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Written by: Bradley Whitford, Directed by: Andrew Bernstein
- Takes Place:
- Broadcast: Sunday, January 15, 2006
- Query: Where is Kazakhstan?
- Temporary Note: A scene has been added to the page on the previous episode
- C.J. gets away from the office for a late dinner with Danny after some She seems little rushed and after some chit chat, she tells him,
- "I'm surprised you called. I vaguely remember shunning you."
"Dignity's not my forte...."
"A night out; this is like a week in Aruba."
"Except it's cold and dark.... I was making a joke.
"Oh, you don't have to do that. Relaxing makes me nervous. It feels like I'm missing something.... So, what's up?
"What's up?
"Why am I here?
"You really want me to...?
"Cut to the chase; I do....
"I wanted to see you."
"That's it?" They talk about politics, politicans, the press, journalists and after awhile she says, "...You think I'm not aware that I'm living the first line of my obituary right now?"
"...What are you working on?
"Right now? I'm trying to keep China and Russia from annihilating the Northern Hemisphere over oil in Kazakhstan. What are you working on?
"A couple of House races.... Have you heard anything about Doug Westin?
"...it looks like the President's son-in-law might be the next Freshman Congressman from New Hampshire.... Yeah, and I guess he doesn't care about being his own man anymore. He's asking the President to fly up and stump for him in Manchester...."
Let's get a move on here."
"I think he may be banging the nanny.... It's just a rumor. There's no official corroboration but it's flying around pretty heavy up there and it could break any minute. The President still has a lot of political enemies in New Hampshire. They might want to create a circus or... just hurt him for spite. C.J. gets distracted by this info and can no longer concentrate on being away from the office and she gets up and starts walking away.
""Can I see you again?
"Sure, we're swell.
"When?"
"Soon as we're out of office."
- C.J. now she has the problem of the president's son-in-law to add to the situations in Kazakhstan and the killings and refugee problem in Darfur in the Sudan which she tries to deal with by negotiating with the French and German ambassadors. She has an idea that might work to the benefit of both the Kazakhstan and the Sudan problems. But this is delicate and she doesn't have answers when Steve Laussen from Refugees' Rights Alliance tries to convince her to do something. He tells her:
- "When the babies die, the mothers don't know how to put them down so they carry them around — on this planet, on your watch."
"Yeah."
"You remember the picture of the Vietnamese monk who lit himself on fire to protest the war? I used to think that guy was nuts. Now, it seems like the only logical response."
"It won't help."
"We need strong preemptive action led by the Bartlet Administration.
"Overwhelming American military might? Followed by a decade of nation building in a part of the world where many consider us infidels so that we might bring forth a new and benevolent democracy?"
"Of course not. Come on, C.J., when did it become naîve to try to put an end to genocide?" She can't tell him that she is trying something that involves other nations and so he thinks they don't care enough.
- C.J. is being pulled in several directions and finds she needs Danny again (the phone call almost kills "their" fish) and in exchange for his help, he insists that she have dinner with him. She agrees and gets some confirmation on the son-in-law situation. Then she confronts Doug Westin to get him to release the President from campaigning with him for the House seat he is running for. And then it is back to international crises including the situation in Darfur. She arranges something with the Germans and the Chinese and tells Bartlet, who is worried about the Chinese and the situation in Kazakhstan.
- "We're out of time. We've all been hypnotized by the complexity of this thing in the Sudan; the EU, the UN, State. This isn't a solution but it's a start.... This could even help us in Kazakhstan."
- And then we are back with another attempt at a dinner/date between C.J. and Danny. C.J. tells him,
- "I'm sorry about the other night."
"Why?"
"Because, I was behaving like the type-A, career woman, freak automaton that I so very much do not what to become."
"Please."
"I wanted to see you— And I haven't felt that in a long time and I just got all awkward and antagonistic.... But don't get me wrong: I don't want to see you again until after the inauguration."
"You won't have to."
"I want to do my job. I want to suck every morsel of meat off this experience before it's over...."
"That was an attempt at a real date the other night."
"And this?"
"Another attempt. Hey, if I'd have wanted to publish that story, I wouldn't have given you the heads-up. I can't write that kind of crap anymore. I don't— I don't even know if I want to be a reporter anymore."
"Really?"
"Doug Westin's libido broke the camel's back."
"What do you want to do?"
"I don't know. Can I ask you something?"
"Yeah."
"Why'd you come here tonight?"
"Because you made me promise to."
"Why'd you come?"
"I wanted to see you...."
"Uh, I'm flying a little blind here. I'm halfway through my life and I'm never quite sure if I'm doing anything right until I'm completely done doing it wrong...."
"So this may come out wrong."
"I forgive you."
"Incrementalism is not an option. Forced into a heroic posture."
"Heroic can be good."
"Feels funny."
"You can do it."
"Uh, we're both about to fall of a cliff and I don't know what I'm going to do with the rest of my life except I know what I don't want to do. And on Inauguration Day you're going to be released from that glorious prison on Pennsylvania Avenue with.... So, if I'm going to jump off the cliff and you're going to get pushed off the cliff, why don't we hold hands on the way down?"
C.J.'s pager goes off. "Oh, my God. Oh, my God."
"You okay?"
"...I have to go."
"Okay."
"I have to go."
"Go, go."
- When she gets back to the White House, Kate tells her,
- "Some kind of nuclear accident.
"Oh, Lord. A weapon?
"A power plant.
"Is it Russia?
"San Andreo, California. They think it might blow up.
For anyone interested in guest stars of this episode (as well as more information),
let us recommend the West Wing Episode Guide.
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#711 "Internal Displacement"
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