The Best House of Cards, Season 3, Episode 12 Quotes

- My apologies about that.
- Well, would you mind if I just came inside?
- No cameras. Just me.
- I guess so.
- We need to do a sweep of the house first, ma'am.
- No. And they stay out here.

Doug: Make me your Chief of Staff. You promised. You promised there'd be a place for me here when I was ready.
Francis: That was before you fell off the wagon and walked in here with that journal.
Doug: I've made mistakes. I've fallen down more than once, and you've always been there to pick me up. But you've been falling down for the past year, too, and you need someone to pick you up this time. It's not Remy. It's not Seth. It's me, Frank.
Francis: And how can I know I can ever trust you again?
Doug: Because I just lit two million dollars on fire.

- and I mean one single word, litigation will be the least of your worries.
- I mean, after all,
- I don't think either of us wants any controversy about the authorship of your first book.
- Do we?

- She wants to talk about the nomination.
- She wants to propose someone.
- Yes. Herself.
- Find a time.
- And find somewhere discreet.
- I don't want anyone on staff seeing her.

- You're who you need to be.
- Look at what you've achieved.
- You did it, you gave it all up, in a heartbeat.
- We're different people.
- You should go.
- Put this behind you.

- What any of it is worth.
- What are we doing this for?
- For this house.
- For the presidency.
- Now, look, if you need to take a few days off, that's fine.
- You do not have to come with me to Iowa tomorrow.
- No, of course I'll be there.

Claire: [reading from Yates' book] A cold fusion of two universal elements. Identical in weight, equal in force. United they stand. A union like none other. The un-splittable atom of American politics.
Francis: Well, he was right about some things.

- Our oppo team has looked at every article, every piece of footage going back 25 years.
- Researched acquaintances, family, the works.
- If it's out there, we would've found it.
- Wait. There is one thing.
- What?

[last lines]
Francis: I'm not the first politician that some people don't trust.
Claire: We've been lying for a long time, Francis.
Francis: Of course we have. Imagine what the voters would think if we started telling the truth.
Claire: Not to them. To each other.

Edward: Too bad about the book.
Thomas: You don't really mean that.
Edward: No, I don't.

Francis: You're finally one of us.
Heather: One of who?
Francis: [getting uncomfortable close] The men, in their smokey back rooms.

Francis: I have only one thing to say. Go fuck yourself.

Francis: [seething] She can go after me all she wants. But she goes after Claire, I'll slit her fucking throat in broad daylight!

- Come in.
- Let me take your coat.
- Can I get you anything?
- Something to drink?
- No, no, I'm good. Thanks.

- You were wonderful today.
- They just adore you.
- Good night.
- Good night.

- I have only one thing to say.
- Go fuck yourself.
- Christ, that felt good.
- Start putting together a shortlist of potential nominees for the court.
- You already...
- I'm on it, sir.

- She says she has it.
- She doesn't.
- How do I know there aren't other copies?
- Where do you keep your cigarettes?
- In the bowl up there.

- This deserves to be finished, and it deserves to be read.
- Well, I just happen to disagree with you.
- Are you afraid of what I wrote?
- Afraid? No.
- It's just no one's business.
- Well, you can't Bury it.
- I won't allow that.

- Hey, I'm a professional.
- Let me know if you want any changes made to the talking points.
- I'm sure they're good.
- You can share them with the president.
- You don't want to look them over first?
- No. I trust yourjudgement.

Doug: God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference. Keep coming back. It works if you work it.

- Hello. Hi.
- Good evening.
- So pleased to have you staying with us again, mr president.
- We always love coming here.
- It's our favourite house in all of Iowa.
- If you need anything...
- Thank you very much.
- Good night.
- Have a good evening.

- I guess it was naive to think that we could remain close.
- So this is it.
- Yeah, it is.
- Jackie?
- Jackie?

- Sir?
- Excuse me, sir?
- I forgot why I came in here.
- The orange juice?
- That'll be $2.25.
- Yeah.

Thomas: [from his book] The 3rd of September. That's a date which matters. It's the day, three decades past, that a red neck from Gaffney married a debutant from Dallas, and the Earth's axis tilted that day. Though neither they, nor we, knew it at the time. Here's a woman who described her vows as a suicide flirting with a bridge's edge. And a man who wears his wedding ring as a badge of shame, for the debutant deserved more. But truly, what more could she desire? Together they rule an empire without heirs. Legacy is their only child.

- My editor passes on a story,
- I move on to the next one.
- I'm so fucking disappointed in you right now.
- I'm the one trying to save you from your own delusions.
- That's exactly what he said.
- Maybe he's right.
- I almost felt something for you.

- and our people say you could barely hear her with all the cheering.
- How badly can she hurt us?
- They only need a point or two and he's in the margin of error.
- So we need to attack her.
- The UN stuff slid right off.
- We need something new.
- Let's talk to Jackie.

- You go straight to the plane.
- We'll say you weren't feeling well.
- Okay.
- God, Grant me the Serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.
- Keep coming back.
- It works if you work it.

- The higher the turn-out, the better.
- We're stronger with women and students.
- We got a gotv...
- Excuse me. I have to take this.
- Doug?
- I have an update regarding the journal.
- What is it?
- A message from the president.

- Too bad about the book.
- You don't really mean that.
- No, I don't.
- Mr Grayson is on the line, sir.
- What was that?
- Mr Grayson is on the line, sir.
- He says it's urgent.

- I can't.
- If I'm honest with myself, it's that I want this too much.
- I didn't realise it before I started running.
- It is not that I've changed, Robert, that ambition has clouded anything.
- It is that I was blind to this until now, what I'm meant to be.
- And I am meant to be president of the United States.

- I'm out, Jackie. No more politics.
- You know you don't mean that.
- It's who you are.
- That's what I thought, too, for a long time.
- I don't even know if I'll stay in DC.
- What are you gonna do?
- That's the best part. I have no idea.

- Claire?
- Sorry, the last event went quite long.
- I'm fading.
- Well, you get some sleep.
- We 7! Talk tomorrow.
- Okay. Good night, Francis.
- Good night.