Scandal Season 4 Ep 2: State of the Unions. AKA: Booty Calls!

Jake has booked a hotel suite for Booty Calls! He’s not her beck and call boy. Liv protests and says she doesn’t do booty calls, and Jake tells her she already does take booty calls – political ones. Cyrus is sitting on a bench, waiting for Liv. 

Cyrus needs a favor, and tries to blackmail Liv to get her to do it. The President’s guests of honor, the Elliott’s, are not playing along with the game, and Liv needs to bitch slap them into shape. The blackmail is that he’s deposited a large sum of funds into her account and will drop a dime to the IRS. She counters saying she’s not afraid of the IRS. Then, he lays the smack down, ultimate threat. 

“I’ll tell him you call. I’ll tell him you call everyday. Pining for him”

Bastard. But that got her to do it. She’s in Arizona to meet with the dueling duo – a veteran who was in a POW camp, and his wife, and a victim of a gunshot to the spine. They hate each other, 

“Boo-hoo I was tortured by the Taliban”

I was tortured by the Taliban and it was better than this. The Taliban was better than you!”

Ouch. 

They are the face of gun control and Liv gives them her suck it up and be an American speech to get them to stand next to Grant at the State of the Union address. 

Speaking of that address, they want Mellie to go as well. See, she’s been photographed in her bathrobe, eating chips, leaning against her son’s headstone. The deadlines read Mental Mellie, and guess that she’s gone off the rails so of course, an appearance at the SOTU address would show the country that she’s not completely CooKoo for Coco-Puffs.  While she’s laughing and eating fried chicken (with some of it in her hair), Fitz comes in and asks her to go to help her image. She does the maniacal laugh and says “I don’t care what people think of me” 

“Honey Baby. Do you actually thin k I give a damn what anyone thinks of me anymore. And for you to pretend that it’s about me when let’s face it Baby, it’s all about you! It’s the Fitzgerald Grant show.” 

Cyrus joins her chicken eatin’ and they compare who’s grief is greater: hers losing a son, or his losing a husband. 

Abby tries to answer questions in the press room, and Cyrus feeds her a line from Olivia. Later, Olivia uses that same line in a television interview and Abby loses her shit. Abby tells Cyrus later that they don’t have the couple that are the face of gun control, Liv has said they aren’t coming. No photo op. Cyrus is not concerned about them, but the fact that the President isn’t going to have his second term go well, his wife is creating a nightmare, but he doesn’t doubt Olivia. Cyrus is never concerned that Olivia will fail. 

Abby goes to Mellie, and does an Olivia-like-fast-talking-speech about how people die, children die every day but unlike her, they don’t have the luxury of sitting around eatin’ chips and chickin in their robe for months. Then says if “Jackie Kennedy can be in a car with her husband’s brains scattered across her lap one minute and standing next to LBC 90 minutes later” she can clean up her shit, stand up next to her man, and put on a brave face for the American public. Mellie takes heed, puts on her best red dress, and goes to her box to stand and clap at the appropriate moments in her hubby’s speech.

 Olivia gets the Elliot couple to the speech on time, and Fitz gets handed his speech. He asks for him and Olivia to have the room alone – he wants to know what she thinks. She says no, but he says she owes him at least that much. She tells him no one wants to hear about gun control, if they’re wondering about the state of him and his wife. Fitz goes off prompter and talks to the public about his loss; his family’s loss, and what it all means. Later, Mellie is seen walking into her bedroom, kicking off her shoes, then ripping off her strand of pearls and dropping to the ground sobbing in grief. Wonder if this is the first time she’s done that? 

Fitz drops and cradles her telling her he’s sorry – it’s quite touching. 

Jake confronts David about what happened with Harrison and his double crossing woman. He’s looking into it, despite David saying it was a clean investigation. When David says he can’t be affiliated with a known assassin, Jake gives him the bad-ass stare down, and Davey caves and will get him what he needs. David shows up at Abby’s office later, and she does the mock interview thing for his appointment to the Attorney General position. He then gets grilled by the senate judiciary committee. When it seems like he’s going down, Lizzy meets with Cyrus in his office and urges him to have David back out. David hands a senator a packet of dirt on him, and suddenly, David Rosen is endorsed! 

Quinn and Huck and their matching plaid shirts have to work together to babysit the dueling couple. Quinn gets wifey and Huck gets the Vet. Wifey reminisces about the good old hubster, Mr. Perfect, the two of them in love, before she got shot and confined to a wheelchair. He tries to get Huck to talk and of course, that doesn’t go well so he just has a drink. Aww. Just like Huck and Quinn - a dueling duo.  They’re still fighting when Olivia comes in and just tells them to get a divorce, or live a miserable life in hell with each other.

Later, Liv is at her place – she’s calling Jake who asks “Is this a booty call? I’m not going to sleep in your bed like some kept man.” She says, you need to come back. He counters: “are you summoning me? You can’t summon me. I am however available for booty calls in room 207.” She says she doesn’t like it, he says “well then don’t” and  hangs up on her. Once again. Jake. Alpha. Boom. 

Jake is investigating the Harrison death and finds video footage of none other than Quinn’s old friend, Charlie. Olivia comes over in her trademark trench wearing nada underneath and commands Jake over. He does not protest this time. 

Cyrus is seen going back to the bar to pick up some dude, that we discover is an escort. Paid for by Lizzy. That girl is up to something no good!