Previously on House of Cards...
You are daring them.
You've turned it into a spectacle and now they will not stop.
Believe me. These people will not rest. You need to make amends.
For slighting her? For identifying them?
- You have to give them something. - I don't believe in the bill.
Goddamn it. This bill. Are you listening?
- Vincent Abruzzo. - Ninth Circuit.
I'm so glad that we finally have a woman in the Oval Office.
And we've been entwined, you and I.
Like it or not, for decades now.
We deserve to go our separate ways.
Problem is,
we have something urgent to attend to called Cathy Durant.
And then we can finally be free.
Now, you need my help.
Later tonight, I'm going to watch you sign that bill
that's sitting on your desk.
"To the dead, a kingdom means nothing."
I never had sex with a farm animal or abused a girlfriend,
unless you count marrying her.
Let me say, it was tough
narrowing down my ten most significant cases.
I prefer the smaller questions of my professional memberships,
my teaching.
Madam President, just between you and me,
my feeling is that it's not as far-fetched as some people say.
I still think there is a universe where the ERA gets passed.
Women truly are the best, aren't they?
I am deeply honored
to be considered for the late Justice's seat.
So, tell me.
How did they buy you? The Shepherds?
Judge Abruzzo, Madam President, I hate to break this up.
I have already taken
too much of the President's valuable time.
Madam President.
- Mr. Vice President. - Your Honor.
It has been a sincere pleasure.
I'll set up Judge Michaels for the end of the day tomorrow.
I have Secretary Durant waiting for you.
I felt emasculated.
Excuse me?
Bill Shepherd guiding my hand.
And you looked emasculated, Mark.
You're mistaken.
No, I'm not mistaken. I watched your face.
- Madam President... - Please don't call me that. Please.
- Claire... - Better.
- Claire... - Yes? What?
That was not a fight you were gonna win.
- Do you like being the messenger? - What?
Has this been a dream of some sort since you were a little boy?
Because I can tell you something.
Once you identify the degree to which you are boxed in,
you'll see how liberating it is.
Are you with me,
or are you with those horrible, horrible people
you've attached yourself to?
Because I can tell you something about Bill Shepherd.
I could smell it on him,
the way I could on my father, on my mother.
He's sick.
Well, he was.
He is.
And then where will that leave you?
With her? Annette Shepherd?
I know what that woman is and, more to the point, isn't capable of.
And that little encounter
with the honorable Judge Abruzzo at the fundraiser,
that was orchestrated too, wasn't it?
Yes.
I look at him sometimes and imagine him at six years old.
Was he always so deliberative? Cautious?
And I think in another life, some other context,
might we have been friends?
It's time to decide, Mark.
I hold every president to the same standard.
Are you making America better, or are you making America worse?
That's all that matters.
Excuse me? Could you turn this off, please?
- Yes, sir. - The level of discourse in this city.
I'm telling you.
She does have a point.
You need to tell Duncan to be careful when it comes to his pit bull.
City.
FDR turned this place into a city
with his agencies and armies of clerks.
All the professors that followed.
Before the war, this was just a small southern town.
One built of marble, yeah,
but just a small town sitting on a swamp.
A place to visit.
A place to protect the Republic.
Secure states' rights.
That's not what it is today.
Some top-down money grab for
bureaucrats, lobbyists and the entire Democratic Party.
You've always been more Teddy.
Than that traitor pig, Franklin?
Look, I know it's a sacrifice for you to be here in Washington,
but for God's sake, why take the same room he was in?
Well... Well, he wanted to keep an eye on her.
Francis never could let go of the White House.
But he did give us the opportunity we've been waiting for.
But she's not qualified.
She stole the damn thing.
If ever there was a chance to shrink the office down to size,
it's the presidency of Claire Underwood.
Maybe you should run for office.
Ah, I think that time has passed.
I'm worried about you.
Don't be.
Never better.
Deregulation bill, it's the first of a hundred, ready and waiting.
The speed you're moving at...
I can come back.
The lawyers are due any minute.
No, no, no. Come on in here.
Grab yourself a cup of something.
I know, Annette wanted to talk to you in person
before the rest of the team arrives.
I passed on what you told me about the President.
I wanted you to have it all before Duncan got his hands on it.
She admitted to all three of the abortions.
But I can get you the names of the men.
Who they were.
No.
I'm not comfortable with this.
Let's take that off the table for now.
She'll play along. We'll make sure of it.
I always imagined that if I were president,
I would want you to be a member of my cabinet.
You look like a movie star.
Well, it's the glare.
I get migraines since the fall.
They can come on quite suddenly.
I'm sorry to hear that.
Vice President said that you wanted to meet me in person.
It's so good to see you.
Sit.
Not everyone comes back from a fall like that, Cathy.
Yes.
I'm starting to feel like a proverbial cat.
Take off your glasses. Let me see your eyes.
You have no shortage of stories.
You know that.
My memory's been very erratic lately.
Sometimes, I think I might just forget the details
of my time in office altogether if...
If?
Honestly, I would love nothing more
than to just move on, Madam President.
Well, I understand that you have a job offer.
Several. I'm lucky.
The Eisenhower Strategic Initiative, isn't it?
Yes, a think tank makes sense.
Outside of government...
Well, not entirely outside.
And heavily funded by...
A coalition of industrialists and civic-minded folk, yes.
Big plans to change the world.
I haven't accepted.
But you want to.
You think I shouldn't take the job?
I think you should trust your gut, Cathy.
Take care of yourself.
Claire...
I'm sorry I didn't write after Francis...
There's no need to apologize.
I can still feel his hand on my back.
Cathy, he's gone.
Bill Shepherd got to her.
I can feel it.
She's going to testify.
My lawyers tell me her team is still negotiating,
maybe for a while yet.
She thinks she's safe with them, with this job.
Instead, they're gonna be sentencing her to...
It needs to look like complications from her fall.
I can have her detail pulled.
I still know some people.
The opportunity will present itself.
One last piece connecting us both to Francis.
The world is either with us or against us, Doug.
You think you'll ever wear them?
Doesn't feel right.
Do you know the last thing he said to me?
"Promise me you and Doug will take care of each other."
I want to thank the National Gallery
for curating this magnificent exhibit.
Our hope is, in due time,
these works of art will return to their rightful place
in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria.
Mr. Nasser.
They're making a fool of you, these Shepherds.
The special interests. The go-betweens.
Your so-called peacekeeping in Syria was a shameless land grab
built on the lives of American soldiers
you sent into battle.
Then you can blame Jane Davis, Mr. Nasser.
I do.
I had hoped to renegotiate the deal Jane helped broker many months ago.
Now I know that's impossible.
Because she's conveniently unavailable.
Because you're in no position to do so.
You've been excluded, just as I have.
They're stripping power from you.
Have you ever seen the Baathist playbook?
It was inspired by American intelligence agencies.
Sometimes, you need to be an insurgent in your own country.
Well, that's interesting. Because presently I'm meeting with
a member of a known terrorist organization.
Pardon me, but I'm a lawyer.
If you allow American corporate interests
to cut ICO out of Syria's future...
Are you about to threaten me, Mr. Nasser?
No, but we all know what ICO is capable of.
I'm merely conveying a message from one of my clients.
You and your client are one and the same.
Americans have such faith in their ability
to keep things and people safe.
Mr. Nasser, Syria is a country of
former schools, former homes, former places of worship.
Your organization played a large part in the destruction.
And so have you, Madam President.
I'm afraid I can't help you.
No, you can't.
I got two daughters, a beautiful wife.
Paid my dues. Four terms.
A Republican in a diverse district.
I got a ground operation, second to none.
And my volunteers, their sons and their daughters,
are coming up right behind 'em. I just...
I just feel like...
This could be my moment, you know?
Fred told me about the legislation about to be introduced.
I'm co-signing. It's...
Ambitious, it's unprecedented.
It's bipartisan is what it is.
You worked for her.
I worked for her husband.
Nobody wants her hands on a nuclear football.
Or sending any more uniforms anywhere, here or abroad.
You're gonna have to be okay with that. Are you?
I owe her nothing.
So, what do they have on you?
Hold on, slugger.
I'm still trying to get acquainted, here.
Right.
Where do you think you're going?
Fred Amburg asked me to meet you.
Well, Fred asked me to meet you.
And we've met.
Where do you get off?
After where you've been.
You mean where I was.
With Mr. Amburg.
The last person you worked for...
Became the President of the United States.
He pushed you out.
I am your chance.
You know, not that I have to prove myself to you,
or to anyone else,
but I can find the opening,
the crack, the weak spot.
I don't know,
maybe it's a curse to know what people fear.
Like you.
I think what scares you, Congressman,
your base, your ground game, all that love,
you thought you deserved it,
that it was meant for you and nobody else.
You got blind.
You forgot that they'd come for you.
But they will come.
That's how this business is built.
So, I'm gonna ask you again.
What is it that they have on you?
My district covers O'Hare.
Pensions.
The baggage handlers. I...
Shit.
It was stupid.
It's only stupid if you can't make it go away.
Tom, calm down.
I'm getting too old to be polite.
Hear the deal out. Content will not be changed.
And you and I both know better.
Something happened that night.
Their marriage was broken, he went over there.
I'm not saying they're connected, but the next day, he winds up dead.
She knew an indictment was coming.
Do you understand what that means?
Then keep writing.
So they can turn it into 140 characters for clickbait?
We don't write anymore, we come up with feed for the trough.
Put that goddamn thing down before I smash it!
You need to go back in there and apologize.
To whom, Dayna?
Our new boss is a voice on a speaker phone!
He doesn't even know I walked out.
Why don't we write about how Gardner Analytics
is buying up television stations
and some of the greatest papers in this country?
Analytics?
Oh, my God, what the fuck does that even mean?
According to the autopsy, natural causes.
Heart attack?
Overdose of his liver medication.
Accidental, presumably.
What aren't you telling me?
Nothing.
He would never do that intentionally.
Witnesses in the lobby of the Hay-Adams
that night said the former President was acting disoriented.
Did you share this with his widow?
She's the one who asked me to look into it.
She suspects the Shepherds.
He was with them a lot, but not that night.
And who was?
Other than her?
That was her husband, Doug.
She's the President.
Don't you sound devoted, Nathan.
My only contact with her is in my official capacity.
Did you think you'd seen the last of me?
That's the last thing I thought.
I'll take that as a compliment.
Doug. Here.
I tracked his comings and goings back to when he left the White House.
I got my hands on the metadata going into his computer.
LeAnn Harvey's camera phone was streaming during the crash.
A direct feed to only one IP address.
Francis's.
His laptop.
It's not easy to watch, but...
Okay.
Up to you.
Mr. Hammerschmidt.
Duncan Shepherd.
I'm sorry I couldn't be at the meeting in person this afternoon.
My walker drops him off when it's late.
Come.
You saw my little outburst?
I enjoyed it.
The outrage.
We need more of it.
I especially liked your appearance on television the other night.
Yeah, well, I get a little heated sometimes.
It's exactly the kind of exposure the Herald needs.
Tom, you're now part of a conglomerate
with vast influence and reach.
The point is, I can bring you whatever evidence you need.
Hold on.
Divorce for pardon,
there's a kernel of truth to it. But your source...
And before you say anything, consider what I'm offering.
An opportunity for justice.
If you're talking about manufacturing evidence, Mr. Shepherd,
I'm not interested.
Beg to differ.
And spare me the seasoned journalist routine, please.
Your 30 years in the business.
I've spoken to your old assistant, Angela.
She's written a piece about her time with you.
I could run it, or...
Your dogged pursuit of Frank Underwood,
pardon the pun, is now your pursuit of his bride.
Think about it.
Men your age, they unravel very easily these days.
Judge Vincent Abruzzo has the credentials.
The published writings, the public statements.
It all checks out. Full package.
So what's the hesitation, Madam Prez?
Beltway Television is owned by Gardner Analytics.
It's the latest brainchild of Duncan Shepherd.
So far, I've deflected all questions regarding Ms. Cruz's commentary.
Good. Let's not dignify it.
No, no. That's fine, thank you.
They were a hazard, I couldn't resist.
Sorry I missed the funeral.
Were there Psalms?
Number 42.
I love 42.
Nasser had no business coming to you directly.
Well, I knew if I met with him, you'd suddenly appear.
He feels lied to, Jane.
Because he was.
We were never gonna give those bandits a seat at the table.
Jane, he's threatened more ICO attacks.
ICO is neutralized, mostly.
It's time to rethink our involvement in Syria.
Stand down, rebuild.
This deal is important for all of us.
Including the Shepherds.
Look, I'm no fan of that family,
but in the case of Syria, our interests align.
The next phase of our presence in the region
is more about the spoils than the peace.
The problem is Petrov, whom the Shepherds and I despise.
What do you have on the Shepherds?
I'm sure one of the several agencies you're involved with has something.
And don't you keep files on everyone you're dealing with?
Bill and Annette are very careful.
And what about Annette's son, Duncan?
Well, Mark knows them more than I do.
I thought there were better options for a former president,
but Annette wouldn't leave Frank alone.
That's their problem. They don't know when to stop.
You know, when you left three months ago,
I wondered where you'd gone.
And then...
I didn't think of you at all.
You say that.
But I detect pain in your eyes, Madam President.
"As a deer longs for streams of water..."
"...so I long for You, God."
Do you miss him?
God? Always.
I'd like you to move in here with me, Jane, into the White House.
I need your counsel
and your perspective, when it comes to Mark.
The truth is, that whole last year in the White House,
I just lost myself.
The crazy thing is, I've never even met Zoe Barnes.
Is that what you told the U.S. Attorney?
Or did you and Claire Underwood make a deal?
The President and I are on different paths.
You're saying you haven't seen her?
We've spoken.
I just don't see a role for me in her White House.
I'm working with Congressman Cole.
He's making a play for Speaker.
I left the Herald today.
If that's why you wanted to see me, make a pitch for your new guy.
No.
No, this is about making amends.
Last fall, I started drinking again.
No. You picked this place because it's full of bloggers and hill rats.
Right now, everyone here can see us talking together,
like civilized people,
as if I never called you a murderer in print.
Your latest article on Francis.
This story about the nights leading up to his death?
You want to make amends?
Who are your sources?
Peter Russo.
Zoe Barnes.
LeAnn Harvey.
Doug, there isn't a shadow for you to hide in anymore.
The only person who knows everything is you.
I don't.
Let him go.
I don't know what you're talking about.
At some point, you're gonna have to decide.
Claire Underwood, believe me,
she'll come for you when it's time.
Thanks.
You know, there's caffeine in that.
I do.
I love that you love Arnold Palmer, but...
Arnold Palmer was a great man.
She still on your mind?
This arrangement isn't working.
Which arrangement?
Mark, come to bed.
She needs to feel some degree of autonomy.
Fuck autonomy.
She serves at our pleasure.
I'm sure she feels undervalued.
Undervalued? Claire Hale? Please.
What if Bill doesn't get better?
He is better.
If we don't play this right,
in the public eye, we are doomed to fail.
You know that, right?
She's doomed, you mean.
Look.
Let's be clear.
I am not attracted to her, but she needs to see me as a partner,
and what is the rush?
Bill wants a majority on the court.
He's waited a long time.
Let her at least look like the president.
I'll scuttle the nomination, if it comes to that, later.
I want Judge Abruzzo, Mark.
And don't ever question my brother's ability
to function at the highest level.
What is that Sylvia Plath line?
She eats men like air.
Who are we talking about?
Hey.
Sorry we missed each other yesterday.
Well, my apologies for leaving you in the lurch again today.
Everything okay?
I spoke to Annette.
I really think this is the best course.
Did you ever meet George?
George?
My brother, George. Incurious George?
No, I never did.
And back in the old days,
we acquired an operation in the Midwest,
refining Canadian crude.
Profit margin was...
It was staggering.
But George, he got all high-minded about it.
Thought that we were bending too many laws.
So he bought a rival company,
green energy type, and he sued us.
Sued us.
I mean, the betrayal.
My father's true religion was family.
And he was troubled.
He was deeply troubled by what George had done.
Changed his will.
Any sibling bringing litigation against
any other at the time
of his death would automatically lose their share of the inheritance.
Every damnable penny.
He used that word.
Which is exactly what happened to George.
Well, George couldn't believe it.
Accused me of tricking Dad into doing it
when he was too weak to know his own mind.
My father always knew his own mind.
George...
He was just so broken up about it,
didn't even contest the will.
Which, as far as I see it,
means he had no place inheriting that kind of money to begin with.
The man had everything he ever needed,
he was just so...
Short-sighted.
Lives on some island in Maine now.
You know what the worst part for me was?
How much it upset Annette.
That was a no-go.
I'll get the nomination, Bill.
Bye-bye now, Mark.
They were good enough to provide me with
a direct feed from the hall.
Is this necessary?
Inhale.
You ever see Giselle?
Don't look at me like that.
The results aren't all bad.
I'm being watched.
By whom?
Tom Hammerschmidt, the U.S. Attorney.
It's a feeling that I've had for a while.
Hello?
I'm here.
It's too risky.
If Francis had asked, you'd have found a way.
That's true.
Well, I'm sorry to hear that.
I guess this is where we part ways, Doug.
It's for the best.
Then say goodbye.
You know what the last thing he said to me was?
"I can't imagine a world with only one of you in it."
There comes a point in every relationship
where you wonder,
"Are you with me?"
Are you?
So, there are some loose ends that Bill Shepherd is trying to exploit,
one being Cathy Durant.
And I have known each other for a very long time.
I know.
Well, the last time I saw Cathy, she looked at death's door.
You can't ask that of me.
She trusts you, Jane.
She trusts you.
That's making a move in broad daylight.
I enjoy having you here.
I'll never be able to forgive myself.
And when you told him about LeAnn?
He showed no emotion, ma'am.
Where is he now?
Still at home.
I have a couple of agents trailing him.
As far as the Bureau is concerned, it's for Doug's own safety.
And besides Congressman Cole, has he met with anyone?
Other than myself, Tom Hammerschmidt.
Perhaps you should be the one on him.
In case we need to find him alone at some point.
I continue to be very concerned about his state of mind.
Yes, ma'am.
Francis left him everything in his handwritten will.
Am I curious? Yes.
But not enough to wait for Douglas Stamper to bring me down.
Secretary Durant, Ms. Davis is in the back.
Where's Sal?
He's off. My name is Giancarlo. It's a pleasure to meet you.
Right this way.
Very slow today.
Please.
I'm sorry.
- Madam Secretary, please. - I'm sorry. I'm...
Madam Secretary?
Hey.
Jane, how could you? How could you do this to me?
- Listen to me, sweetheart. - No, you listen to me.
Is this Claire?
Are you doing this for her?
Cathy.
Once the decision is made, you can't escape.
Maybe it won't happen today.
But someday.
Someday, I'm afraid...
I curse you.
I curse you and wish you a painful death.
Drawn out and excruciating.
I don't want to disappoint you.
That's not how I'm gonna die.
Well. We'll see, won't we?
I've been thinking about the nomination.
You should go with Abruzzo.
We could get beaten up in the midterms
if the wrong signals are sent.
It's the way to be a two-term president.
There's still a lot we can accomplish.
You're such a strange animal.
You've never been comfortable in your skin
since you've been Vice President.
Why did you even try?
I believe in you.
Well, that's not enough.
I'll leave you to your movie, then.
What does Annette have to say about all this?
I know you're close to her.
I won't betray her.
Just like I won't betray you, Claire.
They got us, you know?
We should make the announcement.
Abruzzo.
You can start the film.
She's already met with the EPA Regional Administrator,
looking for memos.
Hard disks have been scrubbed and there's nothing in the cloud.
There's no paper trail, virtual or otherwise.
Skorsky?
She was with the Herald.
She left when I joined the White House.
It's just a local paper. We can acquire it.
This isn't about the President grandstanding.
She's talking to someone.
Duncan...
We should save the app for the midterms.
Well, do you trust what you've built or not?
I don't want it exposed.
She signed up for the app.
We can get into her phone, take a look around.
Would you gentlemen excuse us?
No, stay. Bill?
She wants to see me.
Nope.
She says Mark is no longer a viable vice president.
He's not communicating her wishes.
She wants to deal directly with me.
She's in no position to demand anything.
My God.
You want to meet with her.
She's still the President.
Who had three abortions,
lied to the American people about one.
I told you, I'm not willing to use that.
Then you'll use the other thing.
What Mark told us.
Sealed.
The case was pretty typical.
Prep school drugs.
Duncan Shepherd was rich enough to get off,
but the other boy, not so lucky.
But the transcript.
Fascinating read.
Painful, really.
Ms. Shepherd's here.
Please send her in.
Annette.
Claire. Jane.
Annette,
I'm honored we've graduated to a first name basis.
Surnames can be a burden.
That's funny.
I've always loved mine.
What about you, Claire?
You gave yours up.
Exactly.
You feel more like an Underwood?
Well, like you said, surnames can be a burden.
I like your lady quotes.
What is woman? De Beauvoir question.
That's right. From The Second Sex?
Remember that class, Annette?
How strange it was, as a teenager,
to be taught feminism by a man, in French.
I hated that book.
Long-winded, for sure.
But you gotta admit, she was right about everything.
Work with me.
Directly, without a middleman.
What use is Mark if he can't be effective?
Mark can be very effective.
Well, but both sides are unhappy.
The Supreme Court.
This is a choice that outlives any presidency.
Exactly.
But also part of what defines a presidency.
Of course.
So I can't be...
I will consider any informed opinion.
But I...
You understand.
The decision has to be mine, Annie.
No one calls me that anymore.
Your son, how old is he now?
Twenty-seven, no, 28.
I always seem to make him a year younger.
He always did look young for his age.
Especially his juvenile mugshot.
Such a baby face.
So, you'll speak to Bill?
I don't need to.
You're the President. You should do what you want.
That's what I keep thinking.
Do you remember how much fun we used to have
before we understood the rules?
Look, let's not let it all break down here, okay?
Correct me if I'm wrong, but you've never had a foothold like this
in the White House. So...
You want to save her or fuck her?
Either way, do it on your time.
Don't make it personal.
Don't insult me.
Shut her down.
Show it to her.
That's what Bill and I want.
And you'll do it.
No.
I'm not asking.
The fallout from that...
Not my concern.
It will be your concern.
You're on your own now.
- No, no, we're done. - Don't...
Annette?
The reign of the middle-aged white man is over.
The Bill Shepherds of the world who won't let go, have to go.
The waitress who filmed it works for the Shepherd Freedom Foundation.
They were hoping to use the clip
when it came to Judge Abruzzo's confirmation.
Okay, thank you.
Have you heard from Tom Yates, Kelsey?
No...
You were friendly with him, right?
I haven't heard from Tom in a long time.
And your coworkers, have they asked about him at all?
Now and then.
He used to roam around down there.
Everyone liked him.
Well, I had my national security team look into it.
And they tracked him down. It seems
he's been using his credit card in and around Prague, apparently.
I'm glad to hear it.
And, no, because I was worried.
We used to talk a lot, and then it just stopped.
Did you ever read anything he was working on,
besides the speeches that he wrote for me?
No, just the early stuff.
Cathy. Stan.
Oh, my God.
That's all for now.
When did it happen?
I'm so, so sorry.
No, the last conversation I had with her,
she was talking about her new job
and what a great opportunity it was going to be.
Madam President.
Forgive me for calling so late.
I've just been informed that Catherine Durant is dead.
It's an embolism, they're saying. Connected to her fall.
I want to thank you, Doug, so much for your help.
It's a shame.
It's a terrible shame.
Yes, a terrible, terrible shame.
She will be missed.
Mark?
Apologies for disturbing your run.
What's happened?
- Can we have a word in private? - Of course.
It's okay, Steve. My detail's cleared the area.
Good. Okay, they're clear.
Where are we going?
You have 20 seconds.
I can get rid of this, or the cops will find him.
You've run out of options, Madam President.
I understand.