"Previously on Designated Survivor..." "Vice President Peter MacLeish was shot and killed by his wife, Beth MacLeish." "She then turned the gun upon herself and committed suicide." "You are a target." "I want our kids to have a normal life." "I spoke with Mike about Camp David." "He says it's more secure." "President Moss wants to get back into politics." "He just wants to share the benefit of his experience." "Inviting him into the White House could lift the nation," " project a sense of solidarity." " I'll set it up." "You need some personal time." " Take maybe a week." " Yes, sir." "I would like you to be my acting chief of staff." "I won't let you down." "Aaron?" "Aaron Shore's made contact with someone." "That's Charles Langdon." "What the hell's going on?" "I thought you were dead, Charlie." "Just follow me." "They just ducked into St. Angelo's on 10th." "Copy." "Cover the north entrance." "We're a minute out." "Please rise for the blessing." "Let us pray." " We go now." " Copy that." "Charlie, tell me what's going on." "Listen." "I've only got a minute." "I need you to do something for me." "My life depends on it." "Go." "Go." " Shore!" " Agent Wells?" " Where's Langdon?" " H-He took off." "I didn't even..." " Which door?" " He walked out that way." "Stay there!" "Hendricks!" " Which door isn't covered?" " East side." "Thank you, Ava." "Mr. President, it's nice to see you without the cane." " You must be feeling better." " I am." "Thank you." "We're compiling a short list of VP candidates for you to look over, as well as more cabinet appointees." "Unfortunately, it's still slim pickings, sir." "People are apprehensive about joining the new administration." " There's uncertainty." " Hopefully, former President Moss can help with that." "He promised a list of names and to throw his weight until they said yes." " I'm seeing him tomorrow, right?" " Your meeting is set for midday." "I've also set up an informal dinner at the Residence with the First Lady." "Unless, of course, she's not available." "No, no, no." "She'll be there." "I take it you're a fan of President Moss?" "I handed out yard signs during his first campaign, actually..." "Excuse me." "So, how long have you and Langdon been in contact?" "We haven't been in contact." "I told you I thought he was dead." "He just walked up to me on the street." " And yet, you went with him." " What was I gonna do?" "I need to know word-for-word what he said." "Don't leave anything out." "Okay, but he didn't say much." "He..." "He was extremely paranoid..." "just constantly looking over his shoulder like he was being hunted or something." "He said his life depended on it." "Langdon wants a deal?" "Yes, sir." "Immunity in exchange for information." "And a new life in witness protection." "That's not gonna happen." "The only thing Langdon has left to bargain for is his life." "What kind of information do you think he has?" "Sir, we don't know yet, but he's our only known connection to the conspiracy." "Information from him could be invaluable." "Or not..." "I mean, for all we know, he could be working with conspirators." "Langdon contacted me several times after the bombing." "He put me onto MacLeish." "Without him..." "I'd probably be dead." "Mr. President, I've spent my entire career tracking down stone-cold criminals who'd make you swear they were as pure as driven snow." "We need more information." "And in a perfect world, we would have that." "We don't have time." "Shore was given 24 hours to respond." "If we don't use it, Langdon's in the wind." "This could be a giant setup." "You said he's running scared." "Bring him in." " Morning." " Morning." "What is that?" "This is a bulletproof vest." "I know what it is." "Why do you have it?" "It's really just ceremonial, but, uh, each press secretary passes this on down to the next press secretary, and I figured, since you're now acting chief of staff, maybe a loan was in order." "Emily Rhodes." " I'm on my way." " You want me to hang this up somewhere?" " I'm good." " What, you don't want it?" "Thanks, though." "Fine." "Good morning, Mr. President." "This situation in Naruba..." "what do you know about it?" "A warlord broke a cease-fire with the government." "His name's Atsu Kalame." "He's got a militia force 10,000 strong." "He's known to utilize child soldiers, mass amputations, and human trafficking as part of his terror campaign." "I served near there in the Peace Corps," "Twenty-five... more than 25 years ago." "They were some of the kindest people I've ever known." "The brief said families are racing to the borders, trying to escape." "I can't even imagine." "Reach out to State." "We need to do something." "Yes, sir." "Mr. Langdon." "Where do you want me to start?" "How about the beginning?" "Okay." "The beginning would be Claudine." "Uh..." "Claudine Poyet." "We met at the Meridian Ball four years ago." "I was coming off a nasty divorce at the time." "I thought I was in love." "Clearly, she had other things in mind." "When I found out what was going on..." "You've got to believe me that when I figured it out, I tried to stop it." "I mean, those were my friends that died, that was my president that died, and I wish I had died with them!" "Okay." "At first, it was just little things." "She..." "She worked for a big contracting firm." "At least, she said she did." "And so she asked me to help her get some intel on some government highway contract." "It was that sort of thing for a while." "And then she asked to see the threat assessment on the Capitol renovation." "Room 105." "And that didn't make you suspicious?" " That's treason, Langdon." " No." "No!" "Who could imagine that they would've used that information in that way at the time?" "The only reason I haven't put a bullet in my head is the thought that maybe I could help... make this right." "Why else do you think I'm here?" "Claudine Poyet..." "How do I know she really exists?" "I have a picture." "I have a picture of her." "She hated having her picture taken, but one morning, she was, uh, sleeping, and..." "I took this." "That's her." "That's her." "General Contreras." "Thank you for joining." "What is the situation on the ground?" "We've got satellite photos less than three hours old, sir." "They put Kalame and his rebel forces approximately two days out from the capital city of Soji," " with nothing in between to stop them." " I'll reach out to the U.N. Ambassador." "Maybe he'll have better luck than I did convincing the Security Council to vote on a resolution." "Why is the U.N. dragging their feet?" "Russia has been protesting possible U.N. involvement with Ukraine." "They're likely to veto all peacekeeping moves." "This has all the markings of a potential genocide." "Yes, sir." "Well, that's not acceptable to me." " Are you proposing a military response?" " Maybe." "I want all my options on the table - military or otherwise - within the hour." "That'll be all." "Sir, President Moss is arriving now." "Okay." "Morning." "Good morning." "Good morning." "How are you, gentlemen?" " Mr. President." "Welcome back." " Thank you, dear." " Mr. President, it's an honor." " Nice to see you." " Welcome back, Mr. President." " Henry." "How are the kids?" "Sara must be, what... 53 now?" "Close." "Twenty-two, sir." "Blink of an eye, Henry." "Am I right?" "You are indeed, Mr. President." "Mr. President." "President Moss." "Mr. President." "It's an honor to have you here, sir." "Thank you, Ava." "Ah." "View never gets old, does it?" "I don't know." "I-I haven't been here that long yet." "Indeed." "I can't tell you how special it is to finally meet you face-to-face." "And I want you to know that I am open to hearing any advice that you have to offer." "Well... first piece of advice my predecessor gave me was," ""Don't listen to the advice of your predecessor."" "Well, I'll take that under advisement." "All joking aside, I look up to you, sir, and I would love to hear how you think I'm doing so far." "No, you wouldn't." "I-I'm sorry?" "Total honesty?" "Yes, always." "You were handed an impossible job, son, a political non-entity, never ran for office, never served in uniform, suddenly thrust into the most powerful job in the world during an unprecedented crisis." "You shouldn't have expected much of yourself." "And the people shouldn't have, either." "Well..." "I asked for honesty." "Well, don't get me wrong." "You've made some great strides." "I give you a passing grade, professor." "But, uh, the handling of Majid Nassar, the way you let the Russians play you like a fiddle when it came to that damn track coach, not to mention our late vice president ordering the FBI to kill the man who tried to kill you." "Company scuttlebutt is that that was no coincidence." " That's an ongoing investigation, sir." " No, no." "I get it." "Believe me, I do." "Running this country is the hardest job there is." "Problem is, with everything that's been flying at you, you're not actually running it." "You're reacting, not leading." "But it's like I said... you were simply outgunned." "So don't be too hard on yourself." "I won't, Mr. President." "I'll let you take care of that." "I'm told you had some names for me, cabinet positions." "I sure as hell do." "Now, these are some damn fine people, and I think they'll be able to help you out." "Thank you." "You, uh, got any Wild Turkey lying about?" "I used to keep some in that drawer." "No, I'm sorry." "Each his own." "Mind if I call the kitchen?" "Sure." "Go ahead." "Yeah." "How are you?" "Uh, okay, this is scary." "What is it?" "This is the threat assessment file you had recalled on June 23, 2015." "What the hell are you talking about?" "Who even generated this file?" "You had this retrieved from a list of top government officials before they had a chance to study it." "W-Well, okay, that would explain it." "If I did it electronically, I never would've seen this." " But you remember withdrawing it?" " Well, of course not!" "Langdon asked me to do a number of things, and if I would've seen something like this, I would remember it." "Is this why Emily was snooping through my records?" " You tell me." " Well, you were tailing Langdon." "Why didn't you just pick him up and ask him yourself?" "We weren't tailing Langdon." "I mean, do I need an attorney?" "You're free to walk anytime." "Right now, you're just a friendly witness in an investigation, nothing more." "Yeah, but you were following me." "The Bureau's investigating the greatest crime ever committed against the government of the United States." "If you can contribute to our understanding, it would be a great service." "So let me ask you again." "To the best of your memory, what can you tell us about this file?" " Hey." " Hi." " Welcome back." " How are you?" " I'm all right." " You okay?" "Hey..." " I really missed you." " Come on." "I was only gone for a day." "I know." "It just... feels longer than that." " How are the kids?" " Good." "Penny has discovered horseback riding." "Wow." "That was fast." "And she's already decided that she's gonna ask you to buy her a pony for her birthday." "Well, she can always ask." "How's Leo?" "He's really good." "This has really made him grow up, you know?" "I'm proud of him." "He understands that this is temporary, right?" "I mean, they both know that this is just until everything calms down?" "Yeah, they know." "Okay, good." " How is your mother?" " She sends her love." "Uh-huh." "She still wish I was a doctor?" "You got to let that go." "You're never gonna impress her." "She's Russian." "So, how was Cornelius Moss?" "Uh, that went a little differently than I expected." "How so?" "I thought he'd be a little more sympathetic to my situation." "Hmm." "Well, we'll just have to charm him at dinner tonight." "Come in." "Sorry, sir." "It's time to go." "I'll be right there." "Hey." "Sit down, Charlie." "You're responsible for the deaths of over 1,000 people," " the leaders of this country." " I had no idea what was going to happen." "How could I know that the entire government was going to be taken out?" "I'm not a monster." "You had no idea?" "!" "You and Peter MacLeish were the only two to survive the bombing!" "How do you explain that?" "Because I was never there." "I swear." "I've told them everything." "Tell me." "On the day of the State of the Union," "I got a phone call from a woman I'd come to know... who had blackmail information on me." "She said she had one last job for me to do." "What was it?" "She wanted me to name you Designated Survivor." "Why did she want me named as the Designated Survivor?" "When I refused to make the call, she wouldn't tell me." "Not good enough." "I am telling you the truth." "If you didn't make the call, who did?" "I don't know, but it must have been somebody with enough clearance" " to make that move." " This is a waste of time." "Sir." "Please hear him out." "She said if I refused, I was a dead man..." "Yes?" "And that they had eyes everywhere." "And then she told me the color of the tie I was wearing." "I was in my office in the most secure building on the planet, and she knows what color my tie is." "So I hung up." "I didn't care about the blackmail." "I knew I just had to tell somebody what I knew before they got to me." "Clearly, the White House wasn't safe anymore, so I got the hell out of there." "I got to my car, and I..." "I just... started to drive." "I didn't know who to trust." "But then I realized it had to be the FBI." "I had to get to the director himself, so I went straight for Alexandria." "And I almost made it... but I lost control of my car." "Yeah." "They'd hacked it somehow." "I was thrown clear of the car, and I was knocked unconscious." "I made my way up to the street." "And that's when I saw the orange glow on the horizon where the Capitol used to be..." "And the f... flames..." "And I knew I failed." " So, yeah, I ran." "And I've been running ever since." "Why should I believe any of this?" "Sir, we checked the surveillance footage from the State of the Union." "There's no record of him being there." "A dive team checked the river." "They found the car." "Give me the room for a minute, please." "Mike, it's all right." "You should know, as far as I'm concerned, even if you didn't do the planning, you're complicit." "You want to make a deal for your life with me, I expect more." "I've told you everything I know." "Last chance." "Who wanted me as the Designated Survivor and why?" "I don't know, Tom." "Mr. President, I'm sorry, but I don't know who." "As to why, I wondered that myself." "You're not gonna like this, but the best I can figure is that out of all our cabinet members... you were the least qualified to be president." "So, I don't know what the goal of this conspiracy is." "Is it a regime change?" "Maybe it's just anarchy." "Whatever their philosophy... they probably felt you were the least likely to present an obstacle." "Get me a one-pager on Africom and let the room know that the White House is monitoring the situation in Naruba." "The president is taking this very seriously." " Uh, Seth, you got a sec?" " Barely." "What's up?" "I got a friend that told me a strange story." " What kind of friend?" " Uh, the kind with security clearance." "Okay." "She's an analyst at this government office park out in Alexandria." "She says Aaron Shore was escorted into the facility by FBI agents." "Your friend's yanking your chain." "He's on leave... personal time." " Oh, yeah?" "What's that about?" " I just told you." "Thanks for stopping by." "I find out otherwise, Seth, this is gonna be a story." " And I'm gonna say you denied it." " Knock yourself out." "Despite my urgings and those of the U.N. ambassador," "Russia vetoed the Security Council vote to send peacekeepers back to Naruba." "What are our options?" "Mr. President, Naruba's one of the poorest countries on the planet." "Governments in the region lack the interest to take this on." "Where does that leave us?" "Best option, we fly in Reaper hunter-killer UAVs from Ethiopia and Djibouti to take out Kalame's rebel forces and his convoy." "Those missiles would stop the advance, sir." "We could expect heavy rebel casualties." "How much time till the UAVs are above their target?" "Six hours." "How long till the rebel forces are in the capital?" "A day, maybe less." "If you want to keep your options open, sir," "I suggest we get those UAVs off the ground now." "I agree." "Let's do it." "Mr. Shore?" "You're free to go." "Good." "My office is asking where I am." "They say a reporter's been sniffing around." "For the record, Langdon cleared you of any involvement in the threat assessment file." "Yeah, well, I could have told you that if somebody would have asked me, instead of treating me like some spy." "It's not personal." "It's just protocol." "Right." "It just feels that way." "A whole lot of things make sense to me today that didn't make sense yesterday." "My President, my closest friend in the White House, both think I'm capable of treason." "These are dangerous times, Mr. Shore." "But thank you for your cooperation." "No, no, no." "Don't tell me you've never had the sliders." "I didn't even know that they were a thing." "Oh!" "Gerald, have Tony rustle up some of those wagyu sliders with aioli, would you?" "I mean..." "That is not necessary." "Oh, necessary's got nothing to do with it, my dear." "Right away, sir." "A lot of grief in this job." "You got to take the gravy wherever you can." "Sir, I was looking at your list, and I was wondering about Brett Ambrose for Interior." "Mm-hmm." "What about him?" "Well, he's been inconsistent on climate change, and recently, he opposed a rule to reduce methane emissions from oil drilling on public lands, so..." "You know, you remind me so much of my wife, Elaine, it is downright eerie." "Thank you." "Ambrose is a crusty old bird, no doubt." "But he understands business, and he wants to make the United States truly energy-independent, and that takes compromise." "Hell, that's what the job is all about." "Except... when it comes to the sliders." "Gerald." "Aaron got brought in by the FBI?" "Supposedly." "I think it's crap." "No story." "Oh, for sure." "I, uh, I texted him, though, just so he's not caught off guard." "Have you heard back?" "Not yet." "I mean, did you ever imagine that we would be dealing with the FBI and assassinations?" "And all of this?" "Not in a million years." "Emily Rhodes." "Thank you." "Should I know?" " Not yet." " All right." "Greatest show on Earth." "Democracy... the grand experiment." "Let me guess." "Russia vetoed the Security Council vote on Naruba." "Yes." "And I'm sure the Joint Chiefs have already emphasized that Naruba is strategically worthless." "People are so damn poor in that country that it doesn't even register on economic reports." "They did." "So it all comes down to people." "Human lives." ""The eternal struggle between two principles - right and wrong - throughout the world."" "Abraham Lincoln." "Imagine the courage he must have had, standing up for the basic rights of equality, knowing he was gonna send brothers fighting brothers." "I hear you went to, uh, visit the SEAL team before they deployed on the Nassar mission." "Yeah." "It's a noble gesture, but it does come at a cost, putting faces to the lives of the men you send to die." "We lost a commander, Max Clarkson." "Not a day goes by that I don't think about him or his family." "Commander-in-Chief." "It's not just a title." "It is a responsibility." "An awful responsibility." "You were in no way prepared for it, but you've taken it on." "Bravely, I might add." "Thank you." "And now you have the power to decide who lives... and who dies." "It's the loneliest job in the world." " Mr. President." " What is it?" "Sir, there's been a complication in Naruba." "We just got intel that 15 American humanitarian workers have been taken hostage by Kalame's militia." "Apparently, he's holding them in several different vehicles in his convoy." "We don't know which ones." "If you continue with this drone strike, you won't just be killing Kalame and his men." "We'll be killing our own." "Come on." "Let's go." "Keep your seats." "What the hell happened?" "How could we not know that we had American citizens working in the country?" "They were AMCIT, sir." "American citizens who never registered with an embassy." "We had no way of knowing, Mr. President." "Do we know where they are?" "If they've been hurt?" "No, only that they're being kept among Kalame's convoy so we can't target him or his men." "Same strategy Hezbollah used when they hijacked TWA 847." "Took all the passengers off the plane, spread them all around Beirut, making a counterattack impossible." " How long till the UAVs are over Naruba?" " Less than an hour, sir." "Tom, about Kalame..." "I haven't decided yet." "Well, you need to, and fast." "Those volunteers have guns to their heads." "If we don't attack those rebel forces, 100,000 innocent civilians in the capital will have guns to their head, too." "I don't know how to justify 15 lives over 100,000." "It's not just any 15 lives, Mr. President." "It's 15 American lives, your citizens." "You have a responsibility to them first." "At the expense of everyone else?" "Absolutely." "This isn't about bravery or nobility." "This was a failure of intelligence." "Now Kalame's got you backed into a corner." "No, what you have to do is act swiftly to secure the safety and the release of our own." "Then you can decide what you want to do with that criminal." "Hey, man." "You back?" "No, no, it's just a quick hit." "Oh, how you been?" "You haven't, uh..." "You haven't returned my texts in a while." "Well, it's, uh... it's complicated." "You weren't really with the FBI, were you?" "Look, uh, Seth, I'm tired." "No, no, no, it's fine." "Come on." "I mean, I know a non-answer when I hear one." "If I felt you needed to know something, I would tell you." "Yeah, hey, look, nobody talks to me around here anymore." "It makes your job a whole lot easier, doesn't it?" "How's Emily doing?" " Personally?" " No, no... on the job." "Oh." "Uh..." "Just..." "Just great." "I mean, you know Emily, right?" "She..." "She'll get the job done." "Not the same way you do, but, yeah, she's good." "Good." "Good." "Here." "What's this?" "Read it." "It could use a bit of your magic." "Sure." "I know you're right." "I-I don't know how to potentially sacrifice 100,000 people to save 15." "I-I don't know how to do that." "Well, you know, there is a diplomatic option to get them out." "You buy them." "We don't negotiate with terrorists." "I agree with that policy." "Well, there are other cards to play." "You see, right now, Zimbabwe is sitting on $7 million of Kalame's cash." "Treasury put sanctions on them for smuggling." "That money is not going anywhere right now." "So if we lift their sanctions in exchange for them releasing Kalame's cash to him..." "Say we get our people back." "What stops me from turning around and blowing him off the face of the planet?" "Because you give him your word." "The world knows that you're a square dealer, and now's the time to play that card." " I hate this." " I hate it, too." "But that's the world you're living in, Mr. President." "Sometimes you have to decide between a bad choice and no choice at all." "If I were to do this... how would it play out?" "Through a man named Austin Silwamba, a mid-level diplomat in Zimbabwe." "He's a CIA asset that I've used in the past." "You authorize him to broker a deal allowing our people to be taken to safe passage, to an extraction point." "Then you chopper them out." "Want me to make the call?" "Yes." "Mr. President?" "Ava." "Come in." "Austin Silwamba has just landed." "Okay, good." "Thank you." "Aaron Shore is outside, sir." "Oh." "Please, send him in." " Sir, if this is a bad time..." " No, no, no." "Aaron, please." "Please sit." "I am sorry about everything that you've had to go through lately." "But I am so glad to have you back." "I appreciate that, sir, but..." "I'm not coming back." "You're angry." "I understand." "Uh..." "I would be, too." "But I need you to know that I had the Secret Service and the FBI investigating you to clear your name." "And Langdon's testimony did that." "Aaron, please." "Come back and help me govern." "Sir, I'm sure Emily will do an excellent job, but right now, I-I..." "I-I couldn't be as effective." " Not anymore." " I don't understand." "Why?" "Rumor mills are buzzing about my taking leave." "Word's hit the street." "I was interrogated by the FBI." "Now, politics is perception." "We both know that." "My reputation's been damaged." "Aaron, perceptions can be changed." "I'll make a statement." "I'll clear the air." "I won't accept your resignation." "I'm afraid you have no choice, sir." "Seth is distributing my statement to the press as we speak." "Without talking to me." "I mean no disrespect." "But it is my primary job to protect you, even from your most generous instincts." "Sir, right now, I'd be a liability to your administration." "The last thing you need is any hint of scandal from your chief of staff." "Serving you has been the greatest honor of my life." "Please, sir." "There isn't anything I can say?" "No, sir." "Aaron, the honor's been mine." "I let you down and..." "I'm sorry." "No, that's fine." "I was just leaving." "Sir." "Mr. President..." "Sir?" "Yes." "I'm sorry." "Silwamba's negotiated with Kalame." "Did we get our people back?" "Not yet, sir." "Helicopters are on the way to the extraction point." "There's a live feed in command ops." "Let's go." "Sir, our people are in those trucks on the Soji Daka Road." "Where are the Black Hawks?" "They're putting down now." "You can track it here." "Sir, all 15 volunteers are outbound." "They're free, sir." "General Contreras, are the UAVs still above Soji?" "We're in the process of recalling them now, sir." "Hold on for a second." "Sir?" "You're gonna think this is ridiculous, but by trade, I was an urban planner." "The deal I made with Kalame was to not attack his forces." "I didn't say anything about infrastructure." "I think that if we were to attack these two bridges and these choke points down here in the south, we could stall his army from entering by three, maybe even four days." "Do you agree with that assessment?" "Yes, sir." " Good." "Take 'em out." " Yes, sir." " This is Contreras." " Smart." "What are you going to do with the time?" "It's not what I'm gonna do with it." "It's what I want you to." "I need you to convince the Russians that it's in their best interest to authorize the peacekeeping force to move in." "As a private citizen?" "Preferably as Secretary of State." "I know that you've retired from public service, but your country needs you." "I need you." "Hell, you helped me get into this mess." "You might as well help me get out." "Be more than happy to sweeten the deal with a case of Wild Turkey." "Well..." "I got to admit," "I have been getting a little tired of looking at my cattle all day." "Mr. President... it's a deal." "Thank you, Mr. President." "Target is acquired, sir." "We have good strike." "Target neutralized." "All right." "Just sign here, please." "Aaron." "So, what's next?" "I haven't gotten that far yet, but..." "I'll let you know." "Well, I'll try and do the job as well as you did." "No." "Do better." "We have so many questions unanswered." "Obviously, we still don't know who we can trust in the government." "I know." "I keep on thinking about the Designated Survivor call." "And if Langdon didn't make it, then who did?" "I'm relying on you to find out." "I need to focus on governing." "I need to lead this country back from this terrible tragedy." "Are you still up for this?" "Mr. President, I haven't even gotten started yet." "Good." "This is a Presidential Finding absolving you from all FBI supervision." "Until further notice, you'll be reporting to me." "Agent Ritter will be your liaison." " And Agent Foerstel?" " He'll be at your disposal." "You'll be provided with a secure office with secure communications." "Nobody will know what you're doing." "Understood?" "Yes, sir." "Agent Wells, I hereby authorize you to use whatever means necessary, within the Constitution of the United States of America, to find the people involved in this conspiracy and bring them to justice." "I will not let you down, Mr. President."