Qumar Investigation Reopened — Bartlet Cuts Campaign Short
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
Bartlet questions Leo about his upcoming meeting with Fitzwallace, leading to Leo revealing the reopened Qumar investigation.
Bartlet, concerned, decides to return to Washington immediately upon learning about the Qumar investigation.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Calm, focused, and neutral; performing the administrative duty of connecting the principal to the caller without emotional involvement.
Margaret interrupts briefly to hand off the incoming call, stating 'You've got the President.' Her entrance is businesslike and practical, initiating the exchange by making sure Leo takes the line.
- • Ensure Leo receives the President's call promptly
- • Maintain orderly flow of communications in the office
- • Presidential calls are highest priority
- • Clear, minimal interruption is the most effective support
Implied seriousness and professional gravity; his information carries weight rather than theatricality.
Admiral Fitzwallace is not on-screen but is the source of the grave intelligence Leo references; his briefing triggered Leo's urgency and the President's decision to abandon the campaign and return to Washington.
- • Convey critical security information to the White House
- • Ensure the administration understands potential legal/military exposure
- • The reopening of Qumar's investigation is a significant national-security and legal issue
- • The White House must act quickly to manage diplomatic and military implications
From buoyant and relaxed to suddenly sober and focused — quick mental recalibration from politician to commander-in-chief.
President Bartlet engages in casual conversation about the campaign and market, then falls silent and visibly concerned when told Qumar reopened its investigation; he immediately issues the decision to return to Washington, abandoning the campaign moment.
- • Ascertain the severity of the Qumar development
- • Reassert control by returning to Washington to manage the crisis
- • Protect the Presidency and national security from legal/political exposure
- • Information from Leo and Fitzwallace is reliable
- • The Presidency's responsibilities override campaigning
- • Immediate presence in Washington is necessary to manage fallout
Measured and composed outwardly; urgency and seriousness under the surface as he transmits bad news without melodrama.
Leo answers the President's call, sustains light campaign banter, then shifts to concise, controlled reporting — referencing the quicksheet and relaying Fitzwallace's finding that Qumar reopened the investigation, and arranging an immediate return to Washington.
- • Alert the President to a national-security escalation
- • Move the President from campaign mode back to crisis mode
- • Maintain command-level calm while initiating logistical response
- • Admiral Fitzwallace's briefing is trustworthy and actionable
- • National security supersedes campaign optics
- • The President must be informed promptly and decisively
Objects Involved
Significant items in this scene
The Dow is referenced early in the call as contextual background for the President's earlier buoyancy and as a concurrent problem. It frames the stakes of the day—economic volatility alongside security threats—making the Qumar revelation comparatively decisive.
The quicksheet briefing is invoked explicitly as the source of the material that prompted Leo's meeting with Fitzwallace. It functions narratively as the condensed intelligence that converts a political call into a national-security crisis, the documentary kernel behind Leo's terse disclosure.
Organizations Involved
Institutional presence and influence
The Sultanate of Qumar is the catalyst for the event: its decision to reopen the investigation into the missing plane, as reported via military channels, creates potential legal and reputational exposure for the U.S. and forces immediate presidential attention.
Jennings-Pratt is referenced as the financial actor present in the fund tied to the Dow's movement; its mention supplies economic context and explains initial presidential optimism that is soon displaced by Qumar's security threat.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
"The news of Qumar reopening the investigation into Shareef's missing plane prompts Leo to inform Bartlet, leading to his decision to return to Washington immediately."
"The news of Qumar reopening the investigation into Shareef's missing plane prompts Leo to inform Bartlet, leading to his decision to return to Washington immediately."
"Fitzwallace's warning about potential war crimes charges for the President escalates the Qumar investigation's stakes, prompting Bartlet's immediate return to Washington."
"Fitzwallace's warning about potential war crimes charges for the President escalates the Qumar investigation's stakes, prompting Bartlet's immediate return to Washington."
Key Dialogue
"LEO: "You don't meet with Fitzwallace about nothing.""
"LEO: "Qumar's reopened the investigation.""
"BARTLET: "Yeah, all right. Well, we're coming home now.""