Leo Shrugs Off Mandy's Memo — Toby Warns of a Leak
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
Leo and Toby discuss the military budget, revealing the financial stakes and Leo's pragmatic approach.
Toby reveals the existence of Mandy's opposition research memo, forcing Leo to confront the administration's vulnerabilities.
Leo dismisses the memo's significance, refusing to acknowledge its critique of his cautious influence on the President.
Toby presses Leo about the memo's content, specifically its critique of Leo's role in moving the President to 'safe ground'.
Leo firmly shuts down the conversation, refusing to engage with the memo's implications, leaving Toby visibly concerned.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Not present in the room; inferred impending alarm and readiness to manage a public fallout when informed.
C.J. is not present but is explicitly named as the person who is 'about to find out' about the memo; she is therefore an immediately affected party whose upcoming reaction and responsibility for messaging are implicitly invoked.
- • Learn the facts quickly once notified
- • Control the public narrative and limit media damage
- • Leaks determine press framing and must be contained
- • She should be the one to manage the press response
Dryly amused and professionally detached; he treats computer insecurity as a practical fact rather than a crisis requiring moral panic.
Admiral Fitzwallace exits Leo's office after a meeting, engages in a brief, wry exchange about Manila and redundancy, responds to Toby's security note with a dry aside that 'White House computers aren't secure,' and then leaves the room with professional reserve.
- • Convey operational military advice to Leo (about A1/M1s and Manila)
- • Signal the limits of technical security frankly
- • Exit the political sphere and leave decision-making to civilian leadership
- • Military facts should be stated plainly to inform civilian choices
- • Technical systems, especially in government, often lack full security
- • The armed services' role is to provide options, not political cover
Professionally anxious — restrained alarm beneath insistence on facts; determined to force the issue despite being shut down.
Toby enters Margaret's office, reports a likely security breach and that Mandy's opposition memo for Russell has been obtained, presses Leo about political consequences, offers to show a copy and finishes looking earnestly and pleadingly at Leo when refused.
- • Inform senior staff (Leo) of the leak and its political implications
- • Secure approval/access to the memo so the communications team can prepare
- • Prevent further uncontrolled dissemination or political damage
- • Leaks are politically dangerous and require immediate triage
- • Senior staff (Leo/President) must be fully informed to respond correctly
- • A candid assessment and rapid action can mitigate harm
Calm, slightly amused by the technical absurdity, but professionally attentive to the operational consequences.
Margaret stands at her computer, explains the technical cause (an email forward and reply loop) that has flooded inboxes, answers Toby's initial question about the pipeline, and watches the comings and goings while remaining administratively factual and composed.
- • Communicate the technical facts clearly to staff
- • Maintain office order and keep Leo's workflow uninterrupted
- • Provide the logistical support needed for damage control
- • Operational details matter and should be stated plainly
- • Technical failures often create political problems
- • Her role is to enable senior staff by giving accurate, usable information
Objects Involved
Significant items in this scene
The office e‑mail pipeline is invoked as the immediate technical mechanism that has been 'flooded' — Margaret describes how a forwarded message triggered automatic replies that clog inboxes, creating confusion and enabling rapid, uncontrolled circulation of sensitive attachments like the opposition memo.
The White House computers are named explicitly as the likely vector of a security breach: Toby warns of a major security problem and Fitzwallace quips they aren't secure. The machines move from background infrastructure to the revealed point of failure that makes the opposition memo accessible beyond intended eyes.
Location Details
Places and their significance in this event
Leo's office functions as the administrative command post visible through its open door: staff enter and exit, the Admiral departs from it, and it becomes the site where Leo receives Toby, listens from behind his desk, and chooses to downplay the leak — physically embodying the seat of managerial discretion and avoidance.
Manila (the Philippines) is invoked as the concrete locus of strategic debate — Leo and Fitzwallace argue about basing and redundancy, making Manila the policy object whose costs and symbolism feed the staff's political calculations in the same breath as the leak.
Margaret's office is the scene's primary staging area: lamplight over a cluttered desk, a glowing monitor and overflowing paperwork produce a domestic, claustrophobic setting where technical chaos and staff urgency collide and where Toby first raises the leak, turning private admin space into a crisis node.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
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Key Dialogue
"TOBY: "Mandy wrote an opposition research memo for Russell, and somebody's got it.""
"TOBY: "C.J.'s finding out.""
"TOBY: "Want to see a copy?" LEO: "No.""