worst fears
We're now dealing with
a hard-line Soviet government
perhaps with Kruschev
as a puppet head, perhaps not
You okay?
Yeah
I'm fine
Mr. President
What now?
A U-2 on a routine
air- sampling mission got lost
and penetrated
Soviet airspace over Siberia
Oh, goddammit
The Soviets scrambled MIG's in pursuit
thinking it was a bomber
It got out okay
Somebody forgot to cancel the mission
There's always some sonofabitch
who doesn't get the word!
This is just what we need
the Soviets thinking
we're bombing them
Anybody else?
Mr. President
our pilots are in danger
We must order punitive air strikes
against the SAM site
that shot down Major Anderson
per our rules of engagement
No
I want confirmation
it wasn't some sort of accident first
Mr. President
Good idea, Mr. President
I can wait a day and half
Be safer for my boys
to get the SAM's on Monday
when we get the rest of the bastards
That's the quarter!
Hey, Dad
Hey, Sport
You winning?
Yeah
Is everything gonna be okay, Dad?
Everything's gonna be fine, Kenny
I guess
you won't be coming home tonight?
I...
Let's got! Second quarter!
It's okay. Go on back to your game
Alright. I'll see you around, Dad
Dammit!
Jesus, Mary and Joseph...
Take off for two hours
you're gonna miss a little drama
I told you how stupid it was
to float that Lippman article
Now you're gonna do it for real?
The Jupiters are obsolete, Kenny
They were supposed to
have been dismantled last summer
I know they're obsolete
That's not the point!
The point is you trade our missiles
in Turkey for theirs in Cuba
they're gonna force us into
trade after trade, until finally
a couple of months from now
they demand something we won't trade
like Berlin
And we do end up in a war
Not to mention that
long before that happens
this administration
will be politically dead
I don't care if this administration
ends up in the freaking toilet
We don't do a deal tonight
there won't be any administration
It's the wrong move, Bobby
and it's not just me who thinks that
Everyone on this so-called EXCOM's
telling you the same thing
Whose side are you on now, Ken?
Oh, goddammit
What if there
hasn't been a coup at all?
What if it's you two?
What is that supposed to mean?
What if it was you two
who invited that second letter by
raising the possibility of a trade?
Mr. President
we have only 30 hours left
and whatever response we send
it'll take several hours
to reach our embassy
and be delievered to the Kremlin
So early tomorrow morning
is the earliest
Kruschev could respond
Which one of you geniuses
is gonna tell me how to
explain it to the world
if we don't make this trade?
So what are we gonna say
to the Soviets
about this offer?
Well, it depends, doesn't it?
Do we really believe
there's been a coup?
What if Fomin wasn't a ploy?
What if his message was real?
What if what is happening
is a series of accidents?
Accidents like them
shooting down our U-2?
Yes. Accidents like that
And the accidents are making the
second letter seem more aggressive
and the whole situation
appear worse than it really is
"The Gun of August"
That's right
So we just reject the second letter?
No
We don't...
reject it
We accept the first letter
and pretend
the second one doesn't exist
It won't work
because that's wishful thinking
Look, he made an offer. So I...
The same wishful thinking, Bobby
that blinded us all these months
while the Soviets were sneaking
those missiles in under our noses
Ignore the second letter
agree to the conditions of the first
There is no reason to believe
the Soviets will let it go
Max is right. Why will they accept it?
It can work
If they believe
we're gonna hit 'em hard
We've got time for one more round
of diplomacy, and that's it
First airstrikes start in 28 hours
But we have to make them agree to it
So how do we do that?
We give them something
We tell them
we'll remove the missiles from Turkey