Differences in The West Wing World

For recent differences between the "West Wing" world and our own, see the particular episode it turned up on: at the top of most pages of second and third season shows there are "Query" listings under the writer, and the date of broadcast. Those Queries will direct you to different aspects of the show.

Creating a "living" (fictional) character is a monumental task. Creating a group of believable characters is, of course, even greater. And creating a whole world should be approached with fear and trepidation and a good research assistant.

We have developed questions about how this world works. At first we tried to divide up our Queries into what we saw as Continuity Problems (internal consistency) and World Differences. But the lines began to blur after awhile and some things didn't fall neatly into one group or the other. So we are will now divide our Queries into some broad fields.

Some of Our Queries are Things We are Confused About, Some Are Questions From Other Viewers To Which We Actually Have Answers. There is no order to the following list --- numbers are just to keep things straight (Another list with different Queries (within some of the same categories) is under Continuity Queries):

1. White House Staffers
   • How Many People Actually Work for the White House
   • What Are The Real Job Titles for White House Personnel?
   • Why don't Charlie and his sister get the usual death benefits, life insurance, or college money from the death of their policewoman mother killed "in the line of duty"?
   • Plus Continuity Queries.
2. The Cabinet & Other Branches of Government
   • Does the House really take several Hours to Do Voice Votes?
   • Are Any Supreme Court Justices the Same in the Two Worlds?
   • Do our various branches of government really work late at night?
   • Plus Continuity Queries.
3. Law
   • How could a Prosecutor these days use Peremptory Challenges to eliminate Potential Black Jurors?
4. Politics, Primaries and Polls
   • Why would someone seeking the Democratic nomination for President, rush to campaign in South Carolina?
   • Plus Continuity Queries.
5. The Military and NASA
   • How Could the Mission Commander of the Space Shuttle have been in Houston when the Shuttle was in Orbit?
   • Does the U.S. Government Use French Missiles?
   • Why Would an F117 (first strike BOMBER) Be On a Routine Patrol Over Iraq? [#22]
   • Does the U.S. Military Ever Take Rescued Pilots to Allied Nations Instead of U.S. Bases or Ships?
   • Are There 1st Lieutenants in the Coast Guard and Does the Coast Guard Do Its Own Weather Forecasting?
   • Would the Chief of Staff of the Army only have Three Stars and Would He Have a Lieutenant as His Aide?
   • What is the Distinguished Combat Service Medal?
   • Is the CH-47 helicopter a SeaHawk or a Chinook?
6. The Constitution and the Declaration of Independence
   • Does the Constitution Require Cabinet Meetings?
   • The New Hampshire Signer to the Declaration of Independence Spelled his Name With Two T's so Why Does His Descendent Spell His Name With Only One T? [#22]
   • Can a Person be Appointed to the U.S. House of Representative Even Just Temporarily? [#6]
   • Who Was In Charge While the President was in Surgery and Coming out from under the Anesthetic?
7. Inexplicable Oddities
   • How are The Ten Commandments numbered? [#101]
   • Have Physicists Come Out With a Theory of Everything?
   • Is Vicodin a Schedule II or a Schedule III Drug?
8. Necessary & Deliberate (though disconcerting) Changes
   • How Could a Presidential Election Have Been Held in 1998 without disrupting all of history?
   • What Economic Theory Does That World Have That We Don't?
   • Was Alan Greenspan not necessary for the improved economy in this world? [#17]
   • What World Leaders Are The Same and Which Ones Are Different?
9. Miscellaneous
   • When Was Verizon Formed [#23-24]
   • Does the Eagle In the Presidential Seal Turn Its Head In Times of War? [#22]
   • Do All Colleges & Universities Have Fraternities?
   • Is Indonesian a Language and Can Government Officials of that Nation Talk to Each Other? And Why Would a Batak Have a Javanese Name?
   • Why would Josh be dealing with an Insurance Company for a Job related injury?