Skippy (informal associate of President Bartlet, S01E17)

Skippy appears as an off‑stage, familiarly nicknamed figure whose presence shapes a presidential personnel decision through absence rather than action. Mentioned repeatedly as the reason President Bartlet "waited a day," Skippy functions as a reluctant narrative fulcrum: a person whose anticipated response or status delays a federal appointment. The character remains unobserved and unnamed beyond the sobriquet, operating rhetorically to signal close, informal ties to the President and to dramatize the weight of interpersonal judgment in high‑stakes staffing choices.