Cortelyou reluctantly agrees to manage Roosevelt’s 1904 reelection campaign. Though a man of deep integrity, he becomes the subject of press smears for accepting donations from big business. The accusations cut deeply, threatening to stain the career of a man who always avoided the spotlight.

Cortelyou, once a postal clerk, is now appointed Postmaster General and takes to modernize a vast, aging system. He streamlines operations, champions the use of automobiles, and mentors a struggling young clerk in need of second chances. Meanwhile, Lilly Cortelyou and Edith Roosevelt’s shared concerns over immigration policy come to a head when Edith’s visit to Ellis Island exposes the invasive questioning of women arrivals by male staff.