05x09 - Winter Garden

[bunniefuu]

(CHALK CLACKING ON BOARD)

(MAN SPEAKING SERBIAN)

(MAN SPEAKING ALBANIAN)

(SPEAKING SERBIAN)

(SPEAKING SERBIAN)

(DOOR SLAMS)

(SPEAKING SERBIAN)

(MUTTERING ANGRILY)

JAY: We live in a time when
hatred disguised as nationalism

is on the rise.

And while I generally tend to leave

the poetry to the speechwriters,
I-I, I just want to say

that this agreement is how
we keep the wolves at bay.

So, Abdyl and Aleksandar.

For putting your two nation

troubled history behind you,

for the sake of these discussions,

we all thank you.

And to the rest of our NATO members,

for considering admission
of Serbia and Kosovo

to our ranks this week,
the world thanks you.

YVES: Yes, well.

It has been our great
pleasure to come here

and enjoy your continental breakfast.

Oh. Next time in Luxembourg, Yves.

Talk to your people.

- (MEMBERS CHUCKLE)
- JAY: Shall we begin?

A resolution to admit

Serbia and Kosovo

to the North Atlantic
Treaty Organization.

Now you get to see
how the sausage is made.

Pretty boring stuff, huh?

Are you kidding?

Talking Serbia down,

demanding a five-year
waiver on NATO fees?

Come on, that was masterful.

Considering Serbia
didn't even recognize Kosovo

as a nation a year ago,
it's kind of hard to believe

we might get them both into NATO.

Too soon to tell M-Sec Christmas
is coming early this year?

Well, you can tell her
we hear the faint sound

- of jingle bells. (CHUCKLES)
- Okay.

- (SPEAKING SPANISH)
- Hmm.

No, no. I-I'm still reading that.

This is a work intervention.

Oh. Well. That's fine.

I can show up at the briefing
totally clueless tomorrow.

Listen, it's only
global water security.

Now you're talking.

(GROANS)

(SIGHS, CHUCKLES)

- Oh.
- (PHONE BUZZING)

Hmm?

No, it's Jay.

Uh, he's still at the NATO summit,

I got to... Just one second.

(SHARP INHALE)

Jay, Blake says he's learning

at the feet of the master.
How's it going?

JAY: Uh...

Less than masterful, at the moment.

Kosovo and Serbia both got
on board with the terms,

but Spain just pulled out.

Why? I thought we had
everybody locked.

JAY: Foreign Minister says

there's too much noise
about a Catalonian push

for independence.

They still feel like they can't risk

legitimizing a breakaway republic.

- I'm sorry, I...
- It's... No, no.

It's...

Look, don't let anybody leave town.

And bring in, uh... The...
Who's the Spain rep?

JAY: Maria Ayala.

She's the Foreign Minister's
senior aide.

All right, bring her
to the office tomorrow.

The two of us are gonna have a chat.

- Will do.
- ELIZABETH: And Jay, listen.

Thank you for all the work.

We are going to do this.

Yeah.

- (PHONE BEEPS)
- Well, that's bad news.

Yeah, Spain getting cold feet.

We knew Kosovo was a reach.

Oh, I'm not backing off.

I'm sending a message to Russia.

You fund a far-right att*ck
on the White House,

you can kiss the Balkans good-bye.

- Hmm.
- Yeah.

I like it when you talk tough.

Geopolitics as foreplay? That's hot?

(BOTH CHUCKLE)

(PHONE RINGS)

- Mm-mm.
- Hmm? Hmm? Hmm?

(GROANS)

Security at 11:20? Yeah, Frank?

(SIGHS)

Gordon Becker is downstairs.

- Hey, Gordon.
- It's too provocative.

You can't push for
everything in one go.

Uh, yeah, I see you heard

- about Kosovo, huh?
- If I tried to push back harder in '98,

- Hey, Gordon.
- I would have been wrong.

Well, there are a lot
of different schools...

- You okay, Gordon?
- ...of thought about the Balkan conflict.

- Can I make you something or...?
- Can't find the damn remote.

- She's always losing it.
- Well, why don't you

come and sit down?
W-We'll look for it.

- (PHONE RINGS)
- Yeah, uh... Okay.

- Yah!
- Hey... O-Okay, Gordon.

- Frank, yeah, yeah. Uh...
- GORDON: Is that a niner?

- Send her in.
- HENRY: No, no, that's the...

- G-Gordon. Your wife's here.
- HENRY: Put that down.

Does she have the remote?

Hi, Deedee, Deedee, come on in.

- I'm so sorry to bother you.
- No, no.

I thought he was in the bathroom
and the next thing I know,

- he took off with his detail.
- Is he okay? 'Cause he seems...

- He's been under a lot of stress.
- Okay.

- Gordie? We're going home now.
- There it is.

That isn't ours.

- It's okay.
- Henry, I'm sorry.

No, no, no.

Cannot trust the Balkans.

- Okay.
- DEEDEE: Let's go, honey.

Okay, uh, you sure
you can get him home?

His car is waiting outside.

- I'm so sorry for the bother.
- No, no, no. Don't worry.

- I like them, just...
- All right, already!

- Time for bed.
- Okay, all right.

- Good night.
- Good night.

(WHISPERING): Whoa.

That-that is one for the memoir.

I can't believe his security
detail didn't notice.

I can't believe he took our ornaments.

We have to report this, right?

Babe, he's the Secretary of Defense.

- So, yeah.
- (SIGHS)

Can you take that?
Or, I mean, I could...

Yeah, I'll get into it.

(ELEVATOR BELL DINGS)

Nina, hey.

Hi. I got Madam Secretary

her latte and muffin this morning

and thought I'd get you the same.

You didn't have to do that.

Well, it's your first official day

as Policy Analyst, you deserve it.

- Okay. You're very kind.
- (CHUCKLES)

- You're here early.
- Yes, she had an early meeting

with the Spanish Foreign
Minister's senior aide.

So I thought I'd hit up my workspace

and figure out a new filing system.

Oh, uh, was there a problem
with the filing system?

Oh, no. No problem.

But files are like brain
circuitry, you know?

Right.

- And everybody's got their own code.
- Yeah.

So, the staff meeting has been pushed

until after she's done with Spain.

Let me know if this looks okay to you.

And, uh, one question.
Does she like cinnamon?

Because Senator Wentworth
had this massive

cinnamon aversion and I almost got her

a cinnamon roll this morning,

but then I was like,
(WHISPERS): "What if?"

Sure, any bakery item will
be right on the money.

Cool beans. (CHUCKLES)

- (CLEARS THROAT) This looks great.
- Oh, great.

Do you need my help
with anything else?

Nope, I'm good so far.

But I'll know where to find you.

Yes, uh, well, I guess
I should get settled in

and get things organized.

It's the very soul of success.

Uh-huh.

ELIZABETH: You're saying that Spain is

perfectly comfortable derailing

an historic NATO expansion
because of some online chatter

about the Catalonian
independence movement?

A movement that hasn't achieved
its aim in over 80 years.

The referendum vote on independence

- passed by 90% only a few years ago.
- With a turnout

of 43% and your constitutional accord

- discredited the vote anyway.
- And we are still restabilizing.

- Come on.
- You have to understand, this was all

very recent and very real.

Do you know what else
was recent and real?

Serbia's attempt to banish or k*ll

its entire ethnic Albanian
population in the late '90s.

And yet, Kosovo is willing

to set that aside
and cooperate with Serbia

for the sake of this deal.

Here's the part that I don't get.

Two weeks ago, we had
a pledge from your staff

that your country was fully on board.

Wouldn't have called
a summit otherwise.

And then, this showed up.

Threats of v*olence.

Mass protest.

The assassination of
key cabinet members.

It's very alarming.

If recognizing Kosovo
causes unrest in Spain,

it's your right,

as a NATO member,
to engage all of our help.

But it is also your duty,
as a NATO member,

to keep the world stable and safe.

That's what this deal does.

Spain is really willing
to be the sole voice

jeopardizing that?

(PHONE RINGING)

Secretary McCord's office.

Nothing like a visit
to the principal's office.

Yeah, well, let's get
everybody back to the table,

see if it accomplished anything,

and get the DNI to try
and source those Web postings.

Thinking Russia?

Well, they're not the only country

that might want to t*nk this deal.

Sorry, ma'am, news just broke.

Just once could that be a cat video?

A mass grave was uncovered
at a construction site

in Northern Kosovo.

Kosovo is saying it's
Albanians massacred

by Serbian m*llitary in the w*r.

Serbia is denying any responsibility.

- We better get ahead of this.
- Get me everything you can on that.

- Okay.
- Ma'am, so sorry,

Kosovo sends word
they can't make it today.

The delegates are on their way
to the airport now.

- So much for getting ahead of this.
- No, you do everything

- you can to stall them.
- Whoever's trying to sink this

is not getting their Christmas wish.

♪

(SIGHS)

- Morning.
- (GASPS)

(EXHALES) Three months.

I asked you to wait three months

for this pie-in-the-sky NATO summit,

let us finish
the India/Pakistan nuclear deal

and enjoy one tiny moment
of bipartisan cooperation.

What did you do? Plowed right ahead,

threw a stink b*mb in our pool party.

- Russell...
- No, no, no.

Happens every time.

Three, four years in,

no major scandals to throw
gravel under your wheels,

you all start to think you're Moses.

You can part the waters, lead us
all to the promised land.

Well, none of you can part the waters.

We're all in a leaky boat
with one oar.

I'm not sure I follow that metaphor.

You reached too far, too fast.

It's the Balkans, for God's sake.

Stevie! Now, instead
of a victory lap as the hero

who ended a decades-long
nuclear standoff,

Conrad's getting
second-guessed about NATO

and his priorities
by every prima Donna

on the Senate Foreign
Relations Committee...

- I said no decaf.
- Oh.

I'm down to one cup a day.
It's got to be the real thing.

What are you gonna do?
Tell Carol? Tell her.

Sorry.

Are you done?

Because while you called me
in here to rip my head off...

bringing my daughter in, thanks,
that was a nice touch...

Jay is out there chasing down
the delegates

- before they leave town.
- You mean you're not done yet?

No. And by the way,

if the Senate
Foreign Relations Committee

has questions about this deal,
tell Conrad he can remind them

about the att*ck on the White House.

(SIGHS)

Fine. But no photo ops with POTUS,

and no statements of support.
You're on your own now.

- You had to call me in for that?
- Double espresso.

Next time, put it
on your Christmas card.

- I got you one, too.
- (SIGHS)

Thank you for your support.

(DOOR CLOSES)

Gordon, come on in.

I know we said 2:00,
but, uh, I had an NSC meeting,

so I thought I'd stop by.

- How are you doing?
- Fine.

Deedee told me everything
this morning, and, uh...

uh, what can I say? I'm really sorry.

Oh, there's no need to apologize.

I've been having trouble sleeping,

and Dr. Reese prescribed medication,

and when the first one
didn't kick in, I took a second.

That was my mistake.

But you made it home okay?

Safe and sound.

Got an earful this morning,
though. (CHUCKLES)

Oh. Tell Deedee

it was no problem.

But...

But... I am gonna
have to file a report.

Of course. Protocol, I guess.

Oh, um,

I understand these are yours.

It was an isolated incident.

Thanks for stopping by.

Are we waiting for them to dance?

No, um, I'm just trying
to understand the idea here.

I think she organized
the tea by color.

Makes sense.

Does it? I mean, if I'm
looking for Earl Grey,

do I intuitively think, oh, it
must be between ginger and mint,

because those teas also
randomly come in green boxes?

You might want to go
for the chamomile.

I left explicit instructions
for extremely basic systems

that worked perfectly,

and she's thrown it out
for this chaotic nonsense.

She's got her own way of doing things.

M-Sec likes her, and she was a
rock star for Senator Wentworth.

Eh, she says "cool beans."

Cool beans. That's what my mother says

when she's had a highball
and is feeling cute.

You've been known to say "boom."

"Boom" is timeless.

- Oh.
- Ma'am.

Hey. I, uh, I just got
off the phone with Kat,

and I think we may have found
your first assignment.

- Oh, fantastic.
- Yeah.

We want you to do
the end of the year evaluation

for the Global Health Diplomacy's

antimalarial initiative, yeah.

That sounds fun.

Absolutely.

- You're looking for the green tea?
- Yes.

Yeah. They are over here,
with the red boxes.

(SCOFFS) Makes sense.

Anyway, Kat will get
you all the details,

Basically, we just need
you to meet with GHD,

go over what they've been doing

and then make a recommendation
on funding for the next year.

I'm on it.

I have your new remarks
for the NATO deal.

How's that looking?

Uh, yeah, well, we're getting,
we're getting back on track.

You know? (LAUGHS)

Nina managed to catch everyone
before they got on planes.

How about the new girl, huh?

- Well, she's a terrific addition.
- Absolutely fantastic.

- Off to a really good start. I mean,
I'm here to tell you... - Yeah.

Mm.

Never would have let
her get her own tea.

I know.

JAY: Ma'am.

- We did it, right? Got everybody back?
- Tentatively.

- Good.
- But there's a new curveball.

NATO can't find any confirmation
of a mass grave in Kosovo.

What does that mean?

They think it was a false rumor
started on social media.

Wait a minute. That's good, right?

- If there's no grave...
- It's... You'd think,

except the Serbian delegate
just accused Kosovo

of planting the rumor.

Is there any evidence?

Uh, DNI's into it,
but that would be insane.

Attacking Serbia just blows up
the deal for both of them.

I... Nina?

Okay, h-here's what,

here's what we do.
Y-You and I will meet

with Kosovo and Serbia
separately first.

I mean, there has to be a way
that we can calm them down

- about something that didn't happen.
- Didn't happen.

Right.

Get my car, will you?

All right, here. You can have it.

- Sure.
- Green tea for you, no honey.

Oh. Thank you.

ELIZABETH: Mr. Duriqi,

we don't know yet who created

- (WHISPERING TRANSLATION)
- this story about a mass grave

in your country.

But whoever did so
had one goal in mind:

to stir up these painful memories

so Kosovo would pull out of
the opportunity of join NATO.

We can't let them succeed.

(TRANSLATING IN ALBANIAN)

(SPEAKING IN ALBANIAN)

We're deeply appreciative of the faith

you have shown in Kosovo
with this offer.

But at this time,

we cannot share
this opportunity with Serbia.

He is saying we cannot
join NATO with Serbia now,

- but you can reason with him.
- Wait a minute.

Remind him that Kosovo was
willing to join Serbia

- only one day ago.
- (TRANSLATING)

I'm sorry.

The men in my country are proud.

I understand that.

Give them time.

This moment may not happen again.

Serbia has never acknowledged
so many atrocities of the w*r.

If you could get a statement
from them, some acknowledgement.

That's not gonna be easy.

I think you are a woman
who does the not-easy things.

Thank you.

(DOOR OPENS)

- You have played me, Jay.
- Aleksandar, I assure you that... I...

You make all these promises.

I convinced my foreign minister,

my president, my prime minister

to say yes to Kosovo.

Serbia will be strong,

- I told them. We will grow.
- All of that's still true.

You have put my people before
a f*ring squad of our enemies.

You asked us to trust them, and they
k*ll us like dogs in the street.

We don't know who created
the story about the grave,

but what's clear
was there was no grave.

(SPEAKS IN SERBIAN)

This is what happens
when you trust Albanians.

ELIZABETH: What am I looking at?

Rumors are flying on a messaging
app in Northern Kosovo

accusing Serbs who live there
of all kinds of crazy stuff.

Uh, r*pe, m*rder, kidnapping.

Mobs are showing up at people's houses

based on unsubstantiated rumors,
lies they're reading online.

They sh*t this boy in the
head when he was accused

of stealing his Albanian
friend's bike.

My God.

Pretty soon there will be retaliation,

a-and then there's no stopping it.

Forget NATO.

We might have to stop another w*r.

JAY: Obviously, our number one issue

is the escalating mob v*olence
in Northern Kosovo

aimed at ethnic Serbs.

How is anyone believing this stuff?

Uh, one guy was accused of
burying kids in his basement.

He doesn't even have a basement.

DAISY: Yeah, it's like a
Hansel and Gretel fever dream.

What can we do?

ELIZABETH:
Well, I'm meeting with the NATO

Supreme Allied Commander
of Europe later this morning,

asking him to deploy extra troops.

We are not going to sit this one out

until it is full-blown
ethnic cleansing again.

Have we figured out
who's behind all the fake news?

DNI is into it.

MATT: Uh, why are we pretending
to look into this?

Occam's razor. It's Russia.

ELIZABETH: The problem
is, I can't take

Occam's razor to the foreign
minister of Russia.

They are not the only country
using hate speech and fake news,

so we are going to need real proof.

Okay, what we do know
is that the company

behind Kosovo's social media platform

is our old friend Kronic DM.
If you'll remember,

we worked with Kronic
back when we were...

(LAUGHING)

MATT: Sorry, I'm sorry.

The name kills me.

Well, at least they took
the pot leaf out of their logo.

- Oh, they did?
- Okay, fellas.

Because we worked with Kronic
in Angola and Sri Lanka,

we'll be asking for ID
on all the fake news stories.

DAISY: Tech CEOs love cooperating

with the government,
so that should go well.

ELIZABETH: Wait a second.

Who-Who's their CEO?
What's his name? The...

Scott. Scott Goodman.

Scott Goodman. So play to his ego.

Tell him he'll be the new hero
in the w*r on fake news.

MATT: He's a fanboy.

Bring him a cape.

I can 100% get you a cape.

Let's see how I do with words first.

Dr. McCord. I don't think
I've introduced myself yet.

Daniel Reese, White House physician.

Of course. Good to
meet you, Dr. Reese.

I understand you got
an unexpected visit

from Gordon Becker the other night.

Yeah, Gordon and I spoke about it.

Noctambulism is, unfortunately,

a pretty common side effect from
the sleep aid he'd been taking.

I gave him a lower dosage.

Great.

I saw your request for
Gordon's medication records.

I just wanted to reassure you
that I have no concerns

about the Secretary's
health whatsoever.

It's just a standard incident
report, but thank you.

I understand that you are
the new ethics advisor

and that you want to follow protocol,

but, uh, sometimes a report,

with all the cyber security issues

we're facing can make sensitive
information vulnerable.

I'll submit everything in hard copy.

Good. Thank you. Uh,
how's Alison, by the way?

Uh, my daughter?

- She's fine.
- Good, good.

Your wife came to me
for some erythromycin

for her a few weeks back, and... Uh...

- Cough's cleared up?
- Uh, yeah.

Thanks for, thanks for that.

Sure, sure. I, uh...

Just my way of keeping people
focused on their work.

(CHUCKLES)

So...

Nice meeting you. Take care, Henry.

Mr. DeCosta, Blake Moran,

nice to meet you.

Welcome to Global Health Diplomacy.

You're the new P.A. on 7, right?

Recently promoted, yes.

Uh, so I've been through your
impeccably put together reports

on the antimalarial initiative,
and I have to say...

That is an excellent pocket square.

Oh, thank you. I like yours, too.

Also impressive?

Global Health Diplomacy's
stellar results

in reducing the spread
of malaria this year.

The insecticide-treated nets
were a real breakthrough.

Yes. Well, uh, I see
no reason not to recommend

your continued funding,
so if you would just

sign here saying that we had
this review session...

- You got it.
- All right.

- Don't forget the stamp.
- Oh.

Great, thank you.

Here you are.

Here you are.
One funding recommendation

for the Office of Global Health
Diplomacy's highly effective

anti-malaria initiative.

Ah, cool beans. Oh, hang on.

This just came in this morning.

The Bureau of Oceans
and International Environmental

and Scientific Affairs
filed an objection

to the anti-malaria initiative.

So, we're going to need their approval

before we file the recommendation.

- Really?
- Yeah.

Don't forget to get a stamp.

TOM: Yeah, no,

OES has a big problem
with this initiative.

Yeah, that much I got.

Yeah. See, when we were
asked to contribute

one-third of Global Health Diplomacy's

operating budget for this initiative,

we didn't realize their
main strategy was to basically

blanket the entire equatorial
region in poisoned nets.

The insecticide-treated sleeping nets

that cut malaria death rates in half?

Those nets?

No one's disputing
they do an effective job

of k*lling mosquitoes,

but they're also great
at k*lling fish.

So you've got people
all over sub-Saharan Africa

polluting the waters
with carcinogenic chemicals

and basically gutting the fish supply.

Which means, instead of malaria,
we're now heading for famine.

Okay, before we go
to worst-case scenarios...

Not worst-case scenario, Blake.

This is happening now. Look.

This... ah, this is
the last five years

of fishing stocks in Lakes Victoria,

Tanganyika, and Malawi.

(EXHALES) All right.

There's got to be a solution.

Maybe... maybe distribute
untreated nets?

Um... in a different color.

And then educate the population
which ones are safe for fishing.

Okay, twice the nets,

plus education materials, plus staff.

Is that coming out of OES' budget?

I don't think so.

Not leaving here
with a stamp, am I? (CHUCKLES)

(POP VERSION OF "JINGLE BELLS"
PLAYING LOUDLY)

Do you know where I can
find Scott Goodman?

- Over there.
- In the...

- Thanks.
- Thank you.

- Uh, Scott Goodman?
- Yeah.

Jay Whitman from the State Department.

Hey, man, good to see you.
You want some punch?

No, thanks.

Look, I'm sorry to crash
the party, but it's urgent.

Oh, I doubt that it's life-and-death.

Hm? Can it wait?

Actually, it is life-and-death,
and you're part of it.

(WOMAN LAUGHING)

Five people have been
injured, three dead,

one of them a 12-year-old boy.

All posted on Kronic's social
media network in the Balkans.

We can post a statement
condemning the v*olence.

We're looking for direct intervention.

Filter for keywords inciting v*olence

or engaging in hate speech,

block those posts
and hand over the IDs

to the Department of National
Intelligence for tracking.

Sounds a lot like the U.S. government

forcing me into censorship.

See, to me it sounds
like a private company

safeguarding the accuracy
of your users' experience

to protect against liability.

Except that under the Digital
Millennium Copyright Act,

we are not liable for the
content that our users create.

In fact, if I get involved in
monitoring and shaping content,

I could become liable
for the content that...

The U.S. government
will protect you from.

So really it comes down to you, Scott.

I ask you, is this the kind of

party you want to be hosting?

Because Congress can start getting

very interested
in your overseas expansion.

Yeah, okay, Mr. Heat Miser.

So,

in the holiday spirit,

what's in it for me?

And I pushed the tree lighting

- and holiday remarks to 5:00.
- Great.

Push it to tomorrow.
Breakthrough with Kronic DM.

Oh, good. Scott Goodman
was cooperative?

With some mild coercion.
He gave us the ISPs on the, uh,

fake news postings
and DNI tracked them all

to a Russian-controlled troll
farm in the Crimean Peninsula.

Well, that was fast.
CYBERCOM is putting together

some offensive options right now.

As in now now?

You want to go take out a troll farm?

(SYNTH-POP MUSIC PLAYING)

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(ALARM BLARING)

ELIZABETH: Did we get everything?

I'm getting confirmation.

We successfully uploaded the servers

before we destroyed them.

Excuse me, sir, they're
all out of commission?

Completely.

All right, let's get all those faces.

Scrape them for ID and
get them out to Interpol.

State would like access to that
data as well, Ephraim, okay?

- Of course.
- Thank you.

Let's see Russia try to deny it now.

Madam Secretary. You've called
to wish me happy holidays?

ELIZABETH (ON VIDEO): Well,
as we say here, Konstantin,

I'm going to cut to the chase,

or in this case, the capture.

At 9:42 Moscow Standard Time,

U.S. intelligence documented

these Russian nationals
operating what,

in internet-speak,
is called a "troll farm."

The data seized from these servers

indicates something more serious.

This was a highly organized,

state-mandated propaganda factory

whose aim was
to destabilize and prevent

the admission of Serbia
and Kosovo to NATO.

Once again, you've called
with outrageous allegations

based on paranoid rumors...

JAY: Foreign Minister,
I'm sending you copies

of the seized activity
from the servers.

I think you'll find it
to be ample proof

that members of your government
are engaged in a campaign

of disinformation.

Anti-Muslim stories
circulated online in France.

False rumors of a violent
Catalonian uprising in Spain.

I-In Spain, and a fake story
of a mass grave in Kosovo,

and, worst of all,

incitements to v*olence

against Serbian citizens
of Northern Kosovo.

Even if you have what you
consider to be proof of this,

it's impossible to trace a direct line

from online rumors
to acts of v*olence,

unless you intend to blame Russia

for the centuries of hatred
between Serbians and Albanians.

I'm sure you'll try.

This is a 12-year-old boy.

He was accused online
of stealing his friend's bike.

A mob showed up at his door
and sh*t him in the head.

If nothing had been posted
about this boy, Konstantin,

he'd be asleep
in his own bed right now,

not in a morgue waiting to be buried.

I will look at your materials.

But I would suggest:
look for someone else to blame

every time a deal of yours
doesn't work out.

_

Whoa.

Sorry. Just clearing my head.

Is it helping?

- Not really.
- Huh.

- Do you have a minute?
- sh**t.

Oceans and Environmental
and Scientific Affairs

are refusing to share their budget

with Global Health Diplomacy's
anti-malaria initiative

unless GHD comes up with some
alternative to the mosquito nets

that OES says are
poisoning the environment.

- Okay.
- Yeah... Reasonable, right?

But when I took OES's
objection to GHD,

they flatly refused
to alter their program,

which, admittedly, is, uh,
you know, very effective.

And you just want to get
your form stamped.

No, I actually want to
get the two of them

to work with each other on the thing

that they're supposed to be doing...

How is this condiment
drawer such a mess?

She's been here two days.

Sounds like your basic
territorial dispute.

Everybody's thinking
with their lizard brain,

so you're not gonna
get anywhere with logic.

So what am I supposed to do?

You got to think

of OES and GHD like two bucks
roaring across the field

at the beginning of mating season.

Wait for them to lock horns

until one of them
slinks away in defeat?

- If you had time, which you don't.
- I don't.

So...

let's think about this on their level.

W-What would make...

what could... make you forget about

reorganizing condiment drawers

and just let Nina do her thing?

Thanks for coming
to my turf, everybody.

Uh, just wanted to thank
both of your departments

for the great work you've done
on the anti-malaria initiative.

I know the Department of Defense will

benefit greatly from the
groundwork you've already laid,

- knowing that...
- Whoa, whoa, whoa. DoD's taking over?

Wha... Yeah, we didn't
hear any of this.

Oh, it just came down the pipeline.

Uh, knowing how squeezed
your budgets are,

I knew you'd be relieved to hear
that we're turning it over.

Are you kidding?

- That's not a relief.
- Not at all.

You don't let Defense
do the work of State, Blake.

That's like... It's just like letting

a cranky toddler land a plane.

Or asking the fox, "Oh, hey,

do you mind gathering
up the eggs for me?"

You should have come to us.
What were you thinking?

Well, gosh, I-I didn't realize
you'd react this way.

I-I... I guess I'm still
learning the ropes.

- Is it too late? Can we get it back?
- When was this confirmed?

At this point, it's just
an exchange of e-mails.

- Oh, you can unravel that.
- Just tell them you made a mistake.

Well, there's-there's still the
matter of your budget dispute,

so I don't, you know...

Please. All I need to do is
reach out to the chem company,

ask for some untreated nets.

Get them in a different color,
maybe. That was Blake's idea.

I love that idea.

Maybe we share the public
education line item?

We can look into that.

Here you are. One antimalarial
funding recommendation,

two stamps.

Hey, you wrangled it. Nice work.

You might even say "cool beans."

- (LAUGHS)
- (PHONE RINGING)

Secretary McCord's office. Uh-huh.

(QUIETLY): Okay.

Yeah, I mentioned that Ali had
a cough that wouldn't go away

and Dr. Reese
offered some antibiotics.

He was implying he has
something to hold over me.

To do what, expose
our overuse of antibiotics?

To say we bent the rules
on dispensing medication

without a prescription, too,

in case I try to blow
the whistle on him.

I wouldn't be surprised if he
ambushes me at this meeting

- with Russell tomorrow.
- I can't take another turf w*r.

- I just can't.
- Come on. Let's get you something to eat.

- I'm not hungry.
- Ali made pesto.

Maybe a little.

Avdonin said this thing that
I can't stop thinking about.

Even if Russia was... I don't know,

if they created the fake news...

which they still won't admit to...

he says they can't be held responsible

for the v*olence caused by it

because it's the hate that gave
it fuel in the first place.

Classic deflection of culpability.

Yeah, but it got me thinking:

has there ever been
a sectarian conflict

that was resolved peacefully?

In all of human history?

Well, England and France tried
to obliterate each other

for a hundred years.

And now London bankers
retire peacefully

- to Provence...
- Honey, I don't have

- a hundred years.
- ...no one thinks anything about it.

If you're talking
about Serbia and Kosovo,

they've been going at it
since the Ottoman Empire.

And now it's about to flare up
into a whole new conflict

over this Russian fake news.

There's always the other way.

The Incas were about
to destroy themselves

in a civil w*r between two brothers.

What stopped them?

Spain.

(MICROWAVE BEEPING)

Oh, hey, Gordon, Adele.

Good morning.

He's just finishing up.

All yours.

Gentlemen.

RUSSELL: Based on my review
of the incident

and the circumstances
leading up to it,

I'll be asking Dr. Reese to
tender his resignation today.

Russell, I-I object
in the strongest terms possible.

I-I've worked
with Dan Reese for decades.

He's a man of honor and integrity.

And as I made clear to Henry,
this was my responsibility.

Thank you.

Henry, do you want
to revise any of the facts

in your report?

No, but I-I...

All right, well, then,
this matter's concluded.

Thanks for your input, Gordon.

Henry, if you could
stay behind a moment?

I find it best
to include the opposition

when there's gonna be a blast radius.

I never meant to hang Reese.

He wasn't following protocol on
dispensing medication to Gordon

and you and who knows who else,

and he's playing fast and loose
with the paperwork.

End of story.

What?

I-I... (SIGHS)

I'm just a little concerned
about developing a reputation

as the guy who blows the whistle
and gets people axed.

Well, there's only
one team around here.

And now everyone knows you're on it.

And they better be, too.

- Thank you, Nina.
- Welcome.

Welcome to our delegates from Serbia.

Please enjoy one last
continental breakfast.

Again, thank you both for coming.

You have our presentation
in both Albanian and Serbian,

so I'm just going to freestyle it.

My husband Henry is a scholar
and a history buff,

and when I asked him
for examples of conflict

over land and ideology that were
resolved without v*olence,

he couldn't really come up with much.

The general model seems to be
to fight it out

until one side is either exhausted

or annihilated by the other.

The only thing that really seems
to shift this dynamic

is the thr*at of a common enemy.

To that end,

this presentation will lay out for you

a highly organized campaign

of disinformation waged against

both your countries
and throughout Europe

by the highest levels
of Russian government.

It was targeted, researched

and, as we now know,
all too effective.

- Thank you.
- Thank you.

My pleasure...

Good work in there, everyone.

So, you think there's any hope
of reviving the NATO deal?

As much as it always
kills me to say it,

Russell Jackson might be right.

I might have reached too far.

We'll circle back to it.

- Yeah...
- That whole strategy of uniting two

factions against a common
enemy actually works.

So I hear.

Yeah, I heard you did some good work

on that anti-malaria program.

Well, I mean, I tried.

Unfortunately, the funding's
not gonna be renewed next year.

What? Yeah, some tech billionaire NGO

offered to take control of
the whole mosquito nets thing.

They got tons of money, they'll
do a better job, anyway.

Wait, I actually got them
to work together, though.

I mean, they have-they have
really good ideas.

Well, they'll pass them
on to the tech guys.

So I did all that for nothing?

Three yards and a cloud of dust.
Welcome to the bigs.

(LAUGHTER)

(TEACHER SPEAKING ALBANIAN)

(CHILDREN GASP)

(SPEAKING SERBIAN)

(SPEAKING SERBIAN)

(CHILD COUGHS)

(LAUGHTER)

(INDISTINCT CHATTER)

(SPEAKING SERBIAN)

- Marko!
- (LAUGHTER)

(INDISTINCT CHATTER)