Designated Survivor Review: Appointments and Leaks

Sometimes dealing with matters of terrorism versus matters of politics is slightly less stressful because there is no question of who your enemy is. In the first half of Designated Survivor, President Kirkman was dealing with an unprecedented amount of chaos and confusion. Now that things have settled down a bit, the mood has shifted from chaos to targeted warfare of a different variety. Politics really is all about strategizing, something Kirkman was never comfortable with. He has one big win under his belt, but that doesn’t change the fact that there are people who want to tear him down and will do anything to make sure his agenda fails.

The new Senate and House of Representatives is fully formed and settling in, so now Kirkman just needs a complete Supreme Court. He enlists the help of his former colleague Julia Rombauer from his academia days, and everything seems to go well. Each side agrees to the nominees for Justices from their own parties, but Bowman is looking to cause trouble in retaliation for losing the gun bill. He pulls the rug out from under the President, pulling Republican support for the 9th impartial seat. It’s one of the few moments Kirkman loses his temper. Nothing angers him more than politics getting in the way of progress. He can’t even put forth Rombauer’s name for the post because she has early onset dementia. The woman may not be able to take the Chief Justice seat herself, but she knows her constitutional law. There is no set law in the constitution that states a specific number of judges needed, so both parties can agree to stick with the eight they have for now. Bowman sees his opportunity to get his choice for a 9th judge when Kirkman leaves office.

Abe Leonard has been a thorn in Seth’s side, as many eager reporters can be to a Press Secretary. When this is most dangerous is when a reporter finds a story he is not supposed to find, especially when it affects national security. I’ll give Leonard credit for being so dedicated to his job that he would travel to the Middle East to confirm his story, but let’s be honest. Anyone outside of the inner circle finding out that Al-Saqar did not blow up the Capitol would be catastrophic. The only thing worse than that would be the public learning that their own Vice President was involved. I have to respect the President’s commitment to the 1st Amendment, but letting Leonard continue on the way he has is a serious gamble. At least Leonard knows the risk he is taking, considering he’s being simultaneously followed and fed classified information.

Covering the hunt for the Capitol bombers, Wells and Atwood explore more of North Dakota than I ever thought there was to explore. They stumble upon the cell congregation of Pax Americana, the manifesto led organization at the core of the Capitol bombing. They are analog, they are armed, and they are not willing to let anyone stand in the way of their mission. Yet the one person Wells and Atwood don’t expect to show up in the middle of this conspiracy is the one person that does: Nestor Lozano, alive and well.

Is this conspiracy making sense to anyone anymore?