Madam Secretary (2014–…): Season 1, Episode 3 - The Operative - full transcript
Elizabeth is confronted by a hostile reporter who threatens to publish confidential documents that were leaked from inside the State Department. Meanwhile, Henry is dragged into an ...
I've already been down this street.
Keep walking.
Hello?
Remove the battery from your phone
and put it in the dumpster.
No.
It's a burner.
No one's tracking it.
Not negotiable.
How do I know you're really Viper?
How do I know it's not a trap?
Do it.
Hello?
Where are you? Damn it.
Gina Fisher.
You made it.
You're Viper?
What I got is going to bring
the United States to its knees.
They say Thomas Jefferson,
your first Secretary of State, _
shared a bottle of this 1788
Clos DE Griffier cognac
with my predecessor
Jean Baptiste Ternant
who, um, didn't realize
that Jefferson was, uh,
really a wine aficionado.
However, our research of
you, Madam Secretary,
uh, suggests that you will find
this cognac more pleasing.
Merci, Minister Dubois.
Your research is correct.
And although Jefferson may
not have loved cognac,
he loved France.
And our enduring alliance is a
testament to our shared values
and profound friendship.
Thank you.
The Secretary and
French Foreign Minister
will now take ten minutes of questions.
Gina Fisher, from the
Washington Chronicle.
Madam Secretary, you say that
the U.S. and France are friends,
yet your senior policy advisor,
Jay Whitman, has referred
to Minister Dubois here as, quote,
"An empty crepe with a Napoleon complex."
What do you have to say about that?
I don't know anything about it.
- Next question.
- It's from a confidential
state department cable. I've gotten
access to a cache of such communiqués,
including evidence of
U.S. spying on France
and other so-called allies,
exposing vast institutionalized hypocrisy.
All of which will be going up
on the Chronicle's Web site
as we speak.
It was a private e-mail!
You really believe there's
such a thing anymore?
There's thousands.
Twitter-sphere is calling
them the Viper cables.
Viper?
Fisher's source.
She's claiming he's a state
department employee.
Oh, great, our very own Snowden.
What happened to at least
giving us a heads up?
Hey, Jay.
Daisy's about to tell us
that that gotcha video is
blowing up on social media.
Which was clearly the point.
Right now, I need you
to focus on fixing it.
The White House agrees.
They want this contained.
Dubois officially cut short his visit
and is on his way to Andrews.
Dubois's the tip of the iceberg.
In another cable, an
INR analyst referred
to the Austrian ambassador as Das Boob.
Several deputy assistant
secretaries agreed
in an e-mail chain
that a member of the Peruvian
Constitutional Tribunal
is a coked-up, narcissist blowhard.
Oh, and our ambassador to Kenya called
their defense minister a
sweaty, brain-damaged hippo.
Are we sure those cables
aren't from a frat?
Already crafting your apologies, ma'am.
On a scale of non-apology-apology
to full Swaggart-Kanye,
how far do you want to take it?
Feel your way through, based
on diplomatic importance.
Aside from the petty name-calling,
is there anything policy-related
we need to worry about?
I'll get into that.
While you're at it, get
with FBI, DOJ and DNI,
and see if they can
figure out who Viper is.
And short of ID'ing him among
our thousands of colleagues,
I want an estimate of
his security clearance.
I'll write up your apology
to Foreign Minister Dubois,
but he may require more than contrition.
Understood.
For now, Madam Secretary,
I hope you like crow.
'Cause that's the only
dish on the menu today.
It is upsetting and deeply concerning
when so-called friends are uncivil,
condescending and downright mean-spirited.
I-I understand.
Please accept my heartfelt
apologies, Ambassador Reinhart.
Petty name-calling has no
place in our discourse.
I have such great respect for
all the work that you've done
on behalf of women and the elderly.
I'm very sorry.
Very well, Madam Secretary.
That's all we have for now.
Only 47 apologies?
I was just getting warmed up.
How'd I do?
No one's launched any
missiles at us, yet.
But Ms. Fisher's announced
that she's posting
another set of Viper's
cables tomorrow afternoon,
and she's claiming they're
much worse than the first.
Any headway on Viper?
No I.D.
But INR estimates he's no more
than Secret level clearance.
They doubt he even had access
privileges to the seventh floor.
Then why is the Washington
Chronicle making
such a big splash?
Reach out to Fisher.
I want her in my office
first thing in the morning.
Tell her I'll give her an
interview if you have to.
Isn't that beneath your
dignity, Madam Secretary?
The dignity train has
already left the station.
Have Daisy put together
background on her for me.
How deep?
The Constitution shouldn't be violated.
Let's make that an
assumption from now on.
Hey! I can't believe you're still up.
I heard all about your day.
It was all over the news.
Tell me about the kids.
They're great.
Seriously? The high voice?
What's wrong?
I didn't want to pile on your problems.
Josh broke up with Alison.
Oh, no.
Is she a puddle?
She hasn't really mentioned
anything about it yet.
You didn't.
I did.
I thought we said we weren't
going to do that anymore.
I know.
So the little dweeb broke
up with her in a text?
Yeah, with all kinds of
weird auto-correct things,
but, yeah, his intent was clear.
Honey, Alison's 15.
W-We can't be spying
on her texts anymore.
Can we?
Hey, was it really our fault
that my iPad somehow
tied in with her phone?
And it's not like these
were icky diary entries.
They're stuff that she's
sharing with her friends.
- That's true.
- We're great parents.
We are.
It's our responsibility to balance
her privacy with her safety.
She's at a precarious age.
- Fifteen.
- We spy because we love.
Like the U.S. on France.
Much, much too soon, right?
Ugh. At least we'll know what
to expect from Hurricane Alison.
Yeah. Oh, and don't be surprised
by the giant "V" that
Jason painted on his door.
Viper's his new hero.
Not surprised.
And Stevie?
Quietly reveling in your problems.
Remind me again why we had kids?
They were supposed to be cute.
Come on, Mom, you got to admit
that government transparency
is worth you getting
a little beat up over.
No, I don't.
You wrote scholarly papers
slamming the CIA for torture.
That was different... it was torture.
So, you think spying on our
allies is a good thing?
No, I think it isn't torture.
Feta and spinach omelet up.
Thanks, Dad.
You got it. Hey!
How's school, Noodle?
It's fine.
Why don't you ask me about school?
Because you would just rail
against the oppression of learning.
Yeah, your words.
So, I got a job yesterday.
Hey, that's fantastic.
The copywriting job?
No, the hostessing job.
Hostessing? As in?
As in, "Party of four? Right this way."
Frank's Steak House.
- Oh.
- Oh.
Frank's...
Yeah, a lot of important people go there.
Yep, and I will be showing
them to their tables.
Cool. Do we get free steak?
No. Just like no free rides.
I'm the one who decided
to drop out of school.
I can't blame you guys for
making me pull my weight.
Hello.
It's the Russian Foreign
Minister's office.
Great.
How did they get our home number?
Russia.
Uh, really?
Okay, yeah.
Hold on one second.
Not for you.
- He wants to meet me.
- Gorev?
He wants to talk about my
Orthodox Church schisms article.
Cool.
Come on, it's obviously
a ploy to get to you.
Go. Guy's a powerhouse in Russia,
second in line for the president.
It'll be a kinky story that you met him.
Just don't give away Latvia.
You have another 23 apology
calls to make this morning.
Good morning, Nadine.
Oh. You really want to start
with that every morning?
I guess I'm old-fashioned that way.
Good morning, Madam Secretary.
Ms. Fisher from the Washington
Chronicle is waiting for you.
Thank you.
Do I need to remind you
that anything you say to her
could wind up all over the news?
Don't worry.
I'm pretty good at talking to people.
Have a seat.
I get why you brought me in here.
So I'll feel intimidated.
To soften me up.
That thought might've crossed my mind.
You think I'm a traitor.
I don't know what to
make of you, Ms. Fisher.
The latest Gallup poll has 52
percent of Americans thinking
that Viper is providing an
important perspective
on what's really happening
behind American power.
They think he's a patriot.
I'm all for transparency, but not this.
Not giving away state
secrets haphazardly.
And isn't it beneath you to
print the petty, trite garbage
of a Secret-level analyst?
Who says he's only Secret level?
INR analyzed the cables.
They're nothing more than the
TMZ of political reporting.
INR has it wrong.
You won't be saying that
after the next release.
Oh, come on, Gina.
Your source wouldn't be invited
to sit in the Situation
Room on a Saturday morning
to watch cartoons.
He's Top Secret SCI.
Cleared for compartmentalized access
to more programs than I can count,
and you're going to have
to do a hell of lot more
than apologize when the next cables hit.
I am so sorry, Madam Secretary.
So long I have you on the
defensive, will you give us a week
to review the cables before
you release the next batch?
I knew you had an agenda.
No. Not a chance.
Well, then, I think you need to leave.
Okay.
Viper is more of a
threat than we realized.
He's Top Secret SCI.
She gave you that?
You Jedi mind-tricked
her, didn't you, ma'am?
There's no time for a victory lap.
This next batch of cables
could blow covert operatives
all over the world.
Counsel's informed me that
there's no legal recourse
to slow down the impending
document release.
Damn First Amendment.
I think we need to get ahead
of this one, Mr. President.
What do you have in mind?
Call in all covert operatives
until we know what we're dealing with.
All?
That's thousands of human assets.
It'd be an unprecedented move.
One that I believe is warranted,
given the downside if I'm right.
All on the word of this reporter?
I mean, ODNI said it's all froth.
You sure she's not playing you?
90% sure.
Based on my profiling of her.
I-I think Fisher purposely
released milder cables first,
in order to create an even bigger story
with the second release.
Journalistic showmanship.
I got a good read on her, sir.
She's a reporter.
She deals in facts.
I don't believe she'd lie.
I'm going with Elizabeth on this one.
Foreign Minister Dubois is back in Paris
and calling for my dismissal.
I'm not surprised.
You had to pick on a NATO ally,
nuclear power, Security Council member?
Madam Secretary, part of my job
is advising you that you should fire me.
I'm a little busy right now,
and I don't know anyone
else who can do your job.
Don't be too flattered.
I was a CIA analyst for 20 years
and then a college professor,
so I literally don't know anyone else
who can do what you do.
- Oh.
- Look...
I need you to be okay with being
dead-man-walking for a while
until I can find someone else.
I'll draft my resignation
letter and dust off my résumé.
And keep doing my job.
Thank you.
We just ID'd Viper.
He's Jed Heller, former INR analyst.
Left five months ago.
What was his clearance?
Top Secret SCI, just like Fisher said.
Where is he now?
SIGINT from NSA has him in Guinea.
With whom we don't have
an extradition treaty.
You want me to hold his identity?
No.
You can't give away American secrets
and then sip piña coladas on the beach
while you negotiate your book deal.
Put it out there.
Uh, Madam Secretary...
this Viper guy Heller bolted
on Secretary Marsh's watch,
before you took office.
You want me to play that up?
No.
This is a matter of national security.
I want you to play that up.
Oh, let me guess...
Oh, the next document dump just hit.
It is as your article suggests:
Religious traditions
breed cultural divisions,
but they can also
dissolve national borders.
Look at the Middle East of today.
I'm impressed, Minister Gorev.
You've obviously read my article
and thought deeply on this subject.
Not as deeply as you, Professor McCord.
Clearly, my daughter is in good hands.
Excuse me?
Olga.
My youngest.
She is in your Ethics
and Eastern Religions
class at Georgetown.
Oh, I had no idea.
It's a lecture, so there are
a few hundred students.
There is a Saudi prince in there,
but the keffiyeh is a dead giveaway.
Olga is very private girl.
Wants real university experience
without attention because of me.
I get it.
I have a daughter around that
age in a similar circumstance.
So you know what it's like.
Having daughter.
I will look for her. Olga.
That would be nice.
She is having a hard time in this class.
Getting "C" s on her papers.
Well, ethics is a sneakily
deceptive subject.
Especially seen through
the lens of religion.
She wants Harvard for graduate school.
A "C" would kill her GPA.
She needs an "A."
You are aware that it's an ethics class?
And you are aware that I can make life
very difficult for your wife?
It would be shame, given
all her current problems,
if she were to have troubles
in Eastern Europe as well.
Who knew we spied on Liechtenstein?
We spy on everybody, dummy,
we just don't advertise it.
They have no standing army,
and their biggest export is false teeth.
They literally have no bite.
Where are we on the
security assessment?
Munsey is on his way to brief you.
Jay is compiling reports from INR
and all the other intelligence services.
I guess that means he still works here.
Well, we heard about
Dubois's crise DE colère.
That's hissy fit, in French.
I am aware. Just...
let's worry about our own jobs.
Madam Secretary? Director Munsey.
How bad is it?
37 agents blown.
Tell me we got 'em all.
All but one. Roy Schaeffer.
That's his file.
Our top asset in Balochistan.
His cell service was patchy,
so he got word late.
Where is he now?
In a van on his way to
the embassy in Islamabad.
His cover is
State Department. USAID.
His real job is keeping
tabs on their nukes.
He'll be executed if he's caught.
Where is he?
Nine blocks from the
embassy, Madam Secretary.
About three quarters of a mile out.
He's going to make it.
I got eyes on you, Schaeffer.
- Turn left at the next corner.
- That's Colonel Delaney.
He's watching from the embassy roof.
Damn it, I just picked up a Pakistani
military jeep on my tail.
Open the gate!
We got you, Schaeffer.
Eye on the prize.
Closing on me.
Don't let them in front of you.
- Don't let them cut you off.
- He's got to be
- getting close, right?
- Quarter mile.
Schaeffer, you've
got a military vehicle
at nine o'clock, going to cut you off.
He's not gonna make it.
Request permission to leave
the embassy to grab him up.
Denied.
We can't get into a firefight
with the Pakistanis.
Hold your ground.
Schaeffer, you've got
another vehicle at three
o'clock, approaching.
There he is.
They got him.
They got him.
We can still engage.
No.
No engagement.
Tell my parents and sisters I love 'em.
- Where is he?
- We believe Sahiwal Jail in Lahore.
We're working on confirmation.
Assuming he's there, do we
have any access points?
No one inside.
I have a couple field agents
who've infiltrated the sanitation company
that services the prison.
Sahiwal has hundreds
of cells on five floors.
We'd need intel on exactly where he is.
I think we need to take an
exfiltration op off the table.
Can't afford it getting messy.
We could threaten to cut their aid.
Then we might have to cut their aid.
Which would be just as bad.
I can reach out to Ambassador Hesbani,
- offer a public apology.
- For what?
We're not admitting
our guy's in The Company.
For the misunderstanding.
It's a Hail Mary, at best.
The Pakistanis' hands are tied.
They have to manage
unrest in the streets.
We're not exactly winning
any popularity contests
over there.
You have any better ideas?
Give it a shot.
Thanks, everyone.
Elizabeth!
What, I shoot you down
too hard in there?
I can take it.
No, I just wanted to say
sorry about your policy guy.
Yeah, I'm going to hold onto him
until I can find somebody else.
I know a guy.
Really?
Worked for me on House Armed Services.
Just finished a fancy PhD,
he's looking to get back in the game.
I'll send you his résumé.
Thanks.
So there I am, Mano a Mano
with one of the most
powerful men on Earth
and he wants me to
compromise my integrity or else.
Not exactly High Noon, Dad.
Yeah, okay, wise guy. It felt like it.
So what'd you do?
Well, uh...
I have to admit, I was a little thrown.
But then...
there's no other way to describe it...
this rage built up inside me.
Like the Hulk.
Yeah, kind of.
And then, the next thing I know,
I'm pushing my chair back,
- I stand up and...
- Don't tell me you flipped the table.
No, but I needed to face him down.
And then everything just fell away,
the other people, the
food, the sounds...
I just laser-focused on Gorev,
and I ripped him a new one.
- Go, Dad!
- So gangster!
How big of a new one?
Uh... pretty big new one.
I told him that I would
not compromise my ethics
and that his daughter had to live
with whatever grade she earned.
Oh, and then I told him,
that "My wife can handle herself, pal.
And you better not underestimate her."
- Ooh...
- All right.
- That's sweet.
- Go, Mom.
Well, Ali's still suffering in silence.
Ah, the poor thing.
I could barely get a smile out of her.
If we didn't know, I'd
ask her, "What's wrong?
Why you being so quiet?"
So ask.
I'm afraid she'll make me.
You're ex-CIA.
She won't.
Well, I'd feel even more guilty
using those skills on her.
Whatever happened to
"We spy because we love?"
I don't... I don't know.
You okay?
Yeah.
No.
Work is tough.
And I have to be able to turn it off
before I come back here.
You were very present
with the kids before.
And now I want to be present with you.
Hey.
I hope I didn't really make things
difficult for you with Gorev.
No, I like that you stood up to him.
It's sexy.
Is it?
Yeah.
Your ethics are... even sexier.
Really?
Mmm.
Man with a solid moral compass?
Big turn on.
Who says you have to be
a bad boy to get the hot girl?
All right, there's obviously
been some kind of mistake.
What is your job for the CIA?
I'm not CIA, dude.
I'm with the USAID Safe
Drinking Water Project.
I'm doing you guys a solid.
The cable says you are
a CIA operative in Balochistan.
Cable got it wrong.
Ask me about the effectiveness
of decontaminating crystals
in preventing the spread of cholera.
Then why were you in such
a hurry to get to your embassy?
I was just running late on a buddy, man.
Come on, I'm an American aide worker.
I'm an American aide work...
Hey. Hey! Hey! Wait!
Wait, wait! No, n-n-no!
This balushahi is not quite
as good as my mother's.
But close.
Well, you'll have to give our pastry chef
your mother's recipe.
Family secret.
You'll have to beat it out of her.
I appreciate you making time
for me, Ambassador Hesbani.
My pleasure, Madam Secretary.
I speak for the president when I say
we'd like to find a solution
to our current situation
as quickly and as amicably as possible.
Of course.
But what can be done?
An apology.
From me.
In public.
As you're of course aware,
public prostration by
any American official
at my level is... it's almost unheard of.
But this is how much we value
our relationship with Pakistan.
Generous offer.
But I-I'm afraid my
government's hands are tied.
After Bin Laden, all the drone strikes.
We can't appear to be appeasing America.
Our people simply won't accept it.
I understand.
But can I ask that you bring
this to President Masood?
Thank you.
I'm also asking for humane
treatment and time.
If you could hold off on a trial.
We treat all our prisoners humanely.
But I will make a special inquiry.
As for a trial, it has already
been scheduled for next week.
I see your intelligence services
haven't penetrated our legal system.
Can you postpone the trial?
Madam Secretary,
your country has shown it can
disrespect our sovereignty
with impunity.
The prerogative of the greater power.
But when you are caught, you
must accept the consequences.
Madam Secretary, Schaeffer's capture
by the Pakistanis hit the wires.
It's wall-to-wall on the cable outlets.
Everyone needs to stop
ambushing me on my way in.
We thought you'd want
to know right away.
Well, might need to
redefine "right away."
So, how do you want to spin it?
Schaeffer? I don't.
So, we're going with,
"Yeah, he was spying on
their nukes, our bad"?
We expect Pakistan
to treat all prisoners,
including U.S. citizens,
humanely and in accordance
with the third and fourth
Geneva Convention.
- Got it.
- Copy that.
You have a visitor, Madam Secretary.
God, where did you come from?
I'm always with you.
All right, who's visiting?
And why are we allowing it?
Our favorite reporter, Gina Fisher.
Says it's urgent.
Really?
Put her in conference East
and don't offer her a beverage.
Oh. Also, Russell
Jackson's office asked me
to put this résumé in your hands.
Is it any good?
Rhodes scholar, Peace Corps,
PhD in International Studies from Yale.
Well, if you like that kind of thing.
There are 200 more of them.
They've been pouring in all day.
Have Nadine go through them.
Ms. Fisher.
Jed Heller is sick.
He's not going by Viper anymore?
He didn't get immunizations
before going to Guinea,
and the medical care there isn't great.
He can't stop vomiting
and he wants to come home.
He's welcome to come back
and stand trial for
espionage anytime he wants.
Tell that to Guinea.
Because your office leaked his identity,
now they don't want to let him go.
They think he's too valuable.
Did you just call me a leaker?
He's an American citizen.
You have to do something.
I don't need you to lecture
me on civic responsibility.
Fine.
But if he dies, it's on you.
Madam Secretary.
We've confirmed with the
Guinea health ministry
that Mr. Heller has been admitted
to the Ignace Deen Hospital in Conakry.
How bad is he?
He has, uh, schistosomiasis.
It's a rare African disease
caused by an... infestation of worms
in the skin.
A worm disease.
Fitting.
He's also developed a
secondary meningococcus.
CDC says he needs a
regimen of ceftriaxone,
which isn't available in
Guinea, or he could die.
And I was starting to think
maybe we didn't want him back.
A trial would put this whole
mess back in the news.
True, but there's justice
to consider, ma'am.
Well, yeah, there's that.
And he is an American citizen,
deserving of our protection,
regardless of what he's done.
That, too.
Have our Guinea ambassador reach
out on humanitarian grounds.
Any inducements?
No, the inducement is I'm asking.
Nadine, did you get a chance
to read that résumé from Jackson?
Yes. Ben Rosenthal.
He's more than qualified.
So, should I meet with him?
Or will I have to worry
that he's always gonna be Jackson's guy?
Everyone is someone else's
guy, until they're your guy.
The Islamabad court just
sentenced Roy Schaeffer to death.
What?
Hesbani told me the trial
wasn't until next week.
Pakistan.
He's scheduled
to be hanged in two days.
That's fast.
Even for that part of the world.
Well, they're making a point.
I'm open to ideas.
Maybe that op that Munsey
was talking about.
That you were against?
Well, that was before
the execution was set.
And we've confirmed
that he's at Sahiwal.
We've penetrated
their sanitation system.
Maybe we can turn a prison guard?
Well, then we'd have to get
him out, and his family, too.
I can have Munsey get into that.
The Secretary of State's job is
to offer diplomatic solutions,
not cowboy operations.
Oh, I resent that characterization,
especially coming from someone
who's never even run an op.
Bess, it has to be
a diplomatic solution.
What if there isn't one?
Then what's our response
after they execute Schaeffer?
We're disappointed, but Pakistan
is still an important ally.
Let's keep thinking on it.
Prisoner swap?
Who do we got?
Five Pakistani nationals at Guantanamo
on various terrorism charges.
Do the Pakistanis want 'em?
Families do.
Have made inquiries.
The Guineans are refusing
to hand over Jed Heller.
His health is declining.
He's been moved to intensive care.
Let's stay focused on the guy
who didn't betray his country.
I want an answer on what will
move Pakistan on Schaeffer.
You want an answer?
An SC-RAM defensive system.
That is not an answer, dude.
She asked what would
move the Pakistanis.
- What, you're telling me it won't?
- Of course it would,
but we can't give one to the Pakistanis.
What are you talking about?
Strategic Counter Rocket,
Artillery and Mortar system,
also known as Steel Cage.
It's a high-tech defensive weapons system
that we deployed two years ago.
The Pakistanis practically
begged us for it.
Why?
Because India has it.
The Pakistanis made their
case for military rebalancing
and improving strategic
status quo here at State,
at Defense and at the White House...
Dalton killed it.
And if we give it to them now...
Too arms for hostagey.
Does anyone else have
it other than India?
The Chinese and the Russians
each have their own versions.
But neither are interested
in selling it to Pakistan.
I worked the phones for hours
and finally got everybody
on board with a deal
that the president and
Pakistan signed off on.
Wow. Congrats. You're amazing.
Well, Jay, my policy guy, provided
a huge piece of the puzzle,
but I pulled the rabbit out of a hat.
I told you you'd be great at this job.
Thanks.
But aren't you curious
about what the rabbit is?
Your big idea? Of course.
I'm just so used to not asking
'cause I assume it's confidential.
It is.
But not for you.
Why is that?
It's a three way deal.
And it actually has
Russia giving Pakistan
something that they really want.
Secretly, of course.
Okay, so why am I privy?
Because we need to give Russia
something that they want.
Something really special.
What?
An "A."
I floated to Foreign Minister Gorev
that you would give his daughter an "A"
if he would convince his government
to sell Pakistan a certain
defensive weapons system.
I was totally skeptical
that he would go for it,
but then, I mean, you know how important
his daughter's grade is to him.
I know! It's crazy.
Nuts!
Arms for A's.
Please tell me you're kidding.
No, not kidding, babe.
Gorev's office is holding
on my secure line right now,
waiting final word that you'll do it
before shipping the weapons
system to Pakistan.
Gorev can deliver a weapons system?
Second most powerful guy in Russia.
And you actually put me
in the middle of all this?
Rabbit out of the hat.
How dare you.
Henry.
I know, I was desperate.
If this got out,
my entire life's work
would be discredited.
I would be ruined.
Well, that's why it's top secret.
I feel really good about that
after your whole Viper mess.
Well, now, technically,
that was Marsh's mess.
What happened to my ethics
being so sexy to you?
They are! This is a one-off!
It's just a crazy situation
that trumps ethics.
The very nature of ethics
is they can't be trumped.
Please don't make me argue
with a religion professor.
So, your work is more
important than mine?
Of course not.
But you're willing
to risk my entire career.
A man is going to be killed.
Who's gonna get killed?
No one.
Then why'd you say it?
Go back to bed, please? Come on.
Josh broke up with me.
- At 2:00 in the morning?
- Oh, my God.
- Aw, Noodle.
- He's a doofus anyway.
- Hey, Jason!
- Shut up.
Alison, listen.
Your dad and I just have something
really important that we
need to talk about, okay?
More important than my
shattered existence?
- No.
- Henry...
Okay, look, Noodle, I'll be
there in a minute, okay?
Do you know the guy getting killed?
Back to bed!
- Upstairs!
- Yeah, whatever you say,
- mein Secretary.
- Come on, dude.
Thank you.
Henry?
Henry...
this is important.
So is my integrity.
As an academic, that's all I have.
Oh, come on!
I compromise my ethics every
single day in this job!
That's not entirely true.
I don't have time to worry
about my decaying moral fiber.
I moved heaven and Earth to get
the president and Pakistan and Russia
all on board, and the entire
thing falls apart without you.
So, please, just say yes.
No.
You shouldn't have involved me in this.
You're gonna have to find another way.
Now, I'm gonna go and
comfort our daughter.
How's Ali?
Extremely upset.
Understandably.
Yeah.
I'm gonna check on her later.
I've been on the phone
with Gorev, and...
I got him to move off the "A."
Oh, my God. Now we're gonna
be fighting over a "B"?
No.
All Gorev cares about
is his daughter's GPA.
If you would consider
giving her an incomplete,
that wouldn't affect it.
She can retake the course next semester
and you don't give an undeserved grade.
The deadline for incompletes has passed.
Henry, I'm out of rabbits.
This operative will really die
if you don't make this deal?
Yes.
Does he have family?
A mom, a dad and three little sisters.
That you didn't shove in my
face before to try to move me?
Well, even Elizabeth the
Unethical has her lines.
Okay.
Thank you.
The United States is very sorry
for the misunderstanding
between our two countries.
Pakistan is an important
ally and friend.
Where are we?
It's the live image of the embassy gate
in Islamabad. No sign of them yet.
They were supposed to deliver
Schaeffer half hour ago.
They could be backing out.
Call Hesbani.
I want him in my office.
What's that?
That's him. That's Schaeffer.
Madam Secretary, protocol
explicitly states that
foreign gifts remain
- in the gift room.
- Noted.
I decree an exception.
Oh, thank God.
I second the decree.
Uh, uh, decrees don't need seconding.
Uh, this one felt like it did.
Let's have a toast to Roy Schaeffer.
Welcome home.
Welcome home!
Smooth.
I don't know what
Jefferson's problem was.
Now that Schaeffer's back,
can you tell us how you got the Russians
to move on giving an
SC-RAM to the Pakistanis?
Guess I was just convincing.
Guinea handed Jed Heller
over to the U.S. consulate in Conakry.
He's on a medical plane
heading to Ramstein.
That's a quick change
of heart for the Guineans.
The Russians hold
a lot of sway over them.
They put in a word.
The Russians must've really
wanted whatever you gave them.
The good news is Heller's
gonna face the music.
After he's de-wormed.
You know, speaking of Heller,
I want to make an actual decree.
Matt, draft a memo to the staff.
From now on, I expect
all correspondence
at every level of confidentiality
to be civil and respectful,
worthy of the office being represented.
How wide do you want it to go?
How many people work here?
31,822.
That'll do it.
Now take your cocktails
and the rest of the day to yourselves.
Thank you.
- Thank you.
- Thank you.
Madam Secretary, can I have a minute?
Ah, sure.
Now that, uh, things have settled down.
Well, unless that's great
seats to the Kennedy Center,
I don't want it.
What about Dubois?
I called him this morning
and told him that while I was very sorry
that he was insulted,
he doesn't get to make
decisions about my staff.
How'd he take it?
I had to pardon his French.
What about Jackson's guy?
Your idea helped to save a man's life.
You got it over the finish line.
So... we're a good team.
All due respect, I was on
Secretary Marsh's team.
I was his guy.
I know.
I was hoping to ride him
to the White House.
You don't have such ambitions.
You're right.
But clearly you can make
a difference here at State.
And I am a sucker for anyone
who's good at their job.
But if something comes along
with a presidential contender,
I'll understand.
Okay.
Oh, and, uh, Jay, one other thing.
As long as you're here,
you're my guy now.
Stevie got home a little while ago.
Seems like she had an pretty
good first night hostessing.
If humbling.
Cool.
Did you notice that Ali's
in much better spirits?
Oh, I noticed.
Check this out.
What?
Fresh intel on Ali's better spirits.
Flint Summers.
Who's that?
They've been texting all afternoon.
Clearly she's moved on from Josh.
So I did a little digging.
He plays on the varsity football team.
Flint is two years ahead of Ali.
That makes him 17.
I know. Whole new world from 15.
Yeah, and by whole new world,
you mean... he'll... sex.
- He'll push for it.
- Of course!
Name like Flint Summers?
There's no boundaries.
What are we doing?
Losing our minds.
Pretty much.
We have to stop this, don't we?
Okay, if I push this button...
we sever the link forever.
Yeah.
Now, it begins.
Parenting without a net.
Well, Stevie turned out all right.
She quit college.
She's not a meth addict.
That's a high bar.
Listen, about last night?
Oh, I'm over it.
I saw the video of Schaeffer
reuniting with his family.
Well, good. I wasn't
apologizing about that.
It's this job.
Is it turning me into a morally
compromised version of myself?
Because I am worried
that I'm gonna become
someone that you can't be with anymore.
Whoa, whoa.
I talk a good game, but I
am no pillar of virtue.
You're a good man.
I-I need you to be my touchstone.
Uh, to tell me if I'm crossing lines.
I'd quit this job in a heartbeat
if it threatened what we have.
Hey.
That's not gonna happen.
But if you're asking me to
be the man beside the woman?
I'm in.
"The man beside the woman."
Yeah.
Keep walking.
Hello?
Remove the battery from your phone
and put it in the dumpster.
No.
It's a burner.
No one's tracking it.
Not negotiable.
How do I know you're really Viper?
How do I know it's not a trap?
Do it.
Hello?
Where are you? Damn it.
Gina Fisher.
You made it.
You're Viper?
What I got is going to bring
the United States to its knees.
They say Thomas Jefferson,
your first Secretary of State, _
shared a bottle of this 1788
Clos DE Griffier cognac
with my predecessor
Jean Baptiste Ternant
who, um, didn't realize
that Jefferson was, uh,
really a wine aficionado.
However, our research of
you, Madam Secretary,
uh, suggests that you will find
this cognac more pleasing.
Merci, Minister Dubois.
Your research is correct.
And although Jefferson may
not have loved cognac,
he loved France.
And our enduring alliance is a
testament to our shared values
and profound friendship.
Thank you.
The Secretary and
French Foreign Minister
will now take ten minutes of questions.
Gina Fisher, from the
Washington Chronicle.
Madam Secretary, you say that
the U.S. and France are friends,
yet your senior policy advisor,
Jay Whitman, has referred
to Minister Dubois here as, quote,
"An empty crepe with a Napoleon complex."
What do you have to say about that?
I don't know anything about it.
- Next question.
- It's from a confidential
state department cable. I've gotten
access to a cache of such communiqués,
including evidence of
U.S. spying on France
and other so-called allies,
exposing vast institutionalized hypocrisy.
All of which will be going up
on the Chronicle's Web site
as we speak.
It was a private e-mail!
You really believe there's
such a thing anymore?
There's thousands.
Twitter-sphere is calling
them the Viper cables.
Viper?
Fisher's source.
She's claiming he's a state
department employee.
Oh, great, our very own Snowden.
What happened to at least
giving us a heads up?
Hey, Jay.
Daisy's about to tell us
that that gotcha video is
blowing up on social media.
Which was clearly the point.
Right now, I need you
to focus on fixing it.
The White House agrees.
They want this contained.
Dubois officially cut short his visit
and is on his way to Andrews.
Dubois's the tip of the iceberg.
In another cable, an
INR analyst referred
to the Austrian ambassador as Das Boob.
Several deputy assistant
secretaries agreed
in an e-mail chain
that a member of the Peruvian
Constitutional Tribunal
is a coked-up, narcissist blowhard.
Oh, and our ambassador to Kenya called
their defense minister a
sweaty, brain-damaged hippo.
Are we sure those cables
aren't from a frat?
Already crafting your apologies, ma'am.
On a scale of non-apology-apology
to full Swaggart-Kanye,
how far do you want to take it?
Feel your way through, based
on diplomatic importance.
Aside from the petty name-calling,
is there anything policy-related
we need to worry about?
I'll get into that.
While you're at it, get
with FBI, DOJ and DNI,
and see if they can
figure out who Viper is.
And short of ID'ing him among
our thousands of colleagues,
I want an estimate of
his security clearance.
I'll write up your apology
to Foreign Minister Dubois,
but he may require more than contrition.
Understood.
For now, Madam Secretary,
I hope you like crow.
'Cause that's the only
dish on the menu today.
It is upsetting and deeply concerning
when so-called friends are uncivil,
condescending and downright mean-spirited.
I-I understand.
Please accept my heartfelt
apologies, Ambassador Reinhart.
Petty name-calling has no
place in our discourse.
I have such great respect for
all the work that you've done
on behalf of women and the elderly.
I'm very sorry.
Very well, Madam Secretary.
That's all we have for now.
Only 47 apologies?
I was just getting warmed up.
How'd I do?
No one's launched any
missiles at us, yet.
But Ms. Fisher's announced
that she's posting
another set of Viper's
cables tomorrow afternoon,
and she's claiming they're
much worse than the first.
Any headway on Viper?
No I.D.
But INR estimates he's no more
than Secret level clearance.
They doubt he even had access
privileges to the seventh floor.
Then why is the Washington
Chronicle making
such a big splash?
Reach out to Fisher.
I want her in my office
first thing in the morning.
Tell her I'll give her an
interview if you have to.
Isn't that beneath your
dignity, Madam Secretary?
The dignity train has
already left the station.
Have Daisy put together
background on her for me.
How deep?
The Constitution shouldn't be violated.
Let's make that an
assumption from now on.
Hey! I can't believe you're still up.
I heard all about your day.
It was all over the news.
Tell me about the kids.
They're great.
Seriously? The high voice?
What's wrong?
I didn't want to pile on your problems.
Josh broke up with Alison.
Oh, no.
Is she a puddle?
She hasn't really mentioned
anything about it yet.
You didn't.
I did.
I thought we said we weren't
going to do that anymore.
I know.
So the little dweeb broke
up with her in a text?
Yeah, with all kinds of
weird auto-correct things,
but, yeah, his intent was clear.
Honey, Alison's 15.
W-We can't be spying
on her texts anymore.
Can we?
Hey, was it really our fault
that my iPad somehow
tied in with her phone?
And it's not like these
were icky diary entries.
They're stuff that she's
sharing with her friends.
- That's true.
- We're great parents.
We are.
It's our responsibility to balance
her privacy with her safety.
She's at a precarious age.
- Fifteen.
- We spy because we love.
Like the U.S. on France.
Much, much too soon, right?
Ugh. At least we'll know what
to expect from Hurricane Alison.
Yeah. Oh, and don't be surprised
by the giant "V" that
Jason painted on his door.
Viper's his new hero.
Not surprised.
And Stevie?
Quietly reveling in your problems.
Remind me again why we had kids?
They were supposed to be cute.
Come on, Mom, you got to admit
that government transparency
is worth you getting
a little beat up over.
No, I don't.
You wrote scholarly papers
slamming the CIA for torture.
That was different... it was torture.
So, you think spying on our
allies is a good thing?
No, I think it isn't torture.
Feta and spinach omelet up.
Thanks, Dad.
You got it. Hey!
How's school, Noodle?
It's fine.
Why don't you ask me about school?
Because you would just rail
against the oppression of learning.
Yeah, your words.
So, I got a job yesterday.
Hey, that's fantastic.
The copywriting job?
No, the hostessing job.
Hostessing? As in?
As in, "Party of four? Right this way."
Frank's Steak House.
- Oh.
- Oh.
Frank's...
Yeah, a lot of important people go there.
Yep, and I will be showing
them to their tables.
Cool. Do we get free steak?
No. Just like no free rides.
I'm the one who decided
to drop out of school.
I can't blame you guys for
making me pull my weight.
Hello.
It's the Russian Foreign
Minister's office.
Great.
How did they get our home number?
Russia.
Uh, really?
Okay, yeah.
Hold on one second.
Not for you.
- He wants to meet me.
- Gorev?
He wants to talk about my
Orthodox Church schisms article.
Cool.
Come on, it's obviously
a ploy to get to you.
Go. Guy's a powerhouse in Russia,
second in line for the president.
It'll be a kinky story that you met him.
Just don't give away Latvia.
You have another 23 apology
calls to make this morning.
Good morning, Nadine.
Oh. You really want to start
with that every morning?
I guess I'm old-fashioned that way.
Good morning, Madam Secretary.
Ms. Fisher from the Washington
Chronicle is waiting for you.
Thank you.
Do I need to remind you
that anything you say to her
could wind up all over the news?
Don't worry.
I'm pretty good at talking to people.
Have a seat.
I get why you brought me in here.
So I'll feel intimidated.
To soften me up.
That thought might've crossed my mind.
You think I'm a traitor.
I don't know what to
make of you, Ms. Fisher.
The latest Gallup poll has 52
percent of Americans thinking
that Viper is providing an
important perspective
on what's really happening
behind American power.
They think he's a patriot.
I'm all for transparency, but not this.
Not giving away state
secrets haphazardly.
And isn't it beneath you to
print the petty, trite garbage
of a Secret-level analyst?
Who says he's only Secret level?
INR analyzed the cables.
They're nothing more than the
TMZ of political reporting.
INR has it wrong.
You won't be saying that
after the next release.
Oh, come on, Gina.
Your source wouldn't be invited
to sit in the Situation
Room on a Saturday morning
to watch cartoons.
He's Top Secret SCI.
Cleared for compartmentalized access
to more programs than I can count,
and you're going to have
to do a hell of lot more
than apologize when the next cables hit.
I am so sorry, Madam Secretary.
So long I have you on the
defensive, will you give us a week
to review the cables before
you release the next batch?
I knew you had an agenda.
No. Not a chance.
Well, then, I think you need to leave.
Okay.
Viper is more of a
threat than we realized.
He's Top Secret SCI.
She gave you that?
You Jedi mind-tricked
her, didn't you, ma'am?
There's no time for a victory lap.
This next batch of cables
could blow covert operatives
all over the world.
Counsel's informed me that
there's no legal recourse
to slow down the impending
document release.
Damn First Amendment.
I think we need to get ahead
of this one, Mr. President.
What do you have in mind?
Call in all covert operatives
until we know what we're dealing with.
All?
That's thousands of human assets.
It'd be an unprecedented move.
One that I believe is warranted,
given the downside if I'm right.
All on the word of this reporter?
I mean, ODNI said it's all froth.
You sure she's not playing you?
90% sure.
Based on my profiling of her.
I-I think Fisher purposely
released milder cables first,
in order to create an even bigger story
with the second release.
Journalistic showmanship.
I got a good read on her, sir.
She's a reporter.
She deals in facts.
I don't believe she'd lie.
I'm going with Elizabeth on this one.
Foreign Minister Dubois is back in Paris
and calling for my dismissal.
I'm not surprised.
You had to pick on a NATO ally,
nuclear power, Security Council member?
Madam Secretary, part of my job
is advising you that you should fire me.
I'm a little busy right now,
and I don't know anyone
else who can do your job.
Don't be too flattered.
I was a CIA analyst for 20 years
and then a college professor,
so I literally don't know anyone else
who can do what you do.
- Oh.
- Look...
I need you to be okay with being
dead-man-walking for a while
until I can find someone else.
I'll draft my resignation
letter and dust off my résumé.
And keep doing my job.
Thank you.
We just ID'd Viper.
He's Jed Heller, former INR analyst.
Left five months ago.
What was his clearance?
Top Secret SCI, just like Fisher said.
Where is he now?
SIGINT from NSA has him in Guinea.
With whom we don't have
an extradition treaty.
You want me to hold his identity?
No.
You can't give away American secrets
and then sip piña coladas on the beach
while you negotiate your book deal.
Put it out there.
Uh, Madam Secretary...
this Viper guy Heller bolted
on Secretary Marsh's watch,
before you took office.
You want me to play that up?
No.
This is a matter of national security.
I want you to play that up.
Oh, let me guess...
Oh, the next document dump just hit.
It is as your article suggests:
Religious traditions
breed cultural divisions,
but they can also
dissolve national borders.
Look at the Middle East of today.
I'm impressed, Minister Gorev.
You've obviously read my article
and thought deeply on this subject.
Not as deeply as you, Professor McCord.
Clearly, my daughter is in good hands.
Excuse me?
Olga.
My youngest.
She is in your Ethics
and Eastern Religions
class at Georgetown.
Oh, I had no idea.
It's a lecture, so there are
a few hundred students.
There is a Saudi prince in there,
but the keffiyeh is a dead giveaway.
Olga is very private girl.
Wants real university experience
without attention because of me.
I get it.
I have a daughter around that
age in a similar circumstance.
So you know what it's like.
Having daughter.
I will look for her. Olga.
That would be nice.
She is having a hard time in this class.
Getting "C" s on her papers.
Well, ethics is a sneakily
deceptive subject.
Especially seen through
the lens of religion.
She wants Harvard for graduate school.
A "C" would kill her GPA.
She needs an "A."
You are aware that it's an ethics class?
And you are aware that I can make life
very difficult for your wife?
It would be shame, given
all her current problems,
if she were to have troubles
in Eastern Europe as well.
Who knew we spied on Liechtenstein?
We spy on everybody, dummy,
we just don't advertise it.
They have no standing army,
and their biggest export is false teeth.
They literally have no bite.
Where are we on the
security assessment?
Munsey is on his way to brief you.
Jay is compiling reports from INR
and all the other intelligence services.
I guess that means he still works here.
Well, we heard about
Dubois's crise DE colère.
That's hissy fit, in French.
I am aware. Just...
let's worry about our own jobs.
Madam Secretary? Director Munsey.
How bad is it?
37 agents blown.
Tell me we got 'em all.
All but one. Roy Schaeffer.
That's his file.
Our top asset in Balochistan.
His cell service was patchy,
so he got word late.
Where is he now?
In a van on his way to
the embassy in Islamabad.
His cover is
State Department. USAID.
His real job is keeping
tabs on their nukes.
He'll be executed if he's caught.
Where is he?
Nine blocks from the
embassy, Madam Secretary.
About three quarters of a mile out.
He's going to make it.
I got eyes on you, Schaeffer.
- Turn left at the next corner.
- That's Colonel Delaney.
He's watching from the embassy roof.
Damn it, I just picked up a Pakistani
military jeep on my tail.
Open the gate!
We got you, Schaeffer.
Eye on the prize.
Closing on me.
Don't let them in front of you.
- Don't let them cut you off.
- He's got to be
- getting close, right?
- Quarter mile.
Schaeffer, you've
got a military vehicle
at nine o'clock, going to cut you off.
He's not gonna make it.
Request permission to leave
the embassy to grab him up.
Denied.
We can't get into a firefight
with the Pakistanis.
Hold your ground.
Schaeffer, you've got
another vehicle at three
o'clock, approaching.
There he is.
They got him.
They got him.
We can still engage.
No.
No engagement.
Tell my parents and sisters I love 'em.
- Where is he?
- We believe Sahiwal Jail in Lahore.
We're working on confirmation.
Assuming he's there, do we
have any access points?
No one inside.
I have a couple field agents
who've infiltrated the sanitation company
that services the prison.
Sahiwal has hundreds
of cells on five floors.
We'd need intel on exactly where he is.
I think we need to take an
exfiltration op off the table.
Can't afford it getting messy.
We could threaten to cut their aid.
Then we might have to cut their aid.
Which would be just as bad.
I can reach out to Ambassador Hesbani,
- offer a public apology.
- For what?
We're not admitting
our guy's in The Company.
For the misunderstanding.
It's a Hail Mary, at best.
The Pakistanis' hands are tied.
They have to manage
unrest in the streets.
We're not exactly winning
any popularity contests
over there.
You have any better ideas?
Give it a shot.
Thanks, everyone.
Elizabeth!
What, I shoot you down
too hard in there?
I can take it.
No, I just wanted to say
sorry about your policy guy.
Yeah, I'm going to hold onto him
until I can find somebody else.
I know a guy.
Really?
Worked for me on House Armed Services.
Just finished a fancy PhD,
he's looking to get back in the game.
I'll send you his résumé.
Thanks.
So there I am, Mano a Mano
with one of the most
powerful men on Earth
and he wants me to
compromise my integrity or else.
Not exactly High Noon, Dad.
Yeah, okay, wise guy. It felt like it.
So what'd you do?
Well, uh...
I have to admit, I was a little thrown.
But then...
there's no other way to describe it...
this rage built up inside me.
Like the Hulk.
Yeah, kind of.
And then, the next thing I know,
I'm pushing my chair back,
- I stand up and...
- Don't tell me you flipped the table.
No, but I needed to face him down.
And then everything just fell away,
the other people, the
food, the sounds...
I just laser-focused on Gorev,
and I ripped him a new one.
- Go, Dad!
- So gangster!
How big of a new one?
Uh... pretty big new one.
I told him that I would
not compromise my ethics
and that his daughter had to live
with whatever grade she earned.
Oh, and then I told him,
that "My wife can handle herself, pal.
And you better not underestimate her."
- Ooh...
- All right.
- That's sweet.
- Go, Mom.
Well, Ali's still suffering in silence.
Ah, the poor thing.
I could barely get a smile out of her.
If we didn't know, I'd
ask her, "What's wrong?
Why you being so quiet?"
So ask.
I'm afraid she'll make me.
You're ex-CIA.
She won't.
Well, I'd feel even more guilty
using those skills on her.
Whatever happened to
"We spy because we love?"
I don't... I don't know.
You okay?
Yeah.
No.
Work is tough.
And I have to be able to turn it off
before I come back here.
You were very present
with the kids before.
And now I want to be present with you.
Hey.
I hope I didn't really make things
difficult for you with Gorev.
No, I like that you stood up to him.
It's sexy.
Is it?
Yeah.
Your ethics are... even sexier.
Really?
Mmm.
Man with a solid moral compass?
Big turn on.
Who says you have to be
a bad boy to get the hot girl?
All right, there's obviously
been some kind of mistake.
What is your job for the CIA?
I'm not CIA, dude.
I'm with the USAID Safe
Drinking Water Project.
I'm doing you guys a solid.
The cable says you are
a CIA operative in Balochistan.
Cable got it wrong.
Ask me about the effectiveness
of decontaminating crystals
in preventing the spread of cholera.
Then why were you in such
a hurry to get to your embassy?
I was just running late on a buddy, man.
Come on, I'm an American aide worker.
I'm an American aide work...
Hey. Hey! Hey! Wait!
Wait, wait! No, n-n-no!
This balushahi is not quite
as good as my mother's.
But close.
Well, you'll have to give our pastry chef
your mother's recipe.
Family secret.
You'll have to beat it out of her.
I appreciate you making time
for me, Ambassador Hesbani.
My pleasure, Madam Secretary.
I speak for the president when I say
we'd like to find a solution
to our current situation
as quickly and as amicably as possible.
Of course.
But what can be done?
An apology.
From me.
In public.
As you're of course aware,
public prostration by
any American official
at my level is... it's almost unheard of.
But this is how much we value
our relationship with Pakistan.
Generous offer.
But I-I'm afraid my
government's hands are tied.
After Bin Laden, all the drone strikes.
We can't appear to be appeasing America.
Our people simply won't accept it.
I understand.
But can I ask that you bring
this to President Masood?
Thank you.
I'm also asking for humane
treatment and time.
If you could hold off on a trial.
We treat all our prisoners humanely.
But I will make a special inquiry.
As for a trial, it has already
been scheduled for next week.
I see your intelligence services
haven't penetrated our legal system.
Can you postpone the trial?
Madam Secretary,
your country has shown it can
disrespect our sovereignty
with impunity.
The prerogative of the greater power.
But when you are caught, you
must accept the consequences.
Madam Secretary, Schaeffer's capture
by the Pakistanis hit the wires.
It's wall-to-wall on the cable outlets.
Everyone needs to stop
ambushing me on my way in.
We thought you'd want
to know right away.
Well, might need to
redefine "right away."
So, how do you want to spin it?
Schaeffer? I don't.
So, we're going with,
"Yeah, he was spying on
their nukes, our bad"?
We expect Pakistan
to treat all prisoners,
including U.S. citizens,
humanely and in accordance
with the third and fourth
Geneva Convention.
- Got it.
- Copy that.
You have a visitor, Madam Secretary.
God, where did you come from?
I'm always with you.
All right, who's visiting?
And why are we allowing it?
Our favorite reporter, Gina Fisher.
Says it's urgent.
Really?
Put her in conference East
and don't offer her a beverage.
Oh. Also, Russell
Jackson's office asked me
to put this résumé in your hands.
Is it any good?
Rhodes scholar, Peace Corps,
PhD in International Studies from Yale.
Well, if you like that kind of thing.
There are 200 more of them.
They've been pouring in all day.
Have Nadine go through them.
Ms. Fisher.
Jed Heller is sick.
He's not going by Viper anymore?
He didn't get immunizations
before going to Guinea,
and the medical care there isn't great.
He can't stop vomiting
and he wants to come home.
He's welcome to come back
and stand trial for
espionage anytime he wants.
Tell that to Guinea.
Because your office leaked his identity,
now they don't want to let him go.
They think he's too valuable.
Did you just call me a leaker?
He's an American citizen.
You have to do something.
I don't need you to lecture
me on civic responsibility.
Fine.
But if he dies, it's on you.
Madam Secretary.
We've confirmed with the
Guinea health ministry
that Mr. Heller has been admitted
to the Ignace Deen Hospital in Conakry.
How bad is he?
He has, uh, schistosomiasis.
It's a rare African disease
caused by an... infestation of worms
in the skin.
A worm disease.
Fitting.
He's also developed a
secondary meningococcus.
CDC says he needs a
regimen of ceftriaxone,
which isn't available in
Guinea, or he could die.
And I was starting to think
maybe we didn't want him back.
A trial would put this whole
mess back in the news.
True, but there's justice
to consider, ma'am.
Well, yeah, there's that.
And he is an American citizen,
deserving of our protection,
regardless of what he's done.
That, too.
Have our Guinea ambassador reach
out on humanitarian grounds.
Any inducements?
No, the inducement is I'm asking.
Nadine, did you get a chance
to read that résumé from Jackson?
Yes. Ben Rosenthal.
He's more than qualified.
So, should I meet with him?
Or will I have to worry
that he's always gonna be Jackson's guy?
Everyone is someone else's
guy, until they're your guy.
The Islamabad court just
sentenced Roy Schaeffer to death.
What?
Hesbani told me the trial
wasn't until next week.
Pakistan.
He's scheduled
to be hanged in two days.
That's fast.
Even for that part of the world.
Well, they're making a point.
I'm open to ideas.
Maybe that op that Munsey
was talking about.
That you were against?
Well, that was before
the execution was set.
And we've confirmed
that he's at Sahiwal.
We've penetrated
their sanitation system.
Maybe we can turn a prison guard?
Well, then we'd have to get
him out, and his family, too.
I can have Munsey get into that.
The Secretary of State's job is
to offer diplomatic solutions,
not cowboy operations.
Oh, I resent that characterization,
especially coming from someone
who's never even run an op.
Bess, it has to be
a diplomatic solution.
What if there isn't one?
Then what's our response
after they execute Schaeffer?
We're disappointed, but Pakistan
is still an important ally.
Let's keep thinking on it.
Prisoner swap?
Who do we got?
Five Pakistani nationals at Guantanamo
on various terrorism charges.
Do the Pakistanis want 'em?
Families do.
Have made inquiries.
The Guineans are refusing
to hand over Jed Heller.
His health is declining.
He's been moved to intensive care.
Let's stay focused on the guy
who didn't betray his country.
I want an answer on what will
move Pakistan on Schaeffer.
You want an answer?
An SC-RAM defensive system.
That is not an answer, dude.
She asked what would
move the Pakistanis.
- What, you're telling me it won't?
- Of course it would,
but we can't give one to the Pakistanis.
What are you talking about?
Strategic Counter Rocket,
Artillery and Mortar system,
also known as Steel Cage.
It's a high-tech defensive weapons system
that we deployed two years ago.
The Pakistanis practically
begged us for it.
Why?
Because India has it.
The Pakistanis made their
case for military rebalancing
and improving strategic
status quo here at State,
at Defense and at the White House...
Dalton killed it.
And if we give it to them now...
Too arms for hostagey.
Does anyone else have
it other than India?
The Chinese and the Russians
each have their own versions.
But neither are interested
in selling it to Pakistan.
I worked the phones for hours
and finally got everybody
on board with a deal
that the president and
Pakistan signed off on.
Wow. Congrats. You're amazing.
Well, Jay, my policy guy, provided
a huge piece of the puzzle,
but I pulled the rabbit out of a hat.
I told you you'd be great at this job.
Thanks.
But aren't you curious
about what the rabbit is?
Your big idea? Of course.
I'm just so used to not asking
'cause I assume it's confidential.
It is.
But not for you.
Why is that?
It's a three way deal.
And it actually has
Russia giving Pakistan
something that they really want.
Secretly, of course.
Okay, so why am I privy?
Because we need to give Russia
something that they want.
Something really special.
What?
An "A."
I floated to Foreign Minister Gorev
that you would give his daughter an "A"
if he would convince his government
to sell Pakistan a certain
defensive weapons system.
I was totally skeptical
that he would go for it,
but then, I mean, you know how important
his daughter's grade is to him.
I know! It's crazy.
Nuts!
Arms for A's.
Please tell me you're kidding.
No, not kidding, babe.
Gorev's office is holding
on my secure line right now,
waiting final word that you'll do it
before shipping the weapons
system to Pakistan.
Gorev can deliver a weapons system?
Second most powerful guy in Russia.
And you actually put me
in the middle of all this?
Rabbit out of the hat.
How dare you.
Henry.
I know, I was desperate.
If this got out,
my entire life's work
would be discredited.
I would be ruined.
Well, that's why it's top secret.
I feel really good about that
after your whole Viper mess.
Well, now, technically,
that was Marsh's mess.
What happened to my ethics
being so sexy to you?
They are! This is a one-off!
It's just a crazy situation
that trumps ethics.
The very nature of ethics
is they can't be trumped.
Please don't make me argue
with a religion professor.
So, your work is more
important than mine?
Of course not.
But you're willing
to risk my entire career.
A man is going to be killed.
Who's gonna get killed?
No one.
Then why'd you say it?
Go back to bed, please? Come on.
Josh broke up with me.
- At 2:00 in the morning?
- Oh, my God.
- Aw, Noodle.
- He's a doofus anyway.
- Hey, Jason!
- Shut up.
Alison, listen.
Your dad and I just have something
really important that we
need to talk about, okay?
More important than my
shattered existence?
- No.
- Henry...
Okay, look, Noodle, I'll be
there in a minute, okay?
Do you know the guy getting killed?
Back to bed!
- Upstairs!
- Yeah, whatever you say,
- mein Secretary.
- Come on, dude.
Thank you.
Henry?
Henry...
this is important.
So is my integrity.
As an academic, that's all I have.
Oh, come on!
I compromise my ethics every
single day in this job!
That's not entirely true.
I don't have time to worry
about my decaying moral fiber.
I moved heaven and Earth to get
the president and Pakistan and Russia
all on board, and the entire
thing falls apart without you.
So, please, just say yes.
No.
You shouldn't have involved me in this.
You're gonna have to find another way.
Now, I'm gonna go and
comfort our daughter.
How's Ali?
Extremely upset.
Understandably.
Yeah.
I'm gonna check on her later.
I've been on the phone
with Gorev, and...
I got him to move off the "A."
Oh, my God. Now we're gonna
be fighting over a "B"?
No.
All Gorev cares about
is his daughter's GPA.
If you would consider
giving her an incomplete,
that wouldn't affect it.
She can retake the course next semester
and you don't give an undeserved grade.
The deadline for incompletes has passed.
Henry, I'm out of rabbits.
This operative will really die
if you don't make this deal?
Yes.
Does he have family?
A mom, a dad and three little sisters.
That you didn't shove in my
face before to try to move me?
Well, even Elizabeth the
Unethical has her lines.
Okay.
Thank you.
The United States is very sorry
for the misunderstanding
between our two countries.
Pakistan is an important
ally and friend.
Where are we?
It's the live image of the embassy gate
in Islamabad. No sign of them yet.
They were supposed to deliver
Schaeffer half hour ago.
They could be backing out.
Call Hesbani.
I want him in my office.
What's that?
That's him. That's Schaeffer.
Madam Secretary, protocol
explicitly states that
foreign gifts remain
- in the gift room.
- Noted.
I decree an exception.
Oh, thank God.
I second the decree.
Uh, uh, decrees don't need seconding.
Uh, this one felt like it did.
Let's have a toast to Roy Schaeffer.
Welcome home.
Welcome home!
Smooth.
I don't know what
Jefferson's problem was.
Now that Schaeffer's back,
can you tell us how you got the Russians
to move on giving an
SC-RAM to the Pakistanis?
Guess I was just convincing.
Guinea handed Jed Heller
over to the U.S. consulate in Conakry.
He's on a medical plane
heading to Ramstein.
That's a quick change
of heart for the Guineans.
The Russians hold
a lot of sway over them.
They put in a word.
The Russians must've really
wanted whatever you gave them.
The good news is Heller's
gonna face the music.
After he's de-wormed.
You know, speaking of Heller,
I want to make an actual decree.
Matt, draft a memo to the staff.
From now on, I expect
all correspondence
at every level of confidentiality
to be civil and respectful,
worthy of the office being represented.
How wide do you want it to go?
How many people work here?
31,822.
That'll do it.
Now take your cocktails
and the rest of the day to yourselves.
Thank you.
- Thank you.
- Thank you.
Madam Secretary, can I have a minute?
Ah, sure.
Now that, uh, things have settled down.
Well, unless that's great
seats to the Kennedy Center,
I don't want it.
What about Dubois?
I called him this morning
and told him that while I was very sorry
that he was insulted,
he doesn't get to make
decisions about my staff.
How'd he take it?
I had to pardon his French.
What about Jackson's guy?
Your idea helped to save a man's life.
You got it over the finish line.
So... we're a good team.
All due respect, I was on
Secretary Marsh's team.
I was his guy.
I know.
I was hoping to ride him
to the White House.
You don't have such ambitions.
You're right.
But clearly you can make
a difference here at State.
And I am a sucker for anyone
who's good at their job.
But if something comes along
with a presidential contender,
I'll understand.
Okay.
Oh, and, uh, Jay, one other thing.
As long as you're here,
you're my guy now.
Stevie got home a little while ago.
Seems like she had an pretty
good first night hostessing.
If humbling.
Cool.
Did you notice that Ali's
in much better spirits?
Oh, I noticed.
Check this out.
What?
Fresh intel on Ali's better spirits.
Flint Summers.
Who's that?
They've been texting all afternoon.
Clearly she's moved on from Josh.
So I did a little digging.
He plays on the varsity football team.
Flint is two years ahead of Ali.
That makes him 17.
I know. Whole new world from 15.
Yeah, and by whole new world,
you mean... he'll... sex.
- He'll push for it.
- Of course!
Name like Flint Summers?
There's no boundaries.
What are we doing?
Losing our minds.
Pretty much.
We have to stop this, don't we?
Okay, if I push this button...
we sever the link forever.
Yeah.
Now, it begins.
Parenting without a net.
Well, Stevie turned out all right.
She quit college.
She's not a meth addict.
That's a high bar.
Listen, about last night?
Oh, I'm over it.
I saw the video of Schaeffer
reuniting with his family.
Well, good. I wasn't
apologizing about that.
It's this job.
Is it turning me into a morally
compromised version of myself?
Because I am worried
that I'm gonna become
someone that you can't be with anymore.
Whoa, whoa.
I talk a good game, but I
am no pillar of virtue.
You're a good man.
I-I need you to be my touchstone.
Uh, to tell me if I'm crossing lines.
I'd quit this job in a heartbeat
if it threatened what we have.
Hey.
That's not gonna happen.
But if you're asking me to
be the man beside the woman?
I'm in.
"The man beside the woman."
Yeah.