Abu el Banat - TWW S5E9

 

Original airdate: December 3, 2003

Written by: Debora Cahn (5)

Directed by: Lesli Linka Glatter (4)

Synopsis

• As Christmas approaches, President Bartlet deals with an Attorney General grandstanding for political gain, a son-in-law who wants his backing to run for Congress, a hostage situation in Sudan, a daughter who may or may not show up for dinner, and a grandson who can't flip a switch in front of crowds. To make things even more festive, he also has to face his own mortality.

"It'll get ugly and that's that ... you gonna be there?" 

"Yeah."

It's Christmas in the White House ... well, three weeks before Christmas, anyway. I've mentioned before how I have a soft spot for television shows that clearly set episodes during holidays, and tie the plots and themes into the season. There's just something about it that grounds the fictional world of a TV series into the reality we can relate to, I don't know. 

Plus the set decorators of The West Wing do a great job with setting the scene for Christmas. Check it out:

There's holiday cookies there for Ted Barrow!

We even get CJ's Christmas tree falling over on Toby.

We need to particularly soak up this Christmas episode because it's basically the last one we're going to get from the series. Yes, in next season's Impact Winter there are some decorations in the background around this time of year, but the episode itself barely mentions the holiday and the plot isn't Christmas-themed at all. There's also a time jump in Season 6 and the episodes no longer align with the actual calendar when they air.

That's kind of too bad, because West Wing Christmas episodes have been among some of the best in the series. In Excelsis Deo focused on Toby and his determination to give a homeless Korean War veteran a proper burial. Noël showed us Josh's internal torment as he struggled with PTSD after being shot at the beginning of Season 2. Bartlet For America was Leo's story, his inspiration fueling Bartlet's candidacy and the fallout and rebound from his alcohol relapse. Holy Night was less of a success, I think, partly because we went back and repeated our focus on Toby, this time exploring his fractured relationship with his former mob hitman father. 

This episode is another less memorable attempt, in my opinion because it meanders and seems unfocused, but what I do like is that this one centers on President Bartlet. At its heart, it's about family, it's about the love and devotion and commitment between family members, and it's about who's going to be there when the chips are down. That's really what this entire series is about, isn't it? All these folks we've come to know have become a family of sorts, they'll all do almost anything for one another, and that's why we connect with them so much.

It's time for the annual National Christmas Tree lighting ceremony, and the entire Bartlet family is gathering at the White House. That is, as long as Ellie can get away from her research at Johns Hopkins to make it in time. Gus, the First Grandson (son of Liz and Doug), is set to help the President flip the switch on the tree lights. Unfortunately, he's only five and is a little hesitant:

Some rehearsal is in order, but there doesn't seem to be any time in the day for that. (Also, you'll note Gus is not even the same grandson we saw arriving at the White House in 7A WF 83429.)

First, a rogue DEA office is going after a doctor in Oregon for assisting a terminally ill patient's suicide, which is a problem because assisted suicide in that situation is legal in Oregon. When the Attorney General decides to weigh in and back prosecution of the doctor, that presents a problem for the administration. Add to that a couple of American aid workers in Sudan arrested by the government for proselytizing, and the President has a full plate without the tree lighting.

The assisted suicide story threatens to derail the administration's agenda, taking them off topic just as they're ramping up for the State of the Union address. Leo tries to talk the Attorney General into backing off, but AG Alan Fisk stands firm.

Leo: "The voters of Oregon have declared the termination of life, pain, and suffering to be a legitimate medical purpose, and frankly whether they were right or wrong is none of the DEA's business. Assisted suicide should be --"

Fisk: "It's not 'assisted' anything. It's murder."

Leo: "Okay. We're done. You'll be hearing from the President."

In an effort to get attention on the topic away from the President, Toby asks Will to have Vice President Russell take the lead. Will - who, for some reason, still has his office in the West Wing next to Toby - finally agrees to take the proposal to the VP, but his obvious lack of enthusiasm linked with his motivation to help set up Russell as a 2006 Presidential candidate show Toby where Will's true loyalties lie.

Which leads to:

Toby's finally moving Will out of the White House. (Will seems unusually perturbed about this, although he should be happy with having an office nearer to his boss.)

Of course, there's an additional deeply personal angle for President Bartlet. As we've known since He Shall, From Time To Time ..., Jed suffers from multiple sclerosis, an incurable degenerative disease that will eventually debilitate him. No one knows exactly how long that might take, or how the effects will specifically manifest, but a physical decline almost certainly will happen, perhaps before his term is up. And as Toby points out, a significant number of those seeking help to end their lives have MS.

Toby: "One in five patients requesting aid in dying has MS. One in five. Do you know what the questions sound like?"

President: "I've got a pretty good idea."

Toby: "'How long does the President think he has before his MS will become debilitating?' 'Do the doctors anticipate a speedy decline?' 'Does he have a plan?' 'Does the First Lady have four glass vials and a syringe in a lock box in the nightstand?'"

President: "She may chicken out. Maybe I'll call you." 

This does lead to a pretty funny line from Bartlet later:

President: "Toby asked me today if I have a plan for my death. Liz has never asked. Zoey. I understand Ellie asked her mother once, but I'm not supposed to know about it. I get Toby."

When it's later revealed the AG's support for prosecuting the doctor is being played up in the press in Fisk's home state of Mississippi, the staff figures out he's laying the groundwork to run for state office. President Bartlet takes time away from his family dinner plans to read Fisk the riot act. I'll include the entire conversation here, because it's well-said:

President: "You don't run for governor from my Cabinet."

Fisk: "You really think a run to the right on a couple of pro-life standards is going to win me Mississippi?"

President: "'The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution are reserved to the States respectively.'"

Fisk: "How long before there's a lawyer arguing, 'We can't limit this to terminal patients.'? We ought to include the chronically ill? When is it allowing children to make the decision for their parents?"

President: "Yes. When is it allowing the state to decide, not families? We'll just start knocking off the weak and the indigent along with the sick and the dying. When does my administration completely deteriorate into the Third Reich?"

Fisk: "I'm not suggesting --"

President: "The federal government has no place here. The question is a moral one, an individual one. Grappling with the nature of life and the purview of God, in which the federal government has no ... Forget it. Do what you want. The courts are going to nail you. You're counting on my silence, and you just lost it."

Fisk: "Sir, a public debate --"

President: "Yeah, I didn't want to get on TV with Oprah and talk about who's gonna cut my meat when the coordination goes, but c'est la vie. The lid's off. (walking out the door) You pull this crap one more time, you're fired. Tell Janet Merry Christmas."

Back in the dining room, as Jed and Abbey wait for the rest of the family, Jed reflects on what Toby spoke about, and on his future and his mortality. And Abbey touchingly expresses her love and devotion to him.

Jed: "I'm putting together a panel on assisted suicide. If you got any names, medical ethicists."

Abbey: "Your position has changed?"

Jed (shakes his head): "Uh uh. ... No syringe in the nightstand. It'll get ugly and that's that. (pause) You gonna be there?"

Abbey: "Yeah."

The Sudan incident turns out to be another minor irritant on the day. The President, assured by the aid organization that the workers were not missionaries, sends a strongly worded message to Sudan about detaining American citizens. Which would be great, until they find out the two workers had indeed smuggled in Bibles and were, in fact, breaking Sudanese law by promoting Christianity:

Leo: "They never identified themselves as evangelists. Never mentioned religion."

President: "So they're undercover agents?"

Leo: "Spies for Christ, yeah."

As is the usual custom with these issues, the US government directs some back-channel economic aid to Sudan in exchange for the release of the two women, and that's that.

The Bartlet family issue gets complicated, not only by Ellie's delayed arrival, but by Jed's son-in-law having an unexpected political agenda of his own. Doug Weston stops in to see Josh, who is involved in finding Democratic candidates for national office, and tells him he would be the perfect choice for New Hampshire's 1st District seat in the House of Representatives.

This turns out to be a problem. The Democratic Party has plans for that seat, they already have a candidate groomed, and having the President's son-in-law (who has no experience in running for political office at all, as well as some dicey issues with a failing business) asking for the White House's endorsement is not in the cards. Josh is told to nip Doug's effort in the bud, but he's not very good at that:

Josh: "What about the state legislature? It's the place to learn, the President started there --"

Doug: "Come on. I run while Jed's in office, I've got a leg up like no two terms, six terms as a state legislator ever's gonna give me. What kind of fool is gonna let a moment like that sail by?"

Josh: "I don't know."

After getting chewed out by Leo, Josh calls Doug back in, telling him in no uncertain terms he won't get the President's endorsement if he decides to run. In the meantime, Jed, Abbey, Zoey and Liz are waiting for Doug (and Ellie) in the dining room.

When Doug sullenly shows up at the dinner table, Liz is miffed with how things played out, and she heads upstairs to start packing up Gus' clothes.

Jed follows.

Jed: "He's a great guy and a fantastic father. You're the politician. Why the hell don't you run?" 

Liz replies with the weight of motherhood, of family responsibilities, of the impossibility of doing it all. 

Jed: "We all made sacrifices, but Elizabeth, when Annie and Gus watch you walk onto the floor of the US House of Representatives --"

Liz: "I don't want my son to be part of my entourage. A photo op is not his idea --- I don't want it."

Jed: "Then why would you let Doug?"

Liz: "Because he's my husband, and he asked me to."

Finally - at last! - Ellie arrives ... finding the dining room empty.

The Bartlets just can't catch a break for this holiday meal.

But things aren't all bad. For the first time in the series, I believe, we get to see all three of the Bartlet girls together, smiling and hugging as they enjoy some carols in the atrium:

And the President rousts Gus out of bed. Gus, upset and frightened by the crowd, ended up not helping with the tree lighting ceremony (Zoey filled in instead), but Jed now has decided to give him the chance to flip the switch anyway. Alone, in the dark, grandfather and grandson trudge through the snow to the Christmas tree, and Gus happily turns the lights off and on, watching them glow in the winter sky.

Like I said, this one is really about family.

Tales Of Interest!

- It's three weeks before Christmas (CJ says as much in her phone call to her father's facility), which is exactly when this episode aired in 2003.

- Snow on the ground in Washington, DC, in early December is very rare. While the historical average snowfall in December is just over three inches, it doesn't tend to come in the first week of the month, and the average temperature for the month stays above freezing, even at night. Yet, we've got a nice snow cover on the ground for the President and Gus to walk through on their way to the tree.

- Speaking of the tree, the national Christmas tree is not on the South Lawn of the White House grounds, as depicted in this episode. It's actually located outside the White House grounds on the Ellipse.

The tree is traditionally lit by the President from the Truman Balcony on the south side of the White House, but the tree itself is open to the public outside the fence. President Bartlet and Gus would not have been able to walk out there on their own. I mean, they wouldn't have been able to stroll out onto the South Lawn without the Secret Service around, either, but this is TV, after all.

- Also speaking of the tree, computer generated graphics have come a long way since 2003. This CGI Christmas tree looks pretty low-tech compared to what TV shows can come up with about 20 years later. I mean, it's like a piece of paper with a tree printed on it rolled up into a cone with some obviously fake lights. (If you look closely in the background, that wreath hanging on the White House balcony looks pretty pasted-on, as well.)

- And speaking of Gus, we saw the President's grandson (although we didn't find out his name) when the Westons arrived at the White House during Zoey's kidnapping in 7A WF 83429. 

That child is obviously not the same Gus we see here. He's lost quite a few years since last spring, it appears (it's mentioned he's five years old - spring Gus is closer to seven or eight, I'd guess).

- In A Proportional Response it was said the Attorney General was Black. In Lies, Damn Lies And Statistics we met the Attorney General, who was named Dan Larson and definitely not a Black man. That means Alan Fisk must be at least the third AG in the Bartlet administration (and you'll also remember from Debate Camp the newly elected Bartlet had to withdraw his first choice for the AG post, Cornell Rooker, so Attorney General has long been a trouble spot).

- Gail's fishbowl has a Christmas tree.

- Why'd They Come Up With Abu el Banat?

Let's let President Bartlet explain it: "You know, 15 years ago, we took a trip to Egypt, all five of us, saw the pyramids and Luxor, then headed up into the Sinai. We had a guide, a Bedouin man, who called me Abu el Banat. Whenever we'd meet another Bedouin, he'd introduce me as Abu el Banat. The Bedouin would laugh and laugh and then offer me a cup of tea. And I'd go and pay them for the tea, and they wouldn't let me. Abu el Banat means 'father of daughters.' They thought the tea was the least they could do."

Quotes    

Toby: "This is fine. I just cut some of the naked gloating."

CJ: "We restarted the government, Toby. There was a showdown at the OK Corral, and we gunned down the Clantons. We're heroes."

Toby: "And yet, self-effacing."

-----

Debbie: "Did she tell you about the walkthrough at 11:00?"

CJ: "No. Can you maybe handle that?"

Debbie: "She asked for you."

CJ: "I've got a meeting. Could you tell her?"

Debbie: "You can't say no to her, can you?"

CJ: "Not really."

Debbie: "I'll see you at 11:00." 

-----

President: "All right. Push the rehearsal. I need to stop at Nancy McNally's. Is Ellie even coming?"

Debbie: "She's working on it."

President: "One would never know that the leaders of powerful nations respond to my call on a moment's notice."

Debbie: "Not at first glance, sir, no."

-----

President: "Three point two billion men in the world, she picks him."

Debbie: "I hear he had a great pitching arm."

President: "When he was 19, sure. She dumped a Rhodes scholar for this guy. Zoey left Charlie for the frog. Ellie and the guitar player with the purple van. My children choose morons, every one."

Debbie: "They say daughters look for their fathers."

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

• The wonderful Dylan Baker appears as Attorney General Alan Fisk. I think Baker is good in everything he does, from Owen, the tobacco-drooling pickup driver in Planes, Trains And Automobiles ("She's short and skinny, but she's strong. Her first baby - come out sideways. She didn't scream or nothin'") to the hospital administrator in The Laramie Project (2002) to Murder One and Spider-Man 2 and 3 to many, many, many other TV and movie appearances.

• Ron Canada returns as Assistant Secretary of State Ted Barrow. You remember Barrow was a real jerk to CJ in Han; he'll be sort of a recurring character from now on.

• Mark Moses (Platoon, Mad Men, Desperate Housewives) appears as Congressman Donald Richter. He's one of those character actor faces that shows up in all sorts of TV shows and movies, and you know you've seen him somewhere before.

• I think every Christmas episode of The West Wing has included a shot of a gingerbread White House. This one is no exception.

• At the very beginning of the episode, as CJ is trying to set up her tree, we get a mention of "restarting the government" and being "heroes," which is a direct reference to the previous episode Shutdown.

• We get a reference to Liz and Doug's daughter, Annie (although she's missing the tree-lighting festivities because of a swim meet and a pierced eyebrow). Annie was actually mentioned in Pilot, receiving threats from a religious group after stating her opinion on women's rights to choose in a magazine interview. She was 12 then, which would make her about 17 now.

• This also means the President's story about going to Egypt with the girls 15 years ago would have been after Liz and Doug were married and had Annie. So I guess Annie stayed home with Doug while Liz made the trip with her parents and sisters?

• Ellie's medical school work at Johns Hopkins - and her complicated relationship with her father - was addressed in the episode Ellie.

• Toby's role in setting the agenda for the State of the Union address ties into his request to have a bigger role in administration policy that he first brought up to Leo in Han.

• Toby spars with Will over the Vice President taking the hit for the assisted suicide story, and that argument brings up the memory of Russell's nomination as VP from Jefferson Lives as well as Will leaving the Communications Office to be Russell's top aide in Constituency Of One:

Toby: "We didn't ask you to groom Russell for a Presidential run. He asked you."

Will: "He was chosen by the President."

Toby: "He was chosen by the Republicans!"

• Toby also reaches all the way back to when Will came aboard the Communications Office in Arctic Radar, after his dedicated campaign work got a dead Democrat to win a House election in California:

Toby: "You're the guy we pulled out of Botox Babylon out there, brought to work for the President."

• There are callbacks to Zoey's relationship with Jean-Paul between Holy Night and Commencement (or, as Jed calls him, "the frog") and her previous relationship with Charlie (those two are still close, as you can see by Charlie's teasing her about everyone telling her she looks good - "You don't look that good," he jokes, and she responds with a smile and a playful tap).

Charlie also offers his coat to Zoey when she decides to go help her father with the tree lighting.

 

• We hear references to National Security Adviser Nancy McNally and Secretary of State Berryhill, but we don't see either of them.

• There's a deep dive into Margaret and her complicated relationship with muffins. In Let Bartlet Be Bartlet, she locked up the White House e-mail system with a question about the calorie content of the raisin muffins in the Mess, giving Toby a golden opportunity to prank her:

Margaret: "IT support is now accusing me of being a hacker. They're accusing me of spamming or smurfing. They asked me if I was running a Trojan horse. I said no, I ... I was simply informing the others that the calorie count in the raisin muffins was wrong. And it is, Toby. You don't believe me ... you should take one of those muffins and, you know, take it down to the lab."

Toby: "I'll do that."

Margaret: "You will?"

Toby: "Get me a muffin. Be careful not to handle it yourself. You want to use gloves. Slip it to me in a plastic bag. I'll send it off to the lab."

Margaret (realizing): "You're mocking me, aren't you?"

And in this episode, when Margaret is complaining about Leo's "maybe" responses to Christmas party invitations, she goes back to the muffins in the Mess:

Margaret: "I think we shouldn't go with 'maybes' on the Christmas parties this year because 'maybe' means I RSVP yes, and you cancel ten minutes before it starts, and I have to call and say the honored guest isn't coming, and you remain lovable Leo McGarry, and I'm the dope who couldn't accurately assess the constraints of your schedule."

Leo (hearing the news announcer on the TV): "'Hostages'? Did he just say 'hostage'?"

Margaret: "And by New Year's, I'm a pariah. People hexing my muffins in the Mess ..."  

I guess Margaret just really likes muffins.  

• Of course President Bartlet's health condition and his ongoing multiple sclerosis has been part of the story since He Shall, From Time To Time ...

• CJ's father and his struggle with Alzheimer's disease had an entire episode devoted to it (The Long Goodbye).

• Josh's teasing of Donna over her Christmas present reminds us of In Excelsis Deo, when Donna really wanted a pair of skis but Josh ended up giving her a book about skiing instead. But the real gift was the note Josh wrote to Donna inside the book. We never know what he wrote, but we saw her reaction and her beaming smile when she read it.

• At the Bartlet dinner table there's a throwaway discussion about the Weston's nanny and what her job entails (and her chin status). It's also mentioned she's Swedish. This nanny will come up again in the future.

DC location shots    

• None.

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

• In the past The West Wing would sometimes invent a fictional nation in order to have storylines play out without offending a real country (Equatorial Kundu and Qumar are the two obvious examples). Post-Aaron Sorkin it appears that's no longer a concern, as Sudan is definitely on the hook here for holding American Christian missionaries prisoner.

• Speaking of real nations, President Bartlet mentions "193 countries." According to Wikipedia, they name 194 widely recognized sovereign states in the 2000s. So we're in the ballpark here (and 193 may have been exactly correct for 2003).

• The tree-lighting ceremony includes performances by the Three Tenors and the singing of Handel's Hallelujah Chorus.

• Attorney General Fisk's daughter was in a performance of Verdi's opera Aida at the Kennedy Center. Aida was actually part of the Kennedy Center's 2002-03 season, so that's factually accurate (although it would have happened well before the events of this episode, maybe Leo and Fisk hadn't had a chance to catch up since then).

• Leo comes up with the song title "Grandma Got Run Over By The Bartlets," a reference to the real novelty song "Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer."

• Liz has offered CJ's name to replace her on a charity board that should be working with the World Food Programme (but isn't).

• Toby compares Will's efforts to change Vice President Russell's image to what happens with Eliza Doolittle in Pygmalion/My Fair Lady.

• President Bartlet mentions a "Fisher-Price gizmo" on Gus's crib with "more cranks and levers than a DC-10."

• Gus's Secret Service code name is Tonka, which is obviously related to the toy company with the metal trucks.

• We get the MSNBC logo onscreen, as the NBC network has realized they can promote their own 24-hour news network on their shows. Although, would the Christmas tree lighting ceremony actually be billed as "BREAKING NEWS"?

• As the President chews out the Attorney General for getting involved in the Oregon assisted suicide case, he talks about the government and not the families making decisions about who lives and who dies, comparing it to the Third Reich (Nazi Germany). He goes on to say, "Yeah, I didn't want to get on TV with Oprah and talk about who's gonna cut my meat when the coordination goes, but c'est la vie."

• Liz brings up the feminist icons Ms. Steinem (Gloria) and Ms. Friedan (Betty) in her conversation with Jed over who should really run for Congress.

• Josh jokingly tells Donna he got her a Tower Records gift certificate for a Christmas gift.

• Abbey says to Jed they've never been the traditional Currier and Ives family at the holidays.

End credits freeze frame: Some of the Bartlet family waiting for the others at the dinner table.

Previous episode: Shutdown

Next episode: The Stormy Present

Shutdown - TWW S5E8

 

Original airdate: November 19, 2003

Written by: Mark Goffman (4) 

Directed by: Christopher Misiano (17)

Synopsis

• With President Bartlet and the Republican Congress locked in an intractable budget fight, the government shutdown drags on - until Abbey asks, "Where's Josh?" and Josh inspires a bold move to reclaim the initiative and take the battle to the Capitol.
  

"Mr. President, let's go. Right now." 

This is probably one of my favorite episodes of Season 5. I'm not exactly sure why - partly because of Josh's redemption story, with Abbey's prodding of Jed getting Josh put back in the game; partly because we get to see why Josh is as valuable as he is, coming up with the notion to go to the Capitol in the first place, then his brilliant move to have the President walk out when he's stiffed by the Republicans; and partly because of the rejuvenation of President Bartlet as he holds firm against the bait-and-switch tactics of the Republicans for three days. The writing is good (this is Mark Goffman's first solo writing credit on the show, he also was credited for College Kids, Red Haven's On Fire, and Han, all pretty good episodes), the entire episode is (rightly) focused on one huge topic, it just works.

 

We begin right where Separation Of Powers ended, with President Bartlet turning down Speaker Haffley's demand to cut three percent from the continuing budget resolution instead of the agreed-upon one percent. As the President rushes off to watch some basketball, the staffers are dumbstruck - will there be some kind of agreement before the midnight deadline? If they go back and agree to a two-percent cut, will the Republicans go for that? How will they get the business of the country done if the government shuts down? And what about valuable non-senior advisers like Margaret and Donna? How long will this all last?

 

Speaker Haffley thinks he's got the upper hand, and that Congress can lay blame for the shutdown on the President. He makes his point on TV right there on the White House lawn - which infuriates CJ.

 

 

We quickly roll into Day Two, with TV coverage showing a sad little girl unhappy that she can't see the Constitution. 

 

The administration was hoping the public would take their side against a smug, overreaching Republican Congress, but polling isn't going their way. Leo decides today is the day, they have to come to an agreement to get a continuing resolution and end the shutdown, and he'll go hat-in-hand to agree to the three-percent cut. Josh is more willing to fight, to stand up against the bad-faith move by Congress, but he's still in the doghouse for his tactics causing a Democratic Senator to change parties in Constituency Of One. Leo sends him off to work on the President's schedule while Angela, Toby, CJ, and Will do the war room work.

Donna, probably illegally, is still doing work for Josh from home. She's going over government programs affected by the shutdown and the resulting impacts, and she discovers something pretty huge - even though Social Security as a program is immune to the shutdown, with the office workers being sent home it turns out there's nobody around to print and send out the monthly Social Security checks. Obviously the failure to get those checks into the hands of retirees would cause a tidal wave of anger and disapproval, and it'd likely all fall on the administration. Good catch, Donna!

Leo gets the sense of the advisers and goes to convince the President to give in and agree to Congress' demands. But ... President Bartlet is not having it. He and Haffley had an agreement at one percent, and he'll be damned if Haffley is going to change the rules and pull the rug out from under him.

Leo: "Sir? You're putting all our chips down on a single hand we can't win."

(President Bartlet slams his hand on the desk)

President: "We had a deal, Leo."

Leo has a card up his sleeve, though. He makes a call.

 

The First Lady returns. She left the White House in Jefferson Lives, still quietly furious at Jed for his move to kill Abdul Shareef in Posse Comitatus, an event she directly links to their daughter's kidnapping in Commencement. Apparently five months away has cooled her anger somewhat, and the fact that Leo can't make the President budge - but maybe she can - brings her back home.

She interrupts Jed making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for his dinner. He is not displeased to see her.

They sit, they talk ... and Abbey - who had spent an hour or so in the war room going over some of the strategy - asks one of the most consequential questions of the episode.

Abbey: "Jed ... where's Josh?"

Which leads immediately to Leo walking down the dark, quiet hallway to Josh's office.

Leo: "The President wants you back in the war room."

We move on to Day Three.

 

The polling continues to run against the administration. Haffley looks to be winning the battle of public perception. President Bartlet, bolstered by the return of the First Lady, is finally ready to give in and let Haffley have the three-percent cut he wants. Bartlet goes around the room to get the opinions of his advisers, until Josh - who was warned by Leo not to go rogue on the question - has yet another consequential response.

Josh: "What do you want, Mr. President?"

President: "I want to be able to govern."

Angela: "Our bargaining position is weakening every day. There's a deal on the table, Republican leadership are in their conference room, waiting on our reply."

And then we get to see the real Josh, the political mind that sees angles others don't, the guy who knows how a grand gesture can play in the public eye.

Josh: "Let's go up to the Hill to see them."

Toby: "We can't go up to the Hill. We'll look even more desperate."

Josh: "The country's waiting for someone to step up. It should be us."

The others are aghast - the President, meekly going to the Capitol to beg for a deal? He'll look weak, he'll look defeated, it's a terrible precedent to set. But Josh just knows a bold move like this could change the terms of the conflict.

The President gets it.

President: "Let's go."

Leo: "Mr. President, you have a video conference with Admiral Vackey of PACCOM at 5:00."

President: "Then I suggest we get a move on."

To the motorcade they go, heading down Pennsylvania Avenue to the Capitol ... until the President sees a group of Kansas tourists on the sidewalk, Midwesterners who made their trip for nothing with the government shutdown forcing the closure of so many tourist sites. He orders the car to stop.

 

It's a great political move, but it's just a human move for Bartlet. He feels bad that these folks came halfway across the country, only to find most of DC closed. Josh recognizes something else, too ... just as he said in the war room, the people of the country are anxious to have someone make the first move, have someone step in on their side, to break the partisan logjam and try to do something for the good of the nation. And here's President Bartlet, wading right into the fray and bringing these everyday Americans along with him.

CJ gets it, too. Her small little smile when Josh first let her know they were heading for the Capitol, her glee at telling Josh the networks are cutting into regular programming to show the President's trip down the street ... she knows this could help turn the tide of public opinion.

Josh, seeing the happiness the President gets by meeting the crowd, gets another idea.

Josh: "The Capitol is just a five or ten minute walk from here. Care to stretch your legs?"

I love Bartlet's reaction to that notion.

 

These guys are totally on the same page, and it rocks.

They arrive at the Capitol, and Josh announces the President's arrival and his wish to see Speaker Haffley. A Congressman begs for more time ... and closes the door in Josh's face.

 

The very notion of Congresspersons forcing the President of the United States to sit and wait for them is unimaginable. Senator Royce and some other Republicans know this, and they are anxious to get out there and welcome the President in. Speaker Haffley, arrogantly knowing he has the situation by the tail, orders them to stop. It's all just a stunt, he says. We can't let the White House play us like this.

Haffley: "Wait! Damn it! We don't go out there until we agree on a game plan!"

Which apparently takes a while. The President sits alone as the clock ticks, media cameras in his face, shutters clicking. Seven minutes go by. Angela is convinced this move is a disaster and the President's trip to Congress has made him look like a fool.

Josh has another perfect idea. "No," he tells Angela. "This is great." He goes to sit next to the President, and whispers in his ear.

Josh: "Mr. President?"

President: "Hmm?"

Josh: "Let's go. Right now."

Meanwhile, Haffley finally has his minions in line. 

Haffley: "Okay, so we stick at three percent, and if he also wants to do the final budget, he finds the 50 billion on his side of the aisle. Agreed?"

(Royce nods)

Haffley: "Then let's get the leader of the free world."

The Republicans look on smugly as Royce and Haffley head out into the hallway.

But what do they see as they exit their war room?

The President and his group are heading back to the White House, with no agreement reached. Now it's the Republicans who look like they're not willing to do what it takes to end the shutdown. Haffley's smug arrogance has turned against him, which is evident from the look on Royce's face.

On to Day Four. Abbey is going to personally cook chicken for the state dinner with the British Prime Minister, cut down to just the two couples due to the shutdown. Haffley, still convinced the President's trip to Capitol Hill was only a publicity stunt, finally gives. He makes the trek to the White House, intent on getting that three-percent cut in the continuing resolution, but now President Bartlet has the upper hand. They argue about political and economic philosophies (I really think this discussion is an effort by West Wing producers to try to be more politically evenhanded in their approach; in the Sorkin years the show was accused by conservatives as being tilted far to the left, and John Wells, I truly believe, is making an attempt to give conservative Republican arguments a fair hearing. This little verbal jousting match between Bartlet and Haffley tries to cover both sides equally, not demonizing the conservative viewpoint. Now, you can agree or disagree however you like with the arguments ... but I think it's obvious what the tack is here). But finally:

President: "Well, I'm not going to negotiate with anyone who holds a gun to my head! We had a deal! I don't care if my approval ratings drop into single digits. I am the President of the United States and I will leave this government shut down until we reach an equitable agreement!"

The meeting continues for a couple of hours. Donna stops by ("Don't call the Feds," she says, "I'm just dropping off forms for the Treasury employees") and she gets her well-earned praise for catching the Social Security shutdown glitch. Finally the senior advisers are welcomed into the Oval Office to find out the result of the negotiation.

Josh: "What did we get? Another continuing resolution?"

(Long pause. The President stands.)

President: "No. A budget."

Nobody got everything they wanted ... the administration had to give up their college tuition tax credit that was a cornerstone of the 2002 campaign since 20 Hours In America Part Two, but the Republicans also gave up their capital gains tax cut that was non-negotiable in Separation Of Powers. But a federal budget is complete, the shutdown comes to an end, and the government can get back to, you know, governing.

A satisfying episode with Josh really getting to show off his political talents, and a satisfying ending.

Tales Of Interest!

- This episode begins right as Separation Of Powers ends, with the shutdown resolved four days later. It's confirmed that it's November, as Royce tells Haffley, "I hate November" and Haffley responds, "No, no. Christmas came early this year." There are a couple of quibbles ... when the on-screen caption reads "Day 2" that would have to mean the second full day after the midnight shutdown, and not the day following the Roosevelt Room meeting; yet at one point Leo says, "Twelve hours passed, that's what happened." If we go by what we're told onscreen, the timeline goes like this:

+ President Bartlet turns down Haffley's demand at 8:30 pm; shutdown begins at midnight

+ We skip a day

+ Day 2: Leo demands a solution, Rena shows up to help with the trash, Donna uncovers the issue with Social Security checks, Abbey returns, Josh is brought back into the war room

+ Day 3: The President finally agrees on three percent, we get the walk to the Capitol and the departure of the President when the Republicans take too long to meet him

+ Day 4: Abbey's cooking for the British Prime Minister, Haffley comes to the White House, a budget agreement is reached

- Also, immediately after the Republicans walk out when President Bartlet refuses to accept their offer, Leo is telling the entire White House staff to go home "effective immediately." Right after the walkout Josh says it's 8:30; Leo sees Haffley on TV outside the White House talking to the press as he goes to tell everyone to go home, so it's not much after that when he unilaterally shuts down the White House nonessential staff. I was a government employee and I went through a shutdown or two - if the shutdown happened at midnight, there's no way on earth a supervisor would tell his people to end their work and go home before the spending authority actually ran out. Sure, they might allow people to leave early or even encourage it; but telling them they're not getting paid "effective immediately" and ordering them to go home isn't happening until the stroke of midnight.

- President Bartlet wants to watch the Providence-Notre Dame basketball game. In the real-life 2003-04 season, Notre Dame's season started the last week of November with non-conference games, and the Fighting Irish did not play Providence until late February.

- In CJ's conversation with Toby as she prepares to brief the press, she mentions there had been an agreement on a "30-day continuing resolution." It was clearly stated in Separation Of Powers that the continuing resolution with the one-percent cut was to last for 60 days, through the holidays until January 3.

- Writer Mark Goffman comes up with some tidy little bits of foreshadowing. When Leo goes to the residence to try to talk the President into making an agreement while he's watching the basketball game, Bartlet says, "The game is won or lost in the last five minutes." While he means the basketball game, it also applies to the eventual solution to the shutdown. Then, when Vice President Russell tries to convince Leo to let him work out a deal, he says, "What do you call a leader with no followers? Just a guy taking a walk." The President taking a walk later turns out to be a key piece of the episode.

- Why'd They Come Up With Shutdown?

The government shut down. With no budget or spending authority agreed to after the previous continuing resolution ran out, the federal government had to stop all non-essential spending.

Quotes    

Donna: "How long do you think it will last?"

Leo: "Hours, probably, maybe a day."

Margaret: "Maybe a couple days?"

Leo: "Maybe."

Margaret: "Maybe a couple weeks?" 

-----

CJ: "Amtrak, the courts, federal prisons, border patrol, National Weather Service, all open, and meat inspectors will remain on the job."

Toby: "Nothing jeopardizes the sanctity of the American hamburger." 

----- 

Josh: "Why don't you just take them on disk?"

Donna: "Because I don't have a computer. Can I take a computer with me?"

Josh: "Not unless you want three federal agents trailing you home."

Donna: "Do I get to pick which three?"

[...]

Josh: "Okay, take my laptop. Start a tally of programs affected by the shutdown, and email it to me as you go. ... Don't read anything in the folder marked 'Private.'"

(Donna stares at him)

Josh (reconsidering): "Don't take my laptop." 

-----

Will: "But it's also a negotiation. You don't shoot a duck for quacking."

Leo: "Are you speaking for the Vice President?"

Will: "The quacking thing kind of gives it away, doesn't it?"

-----

Complaining kid on TV: "It's not fair. We drove all the way from Huntsville to see Grandma, and the Constitution. But the Smithsonian's closed. Now we only get to see Grandma."

(The Constitution is in the National Archives, not the Smithsonian. Also, during past shutdowns the Smithsonian remained open for a time using prior-year funds; in 2018 the museums were able to stay open for eleven days after the government shut down, before eventually furloughing employees and closing their doors.)

 -----

Leo (whispering, as Rena heads to the dumpsters): "Who's that?"

Toby (whispering): "A walking lawsuit."

-----

Josh: "You hear about the NBA rookie who pulled his first rebound the night Wilt Chamberlain pulled 55?"

Donna: "Uhm-mmm."

Josh: "Said it was the proudest day of his life. Together he and Wilt went for 34 points and 56 rebounds."

Donna: "I pulled a rebound?"

Josh: "You pulled 11 million."

Donna: "I'm Wilt Chamberlain?"

Josh: "No, you're the rookie."

Toby: "It is worth noting that Philadelphia lost that game." 

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

• This is the first time we meet the mysterious Rena (Melissa Marsala, also seen in Six Feet Under, Bringing Out The Dead and White Oleander). What program at the Department of Energy does she work for that wasn't affected by the shutdown? We'll have to wait and see, I guess.

• Familiar reporters Mark and Katie are seen in the press room.

• President Bartlet's Notre Dame mug makes another appearance.

• Remember Capitol Beat? Sometimes spelled Capital Beat, depending on which episode you're watching? That's the TV political talk program Josh was on when he got into trouble with religious conservatives in Pilot, and the show Sam was on when he got schooled by Ainsley Hayes in In This White House, and the show that broadcast live from the White House after the State of the Union address in Bartlet's Third State Of The Union and The War At Home. It's still around! Here it is in the background, talking about the political effects of the shutdown.

• We get another Martin Sheen/Jed Bartlet jacket flip. Sheen's left arm was injured at birth, making him unable to lift that arm above his shoulder - so he came up with this method of putting on a jacket.

• Leo says "Our approval's in the 30s." Remember, in the summer after Zoey's kidnapping and rescue, when the administration wanted to name Secretary Berryhill as their Vice Presidential choice in July (Jefferson Lives), President Bartlet's approval rating was around 70 (Leo said to Berryhill, "You're polling in the high 60s. Only the President's doing better."). We're told the economy is heading towards recession; it must indeed be quite an economic downturn for the President's approval to crater nearly 40 points in four months.
  

• Josh's banishment from the war room (and Abbey's eventual question "Jed ... where's Josh?" that results in his return) indicates he's still being punished for his actions that resulted in Idaho Senator Carrick switching parties (Constituency Of One). 
  

• Likewise, Abbey's return (at Leo's behest) reminds us of her departure to New Hampshire after she blamed Jed's decision to kill the Qumari Defense Minister (Posse Comitatus) for Zoey's kidnapping (Commencement through Jefferson Lives, plus a reminder that Abbey asked Jed not to come visit her and Zoey in Manchester in Separation Of Powers).
  

• The entire Zoey kidnapping crisis is recalled when CJ tells Toby the President has "been so out of it since Zoey." We also get a subtle reminder of Bartlet's multiple sclerosis, I think, when CJ asks, "What if it's something else?" (The President's diagnosis was first revealed in He Shall, From Time To Time ... and was a huge part of the final episodes of Season 2. I believe the last actual reference to his health issues affecting him came in Election Night.)
  

• Leo still wears his wedding ring. His wife left him in Five Votes Down, with the divorce becoming final in The Portland Trip.

• When CJ is telling the press about the menu Abbey will prepare for the British Prime Minister, she mentions Colorado beet salad and California green beans. In Galileo it was established President Bartlet doesn't like green beans, and also that Oregon's status as a top producer of green beans was electorally important. 
  

• There have been hints of a bit of conflict between Speaker Haffley and Senate Majority Leader Royce in the past. The first time we met Haffley in Jefferson Lives Royce rolled his eyes at a particularly outrageous statement Haffley made about the Vice Presidential choice. Here we see a couple of other Royce reactions - first, in the Republican war room as Haffley is crowing about having the upper hand over the White House, Royce has a bit of side-eye:

When the President actually arrives at the Capitol, Royce is eager to get out there and not make the President of the United States wait. Haffley, though, continues to overplay his hand to get all his ducks in a row in order to humiliate Bartlet even more ... a plot which is foiled when Josh and the President just walk out. Royce's look at Haffley after that move is yet another example of his growing disdain for the Speaker's hijinks.

• The college tuition tax credit that was a huge part of 20 Hours In America Part Two and College Kids gets a shoutout. While the President tells the staff that the credit isn't a part of this budget agreement, he feels like it has a good chance to survive down the road. Josh and Toby, who were key in coming up with the plan after getting lost in Indiana and talking to the father of an incoming college freshman who wanted things to be "just a little easier," have a neat little reaction to that.

• WHAT'S NEXT moment: After President Bartlet reveals the agreement on the budget to his staff, ending the shutdown, he says, "Okay, Abbey says I have about five minutes before dinner. What's next?" as they gather for an Oval Office meeting at the very close of the episode.

DC location shots    

• The drive (which turns into a walk) from the White House to the Capitol was shot on Constitution and Pennsylvania Avenues. You can see the National Gallery of Art in the background as President Bartlet greets the tourists. (Also note the green foliage on the trees, when it's supposedly November - in the DVD commentary for The Dogs Of War it's mentioned the show made one late-summer trip to DC for location shots that were seen in five or six early-season episodes; this scene almost certainly was included in that group.)

Here the motorcade is actually traveling on Constitution Avenue outside the National Gallery of Art - in reality I can't imagine why they would take this route instead of just going down Pennsylvania Avenue to the Capitol.

 

 

 

You clearly see the Constitution Ave sign here where it intersects with Pennsylvania Avenue. Also, there are heat waves coming off the pavement - just after the press complained about how cold it was outside the White House.

Walking on Pennsylvania Avenue toward the Capitol, with the National Gallery of Art East Building seen on the right.

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

• The C-SPAN and MSNBC logos appear. 

• We get a good look at Haffley on the cover of Time magazine. Other media outlets mentioned include Newsweek, plus polling by the (Washington) Post/ABC, the (New York) Times/CBS, and Gallup/CNN.

• As everyone realizes the Mess has closed and there's no coffee, CJ says to try Swing's at 17th and G. There is indeed a Swing's Coffee at 1702 G Street NW, just across 17th Street from the Eisenhower Executive Office Building.

• Vice President Russell invokes James Madison in the discussion about how much power the President has over the budget process. Franklin Roosevelt (FDR) also gets remembered when the prospect of delayed Social Security checks is discovered.

• Kinko's gets mentioned.

• CJ says her outfit for the state dinner is by Donna Karan, and also brings up the restaurant chain IHOP as a dinner option for the President and the British Prime Minister.
  

• When CJ tells Josh the networks are going to cover the President's trip to the Capitol live, she says, "Thanks to you they're going to interrupt Days Of Our Lives."
  

• Haffley says something about the Oval Office throwing people off-balance, and that it was "Wyeth's intent to inspire the English notion of -" before he's cut off by the President. This is a good deep dive; while the White House itself was designed by architect James Hoban in the 1790s, it was Nathan C. Wyeth who designed the Oval Office when the West Wing was expanded in 1909.

• Wilt Chamberlain and his NBA-record 55-rebound night in 1960 comes up as Josh congratulates Donna for finding out the shutdown's threat to Social Security checks. Josh's story is just that, a story - the only rookie who played for the Warriors that night, Al Attles, had seven rebounds, not just one.

• There is a bunch of background product placement in this episode:
  

• Starbucks cup and a Krispy Kreme box are seen early in the shutdown
  

• Panda Express boxes are being picked up by Rena
  

• Josh has a McDonalds sandwich box on his desk
  

• Folgers and Quaker Oats logos are seen next to the coffeemaker

• Deer Park water returns, seen often in Season 4

• Goldfish crackers appear in CJ's office (Josh told Danny Concannon in The Short List that CJ liked "goldfish," meaning the snack food; misunderstanding, Danny got an actual goldfish for her)

• Dunkin Donuts and Seattle's Best coffee cups are seen in the GOP war room

• Cans of A&W, Pepsi, and Coca-Cola are being cleaned up by Rena
  

• A Snapple bottle
  

• A bottle of Pellegrino water is seen in the Roosevelt Room
  

End credits freeze frame: The senior staffers gathering to hear the results of the President's meeting with Speaker Haffley.

Previous episode: Separation Of Powers

Next episode: Abu el Banat