SCANDAL: THE TESTIMONY OF DIEGO MUÑOZ (TV)
Summary
One in this drama/political thriller about the Pope & Associates crisis management firm in Washington D.C.
Abby assists Senator Ross in her bid for the vice-presidency. During a press conference, Senator Ross becomes flustered and stumbles over herself, expressing a feeling of inadequacy for the vice-presidential position and letting out a bizarre-sounding laugh. Olivia is still traumatized by her kidnapping and the events surrounding it, and is unwilling to return to work. She gets into an altercation with a man attempting to repossess her neighbor Lois’s apartment and after that cautiously invites Lois’s friend Rose inside. She is worried that she has not heard from Lois in several weeks, and she is worried that something may have happened to her; she is unaware that Olivia’s kidnappers shot and murdered Lois. Olivia heads into her office and orders Huck and Quinn to find out where the kidnappers hid Lois’s body. Meanwhile, David entertains various crackpot clients with bizarre conspiracy theories, a task which he dislikes. However, one such client comes to him with an unusual amount of knowledge about B613, and he asks to see her. The woman turns out to be Kim, who says she is the wife of a “Diego Muñoz.” She presents him with his own B613 files, which she claims were given to her by her husband, and David feigns ignorance of B613.
Cyrus and Abby attempt to salvage Senator Ross’s disastrous press conference and her now often-mocked laugh. They get Leo’s assistance and Senator Ross turns the laugh into a sounding point and a means of redeeming herself in the public eye. He and Abby get her to take steps to appeal to the “core” of the Republican Party and seem more “relatable.” Abby and Leo get into an argument about their approach to coaching Senator Ross. David approaches Huck and Jake about Kim’s visit, terrified by its implications. Jake vows to track down Diego Muñoz, but Huck reveals that it is his real name and he was the one who gave Kim the files, although he does not explain why. Jake and David are stunned, but Huck claims that he will resolve the matter himself. He gets them to leave as Quinn arrives to announce that she has determined the location of the ambulance the kidnappers used to transport Lois’s body.
Leo continues to drill Senator Ross mercilessly, and she eventually becomes so frustrated that she decides to drop out of her bid for vice-president, calling the job more “play-acting” than actual governance. Quinn and Huck find the ambulance but discover no trace of Lois. Huck abruptly leaves to speak with Kim, upbraiding her for revealing the information he gave her about B613. She believes that giving David the files will be ultimately beneficial and will bring down B613 once and for all, but Huck begs to differ and fears that she has put herself in jeopardy. She recommends that Huck testify against B613 in exchange for full immunity and says that she will proceed no matter what he does. Huck reports back to David and Jake, and Jake asks him to use his testimony to rebuke the evidence, pretending to be a soldier with post-traumatic stress disorder who concocted the entire story as the result of his symptoms. Huck realizes that doing so will forever alienate him from Kim, but David believes it may be the only way to save their lives. Abby yells at Leo for getting “out of line” with Senator Ross, although he claims that he was trying to be tough on her in order to help her and believes she is not cut out to be vice-president due to the intense pressures of international politics. Abby begs to differ and fires him, and in response he walks out on her, resentful of Abby’s apparent lack of confidence in him.
Rose tries to help out Olivia by presenting her with paperwork concerning Lois’s hip replacement surgery, hoping that the serial number on her artificial hip could be of use. She admits that she knows Lois is likely dead but that she still feels a need to find out what exactly happened to her. Olivia deduces that Rose and Lois were actually in a lifelong romantic relationship with each other. Lois explains that they became involved as teenagers and that Lois’s parents did not approve, moving her to another state. Both of them found it difficult to openly express their relationship, particularly after Lois got married. They reunited many years later but never moved in together. Olivia feels touched by her story and vows to redouble her efforts to find Lois’s body. Abby requests Olivia’s help in convincing Senator Ross to return, although Olivia insists that she no longer works for the White House. Abby expresses concern for Olivia, noting her paranoid and reclusive behavior in the wake of her return. She manages to convince Olivia to change her mind and meet with Senator Ross, and Olivia inspires Senator Ross to try again and confront the Senate committee. Despite their efforts, the news media reports that it is unlikely that Senator Ross will accrue enough votes to be confirmed. Olivia believes that the Senate’s dislike for President Grant is to blame for this.
Olivia, Cyrus, and Abby inform President Grant of the situation with the Senate and recommend that he ask for their forgiveness, “begging” if necessary. He refuses, but Olivia believes that the Senate is angry at him for his handling of the war in West Angola. Quinn calls Olivia to inform her that she and Huck have located Lois’s body near a state park in Maryland. Huck has dinner with Kim and their son, and he tells her that he has agreed to testify. The next day, Huck tells Quinn to instruct Charlie to destroy any of his remaining files on B613. Quinn finally asks him about what he’s been up to and he explains the situation to her. He assures her that he will choose not to implicate any of them, thus following Jake’s orders. During the deposition, Huck at claims not to have any memory of B613, but changes his mind and gives testimony supporting the files. He tearfully describes his experiences in the solitary confinement facility utilized by B613, and David is both moved and concerned by this turn of events.
President Grant takes Olivia’s advice and confronts the Senate, resulting in them approving Senator Ross’s confirmation. Leo comes back to Abby and successfully makes up with her. Senator Ross is sworn in as Vice-President of the United States. At Lois’s memorial service, Olivia lies to Rose, claiming that Lois died from an aneurysm. Rose grieves over Lois’s body, and Olivia feels intense guilt in her indirect role in Lois’s death. Jake learns about Huck’s testimony and orders David not to go forward with the case. David refuses, believing that putting himself, Olivia, and the others in jeopardy is worth the chance to bring down B613. Includes commercials.
Details
- NETWORK: ABC
- DATE: November 30, 1999 9:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 1:00:00
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: 123270
- GENRE: Drama, mystery/suspense
- SUBJECT HEADING: African-American Collection - Drama; LGBT Collection - Drama; Drama, mystery/suspense; Politics
- SERIES RUN: ABC - TV series, 2012-2018
- COMMERCIALS:
- TV – Commercials – Aveeno skin cream
- TV – Commercials – Babybel cheese
- TV – Commercials – Bare Minerals skin lotion
- TV – Commercials – Chanel perfume
- TV – Commercials – Chase credit cards
- TV – Commercials – Cricket phone service
- TV – Commercials – Dodge automobiles
- TV – Commercials – Farmers insurance
- TV – Commercials – Hotels.com booking website
- TV – Commercials – Humira rheumatoid arthritis medicine
- TV – Commercials – Kohl’s department stores
- TV – Commercials – Lactaid lactose-free milk
- TV – Commercials – Listerine mouthwash
- TV – Commercials – Mazda automobiles
- TV – Commercials – Mercedes-Benz automobiles
- TV – Commercials – Metro PCS phone service
- TV – Commercials – Nikon cameras
- TV – Commercials – PetSmart pet supply stores
- TV – Commercials – Puffs facial tissues
- TV – Commercials – Snuggle fabric softener
- TV – Commercials – Subaru automobiles
- TV – Commercials – Swanson broth
- TV – Commercials – TJ Maxx clothing stores
- TV – Commercials – Tide laundry detergent
- TV – Commercials – Tropicana orange juice
- TV – Commercials – Unstopables air freshener
- TV – Commercials – Yoplait yogurt
- TV – Commercials – Ziploc plastic bags
- TV – Commercials – Zyrtec allergy medicine
- TV – Commercials – “Cinderella” motion picture
- TV – Promos – “American Crime”
- TV – Promos – “Castle”
- TV – Promos – “Dancing With the Stars”
- TV – Promos – “Jimmy Kimmel Live”
- TV – Promos – “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.”
- TV – Promos – “Once Upon a Time”
- TV – Promos – “Scandal”
- TV – Promos – “Secrets and Lies”
CREDITS
- Mark Wilding … Executive Producer
- Betsy Beers … Executive Producer
- Shonda Rhimes … Executive Producer, Created by
- Tom Verica … Co-Executive Producer
- Heather Mitchell … Co-Executive Producer
- Merri D. Howard … Co-Executive Producer
- Allan Heinberg … Co-Executive Producer
- Judy Smith … Co-Executive Producer
- Mark Fish … Co-Executive Producer, Writer
- Matt Byrne … Producer
- Scott Collins … Producer
- Zahir McGhee … Co-Producer
- Noah Esvlin … Co-Producer
- Brad Yacobian … Co-Producer
- Holden Chang … Associate Producer
- Jenna Bans … Consulting Producer
- Allison Liddi-Brown … Director
- Chad Fischer … Music by
- Kerry Washington … Cast, Olivia Pope
- Scott Foley … Cast, Jake Ballard
- Darby Stanchfield … Cast, Abby Whelan
- Katie Lowes … Cast, Quinn Perkins
- Guillermo Diaz … Cast, Huck
- Jeff Perry … Cast, Cyrus Beene
- Joshua Malina … Cast, David Rosen
- Bellamy Young … Cast, Mellie Grant
- Tony Goldwyn … Cast, President Fitzgerald Grant III
- Portia de Rossi … Cast, Elizabeth North
- Paul Adelstein … Cast, Leo Bergen
- Jasika Nicole … Cast, Kim
- Artemis Pebdani … Cast, Susan Ross
- Jimmy Kimmel … Cast, Himself
- Marla Gibbs … Cast, Rose
- Amrapali Ambegaokar … Cast, Reporter Jessica
- Kevin Ashworth … Cast, Talking Head
- Diahnna Nicole Baxter … Cast, News Anchor
- Jaden Betts … Cast, Javi
- Stefanie Black … Cast, Holly
- Jesse D. Goins … Cast, Supreme Court Justice
- Eben Ham … Cast, Tanner Shaw
- Caitlyn Leone … Cast, Casey Ross
- Mickey Maxwell … Cast, Super
- Joe McGovern … Cast, BNC News Pundit
- Paul Norwood … Cast, Senator Latham
- Erica Shaffer … Cast, Alicia Thomas
- Cassius Willis … Cast, Senator Bushnell
- Chris Wolfe … Cast, News Pundit