The Indians In The Lobby - TWW S3E8

Original airdate: November 21, 2001

Teleplay by: Allison Abner (4) & Kevin Falls (4) and Aaron Sorkin (51)
Story by: Allison Abner (4)

Directed by: Paris Barclay (2)

Synopsis

• It's Thanksgiving eve, and two Native Americans have staked out positions in the White House lobby and refuse to leave until their questions are answered. Josh tries to unravel a sticky situation as Italy denies extradition for a Georgia teen accused of murder. Sam debates an OMB official over changes to the poverty index. The President is peeved with Abbey over her plans to celebrate Thanksgiving at Camp David instead of New Hampshire. And we meet Joe Bethersonton from Fargo, who has some questions for the Butterball hotline.

"How do you keep fighting these smaller injustices when they're all from the mother of injustices?"

If this episode were made today, there's little doubt it would be titled The Native Americans In The Lobby. But we're dealing with 2001 attitudes and awarenesses, so it's not. It also may seem a bit pat to have the topic of the plight of Native Americans and their mistreatment over the centuries playing out on a Thanksgiving episode - or perhaps it's exactly on point.

It's the day before Thanksgiving, and everybody is making holiday plans - the President is miffed over the First Lady's decision to go to Camp David instead of New Hampshire, Josh is trying to get a last-minute flight to see his mom in Florida without changing planes in Atlanta, and CJ is thrilled that she's ahead of schedule:

CJ: "I set up the ed board meeting with the Post on budget gains, I did an early briefing on the wheat gluten import quota proclamation, we pardoned the turkey, I went to my dentist, I'm done."

Josh: "So, there's these two Indians in the lobby ..."

(Side notes: CJ's mentions of pardoning the turkey and going to the dentist are direct references to previous episodes. Also - I went to two different sites that have West Wing episode transcripts. Both of them had this exchange transcribed the same, and both of them were hilariously wrong. "I board"? "week loot and import quarter proclamation"? Guys, it's not that hard.)

Anyway, the Native Americans in the lobby end up as CJ's problem, since their insistence on staying or else causing a news story by being dragged out in front of several reporters means it's a public relations/press problem. The two - Maggie Morningstar-Charles and Jack Lone Feather - represent the Stockbridge-Munsee community of Native Americans. They fill CJ in on their story: their ancestors were forcibly moved from New York to Wisconsin in the mid-1850s, then much of their land in Wisconsin was taken away by the Dawes Act in 1887. They had an appointment with an administration official over some projects they've been working on for the past 15 years to put their reacquired land in trust ... but the official they were to meet with blew them off for another meeting. Hence - their decision to stand firm in the White House until someone listens to them, or until they get thrown out by security and create a PR headache.

CJ, of course, is sympathetic to their story, even though she realizes she has practically zero power to do anything for them.

CJ: "Well, before we go any further, I should tell you there's absolutely nothing I can do for you."

Maggie: "Imagine our shock."

CJ: "Yes."

Maggie: "In two generations, we'll be wiped out."

Over the course of the episode, as CJ goes back and forth trying to find someone who can do something (with Carol telling her, "It's Thanksgiving. Nobody's here."), she ends up by summing up pretty much the plight of all Native American history with the United States government:

CJ: "How many treaties have we signed with the Munsee Indians?"

Maggie: "Six."

CJ: "How many have we revoked?"

Maggie: "Six."

CJ: "What were the Munsees doing in 1778?"

Maggie: "Fighting in George Washington's army."

CJ: "And why aren't you in New York any more?"

Maggie: "Because he marched us to Wisconsin."

CJ: "And whose land was it in the first place?"

Maggie: "Ours."

This storyline does let us watch CJ go from slight irritation at this interruption to her holiday, followed by her sincere interest in the Native Americans' story, to her frantic attempts to find some administration official who can do something, to finally, doing the only thing she can do - setting up an appointment for them the following Monday, with the White House covering their expenses to stay over the Thanksgiving weekend. It's not much, considering the weight of American history, but it's all she has, and Maggie and Jack gratefully accept. It also puts us, the viewer, into CJ's shoes, and makes us consider the government's treatment of Native Americans over the centuries.

Josh has his own issues. While he's trying to get a last-minute flight to Florida (because he'd forgotten his mother had sold her home in Connecticut ten months ago), Leo brings him the task of trying to work out an international situation. A Georgia teenager accused of shooting his teacher has fled to Italy, but the Italians refuse to extradite him back to a country that still has the death penalty for minors. Josh isn't thrilled about the administration getting involved in what should be a local matter, but Leo later explains the extra dimension this case holds with a Catholic President:

Josh: "What am I missing? Why does the White House care so much about an issue involving a local DA which, at best, should be handled by Justice and State and the Embassy?"

Leo: "Because."

Josh: "Because what?"

Leo: "I don't want this President to get a call from the Bishop of Rome."

Josh: "Why do we care about the Bishop of Rome?"

Leo: "Because that's not the only name he goes by."

Josh: "What's another name?"

Leo: "Your Holiness."

Josh: "The Bishop of Rome is the Pope?"

So it has to be handled, somehow. The government can't be seen to let an accused murderer get away scott-free, but they also can't have the optics of the Pope weighing in on the death penalty with a Catholic President.

Josh, ever the political tactician, hits on a plan. The Georgia DA, Democrat Mark Farragut, lost a close election for a seat in the US House, and plans to run again. Josh can offer him contacts with donors who can help him fund another run next year, but only if Farragut reconsiders pursuing the death penalty in this case. Okay - but how can he get this offer to him?

Well, naturally, by setting up a change of planes in the Atlanta on his way to Florida, where they know Farragut will also be getting on a flight, so Josh can cross paths with him and make his case. Yeah, right ... I'm sure in reality there'd be absolutely no problem with someone finding another person - who's not expecting you in any way - in the terminal at Hartsfield Airport on the night before Thanksgiving. Easy peasy!

Since it's TV, of course Josh does run into Farragut at an airport bar, makes his case, gives him the donor contacts and gets a handshake agreement to settle the issue. Like I said, no sweat, finding one particular person somewhere in the middle of one of the busiest airport terminals in the world on the busiest travel day of the year.

The beginning of Josh's tale, as he banters with Donna over not changing planes in Atlanta and forgetting where his mother lives, offers us a nice window into how their character's relationship is doing. Josh and Donna have gone through some rough times recently, with Donna dating the counsel for the House Oversight Committee, then lying to that committee about having a diary - she's created some real problems for Josh and he hasn't been thrilled about it. Here, though, it looks like perhaps they're back in good graces:

Donna: "I'm telling your mother you forgot where she lives."

Josh: "You're the girl I made fun of in elementary school, you know that?"

Donna: "Yes, I do."

 

Sam's storyline is similar to what we've seen from him over the past few episodes - he has a task to work on that's completely separate from the rest of the staff, and any connections to the other cast members are kind of forced in. It's almost like Aaron Sorkin is having trouble incorporating Sam Seaborn into this series, which is strange when you consider the genesis of the series was supposed to center on Seaborn/Rob Lowe. In this case, the Office of Management and Budget wants to revise the method of determining the poverty level, in a manner that would raise the amount of income considered to be "poverty" and therefore create four million more Americans classified as "poor."

Sam: "The good news is more people will be eligible for benefits."

Toby: "And taxpayers are nuts about that. Let's get back to the bad news. Four million people became poor on the President's watch?"

Sam: "They didn't become poor. They were poor already. And now we're calling them poor."

Sam has a discussion with an expert from the OMB, who actually has a very strong argument for revising the formula:

Bernice: "In 1963, an eastern European immigrant named Mollie Orshansky, who was working over in Social Security, came up with it. Food was the most costly living expense where she came from."

Sam: "Our cost of living formula for the last 40 years has been based on life in Poland during the Cold War?"

The storyline is left unresolved, although we get the impression the administration is going to slow-walk the new formula by adding more variables and requirements, which would actually make the poverty level determination much more accurate on a more granular basis, rather than a one-size-fits-all equation nationwide.

Then there's the topic of where the First Family will spend Thanksgiving. The President holds his staffers hostage (first CJ, then Charlie, followed by Toby) with his description of how he prepares his turkey and stuffing, all as he's griping about being overruled on spending the holiday in New Hampshire:

President: "But there I go, Thanksgiving at Camp David."

CJ: "Yeah."

President: "It's not a place you go at Thanksgiving, not when you have a farm."

CJ: "Isn't Camp David a farm?"

President: "No."

CJ: "Oh."

President: "What makes you think it's a farm?"

CJ: "I don't know, it's outside ..."

President: "Farms have things you can grow, and animals."

CJ: "Right."

President: "I want you to learn more about farms."

CJ: "There's more?"  

The President is actually quite upset ... and when he discovers there was polling done to determine the most politically favorable spot to spend Thanksgiving, he's almost irate. He chews out Bruno, who was behind the poll in the first place, but Bruno is not taken aback:

President: "What the hell are you doing polling where I should spend Thanksgiving?"

Bruno: "Well, New England doesn't get us anything that we don't already have, and there was a sense it could be seen as political, with New Hampshire the first primary state."

-----

President: "My family is off limits."

Bruno: "Sir - your candor about a terrible illness was off limits. Your regimen of self-medication was off limits. Due respect, you've used up your off limits."

President: "I'll decide when I've used them up."

In the midst of this kerfluffle, Charlie lets the President in on the fact that the Butterball company has a hotline during the holiday season to answer questions about food preparation:

President: "This time of the year there should be a hotline you can call with questions about cooking turkey. A special 800 number where the phones are staffed by experts."

Charlie: "There is."

President: "What do you mean?"

Charlie: "The Butterball hotline."

President: "Butterball has a hotline?"

Charlie: "Yeah. It's an 800 number, the phones are staffed by experts."

President: "Are you kidding me?"

Charlie: "No."

President: "God, I'm sorry, I love my country." 

So of course, Jed ends up calling the hotline, in what's one of the classic moments from The West Wing. When the operator (an uncredited Ana Gasteyer) asks for his name, the President first proudly proclaims he's a citizen, then stumblingly gives up the name Joe Bethersonton, from Fargo.

When this leads to her asking for an address, Toby leaps into action (in a shot framed as if it's come from a hardboiled action movie) to get the zip code for Fargo, stat!

The President gives out a phony Fargo address (with a phony zip code, to boot), is warned about cooking his stuffing inside of the turkey, then heads upstairs to confront Abbey about her collusion with Bruno and his poll:

Jed: "J'accuse!"

Abbey: "Oh, brother."

Jed: "J'accuse, mon petit fromage!"

Abbey: "You speak four languages. How come none of them is French?"

Jed: "Nothing's wrong with my French."

Abbey: "You just called me your little cheese."

Of course Jed and Abbey have been dealing with some issues around their relationship all the way back to Bartlet's Third State Of The Union, when Abbey figured out Jed was planning to run for reelection and go back on his promise to her to only serve one term. Things got better by Manchester Part II, but now Abbey realizes her professional future might have to suffer from the congressional investigation into her husband, so things are a little on-edge:

Abbey: "They came to me. They said, What do you think about having Thanksgiving at Camp David instead of New Hampshire? They told me why, I said fine."

Jed: "And what part are you leaving out now?"

Abbey: "The part where I lied to you."

Jed: "Yes!"

Abbey: "Yes. I do that sometimes. Sometimes I don't want to go fifteen rounds on Bess Truman and what constitutes a farm. On your behalf, I have responded to polling information telling me what I should wear, and what I should say, to say nothing of the fact that I have been subpoenaed to answer questions before Congress on how I secretly kept you alive. So explain to me how what I did was out of line."

Abbey's point is clear - even though it was Jed who went back on his promise, she is willing to stand with him in the reelection campaign, to make her wants and desires subservient to the polling and the requirements of the campaign. It's a big sacrifice for her, as well as a huge "give" in the give-and-take of marriage ... and Jed knows it.

So the Bartlet Thanksgiving will be at Camp David, Josh is frantically changing planes (and making deals) in Atlanta on his way to see his mother, the Native Americans from Wisconsin get their expenses paid while they wait on a Monday appointment, and Toby has plans with nieces and nephews, as he's packing up what looks like a pie and some wine on his way out of the office.

It's another nice holiday-related episode of The West Wing.




Tales Of Interest!

- As I mentioned, we're starting to see Sorkin's struggles with what to do with Sam, story-wise. Rob Lowe was hired as the "star" of the series to begin with - you'll note he always appears first in the opening credits - and his storyline with Laurie was a key part of Season 1. When Sorkin is able to work Sam in with Toby (writing for the President) or Josh, he shines as a full part of the staff. But for whatever reasons, it's appearing tougher to get the character included. This episode had Sam on his own debating poverty definitions with the representative from the OMB; in Gone Quiet he was pulled away from the rest of the staff to spar with Bruno and Connie over soft money advertising; in War Crimes it was a solo plot line all about eliminating the penny. Cracks in the foundation of the show as it was created and sold are starting to show, and *SPOILER ALERT* we may be seeing the start of the reasons why Lowe decided to leave the series during Season 4.

- Those family pictures that were missing from the President's desk in the last episode (so we could all see him bang his head on the desk in frustration over Albie Duncan) are back:

- That West Wing staple of the camera revolving around the actors appears when CJ talks to the Indians in the lobby; also, that technique of tracking shots with obstacles between the camera and the scene that I complained about in the previous episode? There are several of those shots here, too. Just to throw water on my assumption that was a director's tic last time ...

- There's Nancy, played by Martin Sheen's daughter Renee Estevez:

- Gail's fishbowl looks to have a turkey figurine in it:

- The zip code Charlie gives the President for Fargo, ND, is 50504. That is not a valid zip code for anywhere; the actual zip codes for Fargo start with '581.'

- The events of this episode take place over a single day, the day before Thanksgiving. As the episode goes on, where it's clearly later in the afternoon, we get an establishing shot of the White House showing the sun in what would be the southeastern sky. That sun position would only occur in the morning, not the afternoon.

- We know from Mandatory Minimums that Toby is divorced, with his ex-wife Andy serving as a congresswoman from Maryland. We see him packing a pie and a bottle of wine as he's leaving for the holiday weekend, so he has some kind of Thanksgiving plans (with his nieces and nephews, he tells Bruno as he heads off through Lafayette Park north of the White House):

- Paris Barclay received an Emmy nomination for directing this episode. The Emmy was won by Alan Ball, for the Six Feet Under pilot.



Quotes    

President: "Were we talking about something?"

CJ: "I don't know, sir. When I came in here, back in the late '50s, there was a purpose to it, but then one thing led to another and I blacked out. I mean, I can hang in there with the best of them, sir, but somewhere during the discussion of anise and coriander and the other 15 spices you like to use to baste a turkey, I simply lost consciousness."

President: "You know that line you're not supposed to cross with the President?"

CJ: "I'm coming up on it?"

President: "No, no. Look behind you."

CJ: "Yes, sir."

President: "Would you like to leave?"

CJ: "With your permission, sir."

President: "Damn right, with my permission."

-----

Donna: "Did you only just decide you were going home for Thanksgiving?"

Josh: "No, but I thought I was going to Connecticut."

Donna: "Why?"

Josh: "Cause that's where the house is."

Donna: "Your mom sold the house ten months ago."

Josh: "I made a mistake."

Donna: "You forgot where your mother lives?" 

-----

Sam: "Anything else I need to know?"

Josh: "Don't go through the lobby."

Sam: "Why not?"

Josh: "Indians in the lobby."

Sam: "Is that code?"

Josh: "No. There are Indians in the lobby."

Sam: "Okay."

-----

President (to Charlie): "Long as you've got an oven, and you go to 320 degrees. You take your turkey, which has been soaking overnight in water, salt, coriander -"

Nancy (knocks and enters): "Excuse me, sir. Toby would like to see you, should I send him in?" 

Charlie (quickly): "Yes."

(President shoots a look at Charlie)

Charlie: "Yeah, well, that's obviously a question for you, sir."

-----

Toby: "Good morning, sir."

President: "Hey."

Toby: "Before anything else, I was hoping I could impose on you for as much information you could spare about making a turkey."

President: "This is some sort of pre-emptive psychological thing?"

Toby: "Yeah."

President: "That's not going to work."

-----

President: "You politicize family to make sure they don't look political."

Bruno: "Don't get me started on ironies."

-----

President: "I'm Joe Betherson, -ton. That's one 't', and with an 'h' in there."

----- 

Butterball operator: "Your voice sounds very familiar to me."

President: "I do radio commercials, for ... products."

-----

Josh: "I need a layover in Atlanta."

Donna: "Of course you do."

Josh: "And I need to get there about an hour before an eight o'clock flight would take off."

Donna: "That would be around ... seven?"

Josh: "I hadn't done the math."

Story threads, callbacks, and familiar faces (Hey, it's that guy!)

• She wasn't seen as a familiar face, but the voice of the Butterball expert on the other end of the phone was an uncredited Ana Gasteyer (Saturday Night Live, The Goldbergs, Suburgatory, Wicked in Chicago and on Broadway).

• A scene with a member of the staff held hostage by the President's rambling stories was previously seen in Enemies, where first Josh and then Charlie were regaled with Jed's tales of national parks.

• CJ's two throwaway mentions - the turkey's been pardoned and she's been to the dentist - refer to Shibboleth (two turkeys hang out in CJ's office while she decides which one goes to the pardoning ceremony) and Celestial Navigation (where CJ gets a root canal and Josh's stint in front of the press goes completely upside-down).

• Toby and the President discuss Toby's color-coded message calendar, which uses different colors for different campaign topics. This story thread will come up again.

• Abbey is still in wheelchair (in Gone Quiet we were told she broken her ankle in a hiking accident) - Stockard Channing actually did hurt her ankle hiking & it was written into show:

DC location shots    

• Toby and Bruno come out of the northeast gate of the White House and talk on Pennsylvania Avenue:

Toby then departs towards Lafayette Park, on the north side of Pennsylvania Avenue across from the White House.


They Do Exist! It's The Real Person, or Thing    

• Former First Lady Bess Truman gets mentioned by both Jed and Abbey Bartlet.

• The Stockbridge-Munsee Community of Native Americans actually exist, and as the episode tells us, they originated in New York before being moved to Wisconsin after the Revolutionary War.

• The treaty of 1856 assigned Menominee land in Wisconsin to the Stockbridge-Munsee Indians.

• The Dawes Act ended communal ownership of land by Native American tribes & assigned ownership of that land to individuals. The act also opened native land for appropriation by white settlers. 

• Former Italian Prime Minister and dictator Benito Mussolini is mentioned by Josh.

• Of course, Butterball is a major producer of turkey products, and they do host what they now call the Turkey Talk Line.

• Mollie Orshansky was an economist and statistician for the Social Security Administration who did indeed come up with the Orshansky Poverty Thresholds in 1963. She was not, however, from Poland or anywhere else in eastern Europe; she was born in the Bronx.

• The Little Red Lighthouse and the Great Gray Bridge is a famous children's book written by Hildegarde Swift in 1942. George Washington also gets mentioned, both as his namesake bridge and as the general whom the Stockbridge-Munsees fought alongside.

• Bruno brings up P.T. Barnum and his skill at branding ("You ever heard of white salmon? ... he could sell anything.").

• A Starbucks Coffee shop can be seen in airport behind Josh:

End credits freeze frame: CJ taking the Native Americans from the lobby to her office.