Magnificent Intentions - Pilot - "Officially Irrelevant"

Kadrick approaches the house of his estranged old friend, Eric Sidon. Upon answering the door, Sidon immediately kicks Kadrick in the privates. The two men converse, and Kadrick offers Sidon a job. Sidon rejects Kadrick's offer but acknowledges that he will likely accept eventually.

One year earlier, news reports establish that there has been a massive economic collapse, and that Kadrick, the White House Deputy Chief of Staff, has been blamed. The Chief of Staff, Robert Park, calls Kadrick into his office and tells him he is being fired, advising him to take a job as a visiting fellow at Georgetown University.

After leaving the White House, Kadrick goes to a college bar and meets Ben Parone and Zack Larson, two Georgetown students. After speaking with them briefly, he replies to Georgetown's offer, accepting a position as a visiting fellow.

At a barbecue for Political Science students and staff at Georgetown, Kadrick meets Nasim Ahmadi, a liberal economist. The two establish a friendly conversation. Zack wins a raffle for a free lunch with Kadrick.

At the White House, Robert Park speaks with President Garder, explaining that he needs help if he wants to win reelection. Park suggests that they enlist Kadrick's help, though he does not reveal how that would work.

At Zack's lunch with Kadrick, Zack asks Kadrick to be the faculty adviser for a student organization called "Stop the Debt." Kadrick is initially reluctant until Zack explains the political advantages it might present for him.

Kadrick walks in on Ben's Media Theory class and actively contradicts the professor, who is confused and scared by Kadrick. Ben, however, holds his own against Kadrick. As Kadrick walks out of the room, Ahmadi lightly admonishes him for behaving arrogantly. The two go for coffee, where Kadrick asks Ahmadi why she never ran for political office. Ahmadi explains her reluctance as a fear of how women and minorities are treated in politics.

Sidon is called into his boss's office at the Department of Justice, where he is told that he is being fired as a result of the same spending cuts that caused the economic collapse. He storms out and returns home to his wife, Linda.

Zack hosts the first meeting of the year for Stop the Debt. Kadrick walks in and delivers a rousing speech that brings the crowd of students to its feet. As he leaves the auditorium, he pretends to shoot himself with his fingers.

Zack walks into the room he shares with Ben. Ben, a stand up comedian, asks for Zack's advice on a religious-themed joke. Zack talks about the meeting, stating that Kadrick was amazing.

Kadrick sits in an office with Theresa Schwartz, the head of the Political Science department. He tells her that he wants to teach a class. She tells him to create a syllabus and textbook list, which he does on the spot. She approves the class.

Kadrick and Ahmadi have coffee again. He reveals that he was once an actor and that his dream was to become a political satirist.

At an open mic night, Ben performs to poor reactions from everyone in the crowd except Zack. The two leave and get dinner, where they decide that they will both take Kadrick's class.

In January, Kadrick teaches the class, answering the central question of the class on day one. Linda enters the room as the students leave. She invites Kadrick to dinner for that Friday night.

Later, Kadrick sits at home when Park calls him. They agree to meet the next day somewhere out of the public eye.

The next day in class, Kadrick makes the class take a quiz on four basic political knowledge questions. Only Ben can answer all four questions correctly. Kadrick gets into a debate with Ben in which Ben discovers that his own argument is flawed.

Kadrick meets with Park, who offers him the chance to run the campaign's Political Action Committee. The only catch is that Kadrick must coordinate with the White House, violating election law. Park explains that Kadrick would act secretly through the official head of the PAC, who would have to be someone that Kadrick trusts.

Kadrick goes up to Sidon's door, bringing the episode back to the teaser. Sidon moves to kick Kadrick in the privates as the screen cuts to black.