quite possibly a cat wrote:First she needs to find out he's in Manty custody. The Manties might be able to keep that secret.
Once that happens turning it against the Manties is simple. She'll discover evidence that DH was involved in various terrorist attacks that killed a whole lot of civilians. She'll interview some people who lost family members who just really want to see this horrible mass murderer brought to justice. She'll give glowing coverage about how the Manties caught the man behind these horrific attacks and ask the Manties when he'll face trial for his horrible, horrible crimes.
O'Hanrahan at no point distorts the facts. She actually gives the Manties good coverage on this! Theoretically another reporter could do it too, but O'Hanrahan has some good "sources".
The Manties can dodge or delay, but they ultimately have a few options:
1) They say he won't face trial. The people who lost family are unbelievably angry. She, or any other reporter looking for an easy scoop, can get as much footage as she wants from grieving widows, grieving parents who lost kids, etc. who are absolutely furious. Kornati demands he be handed over to their local court system for trial and execution. O'Hanrahan can leave it to the opposition parties and other newsies to do the spin.
2) They set a trial date for his various horrific crimes. Evidence is overwhelming and all signs point to him being executed. O'Hanrahan gives Manticore some good coverage, which just goes to show she's in no way biased against Manticore!
How do you think the Treecats will respond to that? I'm guessing the murder of everyone willing to prosecute or testify against DH.
3) Split the difference and give him a deal for life in prison. This might work! But it could also just anger grieving families who want him dead, AND Treecats who don't want a fellow Treecat essentially imprisoned, or cut off from his companion.
Indeed, how so? If her goal is to blacken the Manties how does she spin the facts?
Fact 1) He's a Sollie Gendarme who was on Monica, in uniform with his superior officer reporting to Aldona Anisomovna and Isabela Bardesano. Mesan Executives who have a proven history of working with the Sector Governor in attempts to destabilize the Talbott Constitutional Convention and plebiscite. This is verified by the testimony of President Roberto Tyler of the Republic of Monica. Something he admits himself under oath. Following the orders of his Solarian Superiors.
result Damn corrupt Frontier Security pricks at it again. No bad press for Manticore. As for him he was under orders.
Fact 2) He has testified that he was recruited by Bardesano after someone assassinated his superior and tried to assassinate him. He then went about attempting to destabilize a number of Sollie shell and protectorate systems while blaming Manticore. He was in fact captured doing this very thing.
result Someone on Mesa was trying to destabilize the verge and shell and blaming it on Manticore. Sleazy slaver bastards are up to something. Maybe there is something to what this new Grand Alliance has been saying all along.
Is this going to happen across the board? Not a chance. It will however weaken her attempts to frame Manticore for "atrocities." Especially when he testifies that he can confirm Isabela Bardesano died in the underground explosion of her super secret research center in the Green Pines attack. The simple fact that that facility existed and he had been there will again deal a blow to the alignment's plans.
Recall that the Alignment's plan was to have the League reconstitute itself around the Factor and she is supposed to be blackening Manticore and shattering the League so that can happen. If she sticks herself too far out there she will end up discrediting herself. Like I said, she's not going to go too far in attacking him. Remember, he knows about how fast their couriers travel and can testify to that as well. IE) I boarded ship at Loomis on such and such date and arrived in Swallow on such and such date. Wow, that's much faster than anything we have or anyone else has. Another breadcrumb is dropped.
Rather than getting as large a chunk of the League as the Alignment expects its going to end up with a lot more fragments than they ever expected. On top of that the Grand Alliance's reputation isn't going to be as badly blackened as they want. I'm thinking that Beowulf is going to gain several systems as the league falls apart. Especially if there is any reason to suspect that whatever atrocity the Alignment has planned for them leaks or is even partially deflected.
It won't be as good as Manticore and the GA hopes but it will not be as bad as the Alignment hopes either. Lets not forget that when Maya stomps on the rebellions in their part of the verge and then recruits them into their new polity Mesa ends up with a giant Alliance much bigger than they ever expected.