The Harrington Commode

**"The Harrington Commode"** is the second episode of the first season of *The Politician*, and the second episode of the series overall.

## Summary

Amid escalating concerns about his vice presidential pick, Payton gets plunged into a family crisis that stokes long-seething resentments.

## Plot

**SPOILERS AHEAD**

The question on Payton’s mind this episode: Does Infinity really have cancer? The two host a fundraiser, and during it, she overexerts herself, ending up in the emergency room. But when Dusty discovers her granddaughter’s whereabouts, she swoops in and removes her from the situation.

Outside the hospital, Andrew explains how he knows Infinity isn’t sick. He encourages Payton to investigate more. Payton does this by having dinner at the Jackson residence and snooping around, but Dusty flies into a fit of rage when she learns what he is investigating and he leaves in a hurry. We also discover that Infinity has a boyfriend, but not much else about him.

Meanwhile, back at Payton’s house, Georgina comes to her husband, Keaton Hobart, and confesses that she is in love with another woman and wants a divorce. Keaton springs into action and jumps out the window (off of the titular Harrington Commode, a family heirloom), but survives, ending up in a medically-induced coma.

Twins Luther and Martin recognize that if their father dies, they can invoke a clause in their parents’ prenuptial agreement, leaving Georgina and, consequently, Payton, with nothing. Georgina pleads with them for Payton’s sake, but to no avail.

Payton hatches a plan. He spends time by his father’s side, and is there when he wakes up. He then tells his brothers that their father is getting better, and when he does, he will hear about their bad intentions. Luther and Martin go to kill Keaton, but, because he is actually awake, he overhears them, and writes them out of the will.

However, he does this with a caveat. Keaton tells Georgina that he wants to help out Payton, but he knows how much he means to her. So he only agrees to do so if she breaks up with her lover, for good. She dutifully makes this sacrifice for her son, who is there to comfort her after.

By now, Payton is very suspicious, especially given his discovery that the nurse who takes care of Infinity goes on trips with the Jacksons. McAfee comes up with a plan: They’ll host an all-inclusive blood drive and get Infinity’s blood tested, so they’ll know once and for all. They shut James out of the plan, because he is of the mind that if they know the truth, they will all be implicated.

But Payton is determined. The results come back, and he and his two advisors sit down with the results. It is as they suspected: Infinity does not have cancer. McAfee suspects Munchausen syndrome by proxy, in which the caretaker (Dusty), makes the subject sicker. James, who has been acting a bit suspiciously, asks Payton the big question: What happens now?

## Cast

### Main

* Ben Platt as Payton Hobart
* Zoey Deutch as Infinity Jackson
* Lucy Boynton as Astrid Sloan
* Bob Balaban as Keaton Hobart
* David Corenswet as River Barkley
* Julia Schlaepfer as Alice Charles
* Laura Dreyfuss as McAfee Westbrook
* Theo Germaine as James Sullivan
* Rahne Jones as Skye Leighton
* Benjamin Barrett as Ricardo
* Jessica Lange as Dusty Jackson
* Gwyneth Paltrow as Georgina Hobart

### Guest

* Martina Navratilova as Brigitte
* Ryan J. Haddad as Andrew Cashman
* Trevor Eason as Martin Hobart
* Trey Eason as Luther Hobart
* Koby Kumi-Diaka as Pierre Toussaint

### Minor

* Alveraz Ricardez as Officer Kellen
* Tracy S. Lee as Vicki
* Karen Brundage as Olive Garden Woman
* Courtney Taylor Burness as Hostess (Karen)
* Adam Wang as Mr. Anselm
* Jordan Wall as Ivy
* Andrew Patrick Ralston as Dean Lawrence
* Nathan Howard as Damien
* Richard Wharton as Thomas
* Doreen Calderon as Librarian