to be handled by the secretary outside, before finally wrapping up work after 6 PM.
Returning to the Dume Point estate, Simon was greeted at the door by Janet, holding a little one and announcing that another child at home could call her "Mom."
Veronica, just back from the East Coast, followed with Melbourne in tow, and Jennifer carrying little Nick, all showing surprise and delight.
Still somewhat puzzled, Simon saw Janet holding a little girl with particularly striking eyes up to him, urging, "Sear, call me Mom."
Seattle, held by Janet, blinked her beautiful blue eyes at Simon, hesitated slightly, then softly called out, "Mom."
Simon: "..."
Janet, oblivious to any issue, was more excited than the child's mother, exclaiming, "See, I knew it, Sear is a genius, better than the vases Simon raised."
Veronica, noticing Simon's frustration, smiled.
The assistant took Nick from the secretary, smiled, and said to Simon, "Sear usually cries very little and is always very quiet. I was worried she might speak late, but she just called out when I tried this afternoon." She looked at her daughter, pointing to Simon, "Sear, this is Daddy. Say Daddy."
For a child just learning to speak, "Daddy" is actually harder to pronounce than "Mom."
However, the little girl, after a brief glance at Simon, softly called out "Daddy," though not perfectly pronounced, it was clear enough for the adults present to recognize it.
Janet, now holding her second son, tried the same approach, "Sweetie, say Mom... or say Dad, come on, if you don't, no dinner for you... really, no dinner."
Unfortunately, the little one just looked at his mother with confusion and soon started crying under her stern "threat."
Melbourne, standing obediently by Veronica, tried to move away, worried that his mother might also refuse him dinner.
Simon handed his coat to the secretary, took the crying Nick from Janet, and gently comforted him, leading the family to the glass curtain wall area while admonishing Janet, "Nick is still little, don't push him."
Janet, following Simon, grumbled, "Sear is little too."
The two babies were born just three days apart, one on November 3rd and the other on November 6th, and neither had reached five months old.
Seattle was indeed unique.
The family noticed this shortly after her birth. The tiny child, who should have been naive and innocent, often curiously observed everything around her with her beautiful eyes and was mostly quiet, once making the assistant worry if she had hearing issues, prompting a check-up.
The baby was perfectly healthy.
The pediatric expert concluded that Seattle would be very smart.
No one expected her to call out for her parents at just over four months old.
As a father of three with a wealth of life experience, Simon knew that most children, even the smarter ones, needed about eight months to start making simple sounds, typically beginning to speak formally after one year.
From his daughter's recent behavior, Simon saw that she not only could call out for her parents but also understood the meaning, as evidenced by her hesitation when Janet encouraged her to call Simon "Mom." This awareness was rare. Most children, even if they learned some simple words before one year old, did so more out of conditioned reflex than conscious thought.
At that moment, Simon even wondered if his daughter might be like him, but quickly dismissed the idea. The world couldn't be so coincidental, and the pure curiosity in her eyes, devoid of adult discernment, confirmed it.
Settling down on the sofa by the curtain wall, the family enjoyed some parent-child time against the backdrop of the fiery sunset.
After failing to get little Nick to speak, Janet again suggested to the assistant about swapping children, jokingly questioning if Seattle was truly her own child due to her intelligence, contrasting with Melbourne and Nick.
Simon privately agreed with Janet. Both sons were healthy, and theoretically should be very smart. Melbourne, in fact, was quite clever, already knowing many words and speaking fluently under Veronica and the assistant's patient guidance. His perceptive behavior around his unpredictable mother was particularly notable.
Unfortunately, compared to his sister, he seemed less remarkable.
The assistant, smiling, argued that she was also intelligent and perhaps had better genetic compatibility, resulting in a little genius.
Oh, the assistant dared to rebel and challenge authority, Simon thought with a smile.
Playfully fighting until Simon intervened, they eventually agreed on spending the weekend together without any work trips, ensuring time with the kids.
As night fell, the secretary reminded them that dinner was ready, and the family headed to the dining room.
After dinner, the assistant stayed instead of going to her adjacent villa. Since an
incident last week, everyone had been staying at the Shell Villa, including Veronica.
With Veronica accompanying the kids, Simon, Janet, and the assistant cuddled on the living room sofa, watching TV and occasionally chatting.
At ten, they checked on the kids before heading to the master bedroom.
Janet didn't mind sharing, often teasing the assistant, who initially found it hard to adjust but quickly became accustomed. Recently, she had even developed a habit similar to Janet's, holding Simon tightly in her sleep, as if he might disappear.
The assassination attempt, though ultimately harmless, left a lasting impact.
Plans for a weekend trip to San Francisco were canceled to spend time with the family, conducting business meetings via video conference with key executives in Silicon Valley.
One major topic was Igret Company's negotiation with the Sulzberger family behind the New York Times Group.
Last month, after Joseph Schlapp conveyed a reconciliation gesture, Simon met with Arthur Sulzberger Jr., head of the Sulzberger family. The meeting was pleasant, but Simon didn't make any promises, letting the New York Times Group's executives negotiate cooperation with Igret Company's team.
Progress was initially smooth, but the London Girl incident and Simon's personal wealth surpassing $200 billion led the New York Times Group's negotiation team to become more demanding.
Simon's response to Bezos was to stand firm, even becoming more stringent.
Having acquired the Boston Globe Company last year, the New York Times Group currently owned 32 newspapers, 39 magazines, five local TV stations, two radio stations, and other media subsidiaries across North America, even holding a 33% stake in The Hollywood Reporter.
In the pre-internet era, such a media empire was formidable, but things had changed.
Igret Company, although not publicly identified as a media company, held influence comparable to traditional media giants.
Even combining all 32 newspapers' users, the scale couldn't match Igret Portal, which dominated the internet access of 85 million North American users.
In the first quarter of 1994 alone, the U.S. internet user base grew by another 10 million from the end of 1993, with predictions of exceeding 100 million by the end of 1994.
In contrast, the New York Times Group's 32 newspapers had a combined subscription base of only 9 million, with most regional papers having only tens of thousands of subscribers, apart from major players like The New York Times and The Boston Globe with over a million subscribers each.
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