House of Cards

Strange not seeing your name up there.

"To improve is to change..."

"To perfect is to change often."

You know your Churchill.

Inscribed on the watch you gave me

- when I left for Glendon Hill. - Was it?

- Nancy arranges all the gifts. - She knows you well.

- As much as I'm enjoying this little... - I got you two more votes.

Partridge and Krauss.

Is this Raymond's way of extending an olive branch?

- It's a start. - Two votes is a twig. It's not a branch.

- Which is why I'm here. - Well, the vote is at 5:00.

- We have less than three hours. - Two hours and 49 minutes.

- We have made more happen in less. - Is that the watch?

- No, it's nicer. - So why did Raymond have a change of heart?

If the government grinds to a halt, that benefits no one.

We want the president focused on China, not distracted by furloughs and protests.

You take direction from Jacqueline.

She's not gonna like that very much.

- Bossing you around? - Having me around.

I don't blame her.

Ashleigh will start the interview with questions

about how you and your husband met, your early marriage.

- Fine. - Then she'll move on to more specific

- questions about your recent transition. - All right.

She's gonna ask about you having no children.

I thought we agreed to take that off the table.

We did, but they insisted.

Now, I can speak to Ashleigh directly and...

No, no. It's fine. I've been asked the question before.

- I know how to answer it. - It'll be quick and painless.

I'll confirm that with Ashleigh when she gets here.

- I like it. - Maybe something less neutral.

I'm sure you'll look good in whatever you choose. I'll be downstairs.

Disori owes you for the overpass funding you secured.

- Yes, he does. - I'll call him.

- Where's Doug? - He's doing the rounds.

Making sure our hard ones stay hard.

Birch and Womack are doing the same. But we're still 15 short.

I've got relationships with most of these folks.

Money's not enough. I already tried the D-trip route.

Retirement age is the main sticking point?

- Old people vote. - I'll target the AARP.

- That'll take most of the heat off. - We're wasting time.

- I gotta get to work. - Take Remy with you.

Shouldn't we divide and conquer?

It's harder to say no twice than once.

I'll stay out of your way.

Like you did on the watershed act?

We're on the same side of the fence.

You're late to the party.

Think of Remy as the guy who shows up

with a six-pack after the liquor stores close.

- Who's on your plate? - Donald Blythe.

Do you really think that's the best use of your time?

If I can get him to turn his people.

A lot of eggs to put in one basket.

We only have one basket.

Jacqueline, may I use your office,

- for old time's sake? - I serve at the pleasure of the vice president.

Two hours and 17 minutes.

Normally all I need to sway Donald Blythe is patience and time,

neither of which I have right now.

Tick tock.

- Donald. Good to see you. - Mr. Vice President.

Please, it's always Frank to you.

I came because you asked me, but don't mistake that for false hope.

If you have other people to lobby, you should.

- Ten minutes. - It won't change anything.

Well, at the very least, enjoy the free coffee.

- I don't drink caffeine. - Then decaf.

- Still has caffeine. - Well, enjoy the free oxygen.

It gets stuffy over there in the Longworth building.

- Coffee for me, and... - Seltzer water, if you have it.

I'm sure we do.

Now, I can understand if you might hold a grudge.

I don't hold grudges, Frank. I just don't negotiate

with people who are fundamentally deceptive.

I never lied to you, Donald.

You promised to seek my counsel, which you never once did.

We had to move the education bill in a direction I knew would make you unhappy.

- I saw no reason to frustrate... - You eviscerated the unions.

- You federalized performance standards. - If we hadn't done that,

the bill would've been dead in the water.

Now you want to cut the pathetic level

of funding you did manage to pass.

Isn't some funding better than none?

A flatline will send a louder message than life support.

Look, I'm impressed with the little coalition you've cobbled together,

- but we... - Not so little. Twenty-eight votes.

- And you need them all. - Well, really only half.

- Half of zero is still zero. - I had to pull every trick in the book

to get entitlement through the Senate. If it fails in the House,

we don't get a round two. This is a one-time deal.

It should never have passed the Senate to begin with.

Can we start over? May I offer you an apology?

Deaf ears, Frank.

I withdrew myself from the education fight and that is my cross to bear.

But I will be damned if I will make the same mistake twice.

This sort of stubbornness makes you no better than the tea party.

- Except for the fact... - that we happen to be right.

Just a few more minutes, Donald. You haven't even had your seltzer yet.

They have seven other data centers spread across the Northeast.

- Those aren't good odds. - Well, if we can access one,

I should be able to talk to the other seven. They all look like that.

- Fort Knox wrapped in a nuclear bunker. - How do we get in?

Well, we don't. You do.

What...? How? What's my reason?

You're writing a story on cyberterrorism. It's free publicity.

- If they're so secure... - They give tours all the time.

- Mostly to prospective clients. - Then why haven't you done it yourself?

Because I run a white hat firm.

And if I were to show up in the tour logs before a breach, it would raise alarms.

OK. Once I'm in?

These are what servers look like.

If you can get inside one of these cages, you will have this.

You slide it into the server. Voilà.

- It's that simple? - Yeah. Well, your part, not mine.

- Code's extremely complex. - How do I do it without them noticing?

You get good at anything. Practice makes perfect.

We've got a problem.

Everyone, stop what you're doing, head into the nearest office and shut the door.

You, stay exactly where you are.

Retirement age is a done deal.

I might be able to redistribute some appropriations...

That's not what I'm after. You can't fix a wrecked car with new hubcaps.

How about a sister bill? One that focuses entirely on education.

My coalition is fighting for the integrity of the party.

We're not just focused on education...

I'm sorry, Donald. Excuse me.

Nancy, I said no interrup...

When?

But the vote is in less than an hour. I...

I don't care what protocol... Quarantine. There's white powder in the mail.

- We're locked in? - Sir! Close the door now!

- Look, I have to... - Now, sir! Please!

- I should call my wife. - And I should call Claire.

- Should I tell Connor? - No. It's better the press doesn't know.

Field tests should come in before the vote. Soon as the tally's in,

- I'll come home. - How's it looking?

Shaky. We may lose this one.

That could make for a tough interview.

Well, I didn't want to do it in the first place.

Well, we're committed now.

I better get back to the holy crusader.

Let me know as soon as the tests have cleared.

If we're lucky, it'll be anthrax.

I won't live long enough to see the bill fail.

- Don't say that. - We're gonna be fine.

How many of these quarantines we been through?

- I've lost count. - Wish me luck with Donald.

Heels crossed.

- It's ripping the caucus apart. - Of course.

We took a united stand on our version of the bill.

- Some of us have to stay on our feet. - This is about party unity.

- It's about abandoning our base. - No. That's what the freeze is.

Our base doesn't benefit from sword rattling.

It gets left bleeding on the field.

My district has the third largest number of seniors in the country.

If we raise the age of retirement, the AARP will raise hell.

I spoke with the president of the AARP this morning.

They'll be receiving a 45 million dollar endowment next week.

Voters will still revolt.

The midterms are gonna be ugly.

Many, and I can speak for myself...

The choice is between immediate discontinuation of services

and an age bump five years from now.

You're comparing theoretical discomfort to imminent pain.

I just feel like we're losing touch with our core values.

The education bill was a good example.

We all followed Frank's lead, hoping it would buy us

- traction with the Republicans. - Would you excuse me? Just one moment.

- Does the press know? - Not yet.

Can you keep in touch with him?

I need to pummel our lunch guests into submission.

You got 'em close, but relax. Listen more.

They want their hands held, not someone in their face.

I know how to whip votes.

Best caviar in DC, ladies and gentlemen.

- We can't let you pay for that. - Then don't eat it.

But if you do, I won't tell anyone.

You were saying about the education bill...

No, Marjory, honey. Remember, we just talked about it.

I was telling you...

Right. Nothing to worry about.

If you have any questions, ask Molly.

She knows what's going on.

I will call as soon as I know anything.

I love you.

How's Marjory?

- She's OK. - Long call.

You know, she... gets emotional.

Molly took a semester off to be at home.

I told her she needs to head back in the spring.

I don't want her mother dragging her down.

- Must be hard on you. - Harder on the girls, I think.

- Is she lucid? - About half the time.

Just enough to be aware of how quickly she's going.

It's awful.

I feel terrible saying it, but part of me is looking forward to her not being lucid.