Three days later, Trump gave Martin an affirmative response.
But he indicated that the House and Senate were up to Martin to handle himself.
Martin assured him it was no issue.
Then Trump expressed his hope that Martin could use his influence in the media to address the recent barrage of criticisms against him.
Martin agreed once more.
The reason he'd been sitting back, watching the mainstream media tear into Trump, was precisely so he could use it as a bargaining chip one day.
Lately, North American mainstream media had shifted to a new angle in their attacks on Trump.
The New York Times struck first.
In its report, the New York Times noted: "In an annual survey of global non-military influence by a research institute, France has surpassed the United States and the United Kingdom to become the world's leading nation in soft power."
"The UK topped the list two years ago, and last year the US replaced the UK at the top. Unfortunately, with Trump's election in our country, Brexit in the UK, and Macron's election in France, global attitudes seem to have shifted."
"In the early 1990s, Harvard professor Joseph Nye first coined the term 'soft power.' It refers to, in international relations, a country's inherent third dimension of strength beyond economics and military—primarily its influence in culture, values, ideology, and public opinion."
"The 'Soft Power 30' report is jointly released by Portland Communications and the University of Southern California."
"Since 2015, the rankings have combined objective data from 25 countries to measure a nation's soft power, and this is the third release."
"The ranking covers government, culture, cuisine (including the number of Michelin-starred restaurants), foreign policy, street violence, sports, digitalization, innovative economic perception, and appeal to tourists and international students."
"This year's top five soft power nations are France, the UK, the US, Germany, and Canada. Japan and Switzerland have risen to 6th and 7th, respectively."
"Regarding this year's results, Harvard professor Joseph Nye stated: Under normal circumstances, soft power is relatively stable, but this year's Soft Power 30 results are unusual, reflecting a rebalancing of global influence: Europe has regained confidence, Asia's soft power is rising. Meanwhile, U.S. President Trump's promotion of the 'America First' policy is further damaging America's soft power."
The report pointed out: "France's rise from 5th last year to 1st this year is partly due to Macron's influence, but the results also stem from France's extensive diplomatic network; analysis shows France excels as a member of multilateral institutions and international organizations."
The report added: "Undoubtedly, France's soft power has increased due to the defeat of the far-right National Front in the French election and the election of the youngest president, Macron. As a reformer in Europe, this president has been welcomed both domestically and internationally."
As soon as this report came out, it was republished by a slew of North American mainstream media outlets.
Commentators began weighing in on the matter.
Most agreed that the main reason for the US's drop in soft power was Trump: "The Trump administration's relentless push for 'America First' has isolated the US."
Hillary couldn't hold back and directly chimed in: "I believe Trump's rise could threaten America's soft power, especially his populist rhetoric that devalues international alliances. The voting for the US occurred before Trump announced withdrawal from the Paris Climate Agreement, meaning that decision could further diminish America's reputation."
In this ranking, the bottom five were Russia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Brazil, and Turkey.
These reports greatly irritated Trump.
Martin promised to handle it for him.
Soon, Martin demonstrated his clout in the media.
Almost overnight, all the criticisms aimed at Trump vanished.
Washington, the White House.
In Trump's office, his chief of staff spoke gravely to his boss: "Mr. President, we absolutely must reassess the value of our ally Martin Meyers. His influence and connections clearly exceed our previous estimates—and by a wide margin."
Clinton Villa.
Bill Clinton looked equally serious, with stacks of newspapers on the desk before him.
On the sofa, Hillary was on the phone.
After a dozen minutes, Hillary hung up, her face solemn: "I called the heads of the New York Times, Washington Post, Chicago Sun-Times, and the major TV networks. They said they won't report any negative news on Trump for a month because a heavyweight figure made the call."
"A heavyweight? Martin Meyers?" Clinton frowned. "Does that kid really have that much pull?"
"Looks like we've underestimated him a bit," Hillary said, somewhat frustrated.
In fact, during Obama's presidency, the Black president had suggested introducing Martin to Hillary several times, but back then, with the Rockefeller-backed Texas oil consortium behind her, Hillary's relationship with Martin wasn't great, so she refused.
It wasn't until the election approached that she tried to curry favor with Martin, but it was too late.
...
Looking back now, this young man's power truly could sway the outcome of a U.S. presidential election. If only back then...
Hillary secretly regretted it.
Clinton added: "In that light, Martin did hold back during the election. He could make these media outlets shut up now, so he obviously could have done it during the campaign, but he didn't."
Hillary said irritably: "Are we supposed to thank him?"
Clinton replied: "Why not? This is the perfect opportunity to build ties with this young man. Such immense power—isn't that exactly the kind of ally our Clinton family needs?"
"What about the Texas oil side?" Hillary still hesitated.
"I'll handle it. After all, it was just normal business competition before. Martin already has several children; the Meyers family conglomerate is taking shape. I can foresee it becoming a colossal beast."
Freed from media harassment, Trump could finally focus on the "Russia collusion" investigation within the government.
First, he appointed former federal prosecutor Ty Cobb as White House special counsel, specifically to oversee legal and media responses related to the "Russia collusion" probe.
This Cobb was a partner in the investigations practice at Washington law firm Hogan Lovells, a seasoned attorney who graduated from Harvard and earned his law degree from Georgetown University.
Then, he personally stepped up to defend his son, Don Jr., against inquiries from the investigative team.