Chapter 68

"Sorry, we don't need evidence."

Professor Lin once publicly stated during an interview with Xiangjiang Radio that he remains emotionally Chinese, meaning he remains spiritually Chinese—this poses a significant risk.

Moreover, after Professor Lin returned to Huaguo in July last year, Huaguo’s missile technology achieved a leapforward breakthrough.

Combined, these two factors mean appointing him as Special Assistant for Aerospace Affairs would severely impact American security.

This risk alone is sufficient for us to exclude Professor Lin from this position.

Furthermore, I do not believe that, with NASA and the National Space Council already in place, we need yet another so-called Special Assistant for Aerospace Affairs."

After Barry Goldwater finished speaking, the Republican senators in attendance erupted in thunderous applause.

Fortunately, as a Huaguo native who had lived through the post-era information explosion, Lin Ran was no stranger to online debates on Simplified Chinese internet forums—he handled this setting with ease.

Lin Ran thought to himself: I thought you’d dug up Chen Jingrun’s real identity—this is all you’ve got?

Moreover, Thomas, a senior inspector from Xiangjiang Special Branch, has testified on his behalf; Thomas’s report is probably still sitting in MI6 and some IA office right now.

With Thomas’s testimony in hand, even if they uncovered Chen Jingrun’s true identity, Lin Ran wouldn’t be worried.

When it was Lin Ran’s turn to speak, he tapped the microphone in front of him, then said calmly:

"Sorry, but I must say the questioning senators haven’t done enough homework—your reasons, as Director Weber noted, are entirely based on conjecture.

When I was interviewed by Xiangjiang media, I said I still retain the core of classical Huaguo culture. But from its founding, America has inherited vast elements of ancient Roman heritage—in its legal design, political ideals, and even the architecture of Washington.

From Thomas Jefferson to John Adams to Alexander Hamilton, these three early American founding fathers all expressed, to varying degrees, that America is the heir to Rome.

Jefferson wrote in his books: The history of the Roman Republic is our best textbook. He modeled the Virginia State Capitol after Roman architecture.

John Adams cited the Roman historian Polybius in his 'Defense of the American Constitution,' calling Rome’s mixed government the template for American law.

Alexander Hamilton directly used the Roman pseudonym Tully to publish articles, implying America inherits Roman civic responsibility.

Today, many bureaucrats and senators in the White House and Capitol Hill also consider themselves heirs to Rome—yet the true heir to Rome, Romania, is a communist state.

If my cultural identification as Chinese poses a risk, then shouldn’t the risk posed by so many spiritual Romans—from Congress to the White House—be far greater?

If these heirs to Rome aren’t spiritual Romanians, then on what grounds does this senator claim I am a spiritual Chinese?

From America to Europe, there are countless overseas Chinese worldwide; their spiritual and cultural ties to ancient Huaguo cannot be severed—does that make them all spiritual Chinese?

Cultural ties cannot alter actual nationality. Your questioning has no basis whatsoever."

After Lin Ran finished speaking, the applause grew even louder, primarily because his remarks struck a deep chord with the journalists present.

It is well known that America—or indeed most Western nations—operate under common law systems, whose defining feature is precedent: rulings are based on prior judicial decisions.

Lin Ran’s rebuttal cited authoritative sources and even invoked America’s founding fathers; from the perspective of American common law thinking, this naturally carried persuasive power.

More importantly, in previous hearings—like Oppenheimer’s—witnesses either claimed ignorance or said “I don’t know,” and were passively battered throughout.

Veteran Washington reporters had never seen a mathematician quote so extensively and speak so fluently—they might have mistaken him for a seasoned lawyer or veteran politician.

Moreover, in the public’s traditional impression, overseas Chinese are usually mild-mannered; few have ever seen one respond so directly and forcefully, making the contrast even sharper.

This contrast thrilled the reporters, who felt they had witnessed something extraordinary.

"I also need to emphasize: although my appointment as Special Assistant for Aerospace Affairs may not yield major contributions, I can at least prevent many problems at the source.

On December 6, 1957, Vanguard TV-3 failed to launch; the rocket exploded on the pad.

On March 5, 1958, Explorer 2 failed; the third stage did not ignite.

On August 17, 1958, Pioneer 0 failed; an upper-stage malfunction prevented it from reaching escape velocity.

On January 21, 1959, Discoverer 1 failed; a second-stage malfunction kept it from entering orbit.

On April 13, 1959, Discoverer 2 failed; similar second-stage malfunction.

On September 17, 1959, Transit 1A failed; the second stage did not ignite, and it never entered orbit.

Over the past five years, NASA’s record, as portrayed in your news reports, has been one failure after another.

These failures have imposed enormous financial costs and project delays on NASA and America; the Vanguard TV-3 explosion even occurred during live nationwide television broadcast.

This has triggered a public crisis of confidence in NASA and American technological capability.

With my involvement, I can mitigate unnecessary risks in rocket design, testing procedures, quality control, and personnel management.

Make NASA great again."

After Lin Ran’s impassioned statement, the journalists looked bewildered; they whispered among themselves in the audience:

"When was NASA ever great?"

"Wasn’t NASA only founded two years ago? Since then it’s been nothing but jokes—how can that possibly be called great?"

"Did Professor Lin mean NASA?"

The senators exchanged glances; they hadn’t realized until now—when laid out together, NASA’s rocket failures seemed to have no successes at all.

After the heated exchange, Vice President Lin Deng announced the hearing’s conclusion:

"Alright, the hearing is adjourned. The Security Committee will issue our conclusion as soon as possible through closed-door sessions. Thank you to all participants from across society."

"Randolph, don’t worry too much—this hearing is just a formality.

You made one point very well just now: we must make NASA great again!"

After the meeting, James Webb hosted a special dinner for Lin Ran; while others questioned this, he had no doubt at all, because making NASA great again was also his goal.

Whether NASA had ever been great before didn’t matter.

"You must know this hearing was convened by Lin Deng, and the head of the Security Committee is Lin Deng—he won’t make things difficult for you.

But Randolph, do you know what your task as Special Assistant for Aerospace Affairs will be?"