Chapter 21 Season 2 – House of Cards Episode Summary 2.8

House of Cards Chapter 21 Episode Summary: Vice President Frank Underwood uses the Ugaya tribe to get to Dan Lanagin, while simultaneously working on fulfilling Xander Feng’s request to finance the Port Jefferson Bridge project.  Regrettably, Chief of Staff Linda Vasquez proves to be an obstacle in his attempt to convince President Garrett Walker to approve the bridge project.  Meanwhile, Claire Underwood’s campaign for the bill that will protect against sexual assault in the armed forces precariously hangs on the shoulders of Megan Hennessey.

House of Cards Chapter 21 Recap: Vice President Frank Underwood meets with Chief Whitehall and key members of the Ugaya tribe in an attempt to gain their favor.  He instructs Doug Stamper to help the Ugaya tribe receive recognition in order for them to begin construction of the casino that will compete with Lanagin’s business.  He meets with the Bureau of Indian Affairs and offers them $13 million of appropriation from Congress in exchange for an expeditious approval of an 8-year old application from Chief Whitehall.  The Ugaya tribe lost their right to BIA benefits after Daniel Lanagin unregistered the tribe.  The Bureau of Indian Affairs remains reluctant to expedite the Ugaya tribe’s application, but agrees to do so after Stamper threatened the bureau’s loss of funding.  News of the Ugaya tribe’s recognition reaches Lanagin and he requests a meeting with Frank in Missouri.Continue reading...

Frank Underwood works on seeking President Garret Walker’s approval to allow Xander Feng to finance the Port Jefferson Bridge.  Presidential Chief of Staff Linda Vasquez disapproves of doing business with the Chinese given the current trade war between the U.S. and China.  Moreover, she becomes suspicious of Frank’s motive knowing his previous strong opposition to China.  She rejects Frank’s appeal for help in persuading the President to accept Feng’s financing.  Vice President Frank Underwood ignores Linda’s suggestion to forego the Port Jefferson Bridge and pursues convincing President Walker to approve its construction.  Regrettably, Linda had warned the President of Frank’s suspicious determination to push for its construction.  The distrust in his motive leads Frank to confess his unsanctioned negotiations with China.  He apprises the President of the reason behind his insistence without divulging details.  All the President needs to know is that the solution to combating the Republicans in the midterms lies in the construction of the Port Jefferson Bridge.

Vice President Francis Underwood uses the fundraiser in Kansas City for House Representative Terry Womack as a cover for his meeting with Daniel Lanagin.  Ayla Sayyad, however, suspects that Frank Underwood has another agenda in Missouri, Raymond Tusk’s home state.  Frank haughtily arrives at Lanagin’s mansion not expecting Tusk’s attendance.  He has come certain that Lanagin has called to make a deal following his support of the Ugaya tribe, one that could prove a threat to his casino.  Instead, he learns that Chief Whitehall had accepted Lanagin’s offer of re-enrollment to his tribe soon after meeting with the BIA.  Tusk proposes Frank’s agreement to help mend his relationship with the President of the United States in exchange for the redirection of campaign funds back to the Democrats.  Frank refuses to accept Tusk’s proposal and threatens to have the BIA investigate Tusk and Lanagin.  The entrepreneurs are unfazed, well aware that the investigation will only implicate him and the leadership in the corruption given that they had been funneling money to the Democrats for almost a decade.  Frank leaves enraged with his failure.  He instructs Stamper to schedule a meeting with the President with strict orders to bypass Linda that he may persuade him to approve the Port Jefferson Bridge project.

Chief of Staff Linda Vasquez learns of the meeting and takes it off the schedule enraging Frank even more.  A livid, Frank Underwood, derides Linda Vasquez with claims of having made her, but the feisty Chief of Staff counters with claims of already having repaid her debt of gratitude.  Linda senses the futility of their argument and decides to end it unresolved, but Frank continues with his derision forcing Linda to assert the importance of her role as Chief of Staff.  She makes the mistake of professing the President’s dependence on her leading Frank to challenge her to make the President choose between his Chief of Staff and his Vice President.  The President would choose the Vice President without a doubt for the Chief of Staff is easier to replace.  Linda speaks to President Garrett privately in the hope of convincing him to maintain his decision to forego the Port Jefferson Bridge project.  The President appreciates her input.  Regrettably, he is disinclined to agree.

President Garrett Walker meets with Frank to discuss the Port Jefferson Bridge project mainly to ensure irreproachability from failure.  Frank claims the suppression of information from the President protects him from blame and insists on accepting responsibility for its ruin should it fail.  President Walker agrees to approve the Port Jefferson Bridge project and calls the Committee for Foreign Investments to inform them of his decision.  Stamper informs Feng of the good news and receives word of the Chinese businessman’s agreement to end his patronage of Lanagin’s casino.  Stamper, however, forces him to end his co-venture with Tusk as well.  President Garrett later speaks to Frank about Linda’s resignation and confides his infuriation towards her attempt at manipulation.  President Garrett seeks Frank’s advice regarding her resignation.  Frank advises him to accept it with an argument that his refusal only shows his ease of being leveraged.  Linda later speaks with Frank to inform him of the President’s acceptance of her resignation as Chief of Staff unaware that he had advised President Garrett to accept it.  Despite their differences and intense argument the previous night, Linda saw it fit to give him the courtesy of an amiable farewell.  Moreover, she thoughtfully gives him the first Medal of Honor awarded to a Hispanic-American after learning of Frank’s civil war model.  Linda leaves imparting words of hope for Frank to look after the best interests of the President and earns Frank’s respect for having tried her best to win the battle against him.

Megan Hennessey eagerly agrees to become the poster girl of the fight against sexual assault in the armed forces.  Imparting the abuse done to her has helped her cope with the terrible ordeal.  House Representative Elaine Brooks, however, warns her of the Herculean job that lies ahead.  The numerous media engagements will require serious commitment from her.  Megan confirms her determination to help the cause with the assurance of support from Claire Underwood and First Lady Tricia Walker.  Claire speaks to the First Lady about needing the support of the White House and learns that the President relinquishes involvement with the controversial issue.  She urges Tricia to persuade her husband to show his support, but discovers the worsening marital problems of the Walkers.  Claire suggests marital counsel for the Walkers and recommends the minister she and Frank used before.  The First Lady urges the President to deliver a speech in support of the bill, but he continues to reject her pleas.  Tricia felt marginalized after the President unceremoniously dismissed her.  She confides to Claire of the incident and expresses her interest in seeking marital counsel from Dr. Thomas Larkin, the minister Claire recommended.  Tricia informs her husband of wanting to seek counsel arguing that his Presidency also depends on the security of their marriage.  Garrett accedes to his wife’s request and agrees to receive counsel from Dr. Larkin.

The time to speak to the Armed Services arrives.  Claire Underwood finds Megan Hennessey on the verge of a breakdown due to the paralyzing fear of having to testify against General McGinnis.  Claire tries to pacify the terrified young woman in an attempt to motivate her to give testimony to the most senior House Representatives, but instead receives distrust from Megan.  The young Private begins to realize Claire’s motive of obtaining political gain from the success of her cause, one that heavily depends on her testimony.  The insinuation upsets Claire, who confesses to gaining from her support, but she later feels sympathy to the evidently petrified young woman after learning the psychological damage her attack caused.  Claire agrees not to let Megan testify and ends up consoling her.

Meanwhile, Rachel Posner receives an unexpected visitor, Lisa Williams.  Lisa, a former drug addict, is having trouble with her meth addict roommate.  Rachel offers her a place to stay without first seeking Stamper’s approval.  She, however, did leave him a voicemail message informing him of her decision.  Later, Rachel finds Lisa worthy of trust and divulges her former life as a call girl to her.  Rachel and Lisa begin a sexual relationship.

House Representative Jackie Sharp summons Remy Danton in her office way after office hours to ask him the source of the GOP donations.  The $25 million dollar funding the Democrats received proved damaging to Jackie’s campaign and the Democrats over all.  The party is on the verge of losing control of the House along with Jackie’s position as The Whip.  Remy claims to be sympathetic to her troubles, but remains cagey about his knowledge of the GOP donor.  Jackie tries another approach and abandons her reticence regarding her relationship with men.  The woman intimates an issue with commitment and confesses not having had a serious romantic relationship.  Remy had broken off their relationship after expressing his aversion to flings.  Jackie would like to resume their affair despite Remy’s requirement.  She, however, asks to keep their private lives separate from their professional relationship.

Remy meets with the disgruntled former CWI office manager, Evelyn Baxter, and learns of a rumored affair between Claire Underwood and Adam Galloway.  He meets with the young photographer freelancing with Adam and purchases all of her photographs.  He then meets with Seth to notify him of having found dirt on the Underwoods in a very short span of time, one Seth was unable to unearth in months of investigation.  Remy suspects of the man’s change of allegiance.  He is correct for Seth informs Frank immediately after learning of it.  Remy flies to Missouri to meet with the Tusks after learning of Seth and Feng’s betrayal.  He brings with him a proposal to expose the dirt he found on the Underwoods.  Both Raymond and Jean Tusk sanction the revelation of the scandalous information Remy unearthed.  The Underwoods hear news of Claire’s affair with Adam Galloway appearing on the NY Examiner.

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Chapter 20 Season 2 – House of Cards Episode Summary 2.7

House of Cards Chapter 20 Episode Summary: Vice President Frank Underwood identifies Raymond Tusk as the financier of extensive attack ads against President Garret Walker and his administration.  He works on finding undeniable evidence of Tusk’s betrayal and a solution to stop the funneling of money to the Republicans.  Meanwhile, Claire Underwood begins manipulating First Lady Tricia Walker in order to gain her confidence.

House of Cards Chapter 20 Recap: Friends of a Better America releases issue-based attack ads against President Garret Walker’s administration discouraging voters from supporting his candidates in the midterms with a long-term goal of enacting a Republican takeover.  The attack ads with an estimated worth of $25 million dollars came from Super PACs whose source remains unknown.  Vice President Frank Underwood believes that identifying the source is the only solution to combating the damaging attacks against President Walker’s administration.  President Walker, however, assigns blame on his Vice President and himself as well for not following Raymond Tusk’s advice to keep Frank in Congress.Continue reading...

Frank Underwood enlists the services of Walter Doyle to uncover the source of the Super PAC that funded the attack ads against the current administration.  Walter identifies Democrat supporter turned traitor, Dan Lanagin, as the culprit.  An Ernst & Young report showed Lanagin allotting at least $18 million in donations, not a cent of which went to the Democrats.  Lanagin’s betrayal surprised Frank Underwood.  He comes to a realization that Raymond Tusk must be behind it, because Lanagin’s casinos are located in Missouri, Tusks’s home state.  Tusk, known for not making political contributions, must be funneling money to Lanagin.  Frank sends Doug Stamper to Kansas City to find proof that will support his speculation.  Stamper spends two hours at the OTB section of the casino catching the attention of the security team who informs their owner, Dan Lanagin.  Lanagin identifies him as the Vice President’s Chief of Staff.  He instructs his men to keep an eye on the man without raising alarms.  Doug Stamper leaves the casino with the cocktail waitress and spends a night with her in the hope of assuaging his sexual urge for Rachel Posner.  He later reports to Frank of his observations in the casino, particularly the wealthy Chinese clientele it accommodates.  As Stamper had guessed, Frank finds the evidence thin, which is why he had instructed Doyle to investigate further the Chinese clientele.

The morning’s reproof from the President caused Frank to work on winning his approval.  He surprises the President with a punching bag placed at the Oval office, making light of the argument they had where Frank expressed his distaste of the President’s propensity to use him as a punching bag.  The gesture charmed the President enough for him to apologize to the Vice President for his imputation.  A dinner invitation from Claire Underwood furthers the plan to beguile the Walkers.  First Lady Tricia Walker speaks about Christina Gallagher on their way to the Underwoods.  Claire’s insinuations have made the First Lady suspicious of Christina causing her to compete with the young staff member.  Moreover, she expresses her perception about the young woman’s ingratiating attitude towards her, suspecting it as a façade to hide her attraction to the President.  President Walker finds her concern and request to have Christina relocated ludicrous.  He rejects his wife’s plea to distance himself from the young aide.

A reporter from The Sun learns of Vice President Francis Underwood’s secret hideaway, Freddy’s BBQ Joint, and decides to write a personal interest story about the BBQ joint’s owner.  Freddy got the recipe that satiated Frank Underwood’s appetite for about twenty years now from his deadbeat father.  The ribs that have become popular due to The Sun article is about to impress the President of the United States soon.  Claire Underwood has tapped him to cater the dinner with the Walkers.  The dinner ends and the President personally praises Freddy’s succulent ribs.  Moreover, President Walker mentions having read the article that mentioned Frank’s allegiance to Freddy’s BBQ Joint.  The article attracted business to the shabby rib joint serving scrumptious ribs and caught the attention of a company offering to turn Freddy’s BBQ Joint into a restaurant chain.  The company is offering Freddy a lucrative deal and a considerable amount of money for the use of his brand.  By dessert, the tension between the Walkers becomes apparent causing the Underwoods to kindle it with their seemingly perfect relationship.  The First Lady’s envy of the Underwoods relationship fills the room suffocating the President into becoming curt towards his wife.  The palpable hostility between the Walkers secretly delights the Underwoods.  Tricia falls into the trap and confides her marital problems to Claire.

Frank Underwood attends the meeting about the sexual assault bill Claire Underwood instigated with the shocking revelation of her rape.  She shares of the First Lady’s approval of the early draft of the bill House Representative Elaine Brooks is sponsoring.  Frank instructs House Representative Jackie Sharp to find formidable co-sponsors of the bill.  The congresswoman willingly accepts the task, but later instructs her right-hand, Lorrie Tate, not to disseminate the draft of the Countering Sexual Assault in the Armed Forces Act of 2014 (CSAAFA).  She plans to break the promise she made to Frank Underwood of providing him a list of co-sponsors ultimately stalling the bill.  Meanwhile, Connor Ellis and Seth Grayson fight for the Underwoods approval with their conflicting media strategies.  Connor recommends the media blitz approach that uses a blanket strategy to obtain a large number of supporters.  Seth argues against the media blitz and suggests enlisting Matt Bai of The New York Times Magazine to become the bill’s single, long lead who will gain them the supporters in the key demographic.  Seth’s suggestion gains the Underwood’s approval.

Ostensibly, Seth is working for Remy Denton.  He was hired to investigate further Claire’s abortion with the ultimate goal of uncovering dirt on the Underwoods.  He reports that Claire was truthful in her claim.  Remy becomes upset at the length of time Seth is taking to uncover the secrets the Underwoods have buried, but Seth is confident in his abilities.  Even though the man works for Raymond Tusk, Remy’s ire does not rattle Seth.  In fact, he manages to have Remy procure an agreeable job offer for Connor Ellis in order to allow him to further his investigation without interference.  Soon, Connor Ellis tenders his resignation unaware that the magnanimous job offer from SpaceX was Seth’s doing.  Seth then divulges his association with Remy Danton to Frank Underwood revealing the purpose of his insistence to join the Underwood’s staff.  Remy hired him to uncover damaging information about the Underwoods.  Despite his blunt honesty, Frank remains suspicious of Seth Grayson’s intentions and change of allegiance.  Seth claims that power entices him more than money.  He has come to believe that Frank possesses that power after seeing his work on the entitlement reform.  This pleases Frank Underwood.  He orders Seth to retain his association with Remy that they may remain a step ahead of Tusk.

Chief of Staff Linda Vasquez shows Frank the proposal that will counter the attack ads against the administration.  Frank is disinclined to support Linda’s pitch that asks the leadership for considerable funding for the strategy that will neutralize the damage done to the administration’s reputation.  News of Doyle’s discovery distracts him from Linda’s proposal causing him to agree to support her at the meeting where she is to make the pitch.  With Linda out of the way, Frank deals with the illuminating proof of Tusk and Lanagin’s betrayal.  Doyle managed to uncover Xander Feng as the owner of the planes that transported the wealthy Chinese businessmen to Lanagin’s casino.  Feng has been sending clients to Lanagin’s casino since 2005.  The revelation prompts Frank to call Raymond Tusk.

Tusk, who is with Dan Lanagin, receives Frank’s call.  He denies funneling money to the GOP Super PACs, but insinuates his hand in stacking Congress.  The revelation of Tusk having controlled the House of Representatives stuns Frank Underwood.  Frank threatens him with the exposure of his political contributions, but Tusk is not concerned, because the reports will reveal everyone’s guilt.  Moreover, Tusk alludes to his plan of dethroning the Democrats in Congress.  Meanwhile, Doug Stamper is on his way to China to meet with Xander Feng with the ultimate goal of stopping the flow of money to the Republicans.  Speaking in behalf of Frank, Doug offers Feng favors in exchange for his cooperation.  Feng treats him as his guest at his mansion where Stamper is to stay until he gets an answer as per Frank’s instructions.  Moreover, he is to summon Dan Lanagin to Washington D.C. for an in-person meeting with Frank Underwood.  Dan agrees to meet with Frank at his house to hear what the Vice President has to offer.  Frank offers him a direct line to the White House giving him influence over federal gambling legislation.  Dan Lanagin’s exorbitant contributions made possible with Tusk’s financial support have already bought him influence.  Frank’s offer is ambiguous and pales in comparison to the support he receives from Tusk.  Frank fails to entice Dan into accepting his offer and instead creates hostility between them.  He takes his anger on the diorama he painstakingly assembled.

Ayla Sayyad of the Wall Street Telegraph uncovers the rare earth elements refinery in China co-venture of Raymond Tusk and Xander Feng.  She is working on a story that reveals the undue influence in the White House of one of the wealthiest men in America, Raymond Tusk.  The revelation of a wealthy entrepreneur with strong ties to the White House working with a notoriously corrupt Chinese diplomat raises ethical questions.  President Walker’s administration pushing for rare earth subsidies during the height of the energy crisis adds to her suspicion.  Ayla reaches out to Seth for an interview with Vice President Francis Underwood to obtain verification of her suspicions unaware that the Vice President’s Chief of Staff is in China to negotiate with Feng.  Two young Chinese women wake Doug Stamper to provide him carnal pleasure.  He rejects their advances and orders them to leave his room.  Their sexual advances, however, ignites his longing for Rachel enough for him to give in to the impulse of calling her.  He meets with Feng the following day to negotiate a deal.  Feng, who had previously withdrawn the financing of the Port Jefferson Bridge, now asks for its reinstatement.  Ostensibly, his allies were displeased with his refusal to finance the bridge.  They have become a threat to his business and his life.  Stamper returns to the U.S. with the alternative solution to the Tusk problem.

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