The United States experienced international terrorism on September 11, 2001.
A few years later...
A curtain is peeled back to reveal a man from behind. We are unable to see his face. He's wearing a suit, standing at a podium before a large crowd. A gun comes through the peeled curtain. The gun fires; the man speaking falls.
Months before this incident...
Friends of Jake discuss politics over dinner. Discussions quickly move from reporting news to commenting to organizing a rebellion to figuring out how to work within the system to change the system.
The discussion turns to recent anti-terrorism/anti-freedom legislation pending. ``It's like George Orwell's book, 1984. What's next?--the Thought Police?''
``Let's draw them out into the open. We'll start a political party which openly and publicly advocates its platform to change the American constitution. This would widen the context for identifying terrorists. Secret military tribunals with secret evidence would be the rule for all citizens, not just foreign nationals in American territories. Then we'll know precisely who to vote out of Congress.''
They form a political party. They draft modifications to the Constitution. Jake, who dabbled in improvisational acting during college, will act as the party's nominee for President of the United States.
They book a small hall at the local convention center and stage their debut. They handle the publicity photos and video coverage and use extensive post production to make it look like they have a large following. They make polished versions and under-cover/documentary style versions of the footage.
Through available resources, they find ways to contact extremist political groups. They contact both conservative and liberal media, openly sending to one and ``leaking'' footage to the other.
They circulate the campaign material to both attract and enrage political action groups from each extreme.
There's drama throughout the campaign.
People are approaching them about moving too quickly. Others want them silenced to prevent the alternate constitution from becoming reality. A television investigative team is close to revealing the act.
There are conspiracies from all sides.
One of the many over-eager fans/volunteers pulls Jake aside. The volunteer subtly suggests killing front-runner as a means to get the minor party more popularity. Jake is in disbelief and unable to speak. The volunteer overtly gives a wink & nudge. Jake is horrified and saying no. The volunteer persists. Jake emphatically declines and storms off. The volunteer nods as if given the go-ahead.
Key followers of their party turn out to be plants from both opposing extremes and the media. Jake mentions the previous incident to his close friends and warns them to stay clear of that troublemaker.
There are attempted assassinations on the inner circle. Jake's best friend gets killed by a car bomb meant for him, the leader.
His girlfriend is kidnapped by someone who claims to know the party is just a political demonstration.
Jake realizes he has only one option. He prepares a long-winded speech, but only a damning sound-bite is retained in the television news.
We return to the opening scene, hear the gun fire and see that it's the leader of the Republican party who was shot. Aides move in to check on him and see that he's still alive.
The Republican candidate gives an impromptu speech from the entrance of the hospital. He starts with a joke, ``If I had known getting shot would have boosted my ratings, I would've asked the out-going President to do it instead of giving me his endorsement.'' The reporters laugh. ``Well, I understand they caught the guy, so we can get on with the business of the campaign. With time to think while I was laid-up, there are some good points we've decided to adopt from that bogus campaign. Terrorism at any level cannot be tolerated, and now I have a personal perspective. I pledge enacting anti-terrorism legislation as part of my platform.''
Jake is home, leisurely packing his suitcase for his much needed vacation. There's a knock at the door. He opens it to find one uniformed police officer and a man in a suit who turns out to be a plain-clothed detective.
We return to the opening scene once more but as video footage. We see that the man speaking is the nominee of the mainstream party. As soon as the gun fires, the video is stopped.
``Their case is flimsy,'' Jake's lawyer says. Half laughing, ``They suspect you because you were absent from all other surveillance at that time.'' That's circumstantial.
``The next item,'' the lawyer plays the second video tape, ``has you talking to an under-cover detective.'' It's the fanatical volunteer suggesting the assassination from a high angle. ``The audio is mediocre and seems to have been sloppily edited.''
He turns off the video, ``None of this will stand up in court, but to be safe, we'll hired one of the top audio engineers to discredit the second piece. And their claim that your public announcement weeks before all this happened, of taking a vacation to New England was a signal to get cohorts to smuggle you out of the country after the assassination lacks evidence.''
Jake is shell shocked but has reason to believe in a light at the end of the tunnel.
Weeks go by.
Jake is watching television. A news report claims the anti-terrorism bill was signed into law by the new Republican President.
Jake mutters to himself in disbelief, ``They'll turn the United States into a police state yet. George Orwell wasn't wrong, just guessed the year would have been earlier.''
He tunes out the television continuing in the background. ``In other news, consumer spending reached an all-time high last month....''
Jake is sitting with his lawyer in a room similar to their first meeting. Both are wearing suits. It's the day of his hearing.
``I'd advise you to plead `no contest.'''
Jake is confused by this sudden change. ``What happened to the evidence being weak?''
``With this judge, let's just say the case will be... prolonged.'' Obviously, he believes it unsafe to speak freely.
Jake's interjections are ignored.
``I'm unable to be your counsel. I've arranged a public defender for you. Good luck.'' He sticks out his hand for Jake, and they shake. ``I'll always remember you.''
With that, the lawyer exits, leaving Jake's questions unanswered.
A weary Jake is standing in a court room with four people together on one side and a single man in a grey-blue suit on the other.
The judge states, ``Since the new anti-terrorism legislation applies, you are sentenced to death.''
A tombstone has Jake's name and the current year.
The epitaph reads: Killed By Irony.