Character

Duke Cardiologist

rigorous credible detached

Toby cites the Duke Cardiologist as Hoebuck's expert witness during tense Foreign Ops vote negotiations. Hoebuck deploys this specialist—who ran a double-blind study—to justify $115K for an NIH remote prayer project. The reference heightens ethical stakes, pitting scientific claims against policy payola in Josh's office. Positions the cardiologist as a detached clinical authority external to White House dynamics, invoked to sway legislative outcomes.

2 appearances

Also known as: Duke cardiologist

Duke Cardiologist's Journey

A timeline through the narrative

2 moments

S4E12 · Guns Not Butter

Hardin Seals Off; Hoebuck's $115K Price

Impersonal, scientific authority used as rhetorical cover (inferred rather than directly observed).

Referred to by Toby as the Duke cardiologist Hoebuck brought to substantiate a double-blind study; functions as the rhetorical/technical authority invoked to justify the $115,000 request.

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S4E12 · Guns Not Butter

Hoebuck's $115K Ransom: Remote-Prayer Demand

Clinically distant and used as authoritative cover (inferred) — the cardiologist's data is invoked to justify the ask, not as an engaged policymaker.

Mentioned by Toby as the Duke cardiologist Hoebuck brought to lend credibility — functions as the credential that makes the $115,000 request look research-based rather than pure pork.

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