In the previous episode, it was established that the 40th President of the United States was not Ronald Reagan. Instead it was someone named Edward Cooper, who was credited with some of Reagan's history such as winning the Cold War with Russia and surviving an assassination attempt. However this week, when Mellie examines china patterns, she specifically identifies one as "the Reagan china."
Charles Putney was previously depicted in Enemy of the State (2012) by a different actor in photos of Charles and an injured Abby are shown to Cyrus when he is collecting information on Olivia's team.