Planes, Campaigns, And The Terrorist Who Might Be Coming To Kill Harrison

Memories Of Mom

Assets And Liabilities

Who called the meeting? Probably Sally Langston.

What's it about? She wants her husband, Daniel Douglas, to get to know Leo, who will be managing her Presidential campaign.

How'd it go? DD gets dismissed almost immediately, so for him and his cocktail, it's great. Once he's gone, Sally and Leo discuss whether DD is a fratty goon or an emasculated potential date rapist, and what he can do (or shouldn't do) for Sally's campaign. That exposition delivered, Leo goes on to share his strategy for siphoning religious fundamentalists' support away from Fitz's Republican bid, and toward herself. And since she's a Bible-thumper, it's a good meeting for her too.

Liv, Baby, I Am So Sensitive. Just Look At My Face!

Fitz vs. The Truth

As soon as Olivia says she wants a moment alone with the President, stupid Fitz starts in blah-blahing about how he wants them to go back to the way they were, I guess because he can't read her irate, tense body language AT ALL -- and of course she's having none of it and asks him point blank about Operation Remington. Fitz immediately pulls the "Commander-in-Chief" card, saying it's classified and he can't tell her shit. So she plays her only card and tells him she won't work for him.

Winner: Liv, I guess, though what she won kind of sucks.

Here's Where You Start Paying. In Butt-Kisses.

Liv taking over Josephine Marcus's Presidential campaign means a few things: Marcus needs to quit going on TV to bake pies; she needs to quit making jokes about Fitz's philandering; she needs to remind the electorate that she has a military record; and she needs MONEY. The $6 million in her war chest is not near enough to win her Iowa, and though Marcus doesn't want to start kissing up to special interests and PACs, Liv's like, "You have to," and she's like, "Okay." Cut to a montage of telling a bunch of lobbyists how much she loves their services! Yes, even ocean farming, which is clearly an issue dear to the hearts of all Montanans!

Integrity < $6,000,001+

And We Would Have Gotten Away With It If Not For Those Meddling Kids

Who called the meeting? Cyrus.

What's it about? Fitz told Cyrus that Liv knows about Remington and is therefore working for Marcus instead of Fitz, so Cyrus is passing that along to Rowan.

How'd it go? "You shut down Marcus: I'll take care of Ballard." - Rowan. Break!

The Incredible Lurk

Alert Type: Hired Goon Alert.

Issue: Jake is meeting with some broad named Kate to see if she still has her Langley clearance and can get him the cockpit recording for a particular flight (bet we know which one), and doesn't notice the hired goon listening in a few tables away -- but WE do!

Mitigating Circumstances: Lots of people have their eyes on Jake right now, so maybe this goon doesn't wish him ill?

Resolution: When Kate meets Jake later with the "evidence," Goon comes out of the shadows and shoots her dead; turns out she was reaching not for a file, but for her gun.

Spoiler: The Hired Goon was hired by Fitz to tail Jake, for his own safety.

Trading Partners, Reunited?

Alert Type: Extortion Alert.

Issue: Cyrus wants Harrison to get Liv to quit the Marcus campaign — and if Harrison doesn't feel like it, maybe he should know that his old non-friend Adan Salif has applied for a visa, and it sure would be terrible if that shit got approved!

Mitigating Circumstances: If Salif comes back to the U.S., he will kill Harrison. But Harrison knows people (Huck) who can delete the application from the State Department server.

Resolution: None; Cyrus still plans to let Salif into the country and Harrison can just fend for himself, or not.

(Possible) Spoiler: This probably won't end well for Marcus.

And Why Not Believe Him?

Liv is torturing herself by watching footage of her mother's crashed plane (and mitigating the torture with wine) when she decides she might as well call her dad, even though at the start of the episode she said she definitely could NOT ask him about the crash because he'd kill Huck and Jake, but anyway, he gives her the chance to ask one no-strings-attached question about it without his seeking reprisal through murder, so she goes with "Did you give the order to have my mother killed?" He says no. She tries to ask a follow-up about whether Fitz shot down the plane, but her dad is wise to that trick. "The past is the past. It's best if you leave it...there," he tells her. WELL, CASE CLOSED THEN.

Trigger Warning

Thumbs up to Liv and Abby figuring out how to prep Marcus for interviews: make her real mad. Accusing her of being too nice to be President flips a switch that makes her focused, passionate, and authoritative. Also a little scary, which all Presidents should probably be. (Someone near Hillary Clinton should be trying to figure out how to make her do this, btw.)

Just Breathe

Alert Type: Stalker Alert.

Issue: Quinn sucks at shooting her new gun, and Charlie wants to help her improve.

Mitigating Circumstances: Charlie is B613, and not the nice kind like Huck.

Resolution: Quinn takes his advice and finds herself drawn to him -- I mean, at least, unlike Huck, he's actually speaking to her!

Spoiler: Yeah, he's working for Rowan.

Dilly-Dallying With Sally

There's only one problem with Leo's plan to get pastors on Sally's side: pastors also want to be close to power, and the best way to do that is stay close to the current President about to run for re-election. Even Pastor Coles, a Tea Party guy (which: the Tea Party exists in this reality, I guess), goes straight from a meeting with Sally to a call with Cyrus, confirming that Sally is planning to jump off Fitz's ticket.

The Ends Justify The Means? Right?

Having figured out how to snap Marcus into scary campaign mode, Liv and Abby "reluctantly" show her a video that Reston is about to release, painting her as a weak and querulous woman as opposed to the Army lieutenant she actually was. It totally works, and she destroys James for his sexist questions in her first big primetime interview and a bunch of donors jump onto her campaign and everything is great except that Candy can tell the ad is a fake: Abby still has the same manicure as the fake Marcus in the fake ad. Whoopsie! Candy seems to be keeping it to herself for now, but she's not happy.

The Bromance Is Over

Are we STILL talking about Operation Remington?! Okay, fine, I guess it's important. After Fitz summons him to the Oval Office, Jake thanks Fitz for putting a security detail on him, and then starts in with the questions about that one flight Fitz may or may not have flown. Jake explains that getting this evidence on Rowan and taking him down is the only way he'll ever be able to feel safe again. Fitz is like, "You're fucking my ex, though." So they're not bros anymore.

Baby! Is This The Face Of A Guy Who Shot Down A Plane Your Mother Was On? Well, Maybe It Is, But I'm Still Not Telling, Byeeeeeeeeeee!