C.J. Alerts Leo to Reporter Price's Capture by Congo Rebels
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
C.J. enters with urgent news about reporter Bill Price's capture in the Congo, shifting the focus to an international crisis.
Leo and C.J. discuss the implications of Price's capture and plan to contact the Congolese attaché, underscoring the gravity of the situation.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Urgently alarmed by unfolding hostage crisis
Invoked by C.J. as recent visitor delivering breaking news on Billy Price's missed deadlines and capture, catalyzing her urgent briefing to Leo without physical presence.
- • Alert Press Secretary to reporter's peril
- • Bypass State for higher intervention
- • Billy Price's history of criticism yields to crisis loyalty
- • White House holds power to drive rescue
Anticipated defensiveness under pressure
Referenced by Leo and C.J. as Congolese attaché already en route to White House, positioned as immediate diplomatic target amid capture confirmation.
- • Defend Congolese position on rebels
- • Navigate U.S. demands without concessions
- • Government rejects ransom to terrorists
- • Internal opacity shields foreign scrutiny
urgent and focused
entering Leo's office, briefly praising the speech to Toby and shutting the door on him, sitting to urgently brief Leo on Leonard Wallace's news about Billy Price's capture in the Congo
- • praise the speech briefly
- • alert Leo to Billy Price's capture by Mai-Mai rebels
Frustrated and eager for validation, cut short by urgency
Exits Leo's office into hallway, briefly engages C.J. with question on speech praise, endures her teasing quip about ex-wife, attempts retort before door shuts on him, underscoring his peripheral displacement amid rising crisis.
- • Secure affirmation for UN speech draft
- • Counter personal teasing from colleagues
- • His speech fulfills Leo's bold directive
- • Personal jabs distract from professional focus
Composed command yielding to sharp concern over international peril
Seated at desk post-speech review, acknowledges draft's alignment with directives, receives C.J.'s briefing on Price capture, questions advisory and reporter's motives, decisively proposes engaging Congolese attaché already en route.
- • Gauge severity of new Congo crisis
- • Mobilize immediate diplomatic action
- • Official advisories signal unacceptable dangers
- • White House must intervene in American abductions abroad
reporter on assignment in the Congo who missed two deadlines and was confirmed captured by Mai-Mai rebels
- • report a neglected story in the Congo
Objects Involved
Significant items in this scene
Leo directly references the provocative UN speech draft pages as precisely fulfilling requested bold rhetoric just before crisis pivot, serving as narrative bridge from policy triumph to hostage urgency, amplifying staff's divided attentions in late-night command hub.
Location Details
Places and their significance in this event
Invoked as treacherous assignment site where Billy Price pursued story amid rebel threats, his missed deadlines triggering embassy alerts and White House alarm, embodying remote chaos intruding on Oval power dynamics.
U.S. embassy cited as confirming source relaying Belgian crew's capture sighting to C.J., channeling Congo chaos into White House action loop despite State's inaction.
Site outside perimeter where Belgian TV crew witnessed Mai-Mai rebels seizing Price, detail sharpening crisis urgency in Leo's briefing and fueling intervention resolve.
Organizations Involved
Institutional presence and influence
Mai-Mai rebels pinpointed as captors of Billy Price per embassy and TV confirmation, their jungle abduction thrusting raw antagonist threat into Leo-C.J. discussion, demanding White House countermeasures amid layered crises.
Belgian TV crew referenced as eyewitnesses filming Price's capture outside Goma, their footage relayed via Kinshasa validating crisis and bypassing State's inertia to ignite White House urgency.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
"Toby's defense of the UN speech's aggressive rhetoric parallels his later ideological clash with Andy, both highlighting themes of power, diplomacy, and moral authority."
Themes This Exemplifies
Thematic resonance and meaning
Key Dialogue
"C.J.: "Leonard Wallace just came to see me. Billy Price is on assignment in the Congo, and he missed two deadlines. he hasn't gotten anywhere with State. The embassy in Kinshasa confirmed that a Belgian tv crew shooting outside Goma saw an American captured by MaiMai rebels.""
"LEO: "Hasn't State had a travel advisory out for, like ten years?" C.J.: "Twenty-four." LEO: "What the hell is he doing there?" C.J.: "Reporting a story no one is paying attention to.""
"LEO: "Why don't we talked to the Congolese attache?" C.J.: "He's on his way.""