I want to start by telling you that Bendini-Lamberton Lock is a small firm, 41 lawyers and all.

But I prefer to think of us as a family.

And like most families, loyalty is what we value more than just about anything.

How the letter you got from us was the only one set out.

Because you're the only one we want.

We've taken your highest offer to date and added 20% and we'll guarantee a 10% increase the second year.

It may interest you to know that most of our clients are very wealthy.

Poor people rarely have tax problems. It's one of the few advantages of being poor.

You should also know that many of our partners are millionaires by the time they're 45.

Our offer includes a bonus schedule, a low-interest mortgage for the purchase of a new home,

and the lease of a new Mercedes.

Your wife can choose the color.

We have faith that you're going to be with us for a long, long time, Mitch.

The fact is, nobody has ever left us.

Nobody. Nobody. Welcome to Episode 25 of Unclear and Present Danger, a podcast about the political and military thrillers of the 1990s and what they say about the politics of that decade.

I'm Jamel Bowie. I'm a columnist for the New York Times opinion section.

My name is John Gaines. I write a substack newsletter called on Popular Front, and I'm Jamel Bowie. I'm a columnist for the New York Times opinion section. My name is John Gaines. I write a substack newsletter called A Popular Front, and I'm working on a book about American politics in the early 1990s.

Today we are talking about the firm. A 1993 John Grisham adaptation. Fun fact, John Grisham lives in Charlottesville. I've never seen him,

but he's around here somewhere. He must be old. He's, I think he's very old.

Directed by Sidney Pollock and starring, well, um, everyone, Tom Cruise, Jeannie Triple Horn, Gene Hackman, Holly Hunter, Ed Harris, Hal Holbrook, David Straiturn, Wilfred Brimley, and Gary Busey with roles as well for Margo Martindale, character actress, Paul Sorvino, Tobin Bell, and Dean Norris, among many others.

Tobin Bell, we've seen before.

He was in the line of fire.

...