Fabula
S3E6 · Gone Quiet
S3E6
· Gone Quiet

Donna Razes Josh and C.J.'s Soulless 'Why President?' Pitch

In C.J.'s office, Josh and C.J. collaboratively craft a safe, focus-group-tested pitch for Bartlet's re-election response to 'Why do you want to be President?'—highlighting jobs, medical advancements, technology, and education amid global change. Donna mocks it with derisive raspberries, branding it inauthentic and passionless, questioning if such bland promises truly motivate presidential ambition. Josh admits her point, while C.J. defuses with a wry quip about immortalizing one's face on currency. This pivotal beat exposes the campaign's messaging crisis, contrasting cautious politics with the need for raw conviction, heightening tension in their quest for Bartlet's genuine voice.

Plot Beats

The narrative micro-steps within this event

4

Josh and C.J. brainstorm a polished, politically safe answer to 'Why do you want to be President?' focusing on future jobs, medical advancements, and technology.

effort to satisfaction

Donna dismisses their crafted answer with a raspberry, signaling its lack of authenticity and depth.

satisfaction to defensiveness

Josh defends their answer, emphasizing its crisp phrases and active verbs, but Donna challenges its sincerity, asking if medical research and the internet truly motivate someone to become President.

defensiveness to realization

C.J. humorously suggests that sometimes the reason to become President is to get your face on a coin, lightening the mood but underscoring the challenge of finding a genuine answer.

realization to resignation

Who Was There

Characters present in this moment

1
Josh Lyman
primary

Defensive confidence cracking into frustrated concession, masking deeper anxiety over campaign authenticity

Josh spearheads the pitch-building with forward-looking lines on jobs, economic growth, and technology; he probes Donna's silence, launches a passionate defense highlighting 'crisp phrases' and 'active verbs,' then concedes her critique, slumping into frustrated realism amid the stalled momentum.

Goals in this moment
  • • Construct a politically safe re-election rationale
  • • Validate the pitch's rhetorical strengths against criticism
Active beliefs
  • • Focus-group language with vivid verbs sells a visionary future
  • • Admitting flaws accelerates finding Bartlet's genuine spark
Character traits
pragmatic defensive self-deprecating
Follow Josh Lyman's journey

Narrative Connections

How this event relates to others in the story

No narrative connections mapped yet

This event is currently isolated in the narrative graph

Key Dialogue

"DONNA: "That's why somebody wants to become President - medical research and the internet?""
"JOSH: "She's got a point.""
"C.J.: "Sometimes you get your face on a coin.""