[After the White House learns of the Chinese destroying the USS Shackleton and damaging the USS Hayward as they were reinforcing the Nathan James, Allison Shaw gets a little bit forceful on President Howard Oliver]
Mr. President, through no fault of your own, you've stepped through the looking glass into the birth of a new America. The pandemic, the millions of deaths, the complete collapse of law and order demands a revolution of governance.
Revolution? You mean coup d'etat. Who are you working with? Castillo?
Castillo, Price, Wilson, Croft. America can no longer be governed by a central power, not now. Each region must look after itself.
Sons of bitches. I knew it.
Relax, Howard. This is a good thing. You knew that Michener was moving too fast, that America wasn't healthy enough to go back to the way things were. There are no states. There are no cities. There are only tribes scrambling out of the mud over the bodies of 300 million dead Americans. Face it, Howard... Democracy is a luxury that we can no longer afford.
This is crazy. I mean, what the hell are you talking about?
By now, Senator Beatty and Secretary Rivera are dead. If you try to contact any of your allies in the city, the consequences will be swift... As swift as they were for Jeffrey Michener.
You're insane. That's it. Y-You've gone completely insane.
Do you understand me, Howard? Your family, your friends... None of them will be safe if you do not play ball. Take a minute and think about it before you make any decisions you'll later regret. Everybody likes you, Howard. It's a big table, and there's a place for you at it as long as you go with the program. Have I made myself completely clear? This office is your home now. I'll see you in the morning. We've got a lot of work to do.
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