Madam Secretary

_

Come on.

Come on, let's move. Okay, guys,

let's get what we can and get out fast.

My name is Becca Mason.

My colleagues and I,

with the environmental group Ocean Relief Foundation,

have managed to sneak ashore here on Shipwreck Reef.

Until recently, it was an uninhabited atoll,

home to an incredibly biodiverse

coral reef.

Like many such atolls,

this reef is being developed

by the Chinese military.

And by "developed," I mean demolished.

You can see the construction

going on over there.

To build airstrips and radar stations,

they pulverize the coral

and pave over it with concrete,

destroying it forever.

Maybe you're thinking, "So what?

"Who cares about a little speck

in the middle of a faraway sea?"

Then consider this: These reefs

provide one tenth of all the seafood on Earth,

providing food for millions of people.

What will happen when that food is gone?

We're here because someone needs to act

before it's too late.

We're hoping you'll see this and that someone will be you.

They're here. Let's go.

_

Do we have it?

Wait, guys, do we have it?!

- We're good. Let's get the hell out of here.

_

Becca.

I just can't believe you didn't mention

Ray Merchant to the FBI, that's all.

I didn't think it was relevant.

Elizabeth, someone is stalking

our family. How could a former student

who is obsessed with you not be relevant?

He just wanted me to be his thesis advisor.

Oh, he wanted you to be a lot more than that.

Okay.

Admittedly, Ray got a little weird.

- A lit... - And don't say,

"Oh, he got a lot more than that."

- Well, he did. - Yeah, okay.

He did.

He's bipolar,

and the school dealt with it,

and we haven't heard anything from him since.

You do remember I used to do this kind of stuff for the CIA.

Can you get your corner, please?

No, I will not, and I don't appreciate

how glib you're being about this right now.

That's your excuse for not helping.

Okay.

That... was a little glib.

What did he say to you when you turned him down?

He said he wanted to hurt himself and me.

Okay, but you of all people, you know how wound up

these gifted kids can get.

Exactly.

Do you really think that a brilliant young guy

with a screw loose couldn't have pulled off some of the stuff

- that's been happening? - I don't know where Ray Merchant is now,

but I doubt an interview with the FBI

would be very good for his mental health.

That's not my problem.

The safety of our family is my problem.

- A problem I caused. - I... That's not what I meant.

Yeah, but that's the truth of it, right?

Someone's threatening our kids, and it's my fault.

Elizabeth, no one believes in your work,

in you, more than I do.

Do you know who else is obsessed with me?

Hezbollah, ISIS, the Sinaloa Cartel.

Any one of them would happily murder

our family if it would further their agenda.

So, you know, that's fun to live with.

Listen to me.

It's just that, a lot of times,

stalkers have a personal relationship

with their victims.

I had a bad feeling about this kid then,

and I still have it now.

Fine.

Y-You want to talk to the FBI, you can talk to the FBI.

On one condition.

Name it.

You have to put the shams on the big pillows.

I'm sorry, but glib is the only way I can deal right now.

Oh, man, that's the worst job in the whole house.

Yes, I know.

...and Nadine is wondering how China's taking

- of the activists from Ocean Relief Foundation - Thanks.

will impact your trip to Vietnam.

You mean the Great Catfish Summit?

It's a $360 million industry in the U.S.

Vietnam is undercutting our producers on the world market.

Which is one of the last impediments

to full normalization between our countries.

I know why I'm going, Blake.

How's your Uncle Fred the catfish farmer, by the way?

E-mailing voluminously, ma'am.

Ooh. In answer to, uh, Nadine's question,

I see no reason

why the Ocean Relief situation

would impact my trip at this point.

Daisy is getting input from the group

and putting together a statement.

Ooh, speaking of statements, have the Chinese made one yet?

Not as yet, no.

Hmm. Well, that's something.

The South China Sea is one of the most dangerous flash points

on this planet.

What the hell were those kids doing out there?

Protesting its destruction, apparently.

Which they're not wrong about.

Okay, so, for the briefing, China's building these bases

to assert its claim that it owns the whole sea because why?

- Oil and gas. - Shipping lanes.

Fishing's pretty good, too.

You guys, 11 billion proven barrels of oil

underneath the SCS. That's what China wants.

What are we even talking about?

Maybe they want control of the $5 trillion worth of cargo

that passes through it each year.

$1.2 trillion of which touches U.S. ports, because,

you know, we buy everything from China now.

Okay, you want to play Fun with Numbers? Here.

A population of 1.3 billion with one of the world's

largest fisheries in its backyard.

- All I'm saying. - Oh, and don't forget to note

that tensions have been rising dangerously

not just with the U.S. but with all

of China's neighbors on the sea.

It's a real powder keg.

God, what the hell were those kids doing out there?

- Exactly. - Good luck with the briefing.

Well, with any luck, we might not have

to do a briefing at all.

The Chinese haven't even released a statement.

I'm sure they're not looking to set off a confrontation

over an incident this small.

Besides, Chen and I have a pretty good relationship.

I'm sure we can sort this out.

I have the foreign minister ready for you.

- Oh, great. Thank you. - Yeah.

Madam Secretary.

I wanted to reach out to you about this situation

with the activists because

I think it's in both our interests

to resolve this... misunderstanding quickly.

- I agree. - Good. So where do we start?

Simply acknowledge that they were trespassing

on Chinese territory,

- and we can go from there. - Well, obviously,

I'm not gonna do that.

Not one country

in the world, mine included,

recognizes the territorial claims China is making

in the South China Sea.

Then the Western spies we apprehended

will be tried for trespassing on our island.

Not only is it not your island,

it's not even an island.

It's a coral atoll you illegally annexed and paved over.

And, furthermore, "spies"?

Really? Come on, Ming.

We've worked closely together on a range of incredibly

complex issues.

I think we can handle some hippies on a raft.

I believe I've made China's position clear.

You would be wise not to meddle further in our internal affairs.

Then let me be equally clear:

Those activists were taken on disputed territory

and, therefore, illegally.

We want them released immediately.

It seems we have nothing further to discuss.

Good day, Madam Secretary.

Wow.

Ming out.

Right?

What the hell was that?

Your motorcade is waiting to take you to the White House.

Good. 'Cause I have some recommendations

for the president.

And after the incident at UVA,

has Mr. Merchant attempted to... make contact

with your wife in any way?

Not that we're aware of.

But on social media,

he's been highly critical of U.S. foreign policy

in general and of my wife specifically.

"Secretary McCord's legacy: