Back in the conference room at the Steel Worker Community Center, Leo told Margaret and Frank what Wexler had proposed.
The moment he heard it, Frank slammed his fist on the table.
"I knew those bastards were up to no good!" he fumed, pacing back and forth. "They think they can pay us to go away? In their dreams! I'm calling up the Union brothers tomorrow. We're going to block the doors to City Hall, and we'll see who dares to tear down our homes!"
Sarah, on the other hand, calmly opened her laptop.
"I did some digging on Allen Wexler's background," she said. "He's one of the best commercial lawyers in Pittsburgh, specializing in land dispute cases involving the government. He's never lost a case in his entire career. He's an expert at using legal proceedings to wear his opponents down."
Margaret said nothing, her eyes fixed on Leo, waiting for his decision.
A wave of exhaustion washed over Leo.
The confrontation with Wexler had been more mentally taxing than a full day of research in the library.
He felt like an amateur boxer having rings run around him by a professional.
Roosevelt's voice echoed in his mind, calm and powerful.
"You've made the same mistake again, kid."
"You tried to defeat him at the negotiating table with morality and reason. But you must remember, the essence of negotiation isn't victory, but guidance."
"A negotiation isn't a duel to the death. It's about making your opponent clearly understand that accepting your terms will result in far less damage to him than continuing to fight. It's a choice based on reason."
"The essence of politics is the art of compromise. The key is who does the compromising, and who reaps the benefits."
Leo was confused.
"Compromise? Does that mean we have to accept his proposal?"
"Of course not," Roosevelt said. "Compromise doesn't equal surrender. A smart compromise uses the smallest cost to secure the most important victory. Now, let me give you a real lesson in political negotiation."
"First: Reframe the narrative. Never let your opponent feel like he's losing to you. You have to give him an out, a way to save face. Make him feel that accepting your terms is the smarter choice—for him, for his client, and even for his somewhat unreliable ally, Mayor Carter Wright."
"We won't frame this negotiation as a victory for us. We'll frame it as a collaborative effort to solve a problem."
"Second: Create and leverage your bargaining chips. Your greatest ace in the hole right now isn't the minutes from that luncheon. That's just a last-resort deterrent. Your greatest asset is uncertainty."
"What Wexler fears most isn't a reasonable student like you. It's the angry mob he can't control, and the Frank outside who looks ready to slash his tires at any moment. You need to learn to use the 'Franks' of the world. Make him believe you're the only rational person who can control the situation. Only then will he be willing to negotiate with you, and you alone."
"Third: Identify your non-negotiables and your bargaining chips. Before any negotiation, you must draw a clear line in your mind between what is a core interest you absolutely cannot concede, and what you can put on the table to trade."
"You must be clear: keeping the Steel Worker Community Center at its current location is our non-negotiable. There is zero room for discussion on that point. Then, you must proactively create things you can trade away. This allows the other side to gain something from the negotiation, satisfying his professional vanity as an expert negotiator."
Roosevelt's three points were a revelation for Leo.
He finally understood just how fundamentally flawed his previous approach had been.
He had been focused on how to "defeat" Wexler, whereas Roosevelt was focused on how to "use" him to achieve their goals.
Under Roosevelt's guidance, Leo began to draw up an entirely new negotiation strategy.
First, he went to Frank.
"Frank, I need you to do me a favor," Leo said.
"What kind of favor? Are we going to trash that lawyer's office?" Frank asked, cracking his knuckles eagerly.
"No," Leo said with a smile. "I need you to stay angry. In fact, I need you to be even angrier."
"What do you mean?"
"I need you to get the Union brothers together. Starting tomorrow, I want you to hold peaceful protests every day in front of the Peak Development Group's headquarters. Don't block the doors, don't start any fights, but make sure their employees see your signs and hear your chants every time they come and go from work."
Frank immediately understood what Leo was getting at.
"So you want me to play the bad cop, and you'll be the good cop?"
"Exactly," Leo said. "Wexler needs to believe that public anger is about to boil over, and that I'm the only person who can keep the beast on a leash."
Next, Leo went to see Sarah.
"Sarah, I need your help drawing up a document."
"What kind of document?"
"A proposal for the future development of the Steel Worker Community Center," Leo said. "I want Wexler to see that we're not just a bunch of old-timers who only know how to protest. I want him to see that we have our own vision for the community's future."
For the next two days, Leo and Sarah holed up in the office, working on the proposal.
At Roosevelt's direction, Leo deliberately padded the proposal with several "upgrades and renovations" that sounded wonderful but were, in reality, enormously expensive and non-essential.
For example, he proposed converting the center's roof into a modern rooftop garden.
He also planned to add a historical experience room equipped with virtual reality technology, allowing children to immersively experience Pittsburgh's steel industry history.
He even included a plan to hire a renowned architect for an artistic renovation of the building's facade.
Each of these projects would cost several hundred thousand US Dollars.
"What are you doing?" Sarah asked, completely bewildered as she looked at the increasingly outlandish budget. "We don't have the money for any of this."
"I know," Leo said. "These are the things I'm going to trade to Wexler."
"At the negotiating table, we're going to proactively give up things we never had in the first place, all to get what we really want."
The preparations were complete.
Leo picked up the phone and dialed the number for Wexler's assistant.
"Please give Mr. Wexler a message," Leo said into the receiver.
"Tensions in the community are about to boil over. I think it's imperative we have a second meeting."
"This time, I hope to bring a solution that benefits both parties, one I can use to persuade the angry old-timers."