War Game

How do you prevent a coup like the one that almost took place on 6 January 2021, when an angry mob stormed the Capitol in Washington? American political and military veterans take part in a simulation exercise to practice dealing with a situation like this. It is set in a darkened room where all adopt different roles: the US president, an army commander or a spokesperson.

They have six hours in this situation room to avert a civil war. They will have to make all the right decisions while facing opposition from a fictional team of insurgents who are using social media and other methods to whip up the population. And things get really exciting when we discover that there are lots of insurgents in the military from local army bases who want to turn against the government.

Should the president send in the army, or would that just aggravate the unrest? We follow the participants during the enacted crisis meeting, and as they speak in individual interviews about their personal motivations for taking part. The fictional president’s impassioned address towards the end holds a reminder of what a capable leader may sound like.