I'm not a Christian.
I'm not an atheist.
I'm not Jewish.
I'm not Muslim.
My religion
and what l believe in
is called the Constitution
of the United States of America.
- Hang on.
- Did you get that?
- And let me open these up.
- Hmm?
Okay, go ahead.
If l'm not religious enough for you,
don't vote for me.
If l'm not experienced enough
for you...
don't vote for me.
Uh...
You know what? Don't vote for me.
Don't. Don't do it.
Whatever you do,
don't vote for me. How's that?
- Okay.
- Okay.
- We got it. Thanks.
Can we get the monitors up a little?
I'd like the governor to be able to hear himself.
- You got it.
- Okay.
Also... are we gonna put risers
under these podiums
like we discussed
in the preconditions?
No, I know. We didn't get
the specs till last night.
- They're making something slide right under that.
- Okay. Thank you.
- It's just they're few inches short,
so it makes it hard for him
to read his notes.
- Okay.
Gentlemans, thank you.
And I see you in a few hours.
Didn't know the governor
had trouble reading his notes.
Why he isn't wearing glasses?
No, he doesn't. Just Pullman is 5'8".
He's gonna look like a hobbit.
l like Mike! l like Mike!
Well, it all comes down to this.
We are one week away
from the Ohio primary.
Two democrats on left standing.
Senator Pullman of Arkansas
trailing Governor Morris
of Pennsylvania.
Governor Morris has mounted
a sizable lead, with 2047 delegates,
winning New Hampshire, California,
New York and Michigan.
But Senator Pullman, with 1302
delegates, is still in the hunt,
having won Florida and Tennessee
and Virginia and Missouri.
A win in Ohio could turn it all
aroundfor the Arkansas senator.
One week from Tuesday,
the all-important 161 Ohio delegates
could be the deciding factor.
Once again, it is true,
as goes Ohio, so goes the nation.
Would you call yourself Christian?
How would that matter?
"Let me quote. l have no idea
what happens when we die.
Maybe nothing. Maybe it's like
before we were born." Unquote.
- You did write this governor.
- Let me be specific.
Please do.
l was raised Catholic.
l am not a practicing Catholic.
And l have no idea what happens
after we die.
If the senator does,
maybe he should be president.
l'll vote for him.
ls that your idea of being specific?
- Let me be more specific.
- Thank you.
I am not a Christian or an atheist.
I'm not Jewish or Muslim.
What l believe, my religion,
is written on a piece of paper
called The Constitution.
Meaning that I will defend,
until my dying breath, your right
to worship, in whatever god
you believe in,
as long as it doesn't hurt others.
I believe we should be judged
as a country,
by how we take care of the people
who cannot take care of themselves.
That's my religion.
If you think l'm not religious enough,
don't vote for me.
If you think l'm not experienced enough,
or tall enough, don't vote for me.
Because I can't change that
to get elected.
l just wanted you to say out loud
if you believe
in the teaches of the Bible.
ls this a Democratic primary
or a general election?
Well governor,
whoever wins this contest
will be running for president.
And if you think that
these questions won't be central
in a general election,
then you are living in fantasy land.
l'm simply pointing to the obvious.
We are running for president
of the United States,
not student council president.
- Double?
- Yeah, double.
Fucking national security.
- Out of the park.
- Home run.
The alumni of Miami
University of Ohio
would like to thank you
for attending tonight's debate
and ask you to please remain in your seats
until the candidates have left the stage.
Thank you very much.
You know, I'm trying to remember
if the Democrats
have ever nominated
an atheist before.
Well, we know they've
nominated a jackass before.
Oh, must have been you
that did that prep work, Stephen.
Paul's not that clever.
You've always had the brain' stuff.
But me, l've had the balls.
Well, it looks like you've
got some brains now too.
Be careful. I just might
have to steal him from you.
Hm.
What a prick.
We'll meet again 
Don't know where
Don't know when 
But l know we'll meet again 
Some sunny day, oh 
So Paul, tell me something l don't know.
Tell me what's going
to happen on the 15th.
- Oh, God.
- What?
- What do you think, Stevie?
- I think it's ours for the taking. You?
- Yeah. Ben?
- Yeah, we'll win.
- What do you think, lda?
- I'm asking you.
Oh, you tell me, I'll tell you.
If l had to say,
I'd say it'll be close,
but you'll eke it out.
"Eke"?
You see?
She's trying to get under my skin.
- So, what's gonna happen?
- Us by nine.
so you're certain
you're gonna win here?
- Certain, no. Confident, yeah.
- You just said you'll win by nine.
And I think that we will. l'm not
gonna tell you it's a sure thing.
If the fuking Saint Gabriel can blow
his horn on election day,
and get his Four Horsemen
to rig the ballot boxes for Pullman,
and it wouldn't surprise me.
Six presidentials l've done
and I've never felt this good.
But I'm not gonna sit here and say,
"Yeah, hey, we'll win Ohio."
Not a chance.
In the last 30 years,
How many have won? Three.
That means 70 guys ran who thought
they had a chance, and they all lost.
So you're saying there's
a big chance you won't win.
Don't twist my words Ida.
What l'm saying is
I'm not gonna promise you we'll win.
But he's a decorated of Bush Junior
from the first Gulf War,
he protested the second,
he left his state with a balanced
budget and the fourth-highest
education rate.
The Republicans, have no one out there
that can touch this guy.
For this moment, this election,
this primary, is the presidential.
And that, Ida,
is the state of the union.
And on that note...
I'm gonna take a shit.
- So, Stephen.
- So, Ida.
- Stephen, Stephen, Stephen.
- Ida, Ida, lda.
- Paul's going to the airport.
- Yeah.
- He's getting on a plane.
- That's what you do going at airport, yeah.
Where's that plane going?
Okay.
- I'll give you three guesses.
- He's not going back to headquarters.
- Correct.
- He's not going to Texas.
No need. We're gonna split Texas.
So it's a wash.
What if I said North Carolina?
- Is that your guess?
- He's going to North Carolina.
- I can neither confirm nor deny that.
- I knew it. Now tell me why.
- I cannot do that.
- Ugh. I hate you.
- You love me.
- I love Paul. You, I hate.
You love him
because he gives you the scoops.
- Sexual favors.
- You're engaged.
If it meant a good scoop,
my fiance would understand.
You really buy into
all this crap.
All this "take back the country"
nonsense.
Ida, I'm not naive, okay?
I've worked on more campaigns
than most people have
by the time they're 40.
I'm telling you, this is the one.
- You really have drunk the Kool-Aid.
- I have drunk it. It's delicious.
Look, l don't care if he happens
to be leading in the polls
and I don't care if he happens
to have all the right tools.
The truth is, he's the only one
that's gonna actually make a
difference in the people's lives.
Even the people that hate him.
If Mike Morris is president,
it says more about us
than it does about him.
I don't give a fuck, if he can win.
He has to win.
Or what? What?
The world's gonna fall apart?
It won't matter, not one bit,
to the everyday lives
or the everyday fuckers
who get up, and work,
and eat, and sleep,
go back to work again.
You know, if your boy wins,
you get a job in the White House.
He loses, you're back at a
consulting firm on the K Street.
That's it.
You used to know that
before you got all goosebumpy
about this guy.
Mike Morris is a politician.
He's a nice guy.
They're all nice guys.
He will let you down,
sooner or later.
'Scuse me 
While I 
Disappear 
- This is off-off-off the record.
- What?
- Franklin Thompson.
- Seriously?
Off the record. The only people who know
are the governor, Stephen and me.
My lips are sealed.
Tomorrow l have a meeting
at Thompson's house.
- He's going to endorse?
- After l'm done talking to him.
That's huge.
More than huge.
He has 356 pledged delegates.
They all travel with him.
Puts us over the top.
He said publicly he's not
going to endorse anybody.
Yeah well, that's what they all say
untill you get them alone in a room.
- So this is for real.
- Yep.
Just about in the bag.
When are you
going to announce?
Nope, that's all
you get for now.
Okay, listen up.
These are your new cell phones.
Shelly's pre-programmed
your numbers. Thank you Shelly.
No personal calls, Kevin.
If you lose them,
the DNC will come to your house.
- New phones. Give me your old one.
- I'll give you later.
l gotta believe we can do it.
We have enemies. We have to understand
why our enemies are our enemies
and see if there's something
we can do about that,
besides just using force.
As we know from history,
the answer to extremism
can't be extremism.
Fucking kill me.
- Whoever throws their hat in.
Whoever decides...
- Where did we get this?
Some town-hall meeting
in Pennsylvania before the announce.
Thank God it wasn't overseas.
Just get rid of it.
- Hey, what I mean, if it plays to his base,
why would this bother us?
- Are you fuking stoned?
This is the exact same piece
the Republicans are gonna run
against him in the general.
We don't need to brag about it.
I'm Neville Chamberlain.
I'd like to be your commander in chief.
Then if it's gonna come out anyway...
Then it's gonna come out,
but it's not gonna come out
paid for by us, pal.
You think there's any truth
in this Pullman having investments
in a diamond mine in Liberia?
- Still checking on it,
but we got it from a blog,
so who the fuck...
I don't care if it's true.
I just wanna hear him denying it.
If it is true, great. Find out.
But if not, let them spend
the day telling the Post
that he doesn't own
a diamond mine in Liberia.
- Win-win.
- Okay.
- We gotta counter this Christian shit
we take him from last night
- Got it.
I need the new 30
and 60-second spots.
We can show him in the
staff meeting this afternoon, so...
- Hey.
- Hey.
Ben wanted me to get you to sign off
on this before the staff meeting.
Okay. Thank you,
I've been waiting for this.
Anything interesting?
This is some white paper
I have to hand out tonight.
What's white paper?
Negative shit.
Our oppo guys do research,
we feed it to the press,
and we see what sticks.
What kind of negative shit?
- You'll read the paper tomorrow.
- Which paper?
- Any. Any paper.
- So it's something big?
I wish it was something bigger.
It's just these
transportation numbers.
I'm gonna have to spin pretty hard
to make it stick.
- That's what you're good at, right?
- I guess.
Tell him it's fine.
- Did you get your new phone?
- Mm-hm.
It's really exciting, isn't it?
What are you, a Bearcat?
Am l a what?
Cincinnati Bearcat?
Oh, no. l'm not from here.
I worked with you in Iowa, actually.
Oh.
That's right.
But you changed something.
- My hair?
- You changed your hair.
No.
Oh. l see.
Bet you I look like
a real dumb-ass right now, huh?
No, not at all.
You're the big man on campus.
I'm just a lowly intern.
Oh, it's not like that.
You get to stay at the Millennium.
- Ok? They put us in a motel
in the other side of the river.
- You're right.
- I am the big man on campus.
- Now you're starting to see.
Mm-hm.
- We do have a better bar, though.
- I've heard that.
You should come by one night.
Have a drink with the worker bees.
I might do that. I might do that.
What's a good night?
- Tonight's good.
- Tonight? Tuesday night?
- Yeah. lt's quiet.
- Quiet's good.
Well, you have my number.
I do?
It's programmed right there
in your phone.
Aha.
- Under "Mary."
- I know your name's Mary.
My name is Molly.
Yep.
That's what l'm hearing.
Since Super Tuesday,
all of a sudden,
I'm a very popular guy.
What are your polls
telling you?
That Pullman's negatives
are high. Mid 40s.
Senator, we have an open
seat in the White House.
The Republicans have dick.
They're disorganized.
They can't find a nominee
that's not a world-class fuck-up.
They look like Democrats.
No Republican's gonna
show up to vote for their guy.
But if Pullman gets the Democratic nod,
they will show up to vote against him.
And you think they won't for your guy.
You think Morris gets the independents.
I sure do.
Senator, I'm a bit confused.
We need your delegates.
We need you.
Your fund-raising.
And l guess
it was my understanding
that your endorsement
a week before Ohio
would win this for us.
- Thank you.
- Estella.
Hand me that ice bucket.
- Is this Paul, or is this you?
- Paul knows and Paul agrees.
Ben, where's my op-ed piece
on national service?
- It's easier for me to work off of that.
- Got it right here.
- Give me a hard copy,
I hate those fuking things.
- Can we print it out?
- Molly, can you grab it a print for me?
- Yeah, One second.
- So if you wanna change or refresh--
- Just give me a second, will you?
Your national service isn't polling
the same as the rest of your policy.
I don't give a shit about the polling, Stephen.
I'm not gonna play this game with you.
This is your good-cop,
bad-cop act with Paul.
Good-cop, good-cop.
I'm not changing it.
Here we go.
All right, let's see.
It says we're gonna help people
get an education,
we're gonna create national unity,
we're gonna teach young people a trade,
and we're gonna to get them out of debt
for their college loans.
- Now, where does that fail?
- All of that's exactly right, governor.
Just, if you're gonna do it, do it.
Make it mandatory, not voluntary.
- Now, that'll poll well.
- Mandatory.
Everybody who turns 18
or graduates high school
gives two years of service
to his or her country.
It can be in the military,
Peace Corps, planting
fucking trees, l don't care.
For that, your college education
is paid for, period.
We do all of that right here.
No, sir, you don't, not all the way.
Do it all the way. Mandatory.
- Paul likes this?
- Mm-hm.
You're my brain trust.
The beauty of it is that everybody
who's over the age of 18
or pass the age of eligibility
will be for it.
- Why not?
- And all of the others...
Can't vote.
Too young.
Too bad.
You can't lose.
- Uh, Stephen?
- Mm?
- You have a call on Line 3.
It's your dad.
Okay.
You and Ben work it
on this stump speech.
and you'll get me a hard copy
and l'll write it in my own words.
- Don't forget you have Charlie Rose at 6.
- Right. Yeah. Why am I doing him?
It's long-form.
He's flying in.
Paul going?
Paul won't be in,
but Ben and I will take you.
Just don't tell me someone's died.
Hey, Steve.
- Who is this?
- Tom Duffy.
Sorry about the dad bit.
Uh... l just figured you wouldn't
want my name called out
at a Morris campaign office.
- What do you want?
- You got a couple minutes?
- I'd like to sit down with you.
- What for?
Well, l think it's important.
Well, if it's important, don't you think
you should be calling Paul?
I'm calling you.
This is on the up-and-up.
Steve, give me five minutes.
- I can't be talking to you.
- l hear you.
But, if you got five minutes,
I'm gonna be at the Head First sport bar
for the next couple of hours.
I can't, Tom.
There won't be anybody there.
Okay?
You get a chance,
there's something I wanna show you.
Paul, call me back. It's important.
You're working for the wrong man.
You are working for the wrong man.
Oh, on the contrary,
you are the one working
for the wrong man.
And you got something
the other guys don't have.
- Yeah?
- Yeah, what is it exactly?
"Charm" is not
the right word.
- It is the right word.
- No, it's more than that.
You exude something.
You draw people in.
All the reporters love you.
Even the ones that hate you
love you.
'Cause you play them like
the pieces on a chessboard
and make it look effortless.
And we both know
how hard it is
constantly being on guard,
weighing every word, every move.
But from the outside,
you make it look easy.
People are scared of you.
'cause they don't understand
how you do it, and they
love you for it.
And that is the most valuable thing
in this business.
The ability to win
people's respect
by making them mistake
their fear for love.
You can guess what
I'm gonna say next.
- I don't think that l can.
- I want you to work for us.
- What, are you kidding?
- No, not in the least.
- You're gonna lose Ohio.
- I am not.
Oh, you're sitting on about
a six percent lead in both polls.
Six percent
of all Democrats polled.
- Eight.
- No, six. Doesn't matter.
Ohio is an open primary,
right?
Independents and Republicans get the vote
on the Democratic candidate.
Do you think they like your guy?
- A pro-choice tax-and-spend liberal?
- No. Fuck, no. No, they hate him.
They think
they can beat my guy.
But they're very worried
about yours.
So starting tomorrow morning,
you're gonna see a fucking blitz.
Limbaugh, Hannity,
all those right-wing blogs
are starting
a get-out-the-vote campaign.
It's started already.
Every fukin' conservative in Ohio
is gonna line up around the block
to punch my guy's ticket,
and that's just one step.
Ohio's gone.
Polls don't mean shit.
Tomorrow morning
everybody's gonna know.
And that's why I want you
to handle the fallout
that we'll have in the press.
Oh, and we got Thompson
in the bag too.
I know for a fact
that you don't have Thompson.
No, we promised him
secretary of state.
Ohio is over.
It has been over for weeks.
And now with
Thompson's delegates? Huh.
I'm thinking down
the road here, man.
That is why l want you.
- I can't do it.
- Bring you straight at the top.
- I can't do it.
All right. l don't need
an answer right this moment.
- Look, l've played dirty. All right?
- I'm sorry to hear it.
But I don't have
to play dirty anymore.
You know why? I got Morris.
No, no, none of this is about
the democratic process, Steve.
It's about getting your guy off.
- This is the shit Republicans pull.
- Yeah, you know what?
This is the kind of shit that the Republicans pull,
and it's about time we learned from them.
They're meaner, they're tougher,
they're more disciplined than we are.
I've been in this business
and I've seen way too many Democrats
bite the dust
because they wouldn't
get down in the mud
with the fucking elephants.
- Paul's my friend.
- You Wanna work for the friend
or do you wanna work
for the president?
Think about it.
You got my number.
Paul.
Hey, they don't make quaaludes
anymore, do they?
Not that l'm aware of.
What's going on with
Thompson?
Uh, he wants something, but...
We'll be fine.
What was so important?
Nothing. Figured it out.
All right.
I'll be on my cell if you need me.
I fly to D.C. tomorrow,
back tomorrow night.
Okay. l'll work
on the quaaludes.
Good man.
Check the blogs and see if there's
any chatter, would you?
- Chatter? What kind of chatter?
- I don't know.
- Just see what they're talking about.
- Stevie, you still single?
I'm married to the campaign,
governor.
He's married to the campaign.
Good answer.
Wall Street Journal
has our numbers holding.
- Pullman dropped a point.
- Really, when did they do that?
- Checking now.
- Governor, the Wall Street Journal' numbers
are running Pullman's down a point.
Uh... we're moving
in the right direction.
Ben, are you still single?
- Married to the campaign, governor.
- Crack team.
Make sure Charlie Rose
has those numbers
before he goes on.
I'm on it.
Get a copy of the show
before we leave too.
Is it a difficult decision?
I have to believe it is.
Would I do it? No.
But I can't see myself
or anyone
certainly not a government,
telling a woman what she should do
with her body.
So, you would appoint a judge?
I would consider it
arrogant to judge anyone until
I've walked in their shoes.
- But you're against
the death penalty?
- Mmhmm.
Because of what it says
about us as a society.
Suppose, governor,
it was your wife.
And she was murdered,
what would l do?
It gets more complicated
when it's personal.
Sure.
Well, if I could get to him,
uh, I would find a way to kill him.
So you, you, governor,
would impose a death penalty.
No, I would commit a crime
for which I would happily go to jail.
Then why not let
society do that?
Because society has to be
better than the individual.
If l were to do that,
I would be wrong.
What about guns?
Isn't it time for a commercial?
- This is public television.
- We don't have any commercials.
That's unfortunate.
Where did you go after lowa?
California.
For Super Tuesday.
Oh.
- I had to go to New York.
- I know.
You guys needed a lot
more help over there.
Yeah.
So why politics?
Because the pay
is so good, obviously.
It seems like a very odd fit.
My dad is Jack Stearns.
- Oh, he's a good guy.
- He's an asshole.
But he's your boss.
He's not my boss.
He's the head of the DNC.
You don't work
for the Democratic
National Committee?
I work for Paul.
Paul works for Morris.
And if Morris wins,
he's gonna be your dad's boss.
Don't tell my dad that.
Don't tell your dad
a lot of things.
Never.
What time you gotta
work tomorrow?
Nine A.M.
I'm showing the new interns
how to robocall.
It's because
I'm the experienced intern,
you see?
I see.
How old are you?
How old do you think l am?
Thirty.
- You think I'm 30?
- Sorry. How old are you?
Thirty.
How old are you?
How old do you think l am?
Twenty-one?
- Twenty.
- Yep.
That's young.
Is that too young
to fuck a 30-year-old?
Well...
You see, the laws are different
in different states.
Here, at your hotel
here in Kentucky,
it's frowned upon.
Oh.
But, if we go across
the bridge into Ohio
- Where your hotel is.
- Yeah, surprisingly,
they're very lax about their
child-endangerment laws.
- Do you have a car? l don't drive.
- I took a cab.
I have the keys
to the campaign bus.
It fairness this has been tried before.
Operation Chaos,
as Russ Limbaugh called it,
where Republicans voted for a Democrat
they thought they could beat
in the general election.
We asked Senator Pullman's
campaign manager
if he's happy getting the votes
of right-wingers.
Is it decisive? No, of course not.
But look, we believe the polls
are within the margin of error
and that the senator
will win Ohio.
Yeah, what time's Paul get in?
Shit. Who do we talk to
about polling?
I gotta get some internal polling
on the independents
and the fuking wing nuts.
Do you want me to go?
What's that guy's name
from the Wall Street Journal?
You sound busy. l should go.
Could you hold on a second,
I'd like to talk to you about something.
Adler, yeah. Get him on the line.
Nobody. The cleaning lady.
Get him on the line.
Tell him we're gonna take
the same position we've always said:
The race is a lot closer
than the polling.
No, don't say that. Don't.
Just get him on the line and call me.
I'll take care of it. l'm sorry.
- Cleaning lady?
- Yeah.
You called me
the cleaning lady.
You're not mad
about that, are you?
- No, why would l be mad?
- Right.
l spoke with Jack Stearns.
Oh, hey. Look.
l know you're looking for
a reaction, but listen.
We have two great candidates
in a very tight race.
And at the end of the day,
the voters will decide
who best can
represent this party.
I understand Jack, but
doesn't this kind disruption
take away from what you guys
wanna be pushing this year?
You're right.
Your dad is an asshole.
- I'm gonna tell him you said that.
- Yeah, do that.
You wanted to talk to me about something?
Yeah, I just wanna be clear.
I don't want there to be
any confusion.
I'm not gonna tell anybody
about last night.
That'd be great,
if we kept it between us.
- You know how people are.
- Yeah.
Really wouldn't look good
if you screwed an intern.
It's not like that.
It's not like l got drunk.
I like you.
I just don't want there
to be any expectations.
- Steve, you don't have to say anything.
- All right.
I just don't want you
to think I'm a player.
You are kind of a player, but...
- I was being polite.
- Bullshit.
- You were trying to pick me up.
- No, I wasn't.
You were pretty obvious about it.
- I was?
- Yeah.
- I thought I was being smooth and subtle.
- No, you were pretty forward.
You were pretty forward
asking me to the bar.
Well, been trying to fuck you
for a while.
Wow.
- It's kind of slutty of me, huh?
- Not at all.
- I respect it in some strange way.
- Good.
- You absolutely have no idea
how to tie a tie.
- No, no, not a clue.
You're very mature.
For a teenager.
When are you coming back?
I'll be at the event a little late.
These cocksuckers,
fucking dirty shit.
- What happened with Thompson?
- Nothing. Prick.
We had him all sewed up,
motherfucker.
How bad is it?
I don't know. l just...
I'm running the numbers, Paul.
All right. l'll...
l'll be there in three hours.
l want hard numbers
and a strategy.
Yeah, l'm on it. l gotta go.
- You okay?
- Yeah. Just trying
to figure out our stops.
Think the weather
might determine that.
If we get there.
We're gonna be fine.
We have to do it.
It's the right thing to do.
Nothing bad happens
when you're doing the right thing.
Is this your personal theory?
Because I can shoot holes in it.
Roberto Clemente
on a humanitarian flight.
Well, there's...
There's exceptions to every rule.
So how we doing?
- I think we're fine now.
- No, the campaign. How we doing?
Oh, great.
Stephen, you're not Paul.
I pay Paul to use the word "great."
I pay you to tell me the truth.
I think that we are solid.
Okay Paul.
Governor, there's a big difference
between Paul and me.
Paul only believes in winning,
so he'll do or say anything to win.
But you wouldn't.
I'll do or say anything
if l believe in it.
But I have to believe in the cause.
You'll make a lousy consultant
when you're out of this line of work.
Well, l won't be
out of this line of work
as long as you're in it, sir.
So at best,
you got eight years.
Then you end up at
a nice consultant firm
off Farragut North,
making 750 grand a year,
eating at The Palm,
pimping out ex-senators
to Saudi princes.
Pimping out ex-presidents.
Then I better win.
Yeah.
Now, l've been married
for 11 years.
We have a normal marriage.
Which means when we disagree,
she wins.
What we don't disagree on
is how we're gonna leave
this planet for our daughter.
Are we gonna leave it better off
or worse?
The richest people in this country
don't pay their fair share.
And when they're asked to,
they cry socialism.
They use phrases like
"redistribution of wealth."
Yeah.
That scares everybody,
and they all run and they hide.
For the record,
my campaign is vehemently
against the distribution of wealth
to the richest Americans
by our government.
And l will run on that.
I didn't think it was true,
but I should've told you.
- Slow down.
- I'm sorry.
I met with Tom Duffy
yesterday.
What?
You were on a plane
and he called me
and asked if we could meet.
I said, "Why?" He said
it was very important, so l did.
- And l should have fuking told you.
- Stop, stop. Let me get this straight.
- You met with Tom Duffy.
- Yeah.
What'd he want, Stephen?
The gist? He wants to hire me.
He wants me to jump ship
and come and work for him.
This is really fucking bad.
He told me
they had poll numbers
that had Pullman ahead by 4.
And we're in big fukin' trouble,
'cause he laid out their strategy.
Doing robocalls, traffic jams,
fake lit, and Thompson.
They offered Thompson
secretary of state.
You know how you fight
the war on terror?
You don't need their product anymore.
Their product is oil.
Just don't need it
and they go away.
We don't have to bomb anyone.
We don't have to invade anyone.
If this is some kind
of fucking practical
-- I mean --
My fucking blood pressure's
going through the goddamn roof
right now.
Paul, l'm sorry.
Believe me.
- I just didn't think it was true.
- Oh, it doesn't matter
what you fuking thought!
It matters what you did!
It matters what you didn't do!
- You're right.
- Because if all this shit is true
I made a fucking ass out of myself
in thompson's place,
and l gave away our game plan.
Please believe me.
I honestly believed
you were gonna come back
and tell me we have
Thompson in the bag.
I didn't see the point.
- It doesn't make it right, and I'm sorry.
- Let me think.
Let me think.
If l'm your president,
the first thing l'd put into motion
is 10 years from
the day l take office,
no new car in America is run
on an internal combustion engine.
We will create hundreds
of thousands of new jobs,
we will start the next
technological revolution,
and we will lead the world again,
like we used to.
Get the governor right after
he finishes singing "Kumbaya"
and we give him
everything we know.
- Who do you want?
- You, me and the governor. That's it.
- What's he have after?
- He has a fund-raiser.
Well, he'll be late.
We tell him if he doesn't
offer Thompson the Cabinet position,
he's not gonna get the nomination.
- Is he gonna go for it?
- I don't fucking know, Stephen!
Find us a room.
How real are the numbers?
We might pick up a few points,
but we lose by 3 or 4 percent.
Who fucking knows, governor?
But we can't take the chance.
What do you think?
I think we fold up the campaign
in Ohio, take a loss,
blame it on Republicans playing
games, head to North Carolina.
I can't run from Ohio. They'll kill us.
Not if you get Thompson's endorsement.
I'm not gonna do it. What does he want?
Head of the FDA or something?
Cabinet post.
- Yeah, what, labor?
- State.
Are you fukin' kidding me?
I'm gonna give secretary of state
to a guy who wants to cut
the top 10 floors off the U.N.?
Paul, when we started this campaign,
l said I wasn't gonna make those kind of deals.
Governor, if you lose Ohio and they get
Thompson's delegates,
then they get North Carolina,
then they get the lead.
A lead you can't beat.
If we walk from Ohio,
take Thompson,
give him the fukin' Cabinet post,
then we take North Carolina,
his state,
then Pennsylvania, your state,
and then it's simple math, Mike.
Take his endorsement
and the race is over.
Paul, l respect you.
I respect your opinion.
I'm never gonna do it.
So l suggest we find a way
for me to win Ohio.
Anything else?
- lt's not gonna cut it.
- Every car company in north of Ohio.
They've booked every single van
for Tuesday.
Fuck. Jess, l gotta call you back.
- All of them?
- All of them.
- You're killing me.
- Here's what l got so far.
Independents aren't biting,
but the Republicans are.
They're not gonna tell a pollster
they're voting Democratic.
- I can't find the goddamn polls.
- Alright, I also made a call
and I'm gonna get a hundred vans out of
Convington and Newport, Kentucky.
- We don't need the fuking vans.
- No, no, that's not what I'm saying.
- We don't want Pullman to have the vans.
- We were the underdog before we got into this.
We continue to be
the underdog.
Well, then... Yeah, we always knew
the numbers were gonna get closer
as it get to tuesday.
We're not lowering
expectations.
I mean, have I ever said to you
that we had Ohio locked?
Well then, at least, give me the courtesy
of printing that in your column.
What are you writing?
The greatest speech ever given
on hydrogen power.
The bar is set awfully high
on that one.
Don't l know it.
I was hit up by Mitchell's wife
for you to show up
at her Daughters of
the American Revolution luncheon.
Who's Mitchell?
Congressman from
the First District?
You might wanna
remember that.
Fucking congressman.
Could you imagine doing
this every two years?
No, I can't.
Let's just do it one more time.
Mm-hm.
- In four more years.
- That's it.
It's a deal.
Do you think we'll lose Ohio?
I don't know.
If you took Thompson's delegates,
the race would be over.
Ohio wouldn't matter.
Is Paul working on you?
Stephen.
- They are good.
- Mm.
- Is Thompson so bad?
- He's a shit.
- Is he worse than Pullman?
- Yes, Stephen.
Every time I draw a line in the sand
and then I ... I move it.
Fundraisers, union deals,
I wasn't gonna do any of it.
Negative ads.
I can't on this one.
Not Thompson.
Tell Mrs. Mitchell
I'll make her goddamn luncheon.
Let the old ladies
pat me on the head.
- You've got great hair.
- You too, baby.
- Gay marriage.
- It's a silly argument.
- Not to a 50 percent of Americans.
- Over the age of 50.
- That's who votes,
that's who shows up at the polls.
Well, that's changing.
Hopefully, the way we frame
the argument is as well.
- From a religious...?
- From a religious to a civil-rights issue.
But one could argue
a great difference
between gender and race.
Not really, we used to ban
interracial marriages.
Women couldn't vote.
Paul, I have the guy from
Proctor & Gamble.
- Keep an eye on the governor.
- Okay.
- I gotta know what's going on.
- Yeah, yeah, okay.
All right, wait, wait, wait.
She's got a point to make.
Go ahead.
The argument is that
men and women can in fact
be considered separate but equal.
- Races cannot.
- How so?
You have separate public bathrooms
for both men and women,
but it would be illegal to have
separate bathrooms for two races.
- Now.
- Yes, now.
That's what I'm saying.
See, we're framing the argument...
- What time is this thing airing?
- Nine o'clock.
- How'd we do?
- We did good.
Yes, l know, but l tried to reach him,
and l couldn't get through.
- Yeah, just e-mail it to me.
Just e-mail it to me.
- Yeah.
- Then l can give it to him.
Oh, good. So attach that
and send it as an e-mail to me.
Yeah, l missed
my opportunity there.
- Now.
- Yes, now.
We're framing the argument
on the idea
that you choose to be gay,
not that you were born that way,
like being born African-American.
lf you start the discussion
with the idea
that gay is not a life choice
but is actually part of your DNA,
then gay marriage can and must
only be a civil-rights issue.
That's what l believe.
That's where l stand.
Do you think your candor
is your appeal?
Sorry.
Fuck. lt's not you.
- Molly?
- Hello?
Hey, your phone rang.
- Hm?
- Your phone rang.
It did?
Who's calling you
at 2:30 in the morning?
I don't know.
Really? Because he asked
for you by name.
- You answered it?
- I thought it was my phone.
Who is it?
I don't know.
Is it one of those interns
drunk-dialing you?
Now, that never happens.
Let me see the number.
- Oh, boy.
- Give me my...
- No. I'm calling him.
- Stephen, stop it.
- It's not funny.
- I'm saying l'm your dad.
Stephen it's not funny.
Give me my phone. Hang up.
- I have a shotgun.
- Stephen, hang up the phone.
Why is the governor calling you
at 2:30 in the morning?
Molly.
Why is the governor
calling you at all?
I'm in trouble.
With the governor?
What's going on?
I was working on the campaign
in Iowa.
There was a party in Ben's room
after the rally.
There was a party with you
and Ben and the governor?
- No, he wasn't there.
- Where was he?
I took him up a hard copy
of the polling numbers.
After the party?
It was around midnight.
I just stood in the doorway
with him,
just talking for a really long time.
He just reached behind me
and closed the door.
Jesus fucking Christ.
Were you drunk?
Not that drunk.
- How many times?
- It was just that once.
- Just the once?
- Just once.
- Does anybody know?
- No one knows.
- Does anybody see?
- No.
- How could you know?
- I know.
Then why is he calling you
right now?
I called him first.
- Why?
- Because I didn't know who else to go to.
And l needed 900 bucks.
For what?
I can't go to my dad.
We're Catholic.
So, what should I do?
Stephen?
What's up?
What's our limit on petty cash?
- It's about 500. Why?
- I need everything we can get.
Everything okay?
- Need help with anything?
- Yeah. Don't put it on the books.
That's all.
- What should l put it down as?
- Don't put it down as anything.
- Ok, anything over a hundred
l gotta put down--
- Just do it!
Molly.
- Okay.
- I'll take it back.
That's all.
- Yes, lda?
- Stevie, off the record--
No, I cannot tell you
what happened in North Carolina.
That's not what l wanted
to ask you about.
- Okay. What?
- You met with Duffy.
- Who told you that?
- A little bird.
- Who?
- Did you meet with him?
Where are you?
I know you met him with
at a little bar in Cincy
just before the press conference.
- Duffy ordered buffalo wings.
- Who said that? Duffy?
Anonymous.
What happened with Duffy?
Ida, you're supposed to be my friend.
Why you wanna stick the fukin' knife in me
on a bullshit story?
- Well, is that what you thought, that we're friends?
- I've given you everything you ever wanted.
Everything. Every story, every scoop,
the entire profile on Paul.
You've given me a lot,
but let's get real here Steve.
The only reason you've treated me well
was that I work for the Times,
not because I'm your friend.
You give me what l want,
I write you better stories.
Don't pretend it's anymore than that.
Why'd you meet with Duffy?
Go fuck yourself.
Okay, l'll make it easier on you.
Forget duffy.
What happened
at Paul and Thompson's meeting?
Keep your voice down.
Do you have any idea
what this could do to me?
Of course I do,
that's why I'm giving you a choice.
I could get fired.
So it's not a difficult one, is it?
I've gotta file by 3 p.m. tomorrow.
You've got till then
to make up your mind.
- You motherfucker.
- Excuse me?
- You leaked it.
- Leaked what?
Don't bullshit me, Tom.
Bullshit you?
I have no idea what you're talking about.
- I just spoke to Ida Horowicz.
- Yeah?
She's threatening
to release the story.
- What fucking story?
- That we met. That we fucking met.
- How did she find out?
- Don't play dumb, Tom.
- You think I leaked it to her?
- Yeah. Who else?
- I didn't leak it to her, Steve.
- Well, l know I didn't, so that leaves you.
Okay. Well, what does
she know?
She knows whatever you told her.
I swear to Jesus
I did not leak it to her, Steve.
I don't want this story out
any more than you do.
- Well, too late.
- What did she tell you?
She knows where we met,
she knows when we met,
she knows you had
fucking buffalo wings.
- She has a source?
- Yeah, she has a source.
And you have no idea
who it could be?
Yeah, you.
Well, for the record,
it wasn't me, and I didn't
have fucking buffalo wings.
So it's gotta be someone else.
- Did you tell anyone?
- No. Did you?
- No.
- Did you admit to meeting with me?
- No.
- All right.
Then we stonewall her
and she's got nothing.
She's gonna take the story to Drudge
or to Roll Call or some shit like that.
You can't stop her?
She's trying to blackmail me.
She wants info about Thompson.
Well, then tell her
what she wants to know.
l can't do that.
- You can't let this story get out.
- l'm not gonna be blackmailed Tom.
You don't have much
choice here, Steve.
If l tell her about Thompson,
I'm gonna have to tell her
that he's endorsing you.
Then tell her. l can handle it
from my side if l start getting calls.
No fucking way.
Paul told her we had Thompson in a bag.
It's gonna make him look like a fukin' fool.
He's gonna look like a fukin' fool anyway
when Thompson endorses us.
I can't do it.
You know,
you're on a sinking ship, Steve.
Tell her what she wants to know
and jump.
Come over to our side.
We can control this thing.
- Steve?
- I gotta go.
I'm up here.
You scared the shit out of me.
Here.
It's almost 1800 bucks.
You gotta make the appointment now,
like today, from a pay phone.
I'll take you to the clinic
and I'll pick you up, but no one else.
You understand?
Yeah.
Take the rest of the money
and buy yourself a ticket home.
Can't be here anymore.
We can't afford it.
Not with everything
that's gonna happen
in the next week.
And this situation,
just can't be here.
- You mean l can't be here.
- Right.
Stephen, I wouldn't tell anyone.
I hope not.
Then why?
Because you fucked up.
- He and l both fucked up.
- That's true.
But I have a responsibility to him and,
more importantly, I have a responsability
to this campaign.
I could go to North Carolina
and work on the campaign.
Molly, you gotta wake the fuck up.
This is the big leagues. lt's mean.
When you make a mistake,
you lose the right to play.
Make the appointment.
Tell me when
and where we have to go.
Listen to this.
I got the placement in the Times.
Bumped like 600 fucking articles.
Tom Duffy, 2008:
"This is a matchup
between hope vs. fear.
Nine times out of 10,
the fear candidate tends
to be most experienced.
But in our presidential races,
the least-experienced candidate
almost always wins.
JFK vs. Nixon. Carter vs. Ford.
Bush vs. Gore.
I like our chances with
the new kid on the block."
End quote.
Thomas fucking Duffy.
He's gotta be having
a stroke right now.
So just call me
when you can leave, okay?
I hate this shit.
I'm gonna come back,
and this is all gonna be over.
Yeah.
Absolutely.
There's no question about it.
Yeah, but we gotta think
broader strokes here.
Just rethink everything.
Uh... Well, yeah,
I know how to handle it.
Um, look, Stevie just got here.
Can I call you back in a few minutes?
Okay, bye.
Ahem. The governor.
We had a good long talk
on the way back.
He's up to speed
with everything.
How'd he take it?
Better than
I thought he would.
Still won't take
Thompson's endorsement.
Paul I gotta tell you something
I don't know how to tell you.
What's up?
Ida knows that I met
with Duffy.
I don't know how she knows,
but she knows.
And she tried to blackmail me.
She said she's gonna release the story
unless I tell her all the details
about your meeting
with Thompson.
So it's gonna hit
the papers.
Probably.
And whoever
she takes it to is gonna
call me for a statement.
If I deny the whole thing alltogether,
but Duffy admits to it,
it's gonna look even worse.
And if I just say, "No comment,"
they're not gonna let up.
I leaked it to Ida.
At the event.
- I don't understand.
- We made a deal.
Paul, they're gonna...
They're gonna print that story
in the paper tomorrow morning.
I know.
So why'd you do it?
Why would you do that?
Why would you do that
to the campaign?
The campaign will survive.
- Why would you do that to me?
- Makes it easier to let you go.
What?
Why'd you meet with Duffy?
I made a mistake.
I made a stupid mistake.
No Stephen, you didn't make a mistake,
you made a choice.
You called me and left a message
to call you back, that was important.
And when I did,
you told me to forget about it.
You chose not to tell me.
Why'd you make that choice?
Because, Paul,
I didn't think it was important.
Oh, fuck yes, you did.
But you went because you were curious,
because you felt flattered,
because you felt special...
to think that Duffy wanted
to speak to you instead of me.
Because you thought yourself
"Maybe I can get something out of this."
Because--
because it made you feel big.
You know, the first campaign I ran,
it was a tiny little race in Kentucky.
Hm... State Senate seat,
working for some redneck nobody
named Sam McGuthrie.
No staff, no money,
no fucking office.
Everyone thought
we didn't stand a chance.
No way we can compete, right?
And about this time,
this guy running this congressional
campaign a few districts over
gives me a call, and he says,
"I really like what you're able to do
for poor old Sam, but, let's face,
he's a goner.
Why don't you come work
for me?" What did l do?
Well, Stephen, this is where
you and I are different.
I told Sam about the call.
And Sam says to me,
"Paul, if you think this other guy's
got a chance at winning
and he can pay you more
that anything I can afford
and if it's what you feel you need to do,
then I won't get in your way."
And l say,
"Sam, you took a chance on me
and hired me when I was even more
of a nobody than you are.
So I'll be damned if I'm gonna jump ship
just because the shit hits the fan."
We lost that race, but three years later
when Sam decided to run for governor,
who do you think he called?
We won that race, and 20 years later
I am where I am fucking now.
Now, there's only one thing l value
in this world, Stephen, and that's loyalty.
And without it, you're nothing!
And you have no one.
And in politics,
in fucking politics,
it's the only currency
you can count on.
That's why I'm letting you go.
Not because you're not good enough,
nopt because l don't like you.
But I value trust over skill,
and l don't fucking trust you
anymore.
It doesn't matter whether
you trust me, Paul. It matters
whether the governor does.
The governor already knows,
and he thinks
it's the right thing to do.
He does?
Yeah, and you know what?
If l were you,
I'd get a good night's sleep,
because you're gonna
get fuking pounded by calls
from the press in the morning.
- Hey.
- Hey. Where were you today?
Um, l'm not feeling great today, Ben.
You picked a hell of a day
to call in sick.
- Jesus, it was a fucking wild-ass day.
- Why? What happened?
Stephen's off the campaign.
Paul fired him.
Some fuking setup about loyalty.
And looks like Stephen may have been
doubling down with Duffy,
on the Pullman campaign.
I... I was sitting in the room
when Paul told Stephen
he was fired.
And Stephen said,
"Who's gonna take over?"
And Paul said me.
I know, and l'm like,
"Easy there, soldier."
And then Stephen goes apeshit,
Paul gives him this speech
about loyalty.
and then shits out Stephen
like l've never seen before.
I mean--
- humiliating shit.
- When was this?
Molly, listen to me.
I'm gonna run the campaign
under Paul.
Stephen's going to Duffy.
I just jumped three years ahead.
So starting tomorrow morning,
we go into full damage control.
And l'm telling you,
Stephen's going apeshit.
He said he's taking everybody
down on his way out.
Morris, everybody.
Shit. I gotta take this.
Do you need anything?
No.
Paul. What's up?
I'm mailing you all those files.
- Where's Duffy?
- You got an appointment?
Joe, can we have the room
for a minute?
Okay.
Thank you.
It's not too bright
walking in here like that, Steve.
I'm in.
I'm coming to work for you.
A reporter from Roll Call
phoned me this afternoon.
Yeah.
I know who leaked it.
- Who?
- Paul.
You told Paul?
- I told Paul, and he leaked it.
- Oh, Steve.
- You shouldn't have told him that.
- I felt like l should.
Yeah. l've worked with Paul.
He gets paranoid.
- Obviously.
- So he fired you.
- I quit.
- No, you're lying to me. Come on man.
I quit. l'm gonna
give you everything.
I'm gonna give you Morris,
I'm gonna give you his whole strategy--
I don't need his strategy. I already have it.
Paul gave it all to Thompson.
What if I had something else?
You would do that
to Morris? To Paul?
- Yeah.
- Oh, no.
Revenge makes people
unpredictable.
Steve, I can't have someone who's
unpredictable, who's unstable.
- I'm not unstable.
- You know, if this had been a clean break,
if you had left Morris
before the story broke,
that'd be one thing
that, we could control.
But like this?
Paul fires you, and then you
wanna come work for me?
It makes me look like
I'm picking up the scraps.
It puts Morris
in the driver's seat.
I can't have that.
- What if I had something big?
- Like what?
Something big.
Something that'll put
Morris down.
What is it?
Give me the job.
No, that's not gonna happen.
I'm sorry.
Go take a nice long vacation.
You're a smart guy.
Everything that I said
the other day is absolutely true.
But, you know,
maybe politics isn't for you.
Politics is my life.
Oh, you know what? Do yourself a favor.
Get out, now, while you still can.
Go into entertainment
or business.
Go open a fucking restaurant
in Costa Rica. Anything.
Do something that's gonna
make you happy, okay?
Because if You stay in this business
long enough,
you're gonna get jaded and cynical.
- Like you.
- Yeah, just like me.
You knew I was gonna
fucking tell Paul, didn't you?
No, I didn't know.
I thought you might,
but I didn't know.
You knew I was gonna tell him,
and you knew he was gonna
fuking fire me.
Well that's the thing about Paul.
He's big on loyalty.
Yeah, l know.
I just got a big speech on it.
You were never
gonna hire me.
Put yourself in my shoes,
Steve.
Your opponent has the best
media mind in the country
working for his team.
What are you gonna do?
You're either gonna hire him
for yourself,
or you're gonna work it
so if you can't have him,
the other team can't either.
This is a win-win situation for me.
And you come work for me, great.
Paul doesn't have you.
Then again, Paul fires you,
I don't want you, fine.
Paul still doesn't have you.
Either way, I win.
And the moment l got you
to sit down in that chair...
- I knew I'd won.
- This is--
It's my life
that you're talking about.
It doesn't make me happy
doing this kind of things.
Don't think it gives me any pleasure.
No, I'm sorry for you.
I really am.
Take care of yourself.
The third floor. l'm coming to you.
Nothing.
No. No, ma'am.
She's not breathing.
I don't know.
Fifteen minutes.
Do you know her?
She's gone.
I'm sorry, what?
Oh, yes, now,
I can hear them now.
We're on the third floor.
Yes.
Yes, ma'am.
Um...
Where are you?
lt's, uh, lt's 4-something.
and they're gonna close up
in a few minutes.
Stephen, it's Ben.
Uh, listen, what the fuck?
Jesus, um. What are you gonna do?
Stephen, um, l just heard from Ben.
Please don't do anything
fucked up.
Goddamn it, you motherfucker,
pick up the phone.
Don't do this.
l'm not going away.
The coroner stated that based on
the evidence founded by the police
in that hotel room,
that this was an accidental overdose,
a lethal cocktail
of alcohol and prescription drugs.
Cincinnati's police Chief Darryl Matthews
has called for a full investigation
pending a toxicology report,
which could take up to two weeks.
Just a terrible, terrible situation
for the former senator,
now DNC chairman, Jack Stearns
and his family.
I want on the ticket.
You need me on that ticket,
and you could use my delegates.
And you need them
before Tuesday.
Make a fine story on
the Sunday-morning news cycle.
So l expect to hear from you
by noon tomorrow
or l endorse Pullman
and take that Cabinet seat.
Anything else you wanna
talk about, Stephen?
- The entire staff is...
- We're in a state of shock.
We send our condolences
to Jack and Joanna Stearns
and their entire family.
Of course,
our hearts go out to them.
It's hard to imagine
what they must be going through.
What we know right now is that
it appears to have been a drug--
An accidental
prescription overdose.
- Ida?
- Is suicide ruled out?
We have no reason to believe--
I don't think we have any information yet,
but obviously there will be
a full investigation.
We just wanted to say
that our hearts go out,
our prayers go out,
to the entire family.
She really is--
She was part of our family.
Yeah.
Did you know her well?
Not well, but l did know her.
And what l saw was
a hard-working young woman
with a great spirit.
It's just a sad day
for the campaign.
And it's a sad day for
those of us who know Jack.
Governor, how long has
she interned for you?
Uh... You wanna...?
Yeah.
She had only been
on the road with us
for a few weeks.
Maybe four weeks,
I think. I can check.
Will you be continuing
with your schedule today?
Yes, we will most certainly
stay on schedule.
Seems like you have something
you wanna talk to me about.
Does it seem that way?
If you have something...
if you think you have something
you wanna get off your chest,
then why don't you?
How about l do the talking
and you do the listening?
Okay.
As of tomorrow, there's gonna be
a few changes to your campaign.
Paul's out. I'm your
senior campaign manager.
I'll draft a statement.
"The campaign got to a point
where we needed to make changes."
- You can put your own words in there.
- Why would l do that?
Because you wanna win.
Because you broke
the only rule in politics.
You wanna be president?
You can start a war,
you can lie, you can cheat,
you can bankrupt the country,
but you can't fuck the interns.
They'll get you for that.
What do you think
you have, Stephen?
- A troubled young girl tells you a story.
- A troubled young pregnant girl
- Is that what she told you?
- who needed cash for an abortion.
What did you do?
You give her money?
Maybe she needed cash and you were
the perfect guy to hit up.
- Is that your best play?
- You need a job that bad, Stephen?
You come in here with your dick in your hand?
You got nothing.
Then how did l get in here?
You're right, Mike, there's nothing.
There's no voice messages, no texts,
no e-mails, no pictures, no tape.
And yet I'm standing right here.
Yeah, well go home.
She left a note.
- How would you know that?
- I was cleaning up your mess.
I took her phone,
and l found a note.
- I thought it was an accident.
- I don't know MIke.
You're gonna have to tell me.
You're the last person she called.
Note says she's pregnant,
got an abortion,
and doesn't wanna hurt you.
Then why would she leave a note
that could only do that?
Because she's 20.
- What do you want?
- Paul's gone. Today.
I set a meeting with you and Thompson,
and You promise him the ticket.
You get 356 pledged delegates,
you get North Carolina,
you take office,
and you make right what
so many people have made wrong.
- All the things we both believe in.
- Well, I don't believe in extortion.
I don't believe in tying myself
to you for the next eight years.
Four years.
Let's not get ahead of ourselves.
Huh.
What were you doing
in her room?
Housekeeping,
before you made Page 1 .
No, you were fired, you were out.
What were you doing in her room?
I was fixing a situation.
I got a call, Someone from the hotel
thought l could help and called.
So you were off the campaign,
but you thought it was important
to fix things?
It was your voice
the other night on the phone.
You were fucking her.
What'd you do, Stephen?
- I lent her money and gave her a ride.
- I bet you did.
There's no note.
- Okay Mike, there's no note.
- Show it to me.
You think I brought it here?
That's how people get hurt.
Okay, let's play this out.
You're not wearing a wire,
because everything you suggested
is illegal.
And you wouldn't fare too well
in federal prison.
You were fucking her,
and she told you about her situation.
There are no records or conversations
between the two of us,
and since she's had an abortion,
there's no DNA evidence.
So if there's no note...
then it's your word
against mine.
Your word.
A fired, disgruntled employee.
Or a sitting governor.
There's no note.
It's your call, governor.
- Paul, you got a minute?
- Yeah.
How much could
a big shake-up like this,
days before the Ohio primary,
hurt a campaign?
l asked Paul Zara how his firing
could actually help the candidate.
The governor and l felt that
in light of these changing numbers
that it was best to put
a new face on the campaign.
Stephen is very talented,
uh, very smart.
You always hear people talk
about events out of sequence,
the order of things.
There is no greater grief
than a parent
laying their child to rest.
She was a little girl trying to make it
in a very grown-up world.
A world where every mistake
is magnified.
And she was smart and pretty
and so, so young.
Father, you ask us
to accept God's plan,
to not question his judgment.
With all due respect,
I don't accept this judgment.
She made the world better.
Not just for me,
but for everyone she touched.
You should hire Jack
for a speechwriter.
I'll keep it in mind.
- You come here to see me?
- No. Friend of the family.
Got her the internship.
I've known her since she was born.
I'm sorry.
Governor couldn't make the flight?
He's meeting with Thompson.
Look at you.
All grown up with tits and all.
I learned from the best.
Well, one day we'll grab a beer,
and you can tell me
what you had on the governor
that put me out.
How do you know l didn't
have something on you?
Well, you better get going.
You have a campaign to run,
I've got offices to look at.
Farragut North?
Nice consultant firm
right off of K Street.
Million a year.
No one to fuck you over.
- Sounds relaxing.
- Doesn't it?
The right man to lead
this great nation of ours
in these challenging times,
and the next president of
the United States of America,
Governor Mike Morris.
We like Mike!
And let me ask
one very important thing.
That all of us stand
shoulder to shoulder,
arm in arm,
in a united Democratic Party.
So l strongly urge
the 356 loyal delegates
that I have carried
as a badge of honor
throw their support
to the governor.
Let's put this primary behind us
and get on with the business
of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
Thank you, God bless you,
and God bless
the United States of America.
Governor Mike Morris,
ladies and gentlemen.
Senator Thompson, thank you.
All right, Mr. President!
Well, the polls aren't quite closed,
but I congratulate Senator Pullman
and his Republican constituents
on their win here in Ohio.
Senator Thompson, l am honored
to stand here with you today.
And l am humbled
by your kind words.
Thank you.
Ladies and gentlemans,
today marks the beginning of a fight
between two sets of ideals.
Either we're gonna move forward,
or we're going to live in the past.
Either we're going to lead
the world again in technology
or we are going to bury
our heads in the sand.
The sands of Saudi Arabia,
the sands of Iraq.
Either we're going to let
greed and corruption
ruin our industries
and our shorelines
or we are going to take back
our country.
We are not a nation
used to coming in second
or third.
- No, it's not decisive.
- We still have several contests to go.
Those states are gonna
wanna have their say.
lt looks like we're gonna win Ohio.
You must concede, sir,
that these 356 delegates
put the pledged delegates
out of reach.
The superdelegates are breaking
We still have several
contests to go, and Ohio
was a big win for us.
Then do you have the funds?
Of course we have the funds.
We get new donations daily.
- Hey, Ben?
- Yep?
- I was told to talk to you.
- I'm supposed to get a phone.
- And you are...?
- Jill Morris.
No relation.
- You a Bearcat, Jill Morris?
- No, I'm from Columbus.
I'm a Buckeye.
You're making me look bad.
- How so?
- I filed the story that said
you're off the campaign
and Thompson's going
to Pullman.
Can't believe everything
you read.
Wanna give you an
opportunity to comment
on my next story.
It says you delivered
Thompson.
You got the 356 delegates,
you delivered the nomination.
And all you asked in return
was Paul's job.
Any chance of you confirming?
No press behind this point. She's press.
I'll read about it in the funny papers.
Come on, Stephen.
Aren't we friends anymore?
You're my best friend, Ida.
- Jay, this is Sean in New York.
- Can you get him to run a mike check?
If you could
count to 10 for me.
One, two, three, four, five, six,
seven, eight, nine, ten.
Good. Okay.
Senator Thompson, l am proud
that you have brought integrity
back to this election.
Because that's what this comes out,
integrity.
- Stand by.
- Who we are.
Because how we project ourselves
to the world matters.
Dignity matters. lntegrity matters.
Our future depends on it.
Morris! Morris! Morris!
We have now Governor Morris'
new senior campaign adviser,
Stephen Meyers, coming to us
from Xavier University
where Senator Thompson
has just endorsed Governor Morris,
essentially ending
this primary race.
Stephen, can you give us
some insight
into how this whole thing
unfolded?