In Excelsis Deo
Toby Zeigler discovers a homeless Korean War veteran died wearing his coat and scrambles to secure a proper military funeral, while the White House wrestles with hate-crimes fallout, a political blackmail threat, and holiday strains.
The episode crackles with holiday pageantry and private unraveling, beginning amid a festively decorated White House where staffers bicker over Dickensian costumes, Santa hats and millennium talk. The comic surface collapses when Toby Zeigler follows a police lead to the Korean War Memorial and finds a homeless man — Walter Hufnagle — dead, wrapped in the coat Toby had donated to Goodwill with his business card in a pocket. The discovery detonates the episode’s moral center: Toby refuses to treat the man as anonymous trash. He presses officials, tracks down the man’s brother in a soup line under an overpass, and insists on a military funeral, clumsily offering money, offering to pick up the brother, and eventually arranging an honor guard. Toby’s discomfort, humility and fierce insistence on dignity drive the human through-line.
Parallel to the funeral plot, the administration confronts explicit and political crises. A brutal hate-crime leaves seventeen-year-old Lowell Lydell in critical condition and then dead, forcing C.J. Cregg to navigate a fraught briefing about whether to push hate-crimes legislation now. C.J. angrily frames the assault as a grotesque, performative violence and wants a strong rhetorical stand; Leo McGarry counsels strategic caution, warning that legal punishment for motive veers into punishing thought. The debate captures the show’s tension between moral clarity and political calculus: staffers float test balloons, worry about timing, and triangulate public reaction.
Complications germinate in personnel: Josh Lyman panics over a brewing smear campaign. Lillienfield, an antagonist who can expose damaging history, knows Leo was a recovering alcoholic and that pills (Valium) were involved. Josh pushes Sam to bring in a fixer — Laurie, an elite contact who once raised millions and has access to compromising information — to blunt the attack. Sam and Josh visit Laurie; she recoils at the tactic, mocks their sanctimony, and refuses to cooperate. Josh loses his temper, apologizes, and the episode marks the staff’s ethical erosion in the name of survival. Leo, who had them tailed, scolds them for crossing lines the White House shouldn't cross, and the reveal that Leo will need an exit strategy after the holiday underscores the stakes: political survival can demand personal sacrifice and strategic maneuvering.
The domestic textures of the staff life puncture the weighty plots. President Bartlet sneaks out to a rare bookstore, trading barbs and book recommendations with Leo, and chooses modest, erudite gifts for his daughters. Josh gives Donna a carefully chosen book and a tender note that breaks through his usual bluster; Donna melts, and the pair hug in front of the bullpen, a small human victory amid chaos. C.J. fends off a fellow reporter, Danny, and amid policy battles accepts a dinner that might be both personal and professional. Mrs. Landingham tells Charlie about losing her twin sons in Vietnam, a memory that resonates with the episode’s attention to veterans and loss.
Tight staging binds politics and ritual. The President entertains schoolchildren at the White House tree, trading comic jabs and then absorbing terrible news — Lowell’s death — before composing himself and calling the grieving parents. Meanwhile, Toby arranges Walter Hufnagle’s burial with military honors. The episode stages deliberate contrasts: a boys’ choir sings “Little Drummer Boy” inside the Mural Room even as an honor guard fires rifles at Arlington and a folded flag is presented to Walter’s brother. The montage refuses to let ceremony obscure inequity; the whistle of gun salutes and the choir swell together, insisting that dignity belongs to the forgotten as well as the famous.
By episode’s end, the White House staff stands exposed and human. Political calculations, personal loyalties, and moral instincts collide: Leo contends with his vulnerable past and the need for an exit plan; Josh and Sam confront how far they’ll go to protect a mentor; C.J. negotiates conviction and prudence; and Toby, awkward and trembling, insists that a homeless veteran receive the honor owed to his service. The episode closes on a somber montage at Arlington and the Mural Room, the choir’s carol threading through the funeral rites, leaving the administration forced to reckon with the costs of service, public life and private conscience.
Events in This Episode
The narrative beats that drive the story
Holiday cheer blankets the White House, but beneath the festive surface, anxieties simmer. Toby Zeigler, initially detached from the seasonal frivolity, receives a jarring call from D.C. police. The narrative plunges him into the stark reality of a homeless Korean War veteran, Walter Hufnagle, found dead, wrapped in Toby's donated coat. Toby's initial discomfort quickly morphs into a quiet, insistent dignity as he challenges the casual dismissal of a veteran's death. Simultaneously, Josh Lyman navigates the treacherous waters of political survival, discovering Lillienfield's looming threat to expose Leo McGarry's past struggles with alcoholism and Valium. Josh's desperation to protect his mentor clashes with Leo's firm refusal to engage in unethical countermeasures, setting a moral compass for the administration. The weight of real-world tragedy crashes into the White House as news breaks of Lowell Lydell, a gay high school senior, brutally attacked in a hate crime. C.J. Cregg, impassioned, immediately pushes for hate-crimes legislation, encountering Leo's more cautious, politically calculated approach. The President himself, moments after charming schoolchildren with playful banter, absorbs the devastating news of Lowell Lydell's death, his composure a testament to the heavy mantle of leadership. This act establishes the core conflicts: Toby's personal quest for dignity, Josh's ethical dilemma, C.J.'s moral conviction versus political pragmatism, and the President's struggle to balance public duty with private grief, all against the backdrop of a holiday season fraught with both joy and profound sorrow.
A light, petty White House morning — staff argue over holiday pageant details and whether the millennium begins in 2000 or 2001 — is interrupted when Ginger announces a call …
Amid frantic holiday stagecraft and petty argument about millennial trivia, the White House’s quotidian cheer is pierced by duty: the D.C. police ask for Toby, turning levity into urgent business. …
Early morning at the Korean War Memorial Toby Zeigler is led to a blanket-covered body and learns the man is dead. A police officer reads an expired license—Walter Hufnagle—and then …
At the Korean War Memorial Toby follows up on a coroner tip and stands over a blanket-covered body. A D.C. officer reveals the man is Walter Hufnagle and that Toby's …
At the Korean War Memorial Toby Zeigler discovers a dead man who had been wearing the coat Toby donated. When a casual park officer shrugs off the unattended body as …
Donna's playful Christmas list opens the beat — a light, flirtatious moment that reveals Josh's distracted, evasive state when he crumples her note out of sight. He rushes to Leo, …
In a tense, holiday-cluttered office, Josh bursts in desperate to neutralize Lillienfield's impending political blackmail with a morally dubious preemptive strike. Leo shuts him down — refusing to bury dirty …
The administration's internal struggles intensify as C.J. and Sam clash over the strategic timing of hate-crimes legislation, Sam advocating for caution while C.J.'s moral outrage burns. Her frustration with the triviality of her Secret Service code name, 'Flamingo,' underscores the tension between personal identity and public role. Josh, desperate to shield Leo from Lillienfield's impending attack, presses Sam to contact Laurie, a 'fixer' with access to compromising information on influential Republicans. This decision marks a significant ethical erosion, a willingness to cross lines for survival. Meanwhile, the personal toll of public service surfaces as Mrs. Landingham shares a heartbreaking story with Charlie, recounting the loss of her twin sons in Vietnam on Christmas Eve 1970, a poignant echo of the episode's themes of veterans and sacrifice. Toby, driven by an unyielding sense of justice, continues his solitary quest, seeking information about Walter Hufnagle, the deceased veteran, and his family. President Bartlet, attempting a brief escape from the White House pressures, 'sneaks out' for Christmas shopping at a rare bookstore, offering a glimpse into his private, intellectual side. Yet, even this brief respite is shattered when Leo, amidst book selections, gravely informs Bartlet of the urgent need for an 'exit strategy' due to his vulnerable past. Josh, present during this exchange, absorbs the full weight of Leo's impending political sacrifice, solidifying his resolve to protect him.
C.J. marshals a gaggle of schoolchildren for a White House visit; President Bartlet disarms them with warm, improvisational banter — feigning confusion about his title, teasing a boy about his …
During a bright, public moment—C.J. shepherding schoolchildren and President Bartlet trading playful banter—the mood is shattered when Charlie quietly tells Bartlet that Lowell Lydell has died. Bartlet swallows the news, …
In a brisk hallway exchange C.J. and Sam crystallize a larger conflict: C.J.'s moral urgency for moving hate-crimes legislation collides with Sam's political caution. A seemingly small, personal beat — …
In a closed-door hallway exchange-turned-confession, Josh pulls Sam aside and reveals a looming political threat: Lillienfield has intimate knowledge of Leo's past Valium use and rehab. Frantic and indebted, Josh …
Toby walks the Korean War Memorial, pauses at the bench where a homeless Korean War veteran was found dead, and approaches an information stand. Awkwardly insisting he is not police, …
Toby, driven to secure dignity for a homeless Korean War veteran found dead in his coat, approaches the memorial information stand and awkwardly explains his purpose. The stand worker — …
Toby's journey for Walter Hufnagle's dignity leads him to the desolate underpass of the Washington Bridge, where he finds George, Walter's 'slow' brother, among the city's homeless. Toby, deeply uncomfortable but driven by an unshakeable moral imperative, delivers the news of Walter's death and discovers the veteran's Purple Heart. His clumsy attempts to offer money and arrange a military funeral are met with a quiet, dignified refusal, highlighting the profound disconnect between his world and theirs, yet solidifying his resolve to honor Walter. Back at the White House, C.J. and Danny's flirtatious sparring continues, punctuated by Danny's persistent attempts to win her over. Leo, however, grounds C.J. in the political reality of the hate-crimes debate, cautioning her against legislating thought, a tension that underscores the administration's internal ethical tightrope walk. The act reaches its dramatic peak as Sam and Josh confront Laurie, the fixer. Laurie, sharp and unyielding, immediately sees through their thinly veiled attempt to dig up dirt on Lillienfield. She lambastes their hypocrisy, exposing their willingness to compromise their 'good guy' image for political survival. Josh, fueled by desperation and a rising temper, lashes out, insulting Laurie and threatening her with the IRS. Sam's immediate apology and Josh's subsequent, humbled retraction reveal the moral cost of their actions, leaving them stripped of their sanctimony and facing the stark reality of how far they are willing to fall to protect Leo.
In the Oval, Mandy pushes to turn a small presidential outing into press fodder while Bartlet firmly asserts a private boundary: this is a quiet, personal ritual, not a photo …
President Bartlet quietly stages a small, clandestine Christmas outing to a rare-book shop and insists on privacy despite Mandy's media instincts. He walks Josh through the covert logistics — agents, …
In a busy White House hallway, Danny's playful pursuit of C.J. — offering a mock 'list' of reasons she should date him — briefly punctures the administration's gravity. C.J. parries …
In a cramped White House hallway C.J. fends off Danny's flirtatious teasing—her trademark sarcasm and a glancing reveal of her ‘Flamingo’ code name keep things light—then immediately pivots when Sam …
In a quiet aisle of a rare-books shop, President Bartlet and Leo trade holiday banter that fractures into a fraught, private admission. Leo, voice low, forces the conversation from festive …
In a cramped rare-books aisle a petty spat between Mandy and Josh about photographers ripples outward: Mandy's jab about "a few photographers" exposes underlying friction, and Josh disarms it with …
In C.J.'s office at night a playful, intimate beat breaks through the day's political turmoil: C.J. mock-reads a careful list of reasons to avoid workplace romance while Danny presents a …
In C.J.'s office at night a playful moment with Danny dissolves into a serious policy spat when Leo instructs C.J. to 'dial down the rhetoric' on hate-crimes. C.J. answers with …
The consequences of their desperate actions crash down on Josh and Sam as Leo, revealing he had them tailed, confronts them with cold fury. He lambastes their unethical attempt to dig up dirt, reiterating, 'It's not what we do,' a powerful reaffirmation of the administration's core principles, even as their loyalty to him drove their transgression. Josh, humbled, acknowledges the difficult path ahead for Leo. Meanwhile, C.J. finally accepts Danny's dinner invitation, but with strict, almost comical, boundaries, attempting to control the personal amidst the professional chaos. A tender, unexpected moment of human connection unfolds between Josh and Donna; his carefully chosen book on skiing, accompanied by a heartfelt note, shatters his usual bluster, moving Donna to tears and an embrace that transcends their professional roles. The White House, still adorned for Christmas, hosts a children's choir, a stark contrast to the somber events unfolding. Mrs. Landingham, recognizing Toby's profound commitment, insists on joining him for Walter Hufnagle's funeral, a quiet act of solidarity. President Bartlet confronts Toby about using his name, but Toby, with trembling conviction, passionately defends Walter's right to dignity and honor, even expressing a hope that all homeless veterans might 'come out of the woodworks.' Bartlet, moved by Toby's unwavering moral stance, grants his implicit approval. The episode culminates in a powerful, emotionally charged montage: the innocent voices of the boys' choir singing 'Little Drummer Boy' in the opulent Mural Room are juxtaposed with the stark, dignified military funeral of Walter Hufnagle at Arlington Cemetery. George, Walter's brother, receives the folded flag, a silent testament to a life reclaimed from anonymity, as Toby and Mrs. Landingham stand witness. The scene insists on a reckoning with the costs of service, public life, and private conscience, demanding that dignity extend to all, regardless of status.
Late at night Sam and Josh appear at Laurie's house, nervous and desperate, to recruit her for a dirt-quiet, ethically dubious maneuver to protect a colleague from a looming political …
Late at night Sam and Josh come to Laurie's door asking for criminal, character-attack intelligence to silence a congressman threatening a colleague. Laurie instantly recognizes the request as an unethical …
On Christmas Eve in Leo's office a sharp moral argument about hate‑crimes explodes into a larger test of the staff's ethics. C.J. insists the law must punish bias as well …
On Christmas Eve in Leo's office, the chief of staff abruptly exposes that he had Josh and Sam tailed, detonating a moral and professional rebuke. Leo's calm fury—"It's not what …
At the end of a holiday press briefing C.J. converts newsroom banter into a deliberate power play: she sidles Danny into a private exchange, masks a policy challenge about hate-crimes …
In the bullpen, Donna opens Josh's small Christmas gift and reads a handwritten note that strips away her cheerful professional armor. Josh, trying to stay composed, stumbles through pleas for …
In the Mural Room, President Bartlet offers a warm, public moment—shaking a child's hand and greeting a visiting choir—briefly humanizing the presidency. The camera cuts to the Outer Oval where …
In the Mural Room's fleeting holiday brightness — applause, a children's choir and President Bartlet greeting visitors — Toby slips into the outer Oval and is quietly but sharply confronted …
During a holiday reception the President brusquely rejects Mandy's attempt to turn his private Christmas shopping into a photo-op, then notices Toby at the door — an abrupt tonal pivot …
Toby rushes into the Oval with a raw, personal mission: a homeless Korean War veteran was found dead wearing a coat Toby had donated, and Toby has used whatever pull …
A quiet, elegiac montage closes the episode: the boys' choir sings 'Little Drummer Boy' as Bartlet confronts Toby about arranging military honors for a homeless Korean War vet found in …