Catherine's 21st birthday party becomes a forum for Selina's budget negotiation with the majority leader, but Amy and Gary are more worried how Selina will handle seeing her ex-husband. Meanwhile, Mike discusses Selina's role in the Uzbek hostage crisis with the press.

Selina and her staff try to cope when the administration goes into full crisis mode.

Selina has a secret lunch with a major strategist she may tap as her campaign manager, even as Amy and Dan are openly vying for the job. Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Maddox invites the vice president to his country estate; Gary gets bad news about his shoulder; and Mike's colleagues find out he's mixing business with pleasure.