Posted March 26, 2013 By Presh Talwalkar. Read about me , or email me .

I’ve enjoyed watching the first season of the U.S. version of House of Cards, a Netflix original show. The show is a political drama that follows the ambitions of Congressman Francis Underwood, portrayed by Kevin Spacey.

Congressman Frank Underwood is a cunning politician and his career is based on strategy and making practical deals. He is shown many times playing chess against himself.

Below I offer one example of Frank’s strategic thinking. I should warn the example is from the fifth episode.

Please don’t read further if you wish to avoid spoilers.

(As a personal note, I made sure to watch all 13 episodes before reading anything in IMDB.com. I can avoid spoilers but not incidental spoilers. For instance, I hate it when I look up an actor and then accidentally see a list of future episodes the character appears–or doesn’t appear, if the character perishes–thereby acting as a spoiler. That was a mistake I made with 24 and I learned to avoid for other series like The Sopranos. Perhaps someone could make a “spoiler free” imdb.com account where you only get to see actor filmographies based on your current knowledge of TV shows.)

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"All will be well if you use your mind for your decisions, and mind only your decisions." Since 2007, I have devoted my life to sharing the joy of game theory and mathematics. MindYourDecisions now has over 1,000 free articles with no ads thanks to community support! Help out and get early access to posts with a pledge on Patreon. .

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How can you trust your mistress?

The scene takes place in Chapter 5 of Season 1.

The middle-aged Frank is having a romantic affair with a twenty something reporter, Zoe Barnes.

The relationship began because each party has an ulterior professional motive. Frank wants an ally in the press for furthering his agenda, and Zoe wants a political insider for the latest scoop.

To keep the tryst secret, Frank carefully covers his tracks. He provides Zoe with a weekly “burner” cell-phone so their communications are untraceable.

One night Zoe jokes the process is cumbersome and she requests more trust:

Zoe: Are you gonna give me a new one [a “burner” cell-phone] of these every week?

Frank: Well, I can’t continue to [see you]…not without protection.

Zoe: Nobody tells me when to work and when to play.

Frank: I’m not being unreasonable Zoe.

Zoe: If you can’t trust me, we shouldn’t be doing this at all.

Frank: Well then, how do we establish our trust?

Frank realizes the asymmetric damage the affair could cause. Zoe might stumble a bit in her budding career, but he, as a high-ranking Congressman, might lose his political career permanently.

Zoe currently has the upper-hand because she can blackmail/extort Frank. The game currently looks like this:

How can they even the game?

Frank suggests that Zoe needs to offer something to develop the trust.

Zoe: I have been very discreet.

Frank: Oh, professional discretion, yes. But this is new territory.

Zoe: You have a camera on your phone. takes off her top.

Zoe: Pictures. The kind I wouldn’t want my father to see.

Frank: Well I’m gonna need more than that.

Zoe: takes off her shorts

Frank: Lie down. Use your imagination.

In a game-changing move, Zoe builds trust by literally showing she has nothing to hide. She exposes herself to more risk and demonstrates she is willing to put her career on the line, too.

Frank is content with the new situation, and they continue their “professional relationship.” While each person could gain by divulging the secret of the other party, each knows the other can respond right back, like a case of mutually-assured destruction. Thus, each party is better off playing nice.

Isn’t political trust lovely?