Arctic Radar

Season	Episode
4	9

Info

Original Airdate

November 27, 2002

Written By	Story By
Aaron Sorkin	Gene Sperling

Directed by

John David Coles

"Previously on the West Wing" spoken by Sam

Sam (Rob Lowe) heads out to California to begin his campaign, leaving Toby (Richard Schiff), who's in the middle of a slump, in need of speechwriting help. Sam's suggestion: Will Bailey (Joshua Malina).

Meanwhile, a celebrated female fighter pilot is about to be dishonorably discharged for having been caught having an affair after being ordered to end it, and women's groups (not to mention the women in the White House men's lives) want the President (Martin Sheen) to do something about it.

And Donna (Janel Moloney) asks Josh (Bradley Whitford) to find out if Cdr. Reese (Christian Slater) likes her. He proceeds to tell Reese stories that endear Donna to Josh, but might be embarrassing to someone who didn't already know and like her.

Summary

Opening

C.J. is waiting for the President's motorcade to arrive so she can tell him about a female military officer who has been arrested for having an affair with another officer (of lesser rank). Leo arrives and the two talk about the officer, Vicky Hilton - Leo tells the President she could go to jail for disobeying an order. The President and Leo arrive for a cabinet meeting - where all the members stand to applaud the President. The President makes some brief comments and then leaves - Leo then tells them he will need their letters of resignation by the end of the day.

Act I

C.J. is giving her briefing when a reporter asks her afterwards about why his seat was moved - she tells him that's just the way it is. Toby corrals C.J. to ask her about Sam's campaign. Toby arrives in Sam's office where he is packing his things for California. Toby reminds Sam about things he should be doing when he gets to California.

Josh and Donna are walking through the West Wing when Josh tells Donna that he's spotted a temporary employee wearing a "Star Trek" pin and he needs Donna to tell her to take it off. Donna asks Josh if he will find out more about Jack Reese, specifically if he is interested in Donna. Amy arrives for a meeting with Josh - she's here to see him about Vicky Hilton.

Act II

Sam arrives at his campaign headquarters in California. Will Bailey is getting ready to leave on his long awaited vacation. Sam asks Will to delay his vacation by stopping in Washington to help with Toby on a speech the President will give - on January 20. Sam thinks that Will is the perfect person to help Toby on the Inaugural Speech - because Sam can't do it. He gives Will a note to give to Toby.

C.J. is giving her daily briefing and the reporter who is miffed about his seat being moved asks a question about it in the briefing. Josh comes out of his office and tells Donna he is going to see Admiral Fitzwallace. He remarks to Donna that he noticed the temp employee has removed the pin - but Donna comments that she is upset about having to take it off. Josh attempts to talk to the employee, Janice, but is rebuffed and he walks away.

Josh goes into the Mural Room to talk to Admiral Fitzwallace - Josh wants to know if there is anything that can be done about the Vicky Hilton matter without involving the President. Fitzwallace tells Josh that, if given the option, he would dishonorably discharge Hilton. Josh tells Fitzwallace - that with respect, he is going to go to Leo on the issue.

Toby is in his office trying to draft the inaugural address when Will arrives. Toby thinks that Will is there for a job on the speechwriting staff - but Will thinks he is there to help Toby with the Inauguration. Toby tells him to write up 500 words and bring it back to him the next day.

Act III

Leo finds Charlie to tell him that he needs Charlie to intercept a call the President is going to get - from the UN Secretary General. UN diplomats had their cars towed by New York City and the Secretary General is calling the President to complain.

Toby comes to see Leo - Leo has seen some remarks that Toby drafted (that would normally be done by one of the lesser speechwriters) and Leo wants to know what Toby is going to do without Sam. Toby tells Leo that he has it under control.

In the Oval Office, the President asks C.J. about the seat changes, which he has just read about. C.J. tells the President not to worry about it. Nancy comes in to tell the President the UN Secretary General is on the phone - Bartlet is about to take the call when Charlie tells the President that he can't take that call yet. Jack Reese arrives in the Oval Office to give the President a briefing.

Josh follows Jack out of the Oval Office to have the conversation that Donna asked him to have with Jack. Josh winds up telling stories about Donna that make her sound a bit crazy. When he tells Donna this, she is upset with him and asks him to talk to Jack again.

The President is on the portico having a cigarette when Leo approaches. The President asks about Berryhill - who the President is going to nominate as Secretary of State. The two talk about Vicky Hilton and the agree that it has to stay out of the Oval Office and that the President can't be seen as meddling.

Act IV

C.J. arrives in the briefing room to find Mitch waiting - she tells him that she is going to move some cameras around the room and that every time his seat is empty it will be shown on camera with a nameplate showing his name and his publication. He agrees to give up fighting about it.

Josh goes to see Jack Reese in his office to try and make Donna sound less crazy. Jack tells Josh that he doesn't want to get in the way of anything (he has the impression that Josh and Donna might be an item) - but Josh tells him that's not the case and Jack should ask her out.

The President has been doing some thinking on the Vicky Hilton issue and goes to Leo to tell him that it shouldn't matter (and uses the example of Dwight Eisenhower and Kay Summersby). Leo comes into the Oval Office with the Uniform Code of Military Justice book quoting from the section on disobeying orders. The two of them go back and forth about Hilton, but finally agree that they shouldn't do anything about it.

Josh comes to Donna's desk to tell her that Jack will probably call her - she tells him that Jack has called already and they are going out that evening. In the White House Mess - Toby is still struggling with the speech when Will arrives with his 500 words. The two exchange speeches and begin to read. Toby tells Will to stop reading his. The two talk about speechwriting and Will gives Toby the note that Sam wrote. On it Sam has written - "He's one of us." The two get to work on the inaugural address.

Quotes

President Bartlet: Good morning, Mr. Secretary, ladies and gentlemen and welcome to the final Cabinet meeting of Bartlet one. I don't know if this is true, but a Presidential historian told me that this was the most stable cabinet since Hoover's. Which is nice, but you got to think, how many other jobs were really available? But here are facts. You created over nine million new jobs, and the highest home-ownership rate on record. More than 150 new trade agreements. You created the largest expansion of college aid since the GI Bill. Cleaned up over 500 toxic waste dumps. And you did it all while eliminating 16,000 pages of federal regulations. Not bad for government work. Thank you.

Leo McGarry: I'll add my thanks, and I'll need your letters of resignation by 7:00.

Will Bailey: Well, maybe he thought that your speeches were obscurantist policy tracts lost in a cul-de-sac of their own internal self-righteousness and groaning from the weight of statistics. I'm just speculating. I can't say for sure.

Toby Ziegler: A 500-word stanza on American leadership in a globally interdependent age that moves beyond triumphalism by this time tomorrow. If it's 501, don't show it to me.

President Bartlet: [screaming] There are big signs! You can't park there! They should get towed! I hope they get towed to Queens and the Triboro is closed and there's a big craft show at Shea, a flea market or a tractor show!

Toby Ziegler: I don't understand what's happening. There's no blood going to it. I've never had to locate it before. I don't even know where to look. I'm the President's voice and, I don't want him to sound like this. There's an incredible history to second inaugurals. "Fear itself," Lincoln. I really thought I was on my way to being one of those guys. I thought I was close. Now I'm just writing for my life and you can't serve the President that way. But if I didn't write, --- I can't serve him at all.

Will Bailey: Yeah. Can I tell you three things? . . . You are more in need of a night in Atlantic City than any man I've ever met. Number two is the last thing you need to worry about is no blood going there. You've got blood going there about 13 ways and some of it isn't good. Once again I say Atlantic City. I'd say sit down at a table, go for dinner, see a show, take a walk on the boardwalk and smell the salt air. But if you're anything like me nothing after sit down at a table is going to happen.

Toby Ziegler: What's the third thing?

Will Bailey: You are one of those guys.

Trivia / Goofs

The President's cabinet resigns before the beginning of a second term as a formality - resignations are usually not accepted, though there is traditionally turnover between the two terms of a single presidency.
"APEC" is the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation
During the scene in the Oval Office where President Bartlet and Leo are debating adultery in the military Leo references Bartlet firing the US ambassador to Brazil for having an affair in the episode Lies, Damn Lies and Statistics . He is referring to Ken Cochran who was actually the US Ambassador to Bulgaria, not Brazil.
"Fear itself" is from Franklin Roosevelt's first inaugural address, not his second, as Toby suggests.
Donna once sent a fan letter to tennis player Ilie Năstase.

Cast

Co-Starring

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Arctic Radar

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