All language subtitles for MISS SLOANE

Lobbying is about foresight...

..about anticipating
your opponents' moves

and devising countermeasures.

The winner plots one step ahead
of the opposition...

..and plays her trump card...

..just after they play theirs.

MAN: You better not be saying
that when you're in there.

It's about making sure
you surprise them...

..and they don't surprise you.

(SIGHS)

MAN: I'm gonna ask you again -
Miss Sloane,

could you please describe
the nature of your work?

SLOANE:
On the advice of counsel,

I respectfully decline
to answer your question,

based on my rights
under the Fifth Amendment

to the United States
Constitution.

MAN: Those words.

When you're not taking the oath
or confirming details,

those words, in that order,
are all you're gonna say.

(PHONE BEEPS)

On average, would you say
you bribe public officials

more or less
than once a month?

Upon the advice of counsel...
Can I deviate slightly?

"On the advice of counsel"?
"On the advice of my attorney"?

-You do not...
-OK. OK. I understand.

That last one's
too adventurous for you.

This would be a whole lot easier
if I could just shout, "Fifth!"

They want you behind bars.

You make one statement,

you correct one
nefarious allegation, that's it.

You waive your right
to the Fifth

and you're compelled
to answer everything.

They're taking you
to the woodshed

in front of
the national press.

They're gonna rile you so bad,

they'd make Gandhi
want to cut their tongues out.

Did you arrange
for benefits such as travel,

luxury accommodations
and sports tickets

to be furnished
to members of Congress

at the behest
of your clients?

Did you arrange for benefits
such as travel,

luxury accommodations
and sports tickets...

Daniel, when I take the stand,

you'll see nothing
but a granite wall.

Good.

MAN: Miss Sloane!

(REPORTERS CALL QUESTIONS)

Nothing to say, guys.
Thank you.

(HUBBUB)

MAN: Miss Sloane!
Miss Sloane! Miss Sloane.

This is tight.

You'd think they would choose
a more appropriate venue.

Well, it turns out
the Nationals had a home game.

Good morning.

I am Senator Ronald Sperling,
chair of this hearing.

Miss Sloane?

Please raise your right hand.

Do you solemnly swear
that you will tell the truth,

the whole truth
and nothing but the truth,

under pains and penalties
of perjury?

-I do.
-Please sit.

Will the witness please state
her full name for the record?

-Madeline Elizabeth Sloane.
-Louder, please.

Madeline Elizabeth Sloane.

And could the witness
please confirm

that these details are accurate?

Uh, date of birth -
July 26, 1976.

Address - Suite 504,
Watergate South,

700 New Hampshire Avenue,
Northwest, Washington, DC.

Correct.

You were employed by
Cole, Kravitz & Waterman, LLP,

for a 10-year period
between 2006 and 2016

before moving on...

11-year period.

Excuse me?

There are 11 years
between 2006 and 2016.

What was the nature
of your work

with Cole, Kravitz & Waterman,
LLP?

Upon the advice of counsel,

I must respectfully decline
to answer your question,

based on my rights
under the Fifth Amendment

to the
United States Constitution.

Did you, October 12
of last year, accept as a client

the government of
the Asian Republic of Indonesia

for the purpose of campaigning

against the levy
of additional federal duties

on the importation of palm oil
into the United States?

Upon the advice of counsel,

I must respectfully decline
to answer your question,

based under my rights
under the Fifth Amendment

to the
United States Constitution.

Today is a landmark day.

You know why?
Because I'm free.

Name one thing
you can do today

that you couldn't
have done yesterday.

-Quit my job.
-Could've done that yesterday.

-But it would've been stupid.
-I can quit today.

It'd still be stupid -
you clear a college debt

and celebrate
by enrolling in post-grad?

Academia's more my scene.

You didn't follow me
into the crapper

to gloat about freedom, Jane.

Talk to me
about the Nutella tax.

Uh... We're really calling it
the Nutella tax?

Palm oil's a key ingredient
in Nutella.

If the federal government
taxes it at 300%,

it'll cost more for us
to gorge ourselves on it.

JANE: Isn't palm oil
in pretty much everything?

We could have called it
the soap tax,

but the public cares more
about Nutella than they do soap.

Anyway,
we get four more senators

to come out
against the bill,

we can lean on Jacobs
to withdraw it.

-(FLUSHES TOILET)
-What are you gonna do?

Tell the Indonesians they're
gonna host Senator Jacobs

on a field trip
to one of their plantations.

You never washed your hands.

He'll take the wife and kids
on a tropical vacation,

come back hailing
their conservation efforts.

His bill dies a quiet death.

JANE: The Indonesian government
pays for it, it's illegal.

They use a non-profit C3
to sponsor the travel,

it's perfectly legal,

as long as the trip
is for educational purposes.

But the Indonesian government
is still paying for it.

See, this is why
I'm thinking about post-grad.

Jane, we go to school to
prepare us for the real world.

I'm not sure
I like the real world.

So you want to bury your head
with Socrates?

You know that Socrates
never actually wrote anything?

That's beside the point. If you
don't like it, you change it.

-That's why you're here.
-MAN: Miss Sloane.

They're ready for you
in the conference room.

Hey, Spencer, did you know
that Americans care more

about Nutella
than they do about soap?

OK.

See that? No reaction.

SLOANE: OK, guys,
gotta be quick this morning.

I've got a meeting
to get to.

How many are they expecting
at the IMF rally?

-Between 500 and 1,000.
-There's a margin of 100%?

Does that technically mean
that nobody might show up?

500's the minimum.
The rest depends on weather.

Seems more people hate banks
when the sun's out.

-What's the weather forecast?
-MAN: Liz.

Time we sold Jacobs
on Indonesia.

-SLOANE: I know.
-When Henry falls, we've got...

Critical mass.
I'm aware of it.

Get a non-profit
to sponsor a vacation.

They give him face
and he'll pull it.

Did you just come
from the ladies' room?

Uh... I have no idea
what you're talking about.

SLOANE: We're talking about
numbers at the IMF rally.

Alright, Alex,
put Metro Talent on notice.

-We may need reinforcements.
-I'm on it.

We're really gonna use
movie extras?

The guy shouting
about corporate greed becomes

a lot less credible
standing next to

a hobo from Central Casting

with a banner that reads,
"Abolish money."

"Shit is fucked-up
and bullshit."

MAN: Best banner at Occupy.
Tell me that was one of ours.

Oh, no. That was creative
way beyond my capabilities.

-Franklin? Shmallow Cakes?
-Uh, yeah.

Does sales tax apply to
cakes and cookies or only one?

I...don't know.

You don't know?

SLOANE: Alright, everybody,
listen up.

-I'm gonna tell you a story.
-Please, no.

SLOANE: A priest is giving
a young nun a lift home

from church one day,
and as he's shifting gears,

he rests his hand
on the nun's knee.

This is offensive
and inappropriate.

The young nun looks up
at the priest and says, "Father,

"remember Luke 14:10."

The priest withdraws his hand,
embarrassed.

Next time
they stop at a light,

he places his hand
a little higher up on her thigh.

Again, the nun says,
"Remember Luke 14:10, Father."

The priest apologises.
"The flesh is weak," he says.

So he drops her off,
and when he gets home,

he reaches for his Bible
and he flips to Luke 14:10.

Anyone know
what it says? Hmm?

What does it say, Pat?

"Friend, come up higher.
Then shalt thou have glory."

Know your subject, people.

Failure to do so
may result in the loss

of a golden opportunity.

When I see you this afternoon,
you'd better be ready

to recite that tax code
in Esperanto.

I'm...I'm told
I should offer my hand. Huh?

How do you mean?

Well, when we meet,
I'm told that...

..she doesn't care for all that,
uh, kissy-kissy stuff

that most women do these days.

You two have never met?

Well, we've been to several
of the same functions, yeah,

but we've never
been introduced.

In a town this small,
how does that happen?

-So, uh, should I offer my hand?
-I wouldn't worry about it.

-Liz.
-Good morning.

Bill Sandford.

I'm amazed
it's taken this long.

Well, you know,
I wanted to introduce myself

at the Free Enterprise
dinner, but...

You were the first one
out the door.

-Minor crisis on the Hill.
-Well...

A lesser commander would've
left that to his soldier,

which is the reason I'm here.

Why exactly are you here?

Killing bills
like Heaton-Harris,

that's food and drink
to you guys.

-So you've read it?
-No, but I know what it is.

It's a bipartisan gun bill

requiring
universal background checks.

On all sales of firearms.
Now, come on.

A father to son?
Lifelong friends?

It just means longer delays.

It's some kind of
Big-Brother-type

criminal
and mental health database,

an unconstitutional fetter
on the Second Amendment,

which, as you said,
we will eat for breakfast.

(LAUGHS)

Mr Sandford,
I deal primarily in taxation

and federal government
interference in free enterprise.

-This...
-I'm aware. I am aware.

But I'll tell you,
the reputation

that you have garnered
for yourself,

we were just looking
for an excuse to engage you.

OK. Let's have it.

Women.

Our polling data's
telling us that

we're not connecting
with the female voter,

so...

..we want to
change the narrative,

from mothers
losing their kids to guns

to mothers
protecting their kids with guns.

From a battered wife
threatened by a bullet

to fending off
her violent husband with a .38.

Guns as tools
of female empowerment.

What's the saying?
"God created humans."

"Samuel Colt made 'em equal."

-Yeah.
-(ALL CHUCKLE)

Now, Liz, imagine...

..a new organisation

pitched at women

who are deterred
by the strong rhetoric

of the Second Amendment groups

and by our association
with the political right.

But no links to us,

no baggage,
no overt position on guns.

And you...

..will build it up,
you will drive its agenda,

and, slowly but surely,

you will turn those members

into paid-up guardians of
the Second Amendment. (CHUCKLES)

(LAUGHS)

(LAUGHS LOUDLY)

So, what? Um...

Mothers for a Safer America?

(LAUGHS)

Achieved by making sure

every last citizen
is armed to the teeth?

-Liz.
-Jesus!

Is this the reputation
I've garnered -

gold medallist
in ethical limbo?

I see no ethical problem
with reframing an issue.

Trying to win the female vote
by taking the gun lobby

and dressing it up in a frilly
pink frock - it is so crude.

It could only have originated
in a room full of old men.

Well, it didn't!

This is my own idea.

Well, my advice
is to kill it in utero.

You'll need more than the trite
wisdom that we value security

to get us behind your views
on the Second Amendment.

Well, the fact remains

that when it comes
to the female voter,

our numbers
need to be better.

I see.

Well, why don't I take a look
at the numbers,

and then we will proceed
from there.

Who the hell
does she think she is?!

It can be spun.

For the purpose
of gaining trust,

it may have been
the right tactical move.

And do you believe
for one nanosecond

that was at the forefront
of her mind

when she told him
to take his business

and shove it
up his gun barrel?!

Candice, I want Sloane
in my office now!

-She's good, isn't she?
-You'll look at the numbers?

I'm sure the president

of one of the most powerful
groups on the Hill

will be honoured
that Her Majesty has agreed

to look at
the fucking numbers!

What's going on with you?!

The current system
is so porous, it floats.

I don't remember
you caring ever,

one way or another,
about guns!

My position solidified
somewhere between

Columbine and Charleston.

Come on, George.

Any head case,
felon or terrorist

can buy an assault rifle
from a gun show, the internet

or his buddy at the Bowl-O-Rama
without so much as an ID.

Heaton-Harris
puts a stop to that.

Christ, Liz,
this is the gun lobby!

Do you have any idea
how long

I've been trying
to reel them in?!

No. Something happened.

Someone you know
was the victim of a gun crime.

Nonsense.
I just formed an opinion.

You're the champion
of the free market.

You abhor frivolous
government intervention.

I'd hardly categorise
responsible gun laws

as frivolous...

Indonesians. For Christ's sake!

You rep Indonesians.

To stop our government
from looting

one of their
few sources of income.

And what is wrong
with Indonesia?

We're about to secure Al Jacobs
with a field trip there.

Is that
a promise or a threat?

I can just picture
the good senator

being boiled in a cauldron

with all these natives
dancing around him.

Get back to
your Fortune 500 clients.

Your colourful interventions

are the cause
of a lot of industry backchat

this firm could do without.

I work on behalf
of causes I believe in.

-That's how I sleep at night.
-You don't sleep at night.

You sit and obsess about
winning, no matter the cause.

Those little pills
in your purse

are not the kind
that lull you to sleep.

The only reason you

and your team of gum-chewing
ragamuffins are here

is that your arrogant pranks
might generate enough buzz

to attract clients
like Bill Sandford.

Meaning if you don't
dedicate yourself to his cause,

this firm
won't have any use for you.

Now go away.

Look into those numbers.

And start getting women
into guns.

MAN ON PHONE:
Any dizziness, nausea?

-SLOANE: No.
-That's what you always say.

(CHUCKLES) Doctor, I'm fine.

If my insurance company
weren't such sticklers,

we wouldn't even be having
this conversation.

MAN: What time
are you getting to sleep?

I sleep a lot. It varies.

MAN: What time did you
get to sleep last night?

-Did you get any sleep at all?
-These are busy times.

MAN: You don't need a doctor
to tell you that you're

working yourself into an
early grave - the long hours...

OK, when you called me just now,
what number did you dial?

-MAN: Your home number.
-SLOANE: Cell is off.

Cocoa is on the stove.
Book is on my bedside.

I'll be asleep
in under two hours.

Thanks for calling, Doctor.

SLOANE: Republican Party. He can
help you out in California.

(LAUGHS) OK. Good.

Oh, sir, hello!

Yes.

I want you to meet
Senator Davidson.

-WOMAN: Our pleasure.
-Yes.

I appreciate your coming
to every fundraiser.

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.
I'll be ready.

Hello! I expect to see you
next month. That would be great.

(CAR HORN HONKS)

Early night?

If you're looking for a quote,
you're wasting your time.

I've just watched you
extricate yourself

from three conversations

to use the ladies' room
in the space of 30 minutes.

You busted me. I'm incontinent.
Write it up.

I hope I'm wrong,
but one might think

you were
sick of this town.

Are you from the 'Post'?
How did you get in?

I'd just like five minutes
of your time.

Fine. Walk to my car is three.
Get to the point.

The word on the Hill
is that the gun lobby

approached you over
Heaton-Harris and you refused.

I don't comment
on "word on the Hill".

I know the only way you'd do
that is if you support the bill.

That's quite a story -
turning down a prize client

because you can't accept
what they stand for.

Elizabeth Sloane the
conviction lobbyist. Who knew?

I said get to the point.

Will you admit
the present system is broken?

I remain committed
to the Second Amendment.

Dildos are illegal in Texas,

but Joe Public can walk into
a sports store

and walk out with a shotgun.

That would explain
the low rate

of dildo-related murders
in Texas.

-(LAUGHS)
-OK, it wasn't that funny.

-What do you want?
-Your quote.

Fine - a conviction lobbyist

need only believe
in their ability to win.

That's a keeper.

One more thing.
Off the record.

What do you know about
the gun lobby's opponents?

The Brady campaign?
I know they're gonna lose.

Because their total budget
is less than

what the gun lobby pays
to get their shoes shined.

What about their lobbyist?

-Peterson Wyatt.
-(CHUCKLES)

They're a boutique bipartisan
government affairs agency.

'Boutique' is a euphemism
for 'little fish'.

'Bipartisan' denotes
a bunch of hippies in suits.

Do you know anything about
their CEO, guy named Schmidt?

Nope. Never heard of him.

But if the firm is built
in his image,

I'm sure he's
a simpering wuss

with a PhD
in style over substance.

Got it.

I never introduced myself,
by the way.

Name's Rodolfo Schmidt.
CEO Peterson Wyatt.

What's the matter?
I'm not simpering hard enough?

Your firm's 12 years old.

I'd think your name
would be Peterson or... What...

What is this about?

You're pro-Heaton-Harris.

It's an open secret you're at
war with your firm's leadership.

The Brady campaign wants you to
lead the fight to pass the bill.

You'd run defence
out of our office.

When it's over, you can choose
from any of the DC behemoths

lining up for your signature.

This...

..is Peterson Wyatt's...

..quote for your services.

I don't know
if I should be flattered

or insulted, Mr Schmidt,

but you clearly have
the wrong opinion of me.

I think my opinion of you
is right on.

Don't tell me you don't want to
take a swing at this.

Goodbye, Mr Schmidt.

Where's your car?

Should be at the valet by now.
I don't drive.

(CHUCKLES)

(SIGHS)

(PHONE RINGING TONE)

Hi, Jane.

Yeah, I know what time it is.

Listen - if, uh...

..Socrates never wrote anything,

how is it
anyone's ever heard of him?

JANE: I have no idea what...

Look, we need a meeting.

SLOANE: Where are they putting
Senator Jacobs?

-The Lombok Lodge?
-Yes.

-It's on the beach?
-Yes!

Good. This goes off
to the Senate Ethics Committee.

Once they authorise travel,
Jacobs is on a plane.

-Is that OK?
-It's fine.

-Technically, I mean.
-Don't worry about it.

It's just, as lobbyists,
we can't be involved

in arranging overseas travel
for members of Congress.

I read ethics regs
when I want to look busy.

If you weren't
just pretending to be busy,

you'd know the workaround is
to get this to the non-profit,

have them sign and file
with the Ethics Committee.

-Do I seem unduly concerned?
-OK.

George told me
what happened with Sandford.

-Mmm.
-Are you retarded?

Why are you eating
a chocolate cake for breakfast?

-Have you no shame?
-It's a muffin.

You never had a muffin
for breakfast?

A muffin. Let's see.
Eggs, milk, flour.

Sugar, cocoa powder, chocolate.
That sounds exactly like a cake.

But, of course,
no civilised person

would ever eat a chocolate cake
for breakfast.

You've lost your mind.

Franklin? You getting this?

-I'm really talking to you.
-Huh?

Shmallow Cakes
aren't really cakes.

They're marshmallow paste
sandwiched between two cookies

covered in chocolate.

While our tax code
deems cakes luxury items

and hits them harder,

cookies are
obviously necessities

and therefore exempt.

-You getting this?
-What?

Have Shmallow Cakes
redesignated as cookies.

Argue 'cake' in the name
is merely marketing puff.

You need evidence in court, get
a team of scientists to opine

that they are, in fact,
80% cookie and 0% cake.

-That's how you win.
-You...you knew that all along?

You would have gotten there
eventually.

-Why are you telling me this?
-Case you're not coming with me.

-What's going on?
-Alright, everyone.

I called you here to announce
that effective immediately,

I am leaving Cole Kravitz and
starting work as lead consultant

for the Brady campaign
at Peterson Wyatt.

I've secured positions
for everyone in this room

without change
to your current compensation.

So who's with me on this?

I just spent the last hour

wiping your shit
off Bill Sandford's shoes,

assuring him
that you're the right lady

to broaden his membership!

We're inches
from a green fucking light!

So you're saying I should
put you down as a maybe?

You can't possibly win this!

Who's with me?

-I'm with you.
-PAT: Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.

Ross. Hey, come on. I need you.

-She needs me more.
-SLOANE: Alex.

Lauren.

The fuck is this?
'Jerry Maguire'?

You've seen 'Jerry Maguire'?

Guns frighten me.

So Sloane and co.
versus Connors and who else?

Mmm.

O'Hara, Wickman, Moore -
the God Squad.

Ramirez.

-How many TEC-9s you own, again?
-Enough to defend my property.

Plus two more
to piss off the lefties.

Alright, Jane, contact Rodolfo
Schmidt at Peterson Wyatt

and tell him there is
a total of six coming over.

I count five.

Mathematician, you are not.

-Who said I was coming?
-I did. Call Rodolfo.

-What if I'm staying?
-Oh, Jesus.

Now is not the time to develop
a sense of humour, Jane.

That's good, 'cause I'm not.

CONNORS: Seriously, kid, go.

I could care less.

You were right before,
about post-grad.

Maybe it's a cop-out. I'm at one
of the best firms in the city.

Your reputation
might survive a move to some...

..third-tier outfit
to fight a losing battle.

Mine won't.

CONNORS: No shit?

I take it back.

I have learned a lot from you
these last couple of years, Liz.

I'll miss you.

The 3am wake-up calls,
not so much.

You've obviously learned
more than you let on.

You've shown more ambition
in the last 60 seconds

than I've seen
in the prior two years,

but you are delusional

if you think you can survive
without me.

If we butt heads on this,

don't think I'll show you
any compassion.

And with that in mind,

I will give you a
final opportunity to reconsider.

Alright. I'm off to say
my goodbye to the money man.

When this town guts you
like a trout

and chokes you
with your own entrails,

don't come snivelling to me.

SPERLING:
We'll come back to

the Asian Republic
of Indonesia later, but...

You see, what troubles me is
the amount of influence you had.

We've seen communications from
senior figures in Washington

who feared that you, a lobbyist,

could destroy their careers
with a snap of your fingers.

I...

Is this reputation something
you've cultivated, Miss Sloane?

Upon the advice of counsel,

I must respectfully decline
to answer your question,

based on my rights
under the Fifth Amendment

to the United States
Constitution.

You see, it's bad enough
one person

having that much influence,

but if they're out of control,

if she has a problem,
an addiction,

well...it would be like

the ship of American politics
is being steered by a drunk.

Do you or have you ever had

any problems
with substance abuse?

Upon the advice of counsel,

I must respectfully decline
to answer your question,

based on my rights
under the Fifth Amendment

to the United States
Constitution.

I understand
you have difficulty sleeping.

We subpoenaed medical records.

You're a...a long-time sufferer
from chronic insomnia.

You regularly work
over 16 hours a day,

but you can't get off to sleep.

Is this accurate?

Upon the advice of counsel,
I respectfully dec...

..I must respectfully decline
to answer your question,

based on my rights
under the Fifth Amendment

of the United States...to...
to the Constitution.

Whatever.

You were prescribed
multiple courses of...

..benzodiazepines,

but according to the deposition
of one of our witnesses,

you've been procuring,
off-prescription,

a course of psychostimulants,

with the aim of keeping you
awake a little longer.

Is this true?

Miss Sloane?

Upon the advice of counsel,

I must respectfully decline
to answer your question,

based on my rights
under the Fifth Amendment

to the United States
Constitution.

SPERLING: OK -
getting back to this business

of the Asian Republic
of Indonesia.

I'm not a drug addict!

And this line of questioning
has no revel...

..relevance in this case.

My medication
doesn't affect my judgement

any more than a double espresso.

And speaking of intoxication,

I can recite from memory a list
of upstanding elected senators

who voted on legislation
while severely inebriated.

And just so you know, I think
by now, we are fully aware

and in no danger of forgetting
that Indonesia is a republic

which happens to be situated
on the continent of Asia.

SPERLING: Miss Sloane.

Welcome to the party.

Five years.

Was it really worth it?

-Five years minimum.
-What's five years?

All for some puerile quip
about Indonesia being in Asia.

I mean, can't you see
that whole construct

was designed to...
and it worked.

Are you gonna tell me
what five years is?

You fell for it.

The smartest operative
on the Hill

just got played
by Grampa Simpson.

Is it how long this
conversation's gonna feel like?

It's the going rate
for perjury before Congress.

Now you've thrown out
the Fifth,

anyone who wants you
in the ground -

that's a lot of people -
they are hard at work

dedicating their creative
and intellectual efforts

to catching you in a lie.

Well, what if I just
stay silent?

Well, that's a great idea.

Shit. Why didn't your lawyer
think of that?

If I refuse to answer...

They'll throw you in jail
for contempt of Congress!

Shh.

You've just blown this thing
wide open!

Calm down, Daniel. You're
starting to look like you care.

No. I don't care about you any
further than I can throw you.

I work for the one ethical
lobbying practice on the Hill

and I wind up defending
the...the...the poster child

for the most morally bankrupt
profession since faith-healing.

(REPEATEDLY PRESSES BUTTON)

Your car's downstairs.

Go home. Stare at the ceiling.

Get ready to be crucified.

I know I don't have
the most stellar record

in heeding your advice...

Don't perjure yourself.

-(LIFT BUZZER SOUNDS)
-(DOOR CLOSES)

GEORGE: Too bad things
didn't pan out with Elizabeth.

SANDFORD:
Oh, we have other options.

What the hell is Amish chicken?

A marketing exercise?

No, we'll just try and find
ourselves another lobbyist.

I was talking
about the Amish chicken.

She's your enemy now.

I invited you here

because nobody is better placed
to neutralise her than us.

We worked together for years. We
know exactly how she operates.

Oh, that's
just a regular bird

raised in Amish country,
by the way.

Ah. Tastes better because
it can't use Google, huh?

-(ALL CHUCKLE)
-SANDFORD: Look.

There's over 5 million of us,
and we're armed.

We've beaten this kind of bill
before. We'll beat it again.

They'll make a lot of noise.
They'll wave their banners.

But in the end,
it's so predictable.

JANE: She's not predictable.

She aims to surprise.

She'll share things with her
team but won't share everything.

She'll have a plan for certain
people, but they won't know

until they're dropped
right into the middle of it.

There's always something else
going on with her.

It's just how she works.

We have a good idea
which senators she'll go for,

and we can get in first.

And they're vulnerable
on other members

they're already counting on.

Badgley, Michigan.
He can bring maybe six votes.

We get to him, it's a quick win.

Alright.

Show me some tradecraft.

Filet mignon, rare.

Same. Well done.

-Well done too.
-The Arctic char.

-Amish chicken salad, please.
-(SANDFORD LAUGHS)

(PHONE RINGS)

Excuse me.

That kind of insight
is exactly why you're here.

I'm sorry.
Who closed him, again?

Who the hell are you?

MAN: Evening, ma'am.

What happened
to the usual guy, Mark?

If that is his real name.

Mark's moved on.

Call me Forde.

-Is that your real name?
-Is to you.

-How about you, gorgeous?
-(SOFTLY) Oh, God.

You a politico or one of
these corporate types?

What brings a fine lady like you
to room 904?

Not the conversation.
How much you had to drink?

Well, a free mini-bar,
I'd say not nearly enough.

You're not allowed to smoke
in here.

You're not allowed
to buy company in here.

-Yet here you are.
-Smoke is detectable.

It could draw attention.
It is unprofessional.

OK.

Corporate type. Lawyer, maybe?

If we're going to proceed,
I require a certain standard.

Agency rules, lady.
Payment in cash.

I'm the only one to know this
little party here ever happened.

And that's with half a minibar
down my gullet.

I understand if you were looking
for something else.

You'll do fine.

Let's get to the point.

(LAUGHS)

Alright.

Hey, I hope you guys
don't feel like you're slumming.

Thought it would be weirder.

You know, bean bags,
couple of swings, maybe.

At least tell me
you guys have shower rooms.

Cole Kravitz
had shower rooms?

Clients felt they needed one
after 30 minutes with him.

We had facilities and no time
to use them. This will do fine.

ROSS: The vending machine
downstairs is weird.

It wouldn't give me
my beverage

until I told it
my gender and age range.

The vending machine company
sells our personal details

to big advertising -
I already posted a complaint.

It's OK. I just lied.

You told it
you were an adult male?

Why are you
so horrible to him?

Jacobs just pulled
the Nutella tax.

-When did that happen?
-I just got it.

The tax on palm oil?
You're the ones who killed it?

Dead with the dodo.

Along with how many other
unique species

in the Indonesian
rainforest?

-Not your greatest analogy.
-Should be up to them.

It is, after all,
their country.

Do you know how much pollution
their slashing and burning

pumps into the atmosphere?

Less than 0.2%
of global greenhouse emissions.

-So, are the rumours true?
-Yeah. Ross is really a woman.

Is Sloane the personification
of an ice cube?

She pees standing up. And...
Like, I don't even do that.

Do you think
before you speak?

-SCHMIDT: Morning.
-OTHERS: Morning.

Good morning.

I was thinking perhaps
we go around the table?

Introduce ourselves?

Let's spare ourselves
the tedium.

You want to break the ice?
Do it with insight.

We're all here
to ensure safe passage

of the Heaton-Harris bill
into federal law.

How do we do it?

WOMAN: Realistically, we don't.

We fight as hard as we can,
build a strong base of support,

so we have a better chance
when they introduce

next year's Heaton-Harris,
or the one after that.

I didn't move across town
with the aim of losing

as slowly as possible.

(POURS LIQUID)
Name and seniority?

Esme Manucharian. Nine years.

Manucharian.
I've heard that name.

Esme is our authority
on gun control.

When it comes to facts
and figures, she has no equal.

You led the fight
to preserve

the concealed-carry ban
in Illinois.

Ultimately unsuccessfully,
but yes.

OK, Esme, why are we gonna lose?

For every dollar Brady spends
on campaign contributions,

you know how much
the gun lobby spends?

BOTH: 38.

So politicians bow to money,
but why?

It's not going into
their pocket. That'd be bribery.

Like what the Indonesians
just did to Senator Jacobs?

That was legal bribery for
educational purposes, but yes.

A senator's priority
isn't representing the people.

-It's keeping his ass in office.
-That is so cynical.

SLOANE: 'Cynical' is a word
used by Pollyannas

to denote an absence of the
naiveté they so keenly exhibit.

Wow. You settle in fast.

If senators only care about
protecting their position,

wouldn't that make them slaves
to public opinion?

Polling data
puts a majority of Americans

in favour of Heaton-Harris.

And that's exactly
why you keep losing.

Well, this is actually
our first crack at guns,

but I take your point.

-WOMAN: What point?
-Public opinion is overrated.

Midterm re-election rates
for senators was 82%.

Voter turnout was 36.

And I'll bet most were paid-up
members of the gun lobby.

Thank you.

Our opposition's created a base
of voters vast and fanatical

who go out and vote exclusively
on the issue of guns.

How do we compete
with that?

Build our own base of supporters
who demonstrate

a willingness
to get their asses into booths

and vote against guns.

What's the best indicator
of voter intention?

-Money.
-Dollars.

That's our first prong -
grassroots action

aimed squarely
at soliciting donations.

Not names on a petition.
Not clicks in cyberspace.

MAN: Will they know
how much we're raising?

Non-profits have to report
on their finances.

And every Congressional staffer
watches filing day like a hawk.

While you're out there
hustling,

I'll be working
influential senators

who can deliver
their colleagues' votes.

That's our second prong.

Our third is to identify

who holds sway
in target states -

employers, workers' groups.

Don't just waltz into
a senator's office

and make your case.

Find out who they trust,

who they can't afford
to piss off.

Convince that person
to make your case.

That is how we win.

(CAR HORN HONKS)

SLOANE: Not a driver?

-I can, but I don't.
-Well, you got further than me.

I don't even have a licence.

ESME: My bank account
and liberal conscience

won't justify my own car.

What's your excuse?

To be honest, I suck at it.

Took my test when I was 16.
Only exam I ever failed.

My instructor told me
I was reckless,

I lacked due care
and attention.

Knew then and there
I had a career in politics.

You weren't messing around
in there.

Did you know someone?

Someone who was
a victim of gun viol...?

No. Why does everyone
assume that?

Strong opinions, maybe?

As if I can only see
the merits of an argument

when I feel
the effects personally.

There was a congressman.
I don't remember his name.

His whole career,
he's against gay rights,

only to do a complete U-turn
when his brother comes out.

What a well-reasoned basis
for an opinion.

Give him a gavel.
Put him in a courthouse.

(LAUGHS)

(SLOANE OPENS CAR DOOR)

Are you hungry?

ESME: You eat here every night?

Hmm. Pretty much.
Place never closes.

How do you
not get bored of it?

It's a necessity -
it's like asking

if I get bored
going to the toilet.

(LAUGHS)

OK, this is gonna
sound alien to you,

but food takes up an inordinate
amount of space in my head.

How about guns?

In doing my due diligence,
your résumé stood out.

I noticed a lot of your work
pertains to firearms.

I'm guessing
that was a conscious decision

to steer things
in that direction.

It's an issue
I feel strongly about.

It's none of my business, but
there was a gap in your profile.

Before Berkeley,
you attended high school

in Bloomington, Indiana,
in the late '90s.

The name of the school
isn't listed.

Who else knows about this?

Rodolfo. That's all.

You can imagine
what I'm thinking.

I'm sorry, Elizabeth,

but I earned my reputation.

It didn't come from
something that happened

when I was in high school,
even if my views did.

Going public
could even weaken my standing.

They'll say I'm too emotional.

Anyway, the shooters
didn't even buy their guns.

Heaton-Harris wouldn't have made
a shred of difference that day.

You fear a weakened standing
will damage

your ability to effect change.

But if acknowledging it

was the difference
between winning and losing?

I'd appreciate it if you just
treated me as one of the team.

A highly competent one,
I can tell.

We're lucky to have you.

60 is the magic number.
60 votes breaks a filibuster.

So the gun lobby wins
with 41.

They could win with fewer.
We need to hit 60.

Anything less doesn't cut it.
59 doesn't cut it.

We need 60 senators
to show up and vote.

We don't get that,
they win, period.

As I was...saying,

that by my reckoning,

the gun lobby has 34 votes
pretty much locked.

And that's this side.

I'd say we have 44 locked
over here on this side.

That leaves 22
that are still in play -

these fine ladies and gentlemen
in the middle.

Heaton-Harris provisionally

makes it to the floor
in 84 days.

The good news is, if we can
lock 16, we're over the line.

I'm sorry, that's the good news?
We need 16 out of 22 votes?

That's like sitting an exam
where the passing grade is...

-72%.
-FRANKLIN: And the bad news...

..is that the gun lobby's rich
beyond our wildest dreams?

There is that.

Not a lot of time
to steal 16 votes

from the most powerful group
in DC?

That too.

What Ross is fumbling for is,
we need 16.

They only need seven.

Shit.

WOMAN ON TV:
And the man who did this

robbed us of their smiles,

of their laughter.

And I just can't accept

that we allowed it to happen.

(SOBS)

Our beautiful girls.
And we could have stopped it.

We could have taken the gun
out of his hand

and my babies would...

-Jesus Christ.
-We get the idea.

-I'm so...
-Brenda and Joel Patterson.

The shooting
sparked a new wave

of anti-gun sentiment
in Wisconsin.

CONNORS: And that was
more than a month ago.

It's not dying down -
Brenda's become

a prominent figure in the
Mothers Demand Action movement.

Public outrage
after a gun attack

lasts maybe a week per casualty.

This whole Pattinson story
should be in the ground by now.

-Patterson.
-Pat... Huh?

Their name -
the Patterson family.

I don't give a shit if they're
the fucking Partridge Family.

-This is her.
-MAN: Sandford needs to know.

Our delivery must be tailored
for maximum impact.

Support for gun control is up 8%
in the last two weeks.

Both Wisconsin senators
are vulnerable.

If they don't declare
for Heaton-Harris,

Kirkpatrick won't make it
through the fall

and Wallace is toast...

Who's going
to that medical thing?

Senator Wallace. He can deliver
two other moderates.

And sure as
she was born screaming,

she'll see that
as a chance to box him in.

No, Carlos, that's unacceptable.

The media has to be there.
That's the whole point.

It has to be digitally stored
and ready to be trotted out

should he even think
about backing down.

(SNAPS FINGERS) I'm gonna send
you a photo of Clara Thompson.

She'll be front left, wearing...
Clara, what are you wearing?

One-shoulder black crepe dress.

A one-shoulder
black crepe dress.

If we're lucky, it'll be
the only one in the room.

Thanks, Carlos. Hey, Alex.

Tell me it's feasible
that a doctor wouldn't have time

for all this
social media bullshit.

Yeah. If you're pulling
15-hour shifts, I guess.

-Great.
-He'd be on Doximity, probably.

The medical version of LinkedIn.

Could you not just have stopped
when I said great?

SCHMIDT: Good morning.

Light reading?

Do you even know
what pulmonology is?

Yes, I do.
It's the study of Pullman.

Lungs are asymmetrical.
Right has three lobes, left two.

-You know why?
-Heart needs the real estate?

Bravo. Alright, everybody,
listen up!

Not a problem for you,
I should imagine.

What do they got? Come on!
Arguments and rebuttals.

Let's have it! Wake up!

It's the first step toward
a national register of firearms.

Scaremongering. No-one's even
come close to proposing that.

And if they did, it would have
its own day in Congress. Next.

And it's two steps away
from confiscation.

The gun lobby's rhetoric
is based on the falsehood

that we want to take something
away from people - we don't.

We want to make it
more difficult

for dangerous people
to buy firearms.

If we can't burst this fallacy,
we may as well go home.

Esme, get me a bio
on Wendy Furniss, please.

-Sure.
-Harwood Norton's CEO?

SLOANE: Mm-hm. Second largest
employer in Virginia.

Both senators are teetering, but
if I can get her to reach out...

You don't see the irony
in asking the CEO

of a defence contractor
to advocate for a ban on guns?

I'm not banning anything.
You sound like one of them!

I'm in character. Next.

Uh, the new rules will increase
wait times by two weeks.

Welcome to America, where you'll
wait six months for an X-ray,

but, hey, you can buy an AR-15
in five minutes flat.

You gonna be that flippant
in public?

Pussyfooting isn't memorable.
Sound bites are.

And the appropriate one
goes like this.

"Anyone that desperate
to get their hands on a gun

"shouldn't be allowed
anywhere near one."

WALLACE: The total number
of MRI machines in Wisconsin...

SLOANE ON PHONE:
If the good senator

ever finishes this speech,
it'll open it to the floor.

You'll be
question number three.

You think he'll go for it?

He knows the media's here.

He won't risk being heckled
at his own fundraiser.

Back him into a corner.
He'll have no choice.

WALLACE:
Of an additional $2 million

for the purchase
of four brand-new machines

within the first year
of my next term.

-(APPLAUSE)
-Thank you.

Thank you very much.

-Thank you.
-Alright.

A few more questions for the
senator, and then we'll wrap up.

Uh, yes.
The lady in white.

WOMAN: Mr Senator, I'm chair
of the Westfield Center.

He was supposed
to go to me third.

-What's he doing?
-Following orders.

Three tables behind you,
two to the right.

They've been tracking us
through Wisconsin.

They would have had
everyone on that list vetted.

-You're blown.
-What do you mean?

SLOANE: I mean that it's time
for plan B.

(APPLAUSE)

MC: And our final question
goes to

Dr Raj Amarasekara -

I hope I'm
pronouncing that right -

of the Pulmonary Associates
of America.

Thank you.

Raj Amarasekara is a working
actor named Matthew Kantaria.

They think he's about to ask
a benign question

about the clean air
initiative.

It's a safe bet we'll see
three or four gunshot victims.

Some are kids, teenagers.

How do you intend to vote
on the Heaton-Harris bill

when it's put
before Congress?

(APPLAUSE)

Well... (CLEARS THROAT)
..as you have experienced, uh...

..gun violence
is a real problem.

You decoyed me?

SLOANE: Raj Amarasekara
has personally plagiarised

seven research papers,
all available online.

He even has
a Doximity account.

WALLACE: And its financial
burden is the fact that

some of the victims
are the, um...

Kids.

The young.

So I think it's, uh,
first and foremost

to put our sympathies with
the families of these victims.

-(APPLAUSE)
-But it's true.

Gun violence
puts an enormous strain

on our healthcare system
and its workforce.

-(APPLAUSE)
-Absolutely. Yes.

That's why I intend to give
my wholehearted support

to the Heaton-Harris bill.

-(APPLAUSE)
-Thank you.

And that's a wrap.

Thank you. Absolutely.
Thank you.

SLOANE:
Who else does he bring?

ESME ON PHONE:
Fascitelli and Garcia.

Hey, Esme, I have a surprise
for you on Wednesday.

We're going
to a new restaurant?

How about a Second Amendment
debate at NYU Law School?

Don't shout this from
the rooftops, but I trust you

to do a better job
than anyone else on the team.

ESME: You can't make it?

I'm including myself
as part of the team.

I wasn't cool enough
to relate to college kids

when I was a college kid.

I'll forward you
the details.

You again.

I called them, and I
specifically asked for Mark.

I specifically told you
he skipped town.

Well, what agency
did he move to?

How should I know?
I ain't his parole officer.

-(SWITCHES OFF TV)
-He's in trouble?

I was kidding.

Oh!

We had so much fun
the other night.

Well, you know where the door
is, lady. Go. Run to your Mark.

(BOTH MOAN)

(SLOANE PANTS)

(BOTH BREATHE HEAVILY)

(WATER RUNS)

SLOANE: I have work
to do tonight.

-Big case?
-Forde...

Human interaction is an
exchange - my money for your...

-Dick?
-I was gonna say skill set.

But... That's the only exchange
I'm willing to make.

FORDE: Oh, now you sound
like a banker.

-Ah, I gotta do prep anyways.
-For what?

Another client, tomorrow night.

-You do prep?
-For functions.

Believe it or not,

not everyone hires me for my...

..skill set.

Half my clients
just want me on their arm.

Some just want
someone to talk to

from a different neck of
the woods who won't judge 'em.

-That is so pathetic.
-Functions are different.

Agency gave me a list of covers.

Insurance exec, marketing guy.

-Tomorrow's oil and gas.
-I'll be seeing you.

I think you owe me
something more.

No. It's all there. Count it.

This covers my services.

I gave you a lot of information
about my line of work.

-Your principles of exchange...
-OK.

That was was a
voluntary donation on your part.

I pay you so I can imagine
a life I chose to forgo

in the pursuit
of my career.

-Why don't you go and get it?
-It's not for me.

Not when I was in my early 20s.
Sure as hell not now.

No house you call home, no folks
you call family sort of thing?

-Uh-uh.
-You ever regret that?

Not for a second.

Least now
we're peeling a layer.

And that is all my principles
of exchange will allow.

Goodbye, Forde.

(DOOR OPENS AND CLOSES)

ESME ON VIDEO:
If you're a terrorist

or someone who shouldn't be
allowed on that plane,

which lane
are you gonna walk through?

Well, yeah. Obviously.

Thursday morning.
Yeah, I'll hold.

-Lauren! Boston, Thursday.
-LAUREN: Got it.

I deleted every vestige
of my online existence.

You didn't replace it, leaving
a Clara-sized hole in Google

which they flagged
in due diligence.

-I did replace it.
-Esme!

Clara Thompson just returned

from a 2-year stint
with Médecins Sans Frontières.

It was solid.
Why didn't you tell me about...

What's... Raj? Amara...

-Just call him Matthew.
-I checked with Finance.

Your actor wasn't paid
from our account.

You ran him
out of your own pocket.

It's good practice to
keep your circle small.

In this town,
no matter where you are,

you're never more than
two feet away from a rat.

Hey. I want you on the podium
at the ARS dinner.

Wait. That's a huge deal.

You don't think we should share
the public speaking a little?

And blow all the goodwill
you've racked up?

I'm not sure I'm comfortable
in the spotlight,

doing all the press.

Get comfortable.
That ship has sailed.

Hey, yes. Thursday morning.
I'll be there.

Every day,
48 children or teens are shot.

It's not
across the world, folks.

That's right here in America.

We are joined right now
by a representative

from the Brady campaign,
Esme Manchurian.

It's Manucharian.

WOMAN: Knocking on doors,
making house calls.

How long did it take you
to even get to this place?

Consider it a sign
of how important it is

that we get you
on board.

Why?

In your long and distinguished
career, you've done

precisely jack shit
for feminism.

Because gender
doesn't interest me.

Only thing you're missing's
a dick.

I think your presence in
the room would be a great help

as I make our case
to Senator Hofland.

God willing, we can help
protect our neighbours

from the kind of tragedy

America has endured
all too often.

Esme Man, uh... Manchurian.

Manucharian.

SLOANE: In this country,
nine women are shot and killed

by their intimate partners
every week.

The risk of homicide
goes up 500%...

Don't hurl stats at me.
I'm not a fucking journalist.

-You think I don't know this?
-Does your membership?

Because now would be
a great time to tell 'em.

SCHMIDT: Larsson and Parr
have donated millions

of their personal fortunes.

-SLOANE: Yeah.
-Can't go hat in hand for more.

Hey, Manchurian!
Mandel's on the brink.

-I need conversational topics.
-What do you mean?

Small talk. Idle nonsense
of no import to anything.

What, you outsource
your social interactions?

Yeah. Interests, hobbies. Kids!

There's no better way
to butter up a parent.

-Tell him how hot his kids are.
-On it.

You know, the last time we met,
your youngest was

knocking on the door
of the Ivy League...

-Yes.
-Logan, was it?

Christ! I can't even remember
that conversation.

Mandy Hamlyn from the American
Nurses Association on line 3.

I think there are
a great many on the Hill

who have become so accustomed
to your generous support,

it wouldn't hurt to give them
a short, sharp shock.

The donors? Don't ask for more.
Ask for less.

SCHMIDT: If you feel strongly
about Heaton-Harris,

you could do worse
than pledge to cut ties

to any senator
that doesn't come out in favour.

So, what,
we're turning the screw

and saving money
at the same time?

MANDEL: I don't want to live
in a society

where there's a new
school shooting every week!

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

And that is why,
when put to vote,

I will be supporting
the Heaton-Harris bill.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

It came in anonymously, but
everyone's thinking Bloomberg.

500 grand?
That's over 12% of our budget.

If you were donating that much,
why would you do it anonymously?

-Obvious reason.
-What? Privacy?

No. Makes you look noble
when you leak your identity.

Oh, my God.
Were you born that cynical?

That is just a word
to denote the absence of...

The naiveté I so keenly exhibit?
Yeah. Right.

MAN: Back on in three, people.

CONNORS: Since when
were you camera-shy?

-Ugh.
-What happened? Find a wrinkle?

If it isn't
Bill Sandford's poodle.

Let me guess -
on a tight leash,

sniffing at his ass
for business?

If you weren't such a joke,
we'd already have his business.

CONNORS: So how about this?

Give Mini-Me a day off

and I'll give you a shot
at the title.

Live TV debate. You and me.

You must be desperate
if you're willing

to give me airtime.

I kick your bony ass
hard enough,

Bill Sandford will realise

why he came to us
in the first place.

Uh-uh. You need me strong
to make him worried.

You're not looking so strong
after a head-on with me.

Alright.

I'll grant you a job interview
on national television.

You can show your master
what a big, tough dog you are.

SLOANE: What we're about
to discuss should only be

referred to in code
in the office and over email.

My ex-employers aren't beyond
bugging and hacking.

You think our conference room's
wearing a wire?

SLOANE: We're gonna target
a senator from a state

we have zero right
to swing.

Oh, please, God.
Don't say...

Alberto Gomez,
Republican, Florida.

What? I thought you were
gonna say Missouri.

-Florida's preposterous.
-I'm being optimistic.

Public opinion runs against
Heaton-Harris in Florida.

-Let's talk later.
-In the office?

How do I register my dissent?
By semaphore?

SLOANE: Alex, you're in charge
of ad vendors.

You have a 2:00 at JWT.
I want two phone pitches.

Clara, Brian, Lauren,
you're one.

Cynthia, Esme,
Franklin, you're two.

Ross, get stats to both.
Come on! (CLAPS) Get to it.

What the hell
are you thinking?

That you should let me
do my job.

This ain't Cole Kravitz,
damn it.

Our clients are non-profit,

not some cashed-up
conglomerate.

I'm hiding in the bushes
with my begging bowl,

waiting to leap out
at anyone who looks like money.

You're getting ready to set fire
to half a million dollars

on some harebrained...

SCHMIDT: I mean, this James Bond
shit's endearingly wacky,

but if you think
you're seriously gonna get

any traction out of Florida,
you're way out.

Rodolfo, it was explicit

in your pitch to lure me here
that you held

a certain degree of trust in
my ability to run this campaign.

-CONNORS: George. It's me.
-I know what I'm doing.

We need to talk about Florida.

And I don't do harebrain.

(BILLIARD BALLS CLICK)

Fuckin' A, right.

Well, from the way you've been
kicking my ass all morning,

I'm starting to think
you invited yourself here

just to kick my ass.

I'm personally in favour
of Heaton-Harris.

I've publicly declared.
My voters are behind me.

So did you want to meet
just to kick my ass?

(CHUCKLES) Look.

You're sitting on six votes.
Sandford's not a punk.

He knows the opposition's
counting on 'em.

He also knows
if they don't get them,

their campaign
will be over.

So, what are you gonna do?

Walk into my club,
bend me over a green beige table

and give me a spiel
about freedom?

About how
if the liberals get their way,

in a couple of hundred years,
the Second Amendment

will enshrine our rights
to bear baseball bats?

No, that's the argument
you're gonna make

to your friends
in the Blue Dog Coalition

when you tell 'em
you're changing your position.

(LAUGHS)

Bill Sandford's thinking about
backing a new candidate -

one of their own,
a real up-and-comer, Hispanic.

Got offers
from eight Ivy League schools.

Ivy League schools?

Have you seen
my approval ratings, pal?

No, he's not running
against you.

He's running
against your son.

The gun lobby
wants your support, Hank.

They know your boy's
running for Michigan.

They'll hand-pick an opponent,

back him to the hilt.

I tried to talk Sandford
out of it, but...

Bullshit, Connors. You probably
put him up to it, motherfucker.

About those
approval ratings...

You can go either way.

Quietly recant.
Protect your son.

Sandford won't forget it.

You disappoint him...

(CHUCKLES)

..he won't forget that either.

-(HORNS HONK)
-MAN: Taxi!

-So how was Pittsburgh?
-What are you, a Fed?

The president
of the Mid-Atlantic Association

of Women in Law Enforcement
called to say thanks for lunch.

I wasn't aware
they were part of our plan.

-It wasn't expensed.
-It was a 30-minute lunch.

They're not part of our plan,
which is why it wasn't expensed.

-Am I not allowed a social life?
-I didn't know you had one.

As someone
who has her underlings

root for
conversational topics.

I maintain
a small circle of allies.

Uh-huh. Cops and nurses?

Well, I can provide a list
if you require full disclosure.

So...

Grand unveiling.

-You coming?
-We got a bigger problem.

While you've been jetting around
the country for lunch,

our opponents
have been doing their job.

Hank Badgley,
chairman of the Blue Dog.

-Who controls the votes of...
-Six senators. I know who he is.

-He's in our pocket.
-Really? That what you think?

He was on board,
but he just did a 180.

Says he wants to wait and see.

Wait and see's
more like a 90.

We're chasing senators
who are in play.

We can't afford to lose
seven votes we had locked.

We won't recover.

We have him on camera
pledging support?

Absolutely.

Then we'll have to
make him feel it.

Thank you.

Alex, these banners are good.

Could you say that again

and sound
a little less surprised?

Oh... Hold on.
This can't be right.

-Senator Gomez isn't...
-We're not going to Florida.

What?

Florida's out.

But you said
that we were

going to Florida
to swing Gomez.

Everyone turn to
tab nine, please.

I don't have anything
at tab nine.

-(INTERCOM BEEPS)
-Security.

Lock down
Cynthia Green's desk.

Secure her files
and her hard drives

and escort her
off the premises.

Your BlackBerry, now.

Now!

Let's go.

He offered me
a partnership track.

Good luck with that.

SCHMIDT: Clear the office.

Come on, come on, come on!
Everybody out.

I'll have the place swept
for taps.

Sounds like
James Bond shit to me.

We will talk about this
later.

SCHMIDT: Come on, everybody!
Clear the building!

Let's go! Out! Come on!

Can't believe the whole
Gomez Florida thing was a ruse.

We'll come in out of left field
to take Colorado

before they figure out
which hole they got screwed in.

How could she do that? How does
someone even think like that?

Well, maybe in her naiveté,

she figured it'd be good
for her career.

I wasn't talking
about Cynthia.

(DOGS BARK IN DISTANCE)

(KNOCKS AT DOOR)

-(LOCK BUZZES)
-(ROLLER DOOR CLATTERS)

SPERLING: Good morning.

Please take a seat.

We're not saying
it can't be done.

But it's risky.
We only get one shot.

MAN: Hey!

-Were you followed?
-Evidently.

-(ROLLER DOOR CLANGS)
-Let him in.

SPERLING: Do you solemnly swear
that you will tell the truth,

the whole truth
and nothing but the truth,

upon pains and penalties
of perjury?

SCHMIDT: I do.

SPERLING:
State your full name, please.

Wow. Look at this!

SCHMIDT:
Rodolfo Vittorio Schmidt.

I'm guessing this gear
ain't for tuning my '69 Chevy.

Rodolfo.
My unofficial support team.

-Big Sam.
-Little Sam.

During the time that you
worked alongside Miss Sloane,

did you hold any discussions
pertaining to the use

of illegal
surveillance techniques?

SCHMIDT: So how big
is your organisation?

Well, there are six of us.
Four are out on assignment.

-And you're ex...?
-NSA.

Badgley is flip-flopping, but
quickest way to get him in line

is to mine
for sordid details

and then let him know
we're in possession of 'em.

SPERLING: Mr Schmidt?

-Did you?
-Yes, Senator, we did.

And what means did they have
at their disposal

to carry out these
surveillance practices?

Standard 24-hour
video and audio surveillance,

cell phone and online account
hacking, location tracking

and, with our latest tech,

close-quarters audio -
any time, any place.

You ever hear the expression
"Fly on the wall"?

Well, meet the cutting edge
in eavesdropping.

It's a cockroach.

Which can be retrofitted

as a cybernetic robo-roach
with this.

We glue electrodes
to its antennae,

perforate the thorax so we can
control its movement remotely.

Don't call PETA, Schmidt.

These guys can crawl under
doors, into crevices, bags,

completely undetected.

They can go weeks without food
and still be mobile.

And how did you react
to the possibility of all this?

I told her it was
mind-boggling, ingenious,

morally repugnant
and completely unacceptable.

Boo!

SCHMIDT: You're talking
about blackmailing

a United States senator.

Have you any idea of the damage
if this ever came out?

No more than the damage done
if we don't get Badgley back.

Without prejudice
to the undoubtedly stellar job

that you guys do,

our firm has
certain standards

below which
I am not prepared to stoop.

Let me out of here.

-Schmidt...
-Find another way.

-(LOCK BUZZES)
-(ROLLER DOOR CLATTERS)

REPORTER:
It was a rude awakening

for Michigan senator
Hank Badgley today

as he was tailed
from his home

to his workplace
by this trailer-mounted...

What the fuck is that?

..organised by
gun safety campaigners

in response
to what they perceive

as a U-turn on his support
for the controversial...

Can you believe...
I do not fucking believe!

REPORTER 2: ..has been
conducting his duties

in the shadow of a giant rat.

REPORTER 1: ..as he was tailed
from his home...

JANE: It's on all of
the national news outlets.

How the hell
did she manage that?!

She didn't. They swing left
all on their own.

It has its own
Twitter feed.

Huh?!

The rat.

Really, I think that
this whole rat business

is little more than
an unfortunate misunderstanding.

I was one of the first
members of the Senate

to lend my support
to Heaton-Harris.

I've always maintained
that the bill

is integral to public safety

and my support for it
is unwavering.

Now, I sincerely hope

that we can get past
all this silliness...

ESME: Three more
Blue Dog senators

have press conferences scheduled
for next week.

SLOANE:
Keep hammering the point

that we are not arguing
for confiscation.

Heaton-Harris
is about stopping...

Criminals and psychopaths. Yeah.
I'm a pro at this now, Liz.

I'll see you in there.

So you knew
there was a leak from when?

-Sorry?
-Cynthia.

When did you start to suspect
there was a leak?

-Uh, after the UAPD fundraiser.
-You had her followed by a PI?

How did you know
it was her?

-Sorry?
-The leak.

You had Cynthia watched.
How did you know it was her?

I didn't.

You had us all watched?

FORDE: Howdy.

Cal Schneider -
banking and actuary.

I'm sure we've been introduced,
but your name escapes me.

I'm sorry.
You have the wrong person.

I'm pretty sure I don't.
I have a good memory for faces.

This one,
I wouldn't readily forget.

Really, Mr Schneider...

I have no idea
who you think I am.

Excuse me.

Uh-huh - you know we're not
really supposed to be

having this conversation,
right?

SLOANE: Half of Oregon
is protected federal parkland.

They can't develop it.

So state budgets
come from logging revenues.

Whatever 'clearing your head'
looks like, this isn't it.

So loggers are
a very influential group.

Excuse me. Can someone have
her make-up done too, please?

I'm not a part of this.

You're a public figure
in a room full of cameras.

SCHMIDT: Is that her?

-Liz?
-SLOANE: Hey.

We have to get Brian
on these loggers.

We're on top
of the goddamn loggers!

-Just clear your head!
-One moment.

Clear your head
like I told you.

SLOANE: Hello?

-Jeez.
-Fine.

Miss Sloane. Welcome.

Pat. Please, take a seat.

I know Friday's filing day
and your campaign will be over,

but if you're thinking I'm gonna
go easy, I can't do that.

This is live TV,
so no colourful language.

Bullshit job offers to my staff?
You've plumbed new depths.

A giant inflatable rodent?
Please.

-You ruined that girl's career.
-Just shut up, the both of you.

-OK. Let's go.
-(TV THEME MUSIC PLAYS)

Hello, America.
I'm Jon O'Neill.

Welcome to a special edition
of This Week in Washington.

Guns - more or less?

There were 372 mass shootings
last year, 64 school shootings,

and there are
over 300 million guns...

CLARA: You used to
work with Connors?

ALEX: Four years.

Foul-mouthed, unexpected...

..and very effective.

If background checks
are to be of any use,

they should apply
to all gun sales, not just some.

Isn't that what
Heaton-Harris is proposing?

Precisely. The bill expands
the scope of gun regulation.

And it's yet another affront

to Americans'
constitutional rights.

No, the bill closes
an absurd loophole

which allows people
on terrorist watch lists

to buy guns without
any checks whatsoever.

It's an incursion
into individual liberty

by an all-powerful
government...

-What, like driver's licences?
-Driver's licences?

It's illegal to operate a car
without going through

rigorous theoretical
and practical assessments.

SLOANE:
That's a clear constraint...

Fugu chefs! Let's go.
You got this.

-..or pilots to fly planes.
-Come on. Fugu chefs!

You know, in Japan, chefs train
for seven years before

they're allowed to serve a
poisonous blowfish called fugu.

CONNORS: What does any of this
have to do

with background checks?

Is a fair question.

Does anyone in this room
think the government

should abolish
driver's licences?

-That's absurd.
-Why?

They're a government incursion
into individual liberty.

We accept them
because they make sense.

The more
dangerous the machinery,

the more rigorous
the tests should be.

I think we can extend
our definition

of dangerous machinery
to semiautomatic firearms.

Except the Second Amendment
to the Constitution

doesn't guarantee
the right to drive cars.

Or operate machinery, or
serve blowfish, for that matter.

It guarantees the right
to keep and bear arms.

Perhaps you haven't
read it lately.

ALL: "Nothing in the bill
infringes on the rights

"of the people
to keep and bear arms."

Second Amendment
was signed in a time

where the average
life expectancy was 38.

SLOANE: And it was
common practice

for our founding fathers

to resolve their differences
at dawn in a gunfight.

What may have been perfectly
sensible in those alien times

is wholly inadequate
to solve the problems...

That's not the rebuttal.
What is she doing?

CONNORS: The United States
Constitution

has stood the test of time.

It's authored to confer
unimpeachable rights

which don't change

depending on
which way the wind's blowing.

It's so authored
with the specific intent

of keeping at bay the
Elizabeth Sloanes of this world

who want to wipe their asses
with the Constitution

and replace it
with their own judgement

because she knows better
than the founding fathers

of this great nation.

Nothing is unimpeachable,
not even the Constitution.

SLOANE: It's ironic that
the very statement of rights

you're so quick to invoke

is, in fact, an amendment.

O'NEILL: I may not like it
either, Elizabeth,

but it's
the Second Amendment.

Comes right after
freedom of speech,

religion and press

and somewhere before
freedom from search

and from having to testify
against yourself.

They're all
sort of bunched together.

It's called
the Bill of Rights!

-How do you get around that?
-We don't need to.

SLOANE: Supreme Court
already made it clear

that the right
to own a gun

is subject
to lawful restrictions.

One of those
is background checks.

Universal background checks
are an infringement.

What part of "shall not
be infringed" don't you get?

I get that that's the weakest,
most mind-numbing retort

in your impoverished arsenal,

sort of a last refuge for those
with no real argument at all.

You're talking about
the United States Constitution.

If they could produce
a rational, winning argument,

I'd gladly migrate
to their side,

but "because it says so"
in the Constitution,

the Bible or my horoscope...

-What?
-..it's not a winning argument.

It's a ripcord,
an intellectual equivalent

of a yellow, pant-pissing wimp
cowering behind Mommy's skirt.

-Why don't we bring this back...
-No, no, no! Let's not.

Why don't we ask
all the mothers out there

who lost their children
to an armed sociopath

if they believe
in his unimpeachable

constitutional right
to bear arms?

Why not ask
the terrified girl

who locked herself
in a janitor's closet

at Bloomington High,

forced to listen as her peers
were being massacred?

Go ahead. Ask her.
Her name is Esme Manucharian.

-(ALL GASP)
-She's standing right there.

(AUDIENCE MURMURS)

Jesus Christ, Liz.

O'NEILL: OK, time-out.
We're gonna take a break.

When we come back, maybe these
two will stop playing patty cake

and the gloves
will really come off.

O'NEILL: Be right back.

(KNOCK AT DOOR)

(ESME SNIFFS)

I won't insult your intelligence
by claiming

that came out
in the heat of the moment.

How far back?

Once I started getting used
to all the media?

OK.

Day one.

Wow.

At dinner that night...

..you asked me if I'd go public

if it was the difference
between victory and defeat.

What if I'd said no?

Would you still have done it?

Probably.

I was hired to win.

And I have a responsibility
to use whatever resource I have.

The press we're gonna
get from this,

it's practically
a dereliction of duty not to...

-That's it? I'm a resource?
-Professionally, yes.

I understand
you have feelings and a life,

but I have no duty to them.

I have a duty to the cause,
and if the two conflict,

there will only ever be
one winner.

Well, hooray for straight talk.

(SIGHS) OK.

Get ready, Esme.
Network wants a statement.

Reapply your make-up.
We'll walk out arm in arm.

We'll be brief, no questions.

Tonight, we'll leave them
wanting more.

(SOLEMN MUSIC)

ESME: First of all,
I want to make it clear

that I have dedicated my life
to gun safety issues

because the current system
is broken.

That's a rational judgement,
not an emotional one.

(GARBLED NEWS
AND SPORTS COMMENTARY PLAYS)

I am a survivor

of the Bloomington High School
massacre of 1998.

For years, I sought to hide
the pain and the trauma

for fear of
having to relive it.

ESME: But I've come to realise

that the thousands of people
affected by gun violence

need to stand up
and be counted.

They need a representative

who can speak out
for what they have endured.

Let's call Sandford.

There might be life in this yet.

(THUNDER CRACKS)

(THUNDER RUMBLES IN DISTANCE)

(FOOTSTEPS APPROACH)

You're a piece of work,
Elizabeth.

If you want to
set yourself on fire

to service your need to win,
I won't protest.

But Esme?

The end is my concern.

You liberal goody-goodies
can fret over the means.

-You need me.
-The end?

It disappeared over the hill
when you cocked your leg

and pissed all over the flag.

Comparing the United States
Constitution to a horoscope?

That's the kind of shit
the gun lobby thrives on.

Or have you realised by now
we're gonna lose anyway?

This is more important
than my career

or Esme's unease
at fighting reporters

every time she has to
take out the trash.

-You're out of control.
-We're not gonna lose!

(GIDDILY) What if I told you...

..this whole strategy
was a shell game

for the benefit of
the Cynthia Greens of this firm?

What are you talking about?

Bill Sandford was right.

Women are the gun lobby's
blind spot -

a massive power base
that they don't speak to

and they can't control.

And?

Those strange excursions
on my itinerary?

Women's representative bodies,

feminist groups, female CEOs.

I've talked to
as many as I could

into browbeating
their membership

to donate to my PAC.

You have a PAC?

Bill Sandford's getting a
nasty surprise come filing day.

How nasty are we talking?

15 million from over
three million donors nasty.

In one quarter?

-Actually, less.
-(GLASSES CLINK)

-Unbelievable.
-(LAUGHS)

Why are you
telling me this now?

You kept this from me all along.
You're telling me tonight?

I tell you we're back in the
game. All you can say is that?

You knew you were gonna
screw Esme tonight,

so you kept this from me
to blindside me

before I had a chance
to fire you.

You have an unusual insight
for a boutique lobbyist.

You've been pulling
all the strings all along.

Lobbying's about foresight.

You anticipate
your opponent's moves.

-You devise countermeas...
-I am not your fucking opponent!

Were you ever...normal?

-(EXHALES)
-As a child?

Or were the twisted
thought processes in your mind

hard-wired in the womb?

Because I am having
a really hard time

understanding
how somebody gets to this.

Guess I'm just a piece of work.

I'll see you tomorrow.

(SIGHS)

You're Madeline
Elizabeth Sloane.

You work in government affairs
at a communications company.

Well googled.

What was that,
at the fundraiser?

You pretended like
we're strangers.

What did you expect?

-You alright?
-Mmm.

The only person that called
me Madeline was my mother.

'Government affairs'
and 'communications'

are just fancy words
for lobbying.

And 'lobbying' is a fancy word
for what exactly?

Outside this room,
we're strangers.

Those were the rules
of this engagement.

-We were alone.
-In a public place.

I can't be
associated with you there.

At least one other person
knew who you were.

Who was she anyway?

I never reveal my clients, ever.

You just pry into their personal
lives, google for the truth?

I hear you lobbyists ain't
so good with the truth.

Says the guy
with four identities

who sleeps with strangers
for money.

I'm just surprised by what
a natural bullshitter you are.

I grew up lying, Forde.
Didn't want to. I had to.

That's why I excel at it.

It's a skill I would have
happily traded

for a normal life.

Normal's overrated.

I'm sorry.

I, uh... I'm sorry.

But I can't.

What's wrong?

Mmm...

I'm sorry. Forget about tonight.

Why? I do something?

No. It's, um...

I'm not in
the right frame of mind.

Here. Easiest money
you ever made.

-I didn't do anything.
-Well, you showed up.

I... I wasted your time.
So... Here.

-We could just sit and talk...
-Take the fucking money, Forde!

Get out, please.

Suit yourself.

(DARK, PENSIVE MUSIC)

-Neumark?
-Neumark, yeah.

-Milner. Carlson.
-Two hands here. Come on.

-Wade Powell, Virginia.
-Hackman's come over too.

We've lost Milner, Newman,
Carlson, Hackman.

Adamou's chief of staff said
he's softening his position.

-Alex!
-I'll soften his fucking...

Bill Sandford's
on line three.

Closing Adamou
right the fuck now.

-Boom!
-(ALL CHEER)

She takes my own idea,
goes up against us with it.

GEORGE: We did
try to warn you, Bill.

15 million from three million
donors in less than a quarter.

You stop her,
you stop Heaton-Harris.

We have to make it personal now.
She becomes the story.

Use our media relationships,
Bill, put her on the defensive.

I don't just want her
on the defensive.

I don't just
want her off the campaign.

I want her to be the reason
that people think twice

before taking on the guardians
of the Second Amendment.

I want her career.

Hey, Alex, it's me.
I just landed.

Philadelphia was as good
as we could have hoped for.

-So how we doin'?
-That's four to go, people.

(ALL CHEER AND APPLAUD)

You're kidding me!

Wow. That's amazing.

Alright, we're joined now
by Esme Manucharian.

Esme, thanks for joining us.

Would you say
that the gun debate

has now largely become
a woman's issue?

You need only look at the
numbers to see that gun safety

has become a deciding issue
for American women.

If their representative
isn't listening,

they'll go to the polls
and elect someone who will.

What do you want?
I got 15 million to blow.

Lauren was going through
your letters.

Between the death threats and
the hate mail, she found this.

Pru Walsh of the 'Sentinel'
is doing a feature

on the lobbying industry -
that means you.

Well, if she wants to meet me,
why'd she send a letter?

Because she doesn't
really want to meet you.

She wants to say she reached out
for an interview

but didn't hear back -
it's a take-down.

Well, least we can do
is disappoint her.

Set it up.

I've cancelled your 10am.

You can see
our in-house attorney.

I don't believe
you two have met.

You know how I feel
about this!

I was against you
ever hiring her.

Because your job is not
winning lobbying fights.

Your job is to stop us
from get...

(BOTH CONTINUE INAUDIBLY)

..quite independently of her
being utterly contemptible!

What the hell
were you thinking?

Whatever it was, I guess
it seems pretty stupid now.

Liz, meet your protection.

Daniel Posner, head of Legal.

Liz Sloane,
contemptible liability

and amateur lip-reader.

Whose idea were the glass walls?
Seriously?

ESME ON PHONE: Two TV slots
tomorrow, then a radio thing

and, finally,
I'm done in Illinois.

-Where are you?
-Gold Stone.

Waiting for them to hurry up
and invent the food pill.

That may take a while.

SLOANE: Plotting to ensnare
our last four senators.

56 down, 4 to go.
We're actually doing...

-MAN: Oh!
-Oh, shit! Sorry.

-I'm so sorry. My fault.
-Oh. Hang on.

MAN: Sorry. Let me help you.

-Thanks. Thank you.
-Here you go.

-OK?
-Thanks.

ESME: Sorry about that.

SLOANE: Remember that first day
when I asked, "How do we win?"

And you said,
"Realistically, we don't"?

-I stand by every word of that.
-Excuse me!

So you're gonna downplay
the 15 million?

Yeah, 'cause we can't sound
like we're bragging

about how much
we're pulling in.

Senators link donations
to voting intention.

We can't say anything
that might stop...

-You want to take this, bitch?
-(PHONE CLATTERS)

Huh?!

-SLOANE: Esme, you still there?
-Come on.

Take it!

(GUNSHOTS)

-(WHIMPERS)
-Esme?! What the hell was that?!

You've been here before, right?

-Esme?!
-LOOK AT ME!

Esme?!

Except I'm gonna do it right
this time.

(GUNSHOTS)

(WHIMPERS)

(WEEPS)

REPORTER: I'm standing at the
scene of last night's shooting.

We understand that
the assailant was targeting

a leading figure
in the gun control movement

and was then shot dead
by a civilian

carrying a registered
concealed firearm.

(PHONE TRILLS)

George? Ha-ha-ha!

You watching the news?

Yeah, a whole bunch
of Christmases

just came early
for Bill Sandford.

Yeah, I'm headed to the airport.

Get ready
to spend some money.

Police have confirmed
his identity as Frank McGill.

He is a Chicago resident...

McGill was a legal owner
of a registered weapon.

Heaton-Harris
wouldn't have touched him.

But it might have made it harder
for the other sonofabitch.

What do we know about him?
Where'd he get his piece?

Did he have an arsenal stashed
in his basement?

..reason to be doubly grateful
for the Second Amendment,

which guaranteed
her right to be...

..protected
from a sick individual,

and most of all
for Frank McGill,

model citizen,
vigilant, responsible

and his aim is true.

(LOW CHATTER)

SLOANE: How are you doing?

You heading home?

You make a round trip from DC
to pin me in a departure lounge?

So you can check me
off your list?

I betrayed your confidence.
I set you down this path.

"Don't worry, Liz.
It's not your fault."

Is that what
you want to hear?

"How could you possibly
have known?"

You're not gonna get it.

He wanted to kill me.

I didn't know
where the line was, Esme.

(TEARFULLY) I never...
never know where the line is.

(CLEARS THROAT)

Obviously,
take all the time you want.

And when you're ready,

we'd love to have you back
on the campaign.

Your own terms. No media.
You can work behind the scenes.

If you don't want
to work with me...

..I'll resign from the campaign.

If that's what you want.

Is that your move
to get me back at my desk?

You want me in front of a camera
to counter Frank McGill?

It even crossed my mind
that this was all you.

You just didn't account for an
armed civilian right behind me.

-Esme...
-I'll keep fighting, Elizabeth.

Wherever I can
make a difference.

But as far as possible
away from you.

You crossed the line

when you stopped treating people
with respect.

You're smart enough
to know that.

You just don't care.

-(TV THEME MUSIC PLAYS)
-(APPLAUSE)

HOST: Thank you. Thank you.
Welcome back.

Our next guest this morning
is the kind of guy

you want to have around when
you're walking home from work

one night and some dude
sticks a gun in your face...

REPORTER:
After his military career,

McGill worked
as a commercial pilot...

HOST: Face it, folks.
The streets ain't safe.

And if it wasn't for
the courage, bravery

and damn fine aim
of our next guest,

we'd be reflecting
on yet another tragedy.

Ladies and gentlemen, please
welcome the man of the moment,

Frank McGill.

(AUDIENCE CHEERS AND APPLAUDS)

So, Frank McGill,
all-American hero.

Not at all. Ordinary guy in the
right place at the right time.

-With a 9-milli under his belt.
-(AUDIENCE LAUGHS)

HOST: I'm curious -
the person whose life you saved

once campaigned for a ban
on concealed carrying.

How do you feel about that?

I respectfully disagree
with those views,

but the young lady's
entitled to her opinion,

and nobody should be
attacking her for that,

much less
holding her at gunpoint.

(APPLAUSE)

GEORGE:
McGill's a gift from God.

But it won't last forever.

We're looking to parlay that

into a closer examination
of Sloane.

I'm thinking
of a Congressional hearing

into her
unorthodox lobbying practices.

(LAUGHS)

GEORGE: I'm sure we can
find a senator

who may be open
to the idea.

You want to talk trash about her
in the press, that's one thing.

A Congressional hearing
requires

a convincing allegation
of impropriety.

I'd give my left nut to
drag her rep through the dirt,

but you're not
gonna get it.

CONNORS: She's a CYA specialist.

I've never met anyone
so pedantic...

Start an inquisition.

Let's see how well-covered
her ass really is.

Hi.

Pru Walsh. Thanks so much
for coming over.

This is Mike Gordon,
from our legal department.

Daniel Posner, from ours.

Miss Sloane,
you are at the forefront

of an industry
with a terrible reputation.

Do you think
that's deserved?

SLOANE: The only reason
this bill

wasn't passed decades ago

is because of the power
of special interests.

When a lobbyist
raises finance...

We haven't heard from Esme
Manucharian since the attack.

-Are you in contact with her?
-That's a private matter.

I think what's important
to remember...

So have you talked to her
at all?

What is important
to remember here

is that Frank McGill
is exactly the kind

of law-abiding,
responsible gun owner

whose rights
the Heaton-Harris bill protects.

So do you feel any guilt
about what happened?

Why would I feel guilt?

You made Esme
the face of your campaign,

thrust her into the limelight
that night on the debate.

-I'm not talking about this.
-You don't have to.

Did she know you were going
to out her on TV? Did she agree?

Why not report that
the majority of gun owners

favour more extensive
background checks...

She probably went
her entire career...

-..fearmongering rhetoric...
-Enough!

..paint Heaton-Harris
into something it's not.

Do you think your little
revelation made her a target?

It's clear she doesn't wish
to discuss Miss Manucharian.

What's really clear is that
your article's already written.

Don't respond to that. That's
purely speculative on your part.

-Who's controlling you?
-Let's not do this.

The fact is you have no way
of knowing what Ms Walsh...

The fact is you have no interest
in what Miss Sloane has to say.

-And how would you know that?
-Your dictaphone's off.

-ALEX: Take-down.
-Could have been worse.

I've got
four factual errors so far.

-This is not good, Liz.
-Dump it in the recycling.

They'll make pencils out of it.

Maybe one will find its way
into the hands

of a reporter
with some integrity.

It will go away.

Oh, OK. Thank you.

'Bye.

Funny how all these senators
are suddenly very busy.

We all know why that is.

OK, so, it's not great.

The 15 million
helped us get this far,

but it doesn't last long
when you're fighting

the richest group
on the Hill.

Let's get to the point. How's it
shake out with the vote?

We'd run them close,
but, by latest projections,

we'll be between
four to seven votes short.

There's nothing more
we can do tonight.

-Liz, we don't have to leave.
-The West Coast is still awake.

We connect with Oregon,
we close those goddamn loggers,

we can get it
to five votes tonight.

Go home and get some rest, guys.
You've done enough for today.

I'll take to the streets
and rip down those fucking

Frank McGill posters
one at a time if I have to.

Go home. Sharpen your knives.
It'll still be on tomorrow.

(FOOTSTEPS RECEDE)

(DOOR CLOSES)

SCHMIDT: So we keep on fighting.

That's all we can do.

As my ex-wife used to say.

I met you running
from a fundraiser.

You could be done
with all this.

Why don't you quit?

And do what?

(EXHALES SLOWLY)

Goodnight.

(SNIFFS)

(DOOR CLOSES)

(RINGING TONE)

JANE: Hello?

I'm surprised you picked up.

I'm sorry.
You have the wrong number.

(GRUNTS)

(SCREAMS)

(SOBS)

(TENSE MUSIC)

JANE: She'd ply congressmen
with benefits,

free meals, tickets to events,
golfing weekends,

all paid for by our clients
via the firm.

Well, that right there's
enough.

She'd make a point
of invoicing them,

though they were
never expected to pay.

The debt shows as an asset
on our balance sheet.

We can call it in
any time we want.

CONNORS: You were her right hand
for two years.

There's gotta be something!

Why is nobody
on her files?

There were a ton of us,
but the others got pulled out.

It's not like we're in danger
of finding anything.

Well, how far did you get?

We worked backwards
from her last deal

before she jumped ship -
said it'd be better

if we can nail her
on something recent.

-Which was?
-Shmallow Cakes.

Some tax thing.
She left halfway through.

I thought it was
the palm oil thing.

-Palm oil?
-Nutella tax.

Hold on.

The Indonesians?

SPENCER: I don't remember
seeing that.

(BOTH TYPE RAPIDLY)

What are you looking for?

JANE: Mr Dupont?

She's in breach
of Senate Ethics rules.

We can prove it.

(CAR TYRES SQUEAL IN DISTANCE)

Things aren't looking so good
for you this cycle, Ron.

You ask me, you're gonna need
a lot more paid media.

-SPERLING: I didn't ask you.
-Now...

Who might just be able to fund
those coveted TV spots?

I'm committed to Heaton-Harris.

I can't vote for it
with one hand

and choke it
with the other.

Under cover of impartiality,
sure you can.

You've been a vocal critic
of lobbyists in the past.

You'll lead an inquiry
into Sloane's affairs

in response to
growing media pressure

regarding
her litany of misdeeds.

The cost of hearings
is paid from the public purse.

Ron, our clients
have identified you

as the man
to pull this off.

If you decline,
I can't stop them

from blitzing you
with negative finance.

They won't stop
until they annihilate you.

You know the root
of the word 'annihilate'?

It's Latin.

It means 'reduce to nothing'.

That's what they're
going to do to you, Ron.

So, what, I'll be taking
a wedge from Bill Sandford

and leading the attack

on Heaton-Harris's
most visible advocate?

A sixth-grader
could connect the dots.

We can create a structure
to obfuscate the source.

Your big wedge will arrive

courtesy of 8 to 12
smaller entities

with no affiliation to guns.

(SIGHS)

How big a wedge are we talking?

Big enough to be the difference

between the continuation
of your duties

as a United States senator

and the reduction
of your career to nothing.

(CAR DOOR THUDS)

This is every hit
since the original

Pru Walsh hack job
two weeks ago.

My personal favourite
is the one about

how you toppled the head of
the high school student council

with a fabricated
plagiarism scandal.

I'm assuming it's not libellous
'cause I can totally see it.

That witch was insufferable.

SCHMIDT: I'm taking you
off the campaign.

What?

Not you. Her.

I'll be outside.

What are you talking about?

Heaton-Harris gets colder
every day

you're associated with it.

Sperling's
got the hots for you.

I haven't even met him.
This is a set-up.

If they're orchestrating it,

it's because they want me
off the campaign.

Right now, you're lawyering up
for a hearing.

(RINGING TONE)

SPERLING: Regarding
your representation

of the Indonesian government...

SCHMIDT: Dan, are you busy?

SPERLING: ..Senator Allen
Jacobs, sponsor of the bill

you dubbed the Nutella tax,

was flown to Indonesia,
first class, with his family

and put up at a 5-star hotel.

Our audit puts the cost
of this trip at over $30,000.

Shortly after his return,

the bill was pulled
from consideration.

Now...

Why do you suppose
this happened?

SLOANE: I understand the trip
was for educational purposes.

I can surmise
that he learned how his bill

would have strangled
a key industry

and confined thousands

of impoverished farmers
to destitution.

SPERLING:
From his private beach?

-(PEOPLE TITTER)
-SPERLING: No.

The truth is,
your client funded this trip

as an inducement for the senator
to withdraw his bill.

-Isn't that right?
-Not at all.

My client was
the Indonesian government.

The trip was sponsored

by the Institute
of Environmental Studies,

a 501-C3 non-profit
organisation.

Travel was pre-approved
by the Senate Ethics Committee.

Has your client ever donated
to this non-profit?

I wouldn't know that.

I am not privy
to their list of donors,

nor had I any role
in arranging funding for this.

-No role?
-Mmm.

Of course,
you couldn't have any role,

because the Senate Ethics rules
prevent lobbyists

from arranging overseas travel
for members of Congress.

SLOANE: Indeed.

(CAMERAS CLICK)

You know what this is?

Perhaps we can get you a copy.

-(PEOPLE MURMUR)
-POSNER: Let me see.

SPERLING: Are you familiar
with that form?

Yes. It's a private sponsor
certification form.

It's a copy of the same private
sponsor certification form

that was submitted
to the Senate Ethics Committee

to pre-authorise Senator
Jacobs's travel to Indonesia.

Look at the handwriting
on that form, Miss Sloane.

Do you recognise
that handwriting?

Yes, I do.

Is it your handwriting?

It is.

Well, it seems
we have a problem.

Even though the form was signed
and filed by the non-profit,

you were the one
who filled it out.

This is prima facie evidence
that you were involved

in arranging overseas travel
for a member of Congress,

constituting a clear breach
of Senate Ethics rules.

Is that your trump card?

You drag me in here, wedge
an endoscope up my posterior,

and all this time,
the only incriminating item

you have in your possession
is a filing snafu?

SPERLING: How about
surveillance, Miss Sloane?

Mr Rodolfo Schmidt
has stated in deposition

that you intended to use methods
such as bugging and tapping

to entrap Senator Hank Badgley -
is this true?

I did for a brief moment
intend to use such methods,

but that intention
was never acted upon.

And why was that?

Mr Schmidt expressly forbade it,

as he, no doubt,
told you in his deposition.

But you were clearly comfortable
with these methods.

Did you employ
the tactics of espionage

regularly throughout
your lobbying career?

-No, I did not.
-Then let me ask you this.

Have you ever
authorised, ordered

or otherwise brought about

any kind of unlawful
surveillance on any person?

Let me remind you that perjury
before Congress is a felony...

The answer is no.

I have never authorised
illegal surveillance.

(PEOPLE MURMUR)

This concludes
my questioning of the witness.

Thank you, Miss Sloane.

We have one further witness.

POSNER: Either you just
perjured yourself

or you're not
so sleazy after all.

SPERLING: ..Mr Robert Forde.

I wouldn't count on that.

Mr...Mr Chairman.

I don't recall being notified
of your intention to...

We were only recently able
to locate the witness.

Let it play.

A moment with my client,
please.

What is this?
Who's Robert Forde?

-I can make a public appeal...
-Let it play, damn it.

They're gonna get it out there
one way or another.

(PEOPLE MUTTER)

SPERLING: Mr Forde,
please raise your right hand.

Do you solemnly swear
that you will tell the truth,

the whole truth
and nothing but the truth,

under pains and penalties
of perjury?

-I swear.
-Please sit.

Mr Forde,
could you please describe

the nature of your work?

I got many jobs.

What would you say earns you
the most income at present?

-I work as an escort in DC.
-(ALL MURMUR)

SPERLING: You sleep with women
for money?

I meet the clients' needs.

Whatever they may be.

Sometimes a client
don't even know what they need.

Part of my job is to
figure that out.

But sometimes your job entails
having intercourse for payment?

-Yes, sir.
-(MUTTERING)

SPERLING: Have you ever met
Elizabeth Sloane?

Mr Chairman,
the Senate has no business

prying into the personal affairs
of Miss Sloane.

Solicitation
is a criminal offence.

It is well within
the remit of this hearing

to establish whether Miss Sloane
has broken any laws.

Mr Forde, have you ever
met Miss Sloane?

Yep.

SPERLING:
Could you identify her, please?

Sittin' right there.

SPERLING: What was the nature
of your relationship?

I was attending a function
with a client.

I tried to introduce myself,
but she bucked me off.

Mr Forde, have you
ever entertained Miss Sloane

as a client?

No, sir.

I can produce sworn statements

from two employees
of the Carver Hotel

to the effect that they saw
Miss Sloane in the lobby

on the same day that you, Mr
Forde, held a reservation there.

I ask again -
did you entertain Miss Sloane

in any capacity for profit?!

-No, sir, I did not.
-(MURMURING)

Thank you, Mr Forde.
You are dismissed.

SPERLING: These proceedings
will conclude tomorrow,

and Miss Sloane is referred
to the Senate Ethics Committee

for their judgement.

I can't believe those fuckers
dragged that guy...

Ross!

How's our old friend
Heaton-Harris?

Comatose.
The whole issue's gone cold.

That is what they wanted.

SCHMIDT: And we all know
what it would take to revive it.

Seriously...

..an earthquake.

We got closer
than we had any right to.

We'll all be there tomorrow.

(PENSIVE MUSIC)

(AEROPLANE ENGINE DRONES)

-(CAMERAS SNAP)
-(REPORTERS SHOUT)

-WOMAN: Miss Sloane!
-MAN: Are you...

(REPORTERS CALL QUESTIONS)

WOMAN 2: Miss Sloane! Over here!
Do you have a comment?

(PEOPLE CHATTER)

-SPERLING: Good morning.
-(GAVEL BANGS)

(PEOPLE QUIETEN)

SPERLING: Before referring
to the witness's testimony

to the Office
of Congressional Ethics,

she is entitled
to make a statement.

Miss Sloane?

Is there something
you'd like to say?

POSNER:
Mr Chairman, my client

does not wish
to make a statement.

Very well.

I will now read
the referral

to the Office
of Congressional Ethics...

There is something
I'd like to say, Senator.

(SLOANE CLEARS THROAT)

(WATER TRICKLES)

(DECANTER THUDS)

(INHALES DEEPLY)

I have been censured
by the press and by this hearing

as a parasite
on American democracy.

It's insinuated
that I led the fight

for increased gun regulation

in the interest of my career.

Sometimes we act
not for ourselves...

..but because we believe
plainly and simply

it is the right thing to do.

Miss Sloane, is this pertinent
to the discussions we...

I understand I have the right
to say what I wish, Senator.

Proceed.

I believe the Heaton-Harris bill
is the right thing to do.

But I also recognise that
this wasn't what motivated me.

When I was offered a position
on the campaign,

I was enthralled
to the challenge.

My decision to accept
was based on my desire to win...

..and to win bigger
than I ever had before.

It's clear that my behaviour
has fallen well short...

..of acceptable
ethical standards.

I've c...crossed lines,
with devastating consequences,

in the service of my obsession.

I have betrayed the people
closest to me.

I have endangered lives.

I deserve censure for this

far more than for
any filing irregularity.

(SIGHS)

When they consider
the Heaton-Harris bill, I wish

that each member of Congress

would follow the example set
not by me

but by the group of people
that sit behind me...

..who have made great sacrifices

in the name of doing
what they believe is right.

I wish that those members
would use their votes

not in the interest
of their political advancement

but for what they believe
is right for their country.

But I know my wishes are wasted

and that this will never happen,

because our system is rotten.

(MURMURING)

It doesn't reward
honest politicians

who vote with their conscience.

It rewards...

..rats

who are willing to sell out
their country

to keep their noses
in the trough.

Make no mistake.

These rats
are the real parasites

on American democracy.

I anticipated
if we had sufficient success

in lobbying
for the Heaton-Harris bill,

there may be...

..an assault
against me personally,

to stall our momentum
and to damage our credibility.

Lobbying is about foresight.

About anticipating
your opponent's moves

and devising countermeasures.

I'd like to discuss my future.

This is hardly the time, cookie.

The winner plots one step
ahead of the opposition...

..and plays a trump card
just after they play theirs.

Actually, it is the time.

SLOANE: It's about making sure
you surprise them...

What the fuck is this?

..and that they don't
surprise you.

My resignation.

Academia is more my scene.

When I left
Cole, Kravitz & Waterman,

I retained an operative of mine
in their ranks.

Alright, Jane, contact
Rodolfo Schmidt, and tell him

there is a total of six
coming over.

Who says I'm coming?

SLOANE: A plan was hatched
to bankroll a trumped-up hearing

at the behest of the gun lobby.

There's gotta be something!

I'm surprised
you picked up.

Sorry. You have
the wrong number.

She's in breach of Senate
Ethics rules. We can prove it.

I placed George Dupont
under surveillance

until he met with
a member of Congress

who exhibited
sufficient moral bankruptcy

to collude with such a plan.

And go.

That member was
Senator Ronald Michael Sperling.

-(PEOPLE GASP AND EXCLAIM)
-Order! (BANGS GAVEL)

This is not a platform
you can use to make malicious...

Input the following address
into your browser -

193 dot 184

dot 216 dot 449.

Download a file
named 'earthquake'.

SPERLING ON RECORDING: I can't
vote for it with one hand

and choke it
with the other...

-(PEOPLE CLAMOUR)
-(RECORDING CONTINUES)

(MOMENTOUS MUSIC)

Get the car.

The cost of hearings is paid
from the public purse...

(GAVEL BANGS)

In light of these allegations,
this hearing is adjourned.

GEORGE: They won't stop
until they annihilate you.

You know the root
of the word 'annihilate'?

It means 'reduce to nothing'.

Back up, please! Back up!
Back up, please.

GEORGE: That's what they're
going to do to you, Ron.

(REPORTERS SHOUT)

(MUSIC RISES)

(MUSIC CONTINUES)

(DOOR OPENS)

(DOOR CLOSES)

I'm surprised you showed.

I hear I'm not the only one

whose visits
you've been refusing.

You look good.

Prison's not so bad
if you don't have a penis.

We don't shank each other.
We form self-help groups.

There's a black market
in lip gloss.

Hm.

And why this time?

They told me it was business.

Yeah. Um...

Now that the Sperling
and Dupont hearings

are on the schedule, I'm
petitioning for early release.

You...look good too, by the way.

Thank you.

I think we're looking at
four, maybe six months.

You instigated the whole thing.

You weaponised yourself

and brought the roof
of the US Capitol

crashing down on your head.

For what?

A gun bill?

Worked, didn't it?

Well, congrats.

Criminals must now
endure the hassle

of procuring their guns
on the black market.

Was that really
worth your career?

Career suicide's not so bad
when you consider

the alternative
is suicide by career.

My doctor would tell you I've
served my interest very well.

Hm.

Thanks for coming, Daniel.

I'm curious.

Your little filing snafu.

You filled out that form
deliberately.

That was you
throwing them a bone.

Without it, they would have
nothing to incite the hearing.

And you're under no obligation
to answer that.

And you neglected
to mention this

to any of your team
because...?

Five years minimum.

I'll be seein' ya.

(GENTLE MUSIC)