It’s difficult to tell the difference between real and reel life anymore. One thing is for certain though. There is no question of the internal threat President Kirkman faces as the Designated Survivor. For weeks we’ve known that the terrorist responsible for blowing up the Capitol has been right under Kirkman’s nose. Now as one member of Intelligence risks everything to clue Kirkman in on the truth of things, one FBI agent is on the verge of exposing the Vice Presidential candidate as a traitor, if she can survive the journey.
A Security Analyst for the NSA named Gabriel Thompson goes on the run with classified information, which he then leaks to the public (because WikiLeaks hasn’t caused enough headaches). He leaks secrets of kickbacks the previous administration took while in office, which in itself is not that consequential considering all of the aforementioned corrupt people are now dead. The real fear is what secrets Thompson could be holding back about the current administration, particularly on Kirkman. This is especially threatening since Congresswoman Hookstraten is on the warpath against the newly filled Congress, which is filled with Independents. To her credit Hookstraten makes a fair point about not trusting people who have things handed to them. Though we can make the argument that there’s a difference between a terrible situation landing in your lap and making a deal with the devil to take what isn’t yours.
With Atwood in custody, Wells has no choice but to continue the investigation alone. Once Internal Affairs gets involved, she realizes she doesn’t have time to go it alone. She pulls in her friend Chuck who has already been suspicious about some of the information he’s helped Wells uncover about MacLeish. They don’t trust anyone else but each other right now, so together they work on the clue Wells’s anonymous caller gave them. MacLeish is popular partly because he is a decorated war hero, but the date of the attack for which he won a medal raises Wells’s goosebumps. What concerns her is that everyone in MacLeish’s unit is singing the same song; MacLeish is a hero, he saved countless life, etc. Everyone except for one deceased soldier, whose records connect the CIA’s most wanted mercenary to MacLeish. MacLeish is not a war hero, he’s a criminal who slaughtered innocent Afghani citizens without a second thought. Wells’s only hope is to call in a favor from Hookstraten to delay MacLeish’s appointment. Of course she is hit by a car on the way to deliver the evidence.
Sure enough the Wikileaks scandal hurts Kirkman’s administration, but not through the President himself. While still working as Kirkman’s assistant, Emily made some comments about a former Congressman’s inability to keep his hands to himself. Unfortunately, this is nothing new in power circles, except that this Congressman came out of retirement after the Capitol bombing to become the new Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee. He makes it clear that if Emily isn’t fired by the end of the business day, he’ll make Kirkman’s job very difficult. When the NSA finally finds Thompson, he’s barricaded himself in the Venezuelan consulate. Highly motivated to keep Emily around, Aaron figures out that all Thompson wants is five minutes of the President’s time. In exchange for that, Thompson gives the President evidence that the Congressman does have a history of harassment. With this the President blackmails the Congressman back into retirement, then agrees to take the meeting with Thompson. This man gave up his entire life and freedom to deliver key evidence of the Capitol bombing to the President. Finally the President learns that the bomb was planted by someone within the U.S. government.
Will Kirkman be able to save the U.S. before the terrorists get a foothold in the Cabinet?
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