Chapters 2-3 Summary

Nick is having dinner at Bert's with the "MOD Squad." The MOD Squad (MOD stands for Merchants of Death) consists of Nick, Bobby Jay Bliss (Chief Spokesman for SAFETY, a firearms lobby) and Polly Bailey (Chief Spokeswoman for the Moderation Council, an alcoholic beverage lobby). Weekly, they meet up at Bert's to eat and commiserate.

Bobby Jay is the son of the sheriff of a small Louisiana town. After the Kent State shootings, he joined the military and served two tours in Vietnam, where he lost most of one arm. Upon returning home, be became born again and was hired on as a spokesman for SAFETY. Polly Bailey came to Washington to work with a congressman on the House Agricultural Committee. After deftly maneuvering for better appropriations, she was passed over for a promotion and immediately accepted a job with the...