Hoynes Delivers the Vote — and a Quiet Lifeline
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
Leo arrives at Hoynes' office, visibly distressed, and begins discussing the lost votes on bill 802.
Hoynes offers immediate political relief by promising to secure Tillinghouse's vote.
The scene ends with Leo leaving, his political crisis resolved but personal pain lingering.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Confident and steady; pragmatic about the legislative fix while quietly frank in exposing a personal option for Leo's support.
Hoynes receives Leo warmly, absorbs the briefing, immediately commits to seeing Tillinghouse the next morning, reassures Leo, and then offers an unexpected personal resource: the existence of his confidential weekly AA meeting among senior officials.
- • Deliver the swing vote by personally meeting Tillinghouse
- • Stabilize Leo emotionally and offer a private support mechanism that preserves both help and secrecy
- • Private, trust-based networks among senior officials can resolve political and personal crises
- • Maintaining confidentiality about sensitive personal matters is crucial to protecting reputations and power
Professional and quietly sympathetic; present as a stabilizing, background figure.
Janeane acts as the practical intermediary: she announces Leo, waits for direction, fetches and delivers a glass of ice water to Leo on Hoynes' instruction, then remains polite and unobtrusive at the doorway.
- • Support the Vice President's office operations unobtrusively
- • Provide small comforts (the glass of water) that aid the emotional exchange
- • Staff should facilitate senior-official interactions without drawing attention
- • Practical gestures (like bringing water) contribute to de-escalation
Frayed and unmoored on the surface — professional composure cracking into private grief and fatigue beneath.
Leo arrives shaken, confesses the bill is five votes short, briefly discloses his separation from Jenny, accepts water to steady himself, expresses gratitude when Hoynes promises to deliver the final vote, then leaves.
- • Secure the missing vote for bill 802 by enlisting Hoynes' help
- • Contain the political damage and keep the President's legislative priority on track
- • The administration must secure this vote or political capital will be lost
- • Personal problems should be kept private and not interfere with duty
Objects Involved
Significant items in this scene
Hoynes is introduced reading a broadsheet newspaper at the start of the scene; it establishes a late‑night political routine and gives the office a lived, worklate texture, anchoring the ordinary against which Leo’s personal crisis intrudes.
Janeane brings a clear tumbler of ice water to Leo at Hoynes' request; Leo drinks deeply from it to steady himself. The glass functions narratively as a small, humanizing comfort and a ritualized means for Leo to regain composure between confession and task focus.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
"Richardson's refusal to support the bill forces Leo to seek help from Vice President Hoynes to secure the final vote."
"Leo's declaration that the gun-control bill is more important than his marriage directly leads to his admission to Hoynes about his marital collapse."
"Leo's declaration that the gun-control bill is more important than his marriage directly leads to his admission to Hoynes about his marital collapse."
"Hoynes' concern for Leo's distress leads to his offer of support through the secret AA meeting, showing the personal bonds beneath the political surface."
"Jenny wearing the choker as she leaves parallels Hoynes offering Leo support in AA, both highlighting the personal costs of political life."
"Jenny wearing the choker as she leaves parallels Hoynes offering Leo support in AA, both highlighting the personal costs of political life."
"Hoynes' concern for Leo's distress leads to his offer of support through the secret AA meeting, showing the personal bonds beneath the political surface."
Key Dialogue
"LEO: "Um... I came in to talk to you about 802. We lost five votes.""
"HOYNES: "I'll see Tillinghouse." LEO: "You'll deliver him?" HOYNES: "It's a done deal.""
"HOYNES: "When was the last time you went to a meeting?" LEO: "A.A.? What meeting could I possibly go to?" HOYNES: "Mine.""