Previously on The West Wing:
You got a four-point bump.
Vinick only got two.
When we're talking about education, we
talk about our most precious resource.
Matt Santos is a lot smarter
and tougher than you think.
We gotta take it to him.
We gotta put Santos in a jam.
Kazakhstan isn't China's
only oil source.
The Kazakh people are rioting because
they've been screwed out of an election.
Worst case, two nuclear powers
are positioning themselves to engage...
...in an armed conflict over oil.
Did the Chinese inv*de?
- Kazakhstan is stable.
- What is it?
- A nuclear accident.
- A w*apon?
- A power plant.
- Is it Russia?
San Andreo, California.
They think it might blow up.
- What do we know?
- Seventeen minutes ago at : ...
...emergency sirens went off
at the nuclear station...
...in San Andreo, California.
The main feedwater pump failed.
Everything proceeded as expected.
A relief valve opened
to let the water escape...
- It shut itself down?
- But now a valve's malfunctioning.
Coolant's stopped flowing
into the reactor's core.
If they can't get coolant into the core...
The uranium fuel rods become exposed,
which makes them combustible.
We could be looking
at a full-scale meltdown.
- Full-scale as in...
- FEMA thinks...
...the plume could cover
all of San Andreo, population , .
Federal response teams
are on the way.
- Any word on the cause?
- Could be human error, a design flaw...
Not likely t*rrorists would sneak in
and jam a valve.
- We're re-checking all the intel.
- Has the public been notified?
No, but when they shut down
the reactor...
...a steam release
sounded like a Concorde landing...
...and CNN's already running rumors
of an expl*si*n.
I want the FEMA director...
...and the chair of the Nuclear
Regulatory Commission in here.
Get CNN to stop running rumors.
I'll make a statement in .
You don't want to notify the public
till there's a plan.
There could be widespread panic.
We better get a plan.
I'm making a statement in minutes.
Yes, sir.
Thank you, Mr. President.
Yes, we worry.
We have two young children.
But censorship's like saying
I can't have a steak...
...because a baby can't chew it.
Let's be careful.
- Yeah?
- He's good tonight.
As long as he keeps pivoting
to the issues.
You told Rolling Stone
you like Bob Dylan.
Which is your favorite album?
My favorite Bob Dylan album...
I guess I should say
Highway Revisited...
...and then we can just
ease into transportation policy.
But really it's Blonde on Blonde.
Believe me, there are
no policy implications to that.
- Did he just imply...?
- Jay Leno's gonna have a field day.
No big issues captivated the voters.
Surprised it's come down
to geezer-rock trivia?
Yes, it was a positive experience.
No, I wouldn't recommend it to others.
- Wrap it up.
- What?
There was a nuclear accident
in California.
Get to a television, laptop.
Get any details you can.
Santos is doing that Rock the Vote event
in Tampa.
Probably pandering like mad
to a bunch of preteens.
Better be some post-teens,
you're sending me there tomorrow.
I'm sending you
because you talk like a president...
...not some latter-day
Mick-Jagger-in-chief. Yeah, Bruno.
I can tell them about
my psychedelic phase...
...when I wore brown socks
on the Senate floor.
Call me the second
you get confirmation.
Confirmation on what?
A problem with a nuclear plant
in California. San Andreo.
Might be an expl*si*n.
San Andreo.
- It's near San Diego.
- Yeah, I know where it is.
What?
I pushed the licensing commission...
...to get San Andreo
up and running years ago.
Pushed?
I helped get that plant online.
No one knows what's happened
at the San Andreo nuclear plant.
We're waiting for confirmation
of some kind of nuclear accident...
The Office of Cabinet Affairs.
Make sure I have an open line
to the director.
Yeah, it's an emergency.
We've received numerous reports
of a loud expl*si*n...
... as well as reports of Arab tourists...
... seen near the facility
in the last two days.
How can they run rumors?
Only thing certain in cases like this,
first reports are wrong.
How we handle this will determine
whether there's panic...
...within a hundred miles
of every nuclear plant in this country.
We don't get a second chance
to make a first impression. Harry?
The coolant in the reactor's dropped,
exposing the fuel rods.
How can we get cool water in there?
They're running a temporary feed line
while they figure out what's wrong.
- In the meantime?
- They're activating an emergency pump.
They hope it'll lower temperatures
enough to prevent meltdown.
There's a second problem.
Yes, another valve is stuck open.
With temperatures rising,
radioactive steam is being generated...
...pouring into the containment building.
We worried about a radiation leak?
They might have to pump
radioactive gases...
...into an auxiliary building
not built to hold them.
- One poorly-welded seam...
- How much radiation we talking?
It's unclear,
but Cal Vista Gas and Electric...
They run the San Andreo plant.
Yes, they believe any leak would pose
little or no thr*at to the public health.
- Without knowing how big it might be.
- It's chaos.
I couldn't get them on the phone.
I want the Nuclear Regulatory
Commission to take command.
- And I want to evacuate the area.
- It's a state and local matter.
- Get the governor of California.
- Yes, sir.
Governor Tillman wants to wait
until we're sure it's necessary.
He'll argue that a rash,
nighttime evacuation could be worse.
- Governor's on the line.
- Thank you.
Gabe, you have to evacuate
San Andreo.
We're all working off
sketchy information.
Because trust me on this...
...we'd rather have a few fender-benders
on the l- ...
...than a generation of babies
with thyroid cancer.
My FEMA director is here.
He'll coordinate
with your emergency services...
...and I'm going to declare
a major federal disaster.
You're gonna have
every federal resource you need.
We're gonna get through this.
With all the levels of government
involved in this...
...now's a good time
to designate a czar.
- A single point-person to oversee...
- You're looking at him.
We talked to the Senate office.
They're reaching out
to the governor's office.
Hundreds of press requests.
Issue a statement
supporting the governor's evacuation.
Call for an investigation.
This has to be a regulatory failure.
We wanna be careful, though.
The Senator is pro-nuclear.
- He said it in the first debate.
- We have to act defensively.
DNC's gotta know
he lobbied to get that plant open.
Defensive but not destructive.
What, you want...?
Jamie and your grandkids
are in San Diego?
Phone lines are jammed there.
Cell phones, everything.
Put out a statement
supporting the governor.
- President wants to make a statement.
- Saying what?
Whatever we figure out
in a few minutes.
You wouldn't believe the rumors...
...that there's a fire near the reactor.
- Not exactly.
That we're shutting down
every nuclear plant.
Not the dumbest of ideas.
The press are gonna talk to everybody.
They're gonna speculate.
Grab hold of the information flow.
- I have no info.
- Welcome to the club. Start with that.
What are the odds
this leads to meltdown?
A meltdown isn't when one thing
goes wrong. It's when things do.
There must be million people
within a hundred miles of that plant.
FEMA recommends we evacuate
down, six and nine around.
- That'll cover all of San Andreo.
- Fifteen down?
Fifteen miles between six and nine,
like a clock.
But emergency services
wants to do down...
...six and nine around,
the legal minimum.
If they're fine with miles,
the governor and I'll be setting up...
...a command post
at . miles from the plant.
We'd like them to join us.
The press ready for my statement?
- Readier than we are.
- Not like we have much.
Sounds like they're more comfortable
with miles.
Good evening.
Thirty-two minutes ago,
there was a mechanical problem...
...at the nuclear station
at San Andreo, California...
...which is causing the reactor's core
to overheat.
There's been no expl*si*n.
There's no indication of terrorism
or foul play.
Engineers are working to address
the problem now.
Governor Tillman
has begun an evacuation...
...and I'm declaring
a major federal disaster...
...and dispatching
every possible resource.
We don't have all the facts.
You will have them as soon as we do.
But every level of government
is working together on this.
No matter what happens,
we're going to handle it.
So, what they're doing
is bypassing the broken valve...
... running a new pipeline
to get cool water into that reactor.
Federal officials believe they can
avoid the worst, but I can tell you...
I don't understand why they put a plant
so close to a population center.
They all are. Otherwise they lose
too much power in transmission.
- So the whole idea's kind of crazy.
- Kind of.
You should give a big speech on that.
Put out a new energy plan.
Vinick's plan glows in the dark.
Vinick's for nuclear power.
You've fought against it.
Get every environmental group
for a press conference.
Skip Oregon. Campaign along the
evacuation route, give out bottled water.
Can I talk to you?
Let me know when they get the pipeline
to the core.
- Where's Leo?
- He's on a charter to Ohio.
He's gonna call in when he lands.
Cool it on the political chatter.
I don't want rallies on the Hindenburg.
I'm gonna cancel tomorrow.
We can't be exploiting this.
- Yeah.
- And I don't think we're gonna have to.
You're anti-nuclear,
Vinick's got a long history.
This is all upside for us.
I say we go completely dark.
Let the press go after Vinick so they
can't accuse us of playing politics.
- I'm fine doing nothing on this issue.
- I mean nothing on any issue.
No speeches, no press releases.
We just...
...stay right here.
See which way the wind blows.
And what's blowing in it.
Have we cooled down
the reactor's core?
The pump hasn't had much impact.
We're talking degrees in there.
Hang on. We've got a temporary
coolant line to the core.
I don't see anyone
popping champagne corks.
I thought if we got a line in there,
we avoid a meltdown.
Steam is still gushing
into the containment building.
They had to start pumping it
into the auxiliary building.
- Which wasn't designed to hold it.
- No, it can accommodate...
...up to pounds psi.
It's now at psi and rising.
The coolant won't be enough, and
the fuel rods give off hydrogen gas.
Which is extremely expl*sive.
If we get near maximum levels...
The containment building
might withstand that blast.
The auxiliary building cannot.
- So?
- Unless we fix the valves soon...
...we have to vent radioactive gas
to relieve the pressure.
- How many people still in San Andreo?
- About , .
I don't want to release any radiation
until everyone's evacuated.
- What's the alternative?
- An expl*si*n that spreads radiation...
...over Southern California,
maybe parts of Arizona and Nevada, sir.
How much would we have to vent?
It would be within parameters
for an acceptable dosage.
It's Santa Ana season
in Southern California.
Could be good if winds stay consistent.
Radiation could drift out over the ocean.
How do we speed up the evacuation?
Tell people we're about
to spill radiation into the air.
Good chance that'll speed them up.
How much time
before we reach psi?
Maybe an hour.
Who would give the order?
We've taken charge of the plant.
That would be you.
DOE, EPA, NOAA.
Okay, let's get started.
I wanted all the agency spokespeople
in one place so we could...
- Yes, Blieden?
- You got an update for us?
Radioactive steam's
been spilling so much...
...they've had to pump it
into another building.
The building can hold
pounds of pressure.
It's now at .
We may have to vent radiation into
the atmosphere to avoid a big bang.
Guys, guys, I don't have time
to do this by Socratic method.
Each of your agencies
is going to be involved in this...
...but no one, not a single one of you,
is going to talk to the press.
- No one.
- I've got a call list pages long.
I assure you, they've called my office
too. There'll be one briefer: Me.
What if it's the administration's fault?
We can't withhold information.
We won't be. We're trying to maintain
calm, like we know what we're doing.
So there'll be one voice,
the dulcet tones of Will Bailey.
- Souvenir programs in the lobby.
- What about political questions?
Vinick's the pro-nuke guy in...
There'll be one briefer, and I won't
answer political questions.
- Will. Will.
- Guys.
It's morning in Kazakhstan.
The polls open in two hours.
- Busy night for you.
- It's always morning somewhere.
We have election monitors?
Through the OSCE.
China needs to see
this is a genuine democracy...
...not some Russian puppet-government
out to screw them.
China's got troops along the border.
If they think it's a phony election to
protect a Russian-installed incumbent...
They cross the border, so does Russia,
we have a w*r.
I'll have regular updates for you.
So we're at psi?
We don't have much time
to relieve the pressure.
- Where are we in the evacuation?
- Maybe a third of the people are out.
At least ,
are pouring onto freeways.
- Seven hundred thousand?
- That's conservative.
There aren't enough buses and vans
to take at-risk populations.
Seniors, people with disabilities.
The governor wants to activate
m*llitary support from Camp Pendleton.
So ordered.
Do we have a direct line
to the control room?
The superintendent is on now.
We've got helicopters overhead...
...to make sure
we're within the acceptable dosage.
- Which is?
- Five hundred millirems.
Any way to wait for support
from Camp Pendleton?
I don't like the idea of the elderly
and disabled taking the brunt of this.
The longer we wait,
the more chance of an expl*si*n...
...and radiation sh**ting
into the atmosphere.
- Vent it now.
- Open the stack.
Opening auxiliary stack.
What do we mean
by "acceptable dosage," anyway?
It's the amount the body can safely
absorb through direct exposure.
But radiation also enters
the surface layers of the soil...
...where it's absorbed by plants
and insects and enters the food supply.
It seeps into water sources.
When it does enter the body,
sometimes it kills cells instantly...
...sometimes it forms damaged cells.
- Cancer?
- Yes, sir.
Stack opened, steady at mrems.
- Twelve hundred?
- Inside the stack.
Once it's in the air, it'll disperse.
Anything below , we're fine.
Five hundred and sixty-nine millirems
above the stack.
- We have to announce the number.
- It'll make the evacuation harder.
Can we take another reading?
Steady at .
It's more than we consider safe.
We have to let the people know.
Anyone not on the freeway
will get on.
Make the freeway one-way.
No one feels comfortable
making that choice.
Santa Ana winds can shift...
We're spilling radiation,
people are jamming the freeways...
...and we don't know
what direction they should drive?
- Tell Will to announce the number.
- Yes, sir.
Will! Will!
So you're saying the radiation release
was at a dangerously unsafe level?
No, I'm saying it was slightly above
EPA standards for an acceptable dosage.
The government believes it's safe?
I didn't say that,
I'm just trying to present the facts.
One million people
are fleeing Southern California.
- Is the president worried about panic?
- He's worried about safety.
He's urging those outside
the evacuation zone to stay home...
...so those in the zone can get out.
- Is the EPA going to brief on radiation...?
- I'm briefing on that.
- What if we need more information...?
- Ask me and I'll get it.
Blieden says the weather agencies
are worried winds will shift.
People could be evacuating
the wrong way.
- Blieden said that?
- Yes, that NOAA and NARAC...
- I'll get into it.
- Will! Will!
- Power. Plants that we already have.
Nuclear power is a completely safe,
dependable energy source.
- We should build more...
- Completely safe?
I don 't wanna be an alarmist...
- Playing Vinick's debate clip a lot.
- Yeah, starting to.
Site Advance wants to know
if we're scrubbing the Oregon trip.
The congressman
doesn't want to politicize a tragedy.
We don't want to do a press statement
in the morning?
No interviews, no statements.
Not from us, not from the DNC,
not from anyone we control.
We could make hay.
Vinick's the pro-nuke poster child.
No hay, no posters.
The Oregon trip is off.
You may want to hang on
to your pitchfork.
I'm behind you on all this, Gabe.
All right, bye.
How's the governor?
- Nervous.
- I don't see why.
Any angry constituents
will just be vaporized anyway, right?
Am I the only one left in the family
with a sense of humor?
Anything new?
- How about something old?
- What is it?
Vinick lobbied for federal approval
for San Andreo years ago.
He's the reason the plant's there.
- When is this gonna break?
- The press is kind of preoccupied.
We don't want to nudge them?
We could put it out, yeah.
He could hit us back for playing
politics with a mushroom cloud.
If the press finds it on its own,
it'll be times bigger.
- And what if they don't find it?
- They will.
This isn't politics, this is policy.
Those places are unsafe.
It's a legitimate point.
- In San Andreo is a phone line
and a television set.
In New Mexico, in Arizona,
in Colorado...
... people are getting in their cars
and driving east.
While higher-than-acceptable levels
of radiation drift into the air...
... the White House won 't say if we're
past risk of a meltdown or expl*si*n.
Hide these under your mattress.
For now.
I don't like hearing "meltdown"
on cable news.
Twelve things have not gone wrong.
We're barely at six.
- They're still trying to fix the valves.
- "They"?
Our engineers, their engineers.
Lots of engineers.
Radioactive steam is gonna build up
in that damned auxiliary building again.
Eleven psi and climbing.
The more immediate concern is panic.
The freeways are like parking lots.
Fox is running a story about a family
that's leaving the country.
How soon can I visit without diverting
resources from the evacuation?
I could give FEMA's okay
for you to travel tomorrow...
...but there's substantial risk...
- Tell the press I'm flying out tomorrow.
Sir, steam is still building.
If we vent...
People know I'm going,
they'll stop buying tickets to Norway.
What about Senator Vinick?
It's his home state.
We always invite senators
to join you on disaster trips.
Have we ever had a situation
where one's a party nominee?
And if we take Vinick,
do we invite Matt Santos?
- Maybe...
- Vinick's from California.
He's on the plane if he wants to be.
Set up a call with Matt Santos.
Nuclear power is a completely safe,
dependable energy source...
Fifth time this hour.
Words that haunt
the candidate...
Know how many press requests
we've got?
A bunch.
Every network, every major newspaper,
plus Japanese TV, Internet radio.
There's requests
from homing pigeons in here.
We have to say something.
We support the governor.
We'll say it in Japanese.
The senator, on camera.
Give them fresh video
or they'll keep running that.
- He should whack federal regulators.
- Bob...
The regulations are too lax.
It's practically Scout's honor.
We're in a big glass house.
We do not throw the first stone.
Okay, a moratorium on
all new nuclear plant construction.
He cannot retreat
from what he said.
They're k*lling us
and they don't know...
...our guy helped get that plant
approved.
Bob, I know Josh Lyman.
There is a reason
he is camped out in Florida...
...the swingingest of swing states.
Santos is gonna whack us...
...then we hit back
for politicizing a national disaster.
- That's a big roll of the dice.
- Trust me.
Josh has the political equivalent
of Tourette's Syndrome.
We wait for his next spasm,
then we strike.
Yeah, Bruno.
Yeah. C.J.
All right, I'll tell him.
President wants the senator to fly
with him on Air Force One tomorrow.
To San Andreo.
Yes, Mr. Mayor, there's coolant
running into the reactor now.
Fingers crossed.
I thought a degree in economics
was plenty.
- My kingdom for a plumbing license.
- I have Matt Santos on the line.
Thanks.
Matt, you look great out there, when
you're actually, you know, out there.
Just holding tight, Mr. President.
Praying for the people of San Andreo.
Matt,
I'm taking Arnie Vinick to California.
I know this could help him politically.
- Yes, sir.
- The senior senator from California.
If I do anything else, I'd be playing
games with a national emergency.
Well, you have to do
what you think's best.
- Keep me in your prayers too.
- Yes, Mr. President. I will.
Thanks.
It's an enormous gift.
Jed Bartlet's our radiation shield.
- We're banking on the Democrat to help.
- Is Santos coming?
No. Your state, not his.
What if news of your lobbying
for San Andreo breaks?
- This is how we survive it.
- Not if the story breaks.
You don't get it, do you?
Santos is shut out of this trip.
Josh has to att*ck us now.
Flying there links us to the disaster,
and hoping Josh's blood sugar spikes...
I represent this state.
I'm taking that seat on Air Force One.
What is it?
The temporary pipeline
that runs cool water to the core...
...it usually carries hot water, not cold.
- Okay.
Imagine heating a glass
to degrees...
...then pouring ice water in it.
- The pipe's cracking.
Water level around the fuel rods
is dropping.
They've tried to fix it
from the control room.
We have to send men into the building
to fix them by hand.
I'm guessing the radiation in there
is above the acceptable dosage.
Five times more,
even with anti-contamination gear.
Who would we be sending in?
Two mechanical engineers from the
Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Civilian engineers?
There isn't some m*llitary team, some
Pentagon specialist we can deploy?
This is their job, sir.
You think when they started school...
...they imagined the president would
ask them to risk their lives...
...by prying open a piece of pipe?
Let's send them in.
I have a couple announcements
to make.
The emergency secondary pipeline...
...the temporary line that's bringing
cool water to the reactor's core...
...it's cracking and degrading.
Technicians are working
to run new pipe...
...and two NRC engineers will be
entering the containment building...
...to fix the valves manually.
They must be taking an enormous risk
by walking in there.
It's very dangerous.
They're trained for it.
Is more radioactive gas building up
in the auxiliary structure?
We hope to fix the problem
before that's an issue.
- You'd say we're close to an expl*si*n?
- I promised the facts, you'll get them.
The AP's saying these kind
of mechanical problems...
...show clear failures
on the part of the Bartlet...
Let me tell you who knows
what's going on.
- He briefs from this podium.
- This isn't the Kremlin.
How do we know you're not
covering something?
Second announcement.
Tomorrow, the president
will travel to a command center...
...outside the evacuation zone.
He'll be accompanied by the
California Congressional delegation.
He believes it's safe?
The immediate danger
is inside the zone.
- Does this mean Senator Vinick's going?
- He's a member of the delegation.
- What about Congressman Santos?
- No other delegations are going.
Does this jeopardize Santos' campaign?
Tough crowd in there.
- You said we're worried about wind.
- I got it from your office.
It's why you're off
the talking points distribution list.
- I need those to do my job.
- Not anymore.
You're being transferred.
You no longer speak for this government.
- For telling people the truth?
- For causing further panic.
Doesn't matter if it's true
or if I've already said it.
We're trying to prevent hysteria in a
climate where truth is misinterpreted.
So we speak with one voice.
You're lucky you still have a job.
- Donna?
- Here she is. Donna?
No comment.
Guess you heard the president's...
...taking Vinick to California.
- Yeah.
It's his home state.
There's a protocol to these things.
Well, let's hope everyone
uses the correct fork.
It could hurt Vinick,
flying into the fallout.
He gets to be statesman, healer.
When will the press figure out
he got the plant opened?
Cable news is still running
the debate clip.
More press requests, plus...
Governor of Colorado, the DNC.
These are all for me?
They're wondering why we're in Florida
instead of mobilizing to slam Vinick.
Prevailing winds.
Advance is begging us
to get off the dime.
Tell advance to stick to
losing my luggage.
Vinick's coasting toward his bipartisan
buddy weekend with the president.
The advance guys are right.
If we don't take him on, he's...
It's estimated that the radiation levels
inside the building...
... are four or five times higher...
Just sent two engineers
into the containment building.
Like putting them in a microwave
set on high.
- Getting a few press requests.
- By "a few," you mean...?
- A million-gajillion.
- Okay, that's not a real number.
I'm not talking Radio Free Yonkers.
Every morning show wants you.
- Are you changing your mind on this?
- I don't know.
The second Vinick gets on Air Force One
and has Bartlet's arm around him...
...it's like a dose of political penicillin.
One day with the president doesn't erase
three decades of pushing plutonium.
Josh is right. It gives Vinick
a chance to absolve himself.
If they know he lobbied for San Andreo,
there goes his get-out-of-jail-free card.
If our fingerprints are anywhere on that...
- Maybe we get a third party to do it.
- Why isn't Vinick linked to that plant?
They just sent engineers to the building.
The press are on the freeways too.
If it comes out after they become
the Martin and Lewis of disasters...
Couple of network presidents called.
Direct appeals to do the morning shows.
You were right four hours ago,
you're still right now.
Tell them thanks, but no thanks.
Nothing on Drudge, nothing on The Note,
nothing on the wires.
I don't know what Josh is waiting for.
Senator has to say something on camera
before he gets on that plane.
- No, he doesn't.
- Sympathy for the region.
Sympathy for the Redskins,
I don't care.
You want that debate
to air another times?
Josh hits us, we call it bare-knuckled
exploitation of a tragedy...
...and we let the president
do the heavy lifting.
We get him to say, right there in
California, that accidents happen.
The president will defend us
on nuclear power?
A nuclear disaster on his watch?
He'll jump at the chance.
He'll be defending himself too.
- Did you talk to the Red Cross?
- Twenty minutes ago.
They need more potassium iodine
in the shelters.
- FEMA can work it.
- We took care of it.
Petcock's working.
The valve's turning.
- What happened?
- The engineers opened the valve.
If there's no overflow
we can pull them.
What about the relief valve?
Steam's still spewing into the building.
It's already been minutes.
They shut the other valve,
we're okay.
- This is an extremely toxic environment.
- If more gas pours out...
...so is most of Southern California.
- You wanna expose another team?
How much longer would it take?
Five, maybe minutes.
Ask them to try and shut down
the other valve.
- Ask them to move on to the relief valve.
- Excuse me, Mr. President.
The polls just closed in Kazakhstan.
- The Russian-installed incumbent...
- Tarimov.
- He's been declared the winner.
- Tell me they counted the votes first.
Our election monitors are reporting
beatings, mass arrests of civic activists.
Barely got China to hold their troops
by scheduling this election.
- This could lead to hostilities.
- Already got them.
A pro-democracy riot's broken out
in the Kazakh capital.
There's a corrosion build-up
on the valve stem.
We're not getting enough torque.
They finally pulled out the engineers.
Thirty-two minutes,
they couldn't stop the leak.
Did you see my memo about your press
availability with the president tomorrow?
Bob wants me to make a statement
before I get on Air Force One.
You want me to get the president
to say "accidents happen." That's fine.
But Bob's right. I can't wait another
seven hours to show my face in public.
You wanna show your face
and say what?
You've been wrong? Nuclear's peachy,
while a million people are on the run?
This wasn't a failure
of nuclear technology.
This was a regulatory screwup.
You point fingers, it will look like you're
avoiding any responsibility for this.
You know why Europe's greenhouse
emissions are so much lower than ours?
- Nuclear power. Totally emissions-free.
- Sure, but...
You know how many Americans die
from oil-refinery explosions?
From coal soot in the air?
Tens of thousands.
And not one from a nuclear-power
anything in years.
- Okay, you're right, but that is still...
- Every time they show that debate clip...
...it looks like I ran into that plant
and spilled uranium on the floor.
Santos is gonna hit us.
You have to wait.
That is how we change the story.
I'm gonna give the press some footage
besides that debate clip.
I need you to keep
your political hat on.
Thirty-one states with nuclear plants.
We don't know how many voters will
be living in California by Election Day.
My lobbying for San Andreo
is out there like a ticking time b*mb.
We can't control the politics of this,
not even close.
I'll talk to the president,
but I'm the senator from California.
And I'm gonna make a statement
before I get on that plane.
Both the engineers who were
in the containment building...
...they've been hospitalized
for radiation sickness.
One slipped into a coma.
Sir, they knew the danger
better than us.
- You weren't wrong...
- No one told me their names.
James Cook is the one in...
James Cook and Mark Laroche.
We'll get call sheets for the families.
The pressure in the auxiliary building's
up to psi.
You may need to authorize a second
team to try to shut the valve manually.
If you'd like, you can deputize
the NRC chair to make the call.
- Fifteen minutes and out.
- But if they don't solve...
Fifteen minutes and out.
If they can't solve the problem, we may
look at another venting of radiation.
The Santa Anas don't stay consistent
if the sea winds push them north...
Call the governor, make a contingency
plan to widen the evacuation.
And I want updated weather models
every half-hour.
You weren't wrong to keep them
in there, Mr. President.
- Still nothing from Santos?
- No press advisories.
They haven't reserved any rooms
for press.
Josh must be strapped to a gurney
with a gag in his mouth.
This is a mistake.
Good morning. We're all struck
by the difficult events in San Andreo.
I've been in constant touch with
the governor's office, and I hope...
...as we all do, that the evacuation
is only a precaution.
Do you still support nuclear power?
Finish the statement.
And I hope that the situation
will be resolved quickly and safely.
Your family's in the region.
Don't you question what you said?
- My family's not the issue.
- You didn't answer the question.
Are you still pro-nuclear?
Nuclear power
didn't break those valves.
To blame nuclear technology itself
for whatever mess happened in...
Federal regulators were the ones
who fell down on the job.
You can start a fire
with a match too, you know.
You saying this was the Bartlet
administration's fault?
- He just did.
- And he strapped himself to that reactor.
This isn't the time to point fingers.
This is a time for national unity.
Which is why the president and I will be
traveling to that region this morning.
Senator Vinick, why do you think
the administration 's...?
- President's wheels-up in an hour.
- Tray tables and all.
I want you to lead a couple reporters
toward those documents about Vinick.
- You didn't want our fingerprints on it.
- Just drop hints.
- Ask leading questions, off the record.
- That's gonna get out. You didn't want...
Once the president hugs Vinick,
it's over.
- Does the congressman know about this?
- Just go.
- Leading questions.
- Yeah.
Or we blow the biggest chance
to win this thing we're ever gonna get.
How can this not be a failure
of Bartlet's regulators?
We don't even know
the cause of the accident.
The NRC leaves tons of inspection
procedures up to the plants themselves.
Five minutes
until the motorcade leaves.
I can't talk about
the Armenian genocide. It's non-binding.
Right now I only have time for things
that could spontaneously combust.
You ready?
To fly into a cloud of radiation while
the country makes hats out of tinfoil?
Yeah, that was more of
a rhetorical question.
You think we're flying into
a cloud of radiation?
I was dramatizing a point. Maybe.
Thought you weren't
talking to the press.
I was hoping I could interest you
in a little mumbling and whispering.
Biggest political story in six months.
I don't care if you start to hum off-key.
You think this is the biggest...?
Vinick's lobbying for that
San Andreo plant?
Make your quote good,
it'll be front page, column six.
Yeah. Sorry,
not talking to the press today.
Excuse me, Mr. President.
Senator Vinick's asked for a moment.
Sure.
- Mr. President.
- Arnie.
- Thanks for bringing me along.
- Standard protocol.
Well, I appreciate it.
I thought we might wanna coordinate
our statements for the press availability.
You're expecting me
to bash myself too?
- That wasn't aimed at you.
- "Federal regulators"?
- I think a few of them work for me.
- Due respect, two broken valves...
...and a radiation leak say
they should look for other work.
Where's your bill to improve
federal oversight?
Senate leader on the issue,
let's have your bill. I'll sign it now.
- You've had eight years to do something.
- You've had .
I'm not the one who manages it.
Nuclear power itself is safe.
Take a nuclear chain reaction times
more powerful than Hiroshima.
Run it through a power plant
every day near families.
What management
would negate the risk?
Risk is everywhere.
People get into car accidents.
When they do, they don't tell you
stop eating produce three states away.
What's your answer? Solar?
One-fifth of one percent of all our energy
at five times the cost?
Wind? Another spike in OPEC prices?
Nuclear is the only alternative.
It is not an alternative.
I know the regulation's a mess.
No regulation could make it safe.
We could barely evacuate a town...
Forgive me, Mr. President. The second
team's closed the relief valve.
The crisis is over for now.
But the engineer who'd
fallen into a coma...
...he d*ed minutes ago
from acute radiation poisoning.
We'll get you another call sheet.
Two copies of that call sheet.
The Vinick campaign can 't be happy
with the Post's online scoop.
Documents show Senator Vinick was
a supporter of the San Andreo plant.
- Symbolizes, more than anything
since Three Mile Island or Chernobyl...
... the cost and perils of nuclear power
in the United States.
With plants up and running...
You might get some questions.
Apparently, Senator Vinick was involved
in the original approval...
...of the San Andreo plant.
- It's safe to take everybody out there?
- According to the EPA...
...the remaining radiation's
within the acceptable dosage.
You're too young to remember
"Duck and Cover."
Sir?
We'd hide under our
little wooden desks at school.
At some point, they stopped the drills.
The thr*at was still there,
they just stopped having the drills.
I guess they realized a piece
of plywood wasn't gonna protect us...
...against an atomic blast.
Kazakhstan?
Newly-elected government's k*lled
protesters.
China's crossing into Chinese enclaves.
Russian troops are also ready to enter.
Can't have China and Russia blowing
each other to bits over election fraud.
Well, oil, really.
Fraud's just the kicker.
Governor's waiting in the motorcade.
We've canvassed the UN
about an international police force.
It would have to be predominantly
U.S. Troops operating from our bases.
- How many would I have to send?
- CINCs are guessing , .
For starters.
Based on federal safety standards...
... evacuated residents
will be allowed to return.
But we don 't know the full effects
of any radiation releases.
We may not know for months,
maybe even years.
And we have to be candid about that.
And so while we continue
monitoring and testing...
... we will also help with the relocation
of those residents...
... who may not wish to return
to San Andreo. Thank you.
Senator Vinick, why do you think
the administration fell down?
We're all relieved the worst is over.
My thoughts and prayers are with
the family of James Cook...
...the federal engineer
who gave his life to save others.
Should this make Vinick
question his energy plans?
I can't speak for anyone else. Makes me
question a lot about our energy plans.
- Congressman...
- Thank you.
Based on our flash polls...
... more than a dozen states that had
been squarely in the Vinick column...
... including Florida, Ohio...
... his own state of California...
... all states with nuclear power plants,
are now within the margin of error.
It's a political meltdown,
that's for sure.
The Santos campaign
is declining to comment.
They've been flooded with volunteers
and donations since the news...
... that Senator Vinick lobbied for the
San Andreo nuclear generating station...
- Advance wants to know if...
- We're taking tomorrow off too.
It's gonna be wall-to-wall press.
He's said all he's gonna say.
Best day of the campaign
and we didn't do a thing.
At the rate we're going, maybe we
should take the whole month off.