All language subtitles for The Newsroom (2012) - 02x09 - Election Night Part II.BDRip-x264-DEMAND.Eng

We're just past 9:00 p.m. in the East
and we have another round of projections.

ACN is able to project Mitt Romney will win

the great state of Kansas
and its six electoral votes.
Ripped By mstoll

Moving south to Louisiana, we project...

I'm here.

I want to make sure
there's absolutely no confusion.

You would go on the record.
We would use your name.

I want more. I want a quote.
I'm gonna handcuff you to this thing.

Did he just say, "A big
prize but no surprise"?

Yeah.

He'll be kicking himself for that.

All right, well,
we've got a decision to make here

and I'll give you a heads up either way.

Thank you and good luck tonight.

It's as confirmed as
anything has ever been.

Two GOP congressmen
we can quote and identify,

two senior DOJ sources
we can identify as two senior DOJ sources.

- You wanted me?
- Yeah.

- All right, I can explain.
- Nope.

- Oh.
- Explain what?

Doesn't matter.

Here's what's happening.
Brody in California made a statement

this morning when the polls
opened condemning Todd Akin.

It's a tight race.

We figure he saw internal numbers

suggesting he needed a bigger cushion
with women 18 to 55.

So he went on
a local morning show

and slid in a condemnation of Akin,

but two hours ago,
Maggie found a Brody quote

in a Students for America
publication from 1990.

"It's a sad fact, but women cry rape

"to avoid embarrassment, to exact
revenge, or just to draw attention.

"If we have rape exceptions
to abortion laws,

"women could now cry rape
to terminate an innocent life.

"We should be able to look
past the mendacity.

"Children are conceived
by love, not by rape."

- How did you find that?
- Prayer and clean living.

- Seriously, how did you find that?
- It's my job.

It's my job, too, but I didn't find that.

- No, you didn't.
- Knock it off.

So, Don calls
Brody's chief of staff to get a comment.

- John Webb.
- And Webb says...

Given a little time,
he might be able to feed us a better story

in exchange for holding
the SFA quote till after the election.

What's the better story?

David Petraeus is going
to resign on Thursday.

He's been having an affair
with a lieutenant colonel in the Reserves.

So the question is which story do we run?

- 'Cause it's one or the other.
- It's not even a contest.

- Brody.
- Petraeus. Wait.

It's 6:00 in the West. The polls are still
open. People are coming home from work.

Almost 40% of the votes in Brody's district
are cast between 5:00 and 8:00.

I know, and I fully appreciate that.

But this is a special circumstance.

- No, it's not.
- Let me make my case.

We're under siege.
If we break this Petraeus story

two days before everyone else,
we'll, one, distract from our own problems,

and two, earn us back
some credibility and goodwill.

Does the Petraeus story
provide any information

the voters should have
before they punch a ballot?

It does not.

Does it do anyone any good

if we report the Brody quote
tomorrow instead of tonight?

It would help Brody out but...

Call your guy back
and tell him thanks, but no, thanks.

We'll report that Petraeus is resigning
when Petraeus resigns, right?

- Yeah.
- Don?

I'm agreeing. Do I have
to be happy about it?

Put the Brody package
together for me to approve.

I want to get it on the air in 15 minutes.

- Everything all right?
- Hmm? Yeah.

Here's how things are looking right now
just after the 9:00 p.m. closings.

Governor Romney is ahead
with 152 electoral votes

to the President's 123.

No projections right now
in Arizona, New Mexico...

They've run out of ballots
in Racine, Wisconsin.

Elliot's got it and then throw to DC.

Elliot, right now
President Obama has a lead in Wisconsin,

but we're hearing there
are voting problems.

Yeah, they've run out
of ballots in Racine, Wisconsin.

They've got to get some sort
of last-minute ballot supply.

Taylor Warren, is that a good sign
for the President in Wisconsin?

It's a very good sign. Racine, the
whole Rust Belt area of the state,

is a very big sweet spot for the President.

Coming to you, Jane.
Start us off with Colorado.

We're gonna start with Florida.

Take Jane to Florida.

Let's bring in Jane Barrow
and our panel in DC.

Jane, what are you guys seeing in Florida?

There's an interesting dynamic in
that battleground state right now

and I'd like to go to our panel.

All right, New York's
on an eight-minute break.

- Don't anyone go too far.
- And clear.

Okay, whew.

All right, turn out, turn out.

- The ground game.
- You talking to me?

I wasn't really talking to anyone.

I think you just described
the rest of my life.

How are you doing?

A group called Stand By Our Troops
submitted a petition

to AWM demanding Charlie and I be fired.

They got 20,000 signatures. Six and a
half times the size of my hometown.

I saw.

Another group
called Concerned Citizens for Truth

got 50,000 signatures.

We hired a polling firm to gauge trust.

- And?
- Nobody trusts us.

Men, women, over 49, under 49,
Republicans, Democrats...

Our lack of credibility
is immune to demographics.

The op-eds won't stop.
They're getting worse.

And I'm concerned this is finally
what's going to kill Charlie Skinner.

Schadenfreude's been made very convenient.

Hmm. Yeah.

You know, I hate to seem like I'm circling,

but I'm setting up a media consulting firm

and I wanted to get
your blessing to approach Jim Harper.

- About what?
- About joining the firm.

He hates me, but if I only
worked with people who liked me,

I'd have to make my dog Howard a partner.

I'm lost.

There's gonna be a land rush
as soon as you guys announce.

There's a lot of talent here.

Jim just renewed his contract
a few months ago.

It's in the air supply around here

that senior staff is resigning over Genoa.

Charlie is resigning and I'm resigning.

But as of 1:35 this morning,

Leona Lansing won't even
accept our resignations.

Where did you hear
senior staff was resigning?

- Maybe I shouldn't say.
- Where did you hear that?

From the senior staff.

- I make friends everywhere I go.

I want the senior staff
in the studio right now.

- We have seven minutes back.
- Right now.

The mood here is still upbeat. They
like the internal exits they're seeing.

They're not troubled that Obama isn't
losing in a single state he needs to win?

They like what they're seeing
in Ohio and Florida.

What are they seeing?

Honey, I'm starting to get
funny looks from people here.

- They know I'm Skyping with ACN.
- You're Skyping with me.

No one can see or hear us.

- Hey, Hallie!
- Hey, Maggie.

Will wants senior staff in the studio.

I'll be right there.

It's mostly the bloggers
who don't want me helping out old media.

You know, why don't you tell
new media that old media

has got a combined audience
of about 80 million tonight?

I will, but new media
will probably respond by saying

that the report you just gave
about Racine, Wisconsin,

running out of ballots came off Twitter.

Then you should reply
by telling new media to bite me

and my accountability and professionalism.

Can you get someone else to do this?

By the way, a little while ago we called
the Michigan First for Dan Benishek.

If you were thinking of posting
something about it, I'd hold off.

- Why?
- I accidentally called the wrong race.

- I meant Mississippi.
- You didn't retract it?

Our decision desk
is 100% confident he's going to win.

- Then why can't you call it?
- They're not confident enough.

You should really retract it.

If you were us tonight,
would you retract something

you didn't absolutely have to?

- No.
- I'm going all in on Benishek.

- Hang on.
- They're waiting for me in the studio.

I think she cut her own hair.

Tonight's really not the night...

Cutting off your own hair, that's alarming.

- Any chance this can wait?
- No.

Jim's on his way.

I'd like to announce
something in the meantime.

I was supposed to donate a signed copy of
my book for the Sandy auction

and I went to see my parents last weekend
and forgot to leave the book.

Gary, meaning well,
signed a copy of the book

forging my signature
and writing the inscription.

- In German.
- Almost.

In German the words for enjoy
and shred are a lot alike.

They're nothing alike, but
that's not the point.

Take your time getting to the point,
because as you can see,

- nothing else is happening right now.
- We've got five minutes.

We do not have five minutes.
The producers don't have five minutes.

My point is that
someone bought the book for a lot of money

and Neal's dropping
everything to help me find out who it was

so that I can give him
or her a real signed copy of the book.

So if there's anyone who
was at the fundraiser

- or maybe knows the person who...
- Excuse me.

You're dropping everything?

No, I'm still very much doing my job.
Except for right now.

And when I'm trying to fix
your Wikipedia page.

Oh, forget that. Drop it, it's stupid.

- Everybody's here?
- Yes.

Let's go around the room and everybody
tell something about themselves.

- Do you need to go back to the control room?
- Yes.

Go.

- Fix the page. Get it fixed.
- Copy.

I don't know what the hell
you guys are thinking about doing,

- but you're not doing it.

Last night, Charlie, Mac, and I
offered our resignations to Mrs. Lansing.

She refused to accept them, believing that
the right thing to do was to stand by us.

Charlie is working hard on Reese
to get him to change his mother's mind.

The reason, whole reason,
we're trying to resign

is to allow the rest of you to continue

to do what we started
without the burden of Genoa.

Elliot would take my job.
Don would take Mac's.

Sloan would anchor 10:00
and Jim would be her EP.

So I don't want to hear any more rumors
about the rest of you resigning.

- Is that clear?
- No.

- It's not clear?
- No, it's clear.

- We're saying no.
- No to what?

If Leona accepts your resignations,
we're resigning, too.

Everyone who was involved with Genoa.

I'm not going to accept your resignations.

Due respect, but if Leona accepts yours,
you're not going to be in a position...

We gave you a bad story.
It's our responsibility.

There are principles of...

Principle here and character
and responsibility.

Who put all this in your head?

You did. Now can we go back to work?

You expect me to get choked up?

Meeting's over. Two minutes back.

I think you insulted them
a little by not assuming

they'd stand behind you
and Charlie and Mac.

Why do you think that?

Because you insulted me a little.

- Charlie. Hi.
- Oh, hi.

- Excuse me.
- Oh, Charlie.

Charlie, a woman in Mesa, Arizona,

ran over her husband with their car
because he didn't vote for Romney.

- Can I have a moment?
- Did you hear what I just said?

- No.
- He's in the hospital.

They were in a parking lot.
She was chasing him around a light pole.

He tried to make a run for it
and she pinned him at the curb.

Here's what I find strange about this.

First of all,
it's not like the husband voted for Obama.

He just didn't vote for Romney.
He didn't vote.

And second, isn't Romney gonna win the vote
in Arizona by like 200% anyway?

Yeah, but you don't think the strange part

is the wife driving over
her husband with a car?

Well, she's pregnant.

Where are you getting this from?

- Twitter.
- Twitter.

All right, can I have just a second?

Sure.

A decision has to be made
before the court clerk's office

opens at 9:00 tomorrow.

I appreciate everything
you said last night.

- I was high last night.
- I know. You told us.

But then I got a good night's sleep

and an early morning swim
and a full day's work.

And then I changed
and came here and got high again.

- God damn it.
- It's marketing.

They got a stash.

I mean, I don't know how they do it.

I think they grow their own in, like,
the Galapagos Islands or something.

And I want to get
the Allman Brothers back together.

Rebecca says that
it's your intention to sue us if we resign.

For breach of contract, yes.
Hey, you want some champagne?

No. For two months, there's been a mob
shouting for our resignations.

- And the mob is right.
- Are you sure they're not just loud?

What does it matter? They'll keep shouting
until Will and I leave the building.

And if we don't leave the building,
what will that do to everyone else?

From what I understand,
if I accept your resignations,

there won't be anyone left
except the DC bureau

because those guys want your jobs.

Will and I will convince
senior staff to stay.

I'm not worried about that.

Here's why you have to
let Dantana's lawyers

know you're gonna settle
before papers are filed in the morning.

A diary will be made available to any
reporter who wants to read it...

- Which will be every reporter.
- of the internal operations of ACN.

And AWM and that diary
will be written by lawyers

whose only objective is
to make us look silly.

I don't feel silly. You
want to split a pizza?

Can you understand me right now?

Well, when you speak at that volume,
I think everyone can.

I drove them into this fucking nightmare.

I led, they followed.

And it's like I led them to Cape Fear

'cause everyone we've pissed off,

every congressman, every reporter,

every citizen journalist...

I understand the reality.

You know who I am.

Reese agrees with us.

The irony that it's come down
to you and Reese agreeing.

- Your son and I seldom agree.
- You disrespect him, Charlie.

- He's given me reasons to.
- No, no, he hasn't.

He's given you reasons to disagree
with him, but not to disrespect him.

Well, we're not disagreeing now.

He's thinking very clearly about this.

He's being a smart executive.

And now is exactly
the right time to listen to him.

Well, I'm doing a lot more
than listening to him.

I'm letting him make the decision.

- You are?
- Yeah.

- Leona, come on.
- Reese is making the decision.

He went out to take a walk.

- Why?
- Clear his head.

- I meant...
- Maybe get a panini.

I meant why are you letting
Reese make the decision?

'Cause I'm not really sure Elizabeth
Windsor is the world's greatest mom.

I mean, why doesn't she just
give her son the throne?

On the other hand, I think being
queen is what keeps her alive.

But doesn't she want
to be alive to see her son be king?

Except that that's not how it works.

It's prince by birth, king by death.

Yet...

Do you have any idea
what you're talking about right now?

Don't think I do, no.

But I want to see how Reese handles this.

He's already told us how he's gonna...

Okay.

Okay.

I'm relieved.

I can tell.

Enjoy the party.

Oh!

Oh, my God! I'm sorry. Are you all right?

- I'm sorry.
- It was my fault.

I wasn't looking. Did I hurt you?

No, no, I'm fine.

Have we met? You look familiar.

I'm Maggie Jordan's roommate.

- Sure.
- I'm Lisa.

Lisa.

I'm sorry, Lisa. Are you all okay?

- Yes.
- Okay.

Oh, Mr. Skinner, could I ask you a favor?

Would you mind not mentioning to Jim Harper
that I'm working up here tonight?

Yeah, sure. Why would I mention it to Jim?

'Cause you guys were... Got it.

Thank you.

We're ready to make an important projection

at 9:25 with 27% of the vote counted.

ACN is projecting that Pennsylvania
will be won by the President.

Pennsylvania, a crucial battleground state

which was won by the President four years
ago, will stay in his column.

Suzannah Marquez is on the scene for us
at Obama headquarters in Chicago.

Suzannah, was this much
of a surprise where you are?

Will, they're not surprised,
but they're certainly relieved.

This was a state President Obama
was determined to hold

against a late push
from Governor Romney to take it.

There's also something
instructive in these numbers.

According to senior campaign officials
I've been speaking to all day...

- Is that from you?
- Mmm-mmm.

And that's a pattern they said they've
been seeing in a number of states today.

But, of course, the night is early
and we'll have much more later.

- Will?
- Thank you, Suzannah Marquez.

- We'll be hearing more from you as the...
- Battleground update.

night moves on. Checking in
with our other battleground states,

in Florida with 84% of the vote in,
the race is as close as it gets

with the President holding a 50-49 lead.

- It looks like...
- It's close.

Hit refresh.

It just got closer. 657 votes.

In the state of Massachusetts,
ACN is projecting that...

- Kathy?
- Very busy now, Jim.

Can I see you one second?

- I'll have to shield my eyes.
- Go ahead.

I'm not allowed to see other networks.

Just look down. Aim your gaze at the floor.

The Michigan First is getting tighter.
Benishek is only up by 600 votes.

657.

There was a moment in the race
when it was one to nothing, right?

- That's not... Yes, but...
- And then the second vote got counted.

- You're still confident he's going to win?
- Yes.

And you're just as confident
he's going to win.

51-49 red.

- Or, if you want to be more exact...
- I do.

- 50.6 to 49.4.
- That's literally as close as a race can be.

- That's why we haven't called it.
- We did call it.

- You called it.
- What's the abbreviation for Michigan?

- M-I.
- What's the abbreviation for Mississippi?

M-I-S-S.

Okay, you're not here
as an abbreviation expert.

I'm 100% confident in those abbreviations.

Go back in your lair.

- Jim.
- Yeah?

Rachel Corey is on the phone
and wants to talk to you.

She's a pollster with the Benishek campaign
in the Michigan First.

Here it comes.

Tam, will you transfer
that call to Maggie's line?

- Yeah.

This is Jim Harper.

Jim, this is Rachel Corey
with Dan Benishek's campaign in Michigan.

- Congratulations!
- That's why I'm on the phone.

ACN called the race a while ago,
but no one else has.

Well, I can't speak for the other networks,

but ACN has the congressman
holding his seat.

Our numbers show he's only up by 600 votes.

- 657.
- 632.

What the hell is going on, Jim?

Do I send my guy out
to make a victory speech?

I would.

Look, I don't want to kick
you guys when you're down,

but you haven't had the most
awesome history of being right lately.

Well, first, you can't bounce
the words history and lately

off each other in the same sentence.

Also, in my entire time here
covering national elections,

ACN hasn't missed a single call.

How many elections have you been there for?

This is my second.

- Did we win the election or not?
- You did.

Then why has no one else called it?

You're forcing me to
brag, but it may just be

that we have better people
working the numbers.

You won't be offended if we wait
until someone else has called it, will you?

No, ma'am. I am a little offended.

- Even though you're lying?
- She doesn't know that.

- We've got a problem upstairs.
- At the party?

The guests were supposed to hand over
their phones and someone didn't,

because they tweeted a picture.

There are people up there who are hearing
information we don't want leaked.

And also this is a shot of Charlie

on the floor with broken champagne glasses,

which isn't the best
optic for us right now.

- I don't have the muscle to get security to...
- That's Lisa.

- Kneeling on the floor, that's Lisa.
- That is Lisa.

She didn't want you to know
she was here tonight.

She's been working
for a caterer to earn extra money.

Why didn't she want me
to know she was here?

This is where I'm gonna check out.

But someone upstairs
has a phone and they're using it.

You know, it might be a good time
for you guys to patch things up.

You really think this is a good time?

What if none of us are here tomorrow?

599.

Checking back in with our analysts.

Taylor, you've been looking over
the exits and working your phone.

Tell us what you're seeing and hearing.

We're seeing movement in Florida.

The last exit polls showed
Mitt Romney up by three.

The latest show the President up by one.
So that's a fluid race.

But senior campaign sources in Boston

are telling me
they like the precinct breakdown.

The Romney people
still feeling good about Florida?

- Take us to break.
- Florida and Ohio.

And hopefully we'll be able
to bring those calls to you soon.

But right now, what we know
is that Pennsylvania,

the first of the big contested states...

- Play in and stand by animation.
- Standing.

Stay tuned for
more of ACN's continuing coverage

of Election Night 2012.

We're out.

- Two minutes back.
- That's two and no change.

Will, we're ready to call
the House for the Republicans.

All right, I'll take
care of things out here.

- You do it in there.
- Take care of what things?

Come sit in this chair.

Why?

When we come back from commercial,
you're gonna call the House

for the Republicans
and go to Sloan for the breakdown.

- Where are you going?
- I'm taking a break.

What do you mean, you're taking...

I want our audience
to get used to seeing you break big news.

That's not gonna be necessary.

- Take the chair.
- No.

Then there's gonna be a camera
pointed at an empty chair.

Oh, fuck. Will!

- Don.
- Yeah?

We're gonna call the House after the break.

Yeah, we've got Boehner,
Cantor, and Pelosi,

but we have to wait in line for a while,
so you'll need to vamp.

You'll need to vamp.
I'm gonna step out of the room.

- Sixty seconds back.
- What?

You've got your cards,
you've got your producers,

you've got Elliot at the desk.

What's happening right now?

We just want to show Reese and Leona
you guys are good at this.

- You guys are good at this.
- See you in eight minutes.

The Republicans are keeping the House.
Let's get that graphic up.

- G-0445 standing.
- Elliot.

I'm here.

You're gonna ask Sloan
how we're able to make that call.

Copy.

Sloan, most of the competitive House races
were in states where polls closed at 8:00.

Republicans were ahead in 12,
Democrats in three,

and that's how we're able to call it.

- You copy?
- This is getting out of hand.

Ah. Don't worry about that right now, okay?

Copy.

Welcome back.
We are ready to make a big call.

ACN's ready to project
that the Republican Party

will be the majority party
in the House of Representatives

for at least two more years.

So far, so good.

ACN is projecting
at this time that the Republicans

will hold on to the majority in the House.

We'll be speaking with Majority
Leader Eric Cantor in just a moment.

But before we do, Sloan Sabbith,

you've been reviewing all the information
as far as the House is concerned.

You've been speaking
with our decision desk.

- How are we able to call this?

Well, Elliot, the Democrats

needed a net gain of 25 seats
to take the House

and 20 of the most competitive races
closed at 8:00.

I was wrong to think the reason
you weren't firing me was vanity.

I was wrong to think the reason

you weren't firing me
was that it would look bad.

I'm sorry for that.

You want your job back?

I don't think it'll make
that much difference now.

Charlie told me Leona
is letting Reese make the decision.

Yeah.

I tried to explain it
my first day here the second I saw you.

Do you remember?

I was hung up on him
because he had rejected me.

That's normal.

I liked that he hated I was dating you.

We weren't just dating.

Later. We weren't just dating later.

At the beginning we were, though.

And I was using you to get,

you know.

And then I fell in love with you

and I never saw him again.

And if I hadn't told you,

you'd never have known.

So why did you tell me?

If I had to do it over again, I wouldn't,

but I had never
been in a relationship as serious as ours

and I thought it was
what I was supposed to do.

You sure you didn't tell me
'cause you wanted to break up?

Oh, fuck you.

- It's a reasonable...
- Yeah, I'm sure.

Are you sure you're not
just a massive bag of douche?

'Cause let me tell you something,
it's just plain weird

that you were prepared to marry me,

that you'd bought a ring,

but were unwilling to
read any of my e-mails

or answer any of my calls.

Yeah, I'm sorry for this,
but the ring was a practical joke.

You were having the staff vet me, remember?

I knew you were gonna find the offer
from when we were together

for me to do something on the West Coast.

I knew you were gonna
come into the office waving it and saying,

"Ah-ha!
You were never as serious as you said,

"'cause if you were,
you'd have told me about a job

"you were considering
on the other side of the country."

And that's what happened.

You know, I heard the ring
was a practical joke...

And then I didn't hear anything after that.

It wasn't a joke.
It was a rejoinder. It wasn't a joke.

You took out a ring and showed it to me

as proof that your intention
had been to marry me.

I bought the ring that morning.

Scott's assistant did.

Your agent's assistant went to Tiffany's
and bought the ring that morning?

Yes. I'm sorry.
And you were never supposed to know.

So I get the irony and I am really sorry.

That ring had to have cost
a quarter of a million dollars.

I'm not really sure.
We returned it that afternoon.

I asked them to get a nice one.

You once described a ring
you saw in a movie.

- Okay.
- Mac.

You know, no kidding. I'm gonna step away.

- Hang on.
- Because the thing is I'm serious.

I feel like I'm gonna hit you
and you have to be back on the air.

- You're not going to hit me.
- I'm worried that I am.

And I'm the executive producer of the show.

I can defend my...

Stand on the other side of the room.

- This is stupid.
- There is a reasonable chance,

a credible threat that I'm gonna hit you

and I don't want you to have a bloody lip

when we come back from commercial.

That should make sense to you.

Like I said, if I ever thought
there was a chance you'd find out...

You just told me!

I brutally hurt you and that's a fact.

And facts don't change.
But in my lifetime...

I've never done it intentionally.

I'm sorry.

Recap the House and then look at Colorado
when we come back.

Yeah.

- Did you find out anything?
- Yes.

A woman at the auction
management company

was moved by your story and a little
concerned about going to jail for fraud,

so she was happy to fax over
the name and contact information

of the person who bought the forged book,
but you're not gonna be happy.

Was it bought by an inmate?

I have a small, slightly disturbed
following among white-collar criminals.

The book was bought by Sidney Falco.

- I don't know who that is.
- It's Tony Curtis.

Sidney Falco is a character
from Sweet Smell of Success.

The highest bid was anonymous?

All the bids are anonymous.

Joe Gillis is Sunset Boulevard.

Walter Neff from Double Indemnity.

Archibald Craven from The Secret Garden.

I don't understand this at all.

Someone wanted to create
the impression of a bidding war.

So a total of nobody bid on the book?

Except Sidney Falco from
Sweet Smell of Success

who, for some reason, bid himself
up with other fictional characters.

Who cares?
Someone gave $1,000 to Sandy relief

and they think they have your signature.

- I'm gonna get to the bottom of this.
- You're at the bottom.

- There are clues here.
- I don't think so.

- There could be clues.
- There aren't.

And you don't want to start
looking for anagrams...

Let's start looking for
anagrams of Sidney Falco

and Sweet Smell of Success.

Okay.

I got your text.

- I've decided to countersue Jerry.
- Of course.

- I'm fighting back.
- What are you suing him for?

- To fight back.
- I meant exactly what are you suing him for?

- You ready?
- I'm sorry?

- I said you ready?
- Give it to me.

Intentional affliction
of emotional distress.

- How do you even know?
- I googled it.

- There are four elements.
- One, he acted intentionally.

By doctoring the tape.

Two, his conduct
was extreme and outrageous.

- He doctored the tape.
- Three, you suffered distress.

I am in extreme distress.

And four, his act caused your distress.

He doctored the motherfucking
tape, Rebecca.

- You sound upset.
- Do I?

He doctored the tape and he gets to sue us?

I gave him a bad job recommendation
'cause he doctored the tape

and he gets to sue me?

The people who want tort reform,
they got a point.

Yes.

The things you're allowed
to sue for and be taken seriously.

And so we come face-to-face
with just how stupid lawyers worry we are.

I lost you in the middle of that.

You know what it says
on a box of chocolate pudding mix?

"Caution, pudding will
get hot when heated."

Go to a hotel, you know what it says
on the shower cap in the bathroom?

"Fits one head."

- You wear a shower cap?
- I read.

And I'm dying to know the suit

that prompted lawyers
to insist on the shower cap directions.

Look at the box your iron came in.

It says, "Warning,
do not iron clothes while wearing them."

Do we really
have to slow down for these people?

Leona's leaving the decision to Reese.

I know.

That's not what you wanted.

I don't know what I want.

I want to keep doing the news.

Here.

With Elliot for Charlie.

I want to keep arguing with Mac and Will.

I want Dantana
to iron his clothes while wearing them.

Could I get another
Grey Goose on the rocks with three olives?

Sure.

And you can just bring me
some more champagne

if it hasn't all been
soaked up by your clothes.

- No, there's plenty more.
- Just joking with you.

- I'll be right back.
- Okay.

Don't shoot.

Charlie Skinner
wasn't supposed to tell you I was here.

He didn't. Someone tweeted a picture of you
on the floor.

The center of gravity
on champagne glasses is too high.

That's what I've always said.

And what happened
to the old-fashioned ones from the movies?

They're too wide. They let the bubbles out.
I'm working right now.

Yeah, Maggie said
you were working for a caterer.

On the side. I still work at the store.

It was good seeing you.

I just have a minute.
We're waiting for some Senate information.

I think Sherrod Brown
is gonna keep his seat

and it's looking like
McCaskill's gonna beat Todd Akin.

- Do you know how frustrating this is?
- Careful.

I want to kick your ass
right now, but I can't

'cause everyone else is. There's no room.

So I have to feel bad for you instead.

If those are the only choices,
I'd rather you kick my ass.

- You don't get to decide. You know why?
- I do.

Do you remember standing in front of me
and swearing...

- Yes.
- Swearing that you

- didn't have feelings...
- I meant it.

You know that I found out from
that fucking YouTube video, you asshole?

I don't think there's a way
it could have been worse.

- Excuse me, Lisa. Is there a problem?
- No.

It seems like there is because
you're speaking rudely to a guest.

And the incident earlier,
that man was the President...

There's no problem.

And considering the circumstances,
she's being remarkably polite.

On the other hand,
one of your servers is tweeting pictures

from the party
and you signed a confidentiality agreement.

Well, if that's true, it's serious.

- It is.
- I'll take care of it.

- Lisa, please be working.
- I'm coming now.

How do you know it was one of the servers?

- It probably wasn't.
- I have to go.

I meant it. When I stood in front of you

and when I swore, I meant it.

- I believe you.
- Do you?

Yes, it wasn't till after you got
to know me that you rejected me.

- Champagne?
- No, thank you, I'm good.

I didn't reject you.

And there isn't a way
it could have been worse.

Grey Goose up, three olives.

Because at that point,
my worst fear was realized.

- Spiders?
- You get a kick out of yourself, don't you?

I actually ordered this on the rocks.

My fault. I'll fix that.

She got the number of olives right.
She's making progress.

- What was that?
- I beg your pardon?

Jim.

- I don't know what your worst fear is.
- That you think I'm stupid.

And stop trying to make up
for it by defending my honor

to a guy you can obviously
beat the shit out of.

- Stop.
- I can't.

Do you think I think you're stupid?

- I have to circulate.
- The whole time you thought...

I'm smart enough to know
that I'm not smart enough.

- For what?
- You.

- Damn it. Stop walking.
- Can we drop it?

Lisa.

- I don't get you.
- Maggie is downstairs being a news producer.

Your new girlfriend's in Boston covering a
presidential candidate for her own website.

And I'm up here passing out drinks.
What evidence...

You're working two jobs.
You're thoughtful and you're authentic.

And I have never seen you
sneer at anyone or anything.

There is, believe me,
no one that you're not good enough for

and there is hardly anyone
who's good enough for you,

including, it turned out, me.

I'm about to turn 30.

And you could just as easily
be someone's date here tonight

or married to their black Am Ex.

If they can make me laugh,
I'd take a green one.

Did Maggie cut her own hair?

- I don't speak to Maggie.
- You live in the same apartment.

We have our own lives. Champagne?

Strictly speaking,
champagne should be poured

immediately after the
bottle's been uncorked,

but because you're very beautiful,
I'll make an exception.

Yeah, yeah. Take the glass.

- Maggie's in bad shape.
- I don't care.

- I don't speak to Maggie.
- Please change that policy.

- No.
- She's in bad shape.

Because you're dating
that reporter from the bus?

- It's hard for me to sympathize.
- Not because of me.

- Because of Africa.
- What do you mean?

- I don't care. Champagne?
- They don't want champagne.

Are you saying Maggie
didn't tell you what happened in Uganda?

No. And again, I don't care.

Did she get hurt?
Did somebody... What are you saying?

You have to ask her.

I can't tell you
if she doesn't want you to know.

But she wants you to know,
so you have to ask her.

No.

Did she cut her own hair off?

There was hair on the bathroom floor.

We're gonna make the Senate
call in Missouri and Ohio

and we'll be throwing it
to DC in 10 or 11 minutes.

- Copy.
- But if we're able to call Florida,

or for that matter, the
race, just send it back.

You're not gonna let DC call the race?

- Just send it back.

We'll try not to drop
sarin gas on anyone while we do.

If you've got something to say, Jane,
you should say it to me

and not to the people in this control room

who simply did what
I told them to do and did it well.

And I have people here who could live
without Genoa on their resumes,

so I'm not sure from where you get the
nerve to insist that Will call the race.

I get the nerve from my mother.

But for the record, it was a DC producer
who committed journalistic malpractice.

And if I were you,
I'd be going through every story

he ever produced for you frame by frame

to find out what else
he's cooked along the way.

Good advice. Let me know if you
have any recommendations

for your job
when I take Will's chair in New York.

It's Charlie Skinner, Jane.

Send it back to New York
when Mac tells you to.

- Copy that.
- The desk says go on Senate.

We're ready to go on the Senate.
McCaskill and Brown.

Because this is something
that needs to be kept in mind.

- The entire world...
- Sorry, we're gonna make an important call.

Two big races in the US Senate.

ACN is projecting
that in Ohio, Sherrod Brown,

the Democratic incumbent, will be reelected

and Claire McCaskill,
the Democrat from Missouri,

will keep her seat as well.

Elliot, what does that mean for the Senate?

It's now mathematically impossible

for the Republicans
to take control of the Senate,

even if Romney wins tonight
and Paul Ryan becomes the tiebreaker.

So we're projecting now that Harry Reid

will stay in the Majority Leader's office.

Taylor, should the Democrats
be sending the Tea Party

a basket of mini muffins
and a thank you card for that?

I think the Democrats
have a lot of gift baskets to hand out.

Chris Christie, the media...

Okay. Hold the phone.

I can feel warmth about to happen.

What media are you talking about
when you say media?

- 'Cause there are a lot of us. ACN?
- Yes.

Ah. Well, please continue.

I worked in the Romney press shop

and I can tell you
that on average over the last six months,

News Night did 14 negative stories

about Republicans to every one...

Hey, Molly. It's New York.

- Copy.
- Coming to you shortly. Stand by.

If Republicans do 14
crazy things in a month,

does that mean the unbiased thing to do

would be for us to concoct 13
additional crazy Democrat stories?

- Are we doing this now?
- We're doing this.

- Go to Molly in St. Louis.
- Then let me give you another statistic.

- Almost nobody... Okay.
- No, we're going to St. Louis first.

Molly Sadler is with the McCaskill campaign
at the Omni Convention Center.

Molly, do I have to ask
what the mood is there?

I would say the mood is jubilation, Will.

Is there a chance
I can get you to ask Hallie a favor for me?

- What's the favor?
- I need her to post a story tonight.

Which I've already written about the effect
the debates had on the outcome.

In this story she quotes Mac, who's
identified both as the EP of News Night

and a former president
of the Cambridge Union.

That's the only way
to get Wikipedia to change the entry?

Yeah.

Are you proud of your army
of citizen journalists?

Have you called any more
elections on your own?

- No.
- Just the one?

I'll ask her. But, you
know, she's a little busy.

And ethical.

I'd like to do this for
Mac tonight as a gift.

I'll do it when I have a minute.

The left doesn't have
a version of the Tea Party.

What's OWS?

There wasn't an OWS candidate
on the ballot tonight.

The left's crazy people
hardly ever run for office.

And when they do, they don't win.

Who's Allen West to the left?

Who's Joe Walsh or Michele Bachmann?

A 14-to-1 ratio of negative stories
and your takeaway is

that there's a problem
with the storyteller.

What are your thoughts
about that, Taylor Warren?

- Cannot remember the question.
- Any word from Reese?

- He's still walking.
- He's what?

He's walking.

He's walking around
the neighborhood with a Rockette.

Presumably trying to decide
how to announce the personnel changes

and how much money
to pay Dantana to not file in the morning.

- What's a Rockette?
- The dancers.

He's dating a Rockette. A real one.

Is there anything
that'll convince you it wasn't your fault?

Get together with Sloan and talk about

a 90-second segment
on income and voting preferences.

- Okay, Jane, we're coming to you.
- If I can jump in...

Let's go to DC
for a whip-around on the Senate.

I have to cut you off there
and throw to Jane Barrow

and our panel in Washington.

Jane, the Republicans
will control the House

and the Democrats will control the Senate.

A billion dollars later,
are we right back where we were?

That's the question
I want to put to our panel...

We're out. DC has the con.

5:30 back.

No.

No what?

There's nothing that'll convince me.

There is at least some good news
coming out of Utah

where it looks like Senator Orrin Hatch...

I just got an e-mail
with an attachment.

- From me?
- Yes.

The attachment was an article about the
effect of the debates on the election.

- Yeah.
- You know who wrote it?

- Neal.
- Nope.

- I can explain.
- The byline says I did.

- He knew you were busy. Here's the thing...
- What the hell is going on?

We need someone
who doesn't work here to post an article

that contains the
information that MacKenzie

was president of the Cambridge Union
and not the Oxford Union

so that Wikipedia would edit her page.

- You know, now that I'm saying it...
- Not until just now?

- What's the mood there?
- What's the mood there?

- I know. I know.
- Okay, well, I have to go.

It's starting to sink in
that they're gonna lose Florida.

And between you and me,
he didn't write a concession speech.

- Can I ask you something?
- I really do have to go.

So do I, but...

Do I ever make you feel like you're dumb?

Seriously, honey, what's going on there?

I'm asking because I really like you
and I don't want to blow it.

Well, first of all, you're not smart enough
to make me feel like I'm dumb.

I was hoping you'd say that.

And I really like you, too.
You're not blowing it.

I knew there had to be a reason
why I liked you so much.

'Cause just physically,
you're hard to look at.

- You're not so much homely as you are...
- Talk to you soon.

just weird-looking.

- Jim.
- Yeah?

Maggie says to tell you
they're 93 votes apart now

and you'd know what that means.

Mmm-hmm. Thank you.

The gender income gap starts at 50K.

Men 50K and above are breaking for Romney.

Women at 50-200K
were more likely to vote for the President.

And it's the top 1%
of female earners that went red.

Now here's where I'd like us to focus,
because this is crucial.

- I'm sorry, but they need you.
- Wow!

- They're calling Ohio.
- We're on our way.

You're back in 90 seconds.
We'll pick this up after, okay?

Both. We're calling both,
and we're ready to go to Chicago.

- Tess.
- I'll get estimates from Boston.

- Thank you.
- And let's get Ben standing by.

I don't see Sloan.
Is that Sloan out there?

We'll go without her.

We're calling it.
Get in the studio.

and that takes the President to 262.

At that point, he has a lot of
different roads to 270.

Colorado, Florida, Ohio and Virginia,
in that scenario,

any one of those states
would throw the President over the top.

Getting Mitt Romney to 270 at this point
seems very, very difficult.

So the President's getting closer and
closer to that magic number of 270.

He's winning in the
states he needs to win...

- What I have can't be taught.
- Get her in the chair!

I mean, it really started in the last hour
when Florida started to slip away.

We're hearing from
very unhappy Republicans.

But right now we're going
to Will McAvoy in New York

who's got a new projection. Will.

It's 11:14 in the East
and ACN is able to project

that Barack Obama
will be living in government housing

for the next four years.

President Obama has been reelected
President of the United States,

Ohio having just put him over the top.

Once again, the ACN decision desk

is calling Ohio and the White House
for President Barack Obama.

We're gonna go live to Suzannah Marquez
and show you some images from Chicago

where the celebration is under way.

Will, as you can see, the news

has gone through this crowd
and the celebration has begun.

How about "binders full of women"?

Was the media response
to "binders full of women"

in rational proportion?

That's a perfectly good question.

Thanks, I was asking it to you.

And now he's losing.

Why'd you cut your hair?

I wanted a change.

I'm not crazy about it either.

The stylist kind of talked me into it.

- Maybe I'll get used to it.
- There wasn't a stylist.

You cut it yourself.

You cut off your hair
and dyed it a different color.

Lisa told me.

How would Lisa know?

How did you not tell her
what happened in Africa?

- Did you?
- No.

- Don't.
- How did you not tell your best friend?

- It's been a year.
- And it's been a year since we were friends.

He's losing by 17 votes
with 8,000 votes uncounted.

Why did you cut your hair?

He'd never seen blonde hair before.

While I was reading to him,
he was playing with my hair.

So I cut my hair.

- How'd it work?
- It didn't.

Right.

I'm trying to find out where the
uncounted votes are, but even if...

Listen. Listen for a second.

You went back into the building.

You went back in there.

You and Gary.

You pulled him out from under the bed.

- You weren't going without him.
- He was safer under the bed.

Bullshit, Maggie.

You pulled him out and you carried
him on your back to the bus.

What was your crime?

You turned around when
you heard Gary fall down.

There's a difference
between being tough and wanting to be.

You and Mac are tough.

Don's tough. I want to be.

You are.

You know when I first noticed you?

When I ran into the room
and got tackled by Mac's luggage?

Did you know...

No. It was funny,
but I didn't notice you until later.

There was a beep. It was an iNews alert.

- But it was yellow.

You've got a news alert.

- Nobody was paying attention to it.
- It was yellow.

You clicked on it anyway.

You couldn't help yourself.

You ran back into the building.

He's dead and I'm alive.

That's what I'd keep in mind.

It's after midnight now,
and I feel like I can ask a question.

- Sure.
- I meant to Will.

Yes.

Who did you vote for today?

You know I'm not answering that.

Oh, I thought you might because you revealed
your party affiliation on the air last year.

I did. I identified myself

as a Republican because
I thought it was fair

to give to the viewer
given the commentary I was delivering.

A commentary that ended with you
calling the Tea Party the American Taliban.

- Yes.
- And in the body of the commentary

- was a blistering indictment of Republicans.
- Exactly the opposite.

It was a blistering indictment of
people who aren't Republicans.

- Well, who's to say who is and who isn't?
- On that night, I did.

I want to remind you
you asked me to pursue this area.

- I understand.
- And I'm wondering, with all respect,

do you call yourself a Republican

so you can make a claim to credibility
when you attack the GOP?

No, I call myself a
Republican 'cause I am one.

I believe in market solutions
and I believe in common sense realities

and the necessity to defend ourselves against
a dangerous world and that's about it.

Problem is now I have to be homophobic.

I have to count
the number of times people go to church.

I have to deny facts and think
scientific research is a long con.

I have to think poor people
are getting a sweet ride.

And I have to
have such a stunning inferiority complex

that I fear education
and intellect in the 21st century.

But most of all, the
biggest new requirement,

really the only requirement,
is that I have to hate Democrats.

And I have to hate Chris Christie
for not spitting on the President

when he got off Air Force One.

The two-party system
is crucial to the whole operation.

There's honor in being
the loyal opposition.

And I'm a Republican
for the same reasons you are.

So I hope your voice gets
louder in the next four years.

Well, I don't like losing, so count on it.

You know, just jumping
on top of that idea...

- I'm sorry, Sloan.
- Come on!

We're gonna go to Jane Barrow in Washington

for an update on some
West Coast House races.

Plenty more coverage coming tonight. Jane?

- And clear.
- Are you doing it on purpose now?

No, it's just working
out unbelievably well.

You ever read Jedediah Purdy,
For Common Things?

No.

He talks about cynical times.

People having terminal irony

with a studied refusal
to hope or care openly.

- Does that sound like us?
- No.

No.

Have you asked yourself tonight
why we never reported the Petraeus story?

- The Petraeus?
- Remember?

David Petraeus is resigning on Thursday.

- We didn't report it.
- That's funny. I forgot.

Yeah. It's because we never made the trade.

The decision was
that the other story had information

voters needed, the Petraeus story didn't.

Not that many voters. It would have
affected maybe a few thousand, tops.

In one district, one seat.

As opposed to breaking two days early

what will be a giant story.

Breaking it in front
of an Election Night audience.

And the decision to decline
the trade was made instantly

and unanimously.

Don pushed back reflexively,
but he came around in seven seconds.

Don.

We've come a long way.

I'm not resigning.

And neither are you.

What, are we out of our fucking minds?

Dantana doctored the tape.
That's what happened, Will.

We know the truth and the mob doesn't.

When did we decide it was
an institutional failure?

We waited 11 months.

We know people who would have gone

after the second
red team meeting or even the first.

You agree with what I'm saying?

I believe, except for the things
we did wrong, we did everything right.

And I can't live with Mac
taking the blame for...

We'll get the audience's trust back.

Like Leona said,

we're gonna overcome the terminal irony.

And the laundry list
of embarrassing things in the complaint?

I've got to tell you, I'm not embarrassed.

The Zimmerman tape,
Jim going to New Hampshire,

Sloan punching a guy in arbitrage...

I actually like that one.

I can't tell what you're thinking.

Will?

It's gotten strange now.

Are you able to hear me speaking?

She, except for the things she did wrong,
she did everything right, too.

- The rest was me.
- I'm lost.

Uh, yes.

We're going to do the things you just said

for the reasons you just gave.

I missed parts of what
you were saying at the end,

but that's just gonna have to be...

I'll be right back. Yes!

Way to go.

Yeah, no, I'm definitely resigning.

Does anyone know where MacKenzie is?

- I think she's in the hair and makeup room.
- She's not.

- Did you look in her office?
- So, no, no one knows where she is?

We're back in seven minutes,
so she's gonna turn up.

- Have you seen Mac?
- I haven't.

But I have facts about
the Great Lakes region.

Right this moment is the least I've ever
cared about the Great Lakes region.

Has anyone seen Mac?

I'm right here.

Okay. I didn't...

Could you come here away from the cameras?

Yeah.

There's... Okay, okay...

- There's a story.
- What?

There's a story about
a little kid who keeps shredding paper

and his parents take him to all kinds of
doctors to get him to stop shredding paper.

And finally they take him
to the most expensive doctor in the world

who turns to the kid and he says,
"Kid, if you stop shredding paper,

"your parents will stop
dragging you to doctors."

And the kid turns to his parents
and says, "Why didn't you just say so?"

- Well, all right, then.
- The point of the story

is that the kid
could make himself happy by just stopping.

I think that's the point. I don't know.
I've been trying to figure it out.

But, uh, I didn't return it.

Because I'm in love with you.

- What did you say?
- And because of... Will you marry me?

- Wait.
- I said will you marry me?

And before that, I said
I'm in love with you.

That's, that's... That's
what I'm getting at.

I feel like I can do this so much better
if I can have a second.

What in the fuck is happening right now?

If... If I... I don't ever
want to not be... No.

I love you. I'm gonna go back to that.
And will you marry me?

And let me just say I really think you
should. I think you should say yes.

But no matter what you say,

there's no chance
I am ever gonna hurt you again.

And no matter what you say, I'm gonna be
in love with you for the rest of my life.

There's no way out of that.
That's just a physical law of the universe.

- You own me. No matter what you say...
- Yes.

- I will never stop...
- Yes. I'm saying yes.

You're saying yes?

Yes.

Thank God.

Took you long enough.

Seriously? That's what your...

Shut it.

So your mother was a Rockette?

That's right. And her mother, too.

- Third generation Rockette?
- Yes.

How great is that?

- And if you were to have a daughter...
- Crazy lady.

which would be my granddaughter,

would it be important to you
that she also be a Rockette?

- I don't think important, but if she...
- Okay, good.

- Charlie.
- 'Cause over here you have a Harvard MBA.

Over here you have a line
of synchronized nutcrackers.

- Charlie.
- Reese.

Leona. Rebecca.

- I'm sorry, I don't know who...
- Jackie. I'm here with Reese.

Third generation Rockette.
That's how we roll.

I've studied the findings of the report
and I've consulted with counsel

and I've reached the conclusion
that the news division

handled Genoa as well
as I'd want it handled.

Furthermore, this company
will give Dantana money

when a federal judge orders us to do so.

And furthermore after that,
I don't take my instructions

from a petition.

If you read Jedediah Purdy's excellent
book For Common Things...

- What, did you e-mail everybody excerpts?
- Yep.

I'm not accepting your resignations.

We're not resigning.

That's fine, but I'm surprising
you by taking the high road

- and I'm not accepting your resignations.
- We're not offering them.

This isn't about the bottom line.

This is a bad business decision,
but it's a good decision.

- I'm doing the right thing.
- There's no right thing to do.

I've already made the decision
that we're staying.

The wrong thing to do
would be to accept your resignation.

That's not an option,
'cause we're not offering them.

- You two about done?
- History should reflect that I acted admirably.

There's really no way of knowing that.

Is it possible the greater
glory belongs to me?

You're all idiots. Not you, you're sweet.

Everyone, uh, just listen
up for just a second.

This'll just take a second.

First of all, no one's resigning.

And the only reason you need is
'cause I said so.

Also I think we're
just starting to get the hang of this.

More importantly, I would like to introduce

the future Mrs. MacKenzie
Morgan McHale McAvoy...

That's not gonna work.

- What?

- I'll be damned!
- I know.

I know. I know.

- Wake him up.
- Cynthia's office should draft a statement.

Let's start identifying
who our friends are.

That shouldn't take long.

What did you do?

I wrote it myself.

A gift from new media.

Thanks for that Romney interview.
Ripped By mstoll