The West Wing
S3E0
· Isaac and Ishmael

Agent Probes Ali's Unpermitted Rally Arrest

In the shadowy confines of a dark office during the White House lockdown, the Agent sharply questions Raqim Ali about his arrest two years earlier. Ali defensively affirms it but insists charges were dropped. The Agent discloses the specifics: an unpermitted rally, instantly linking Ali's past activism to suspicions of radical Islamist sympathies. This pivotal revelation ratchets interrogation tension, framing innocent protest as potential terrorism precursor and deepening the narrative's exploration of profiling amid national panic.

Plot Beats

The narrative micro-steps within this event

3

Agent confronts Ali about his past arrest, establishing suspicion through legal history.

neutral to confrontation

Ali defends himself by noting the charges were dropped, attempting to mitigate the agent's suspicion.

defensive to assertive

Agent reveals the specific nature of Ali's arrest—holding a rally without a permit—escalating tension by implying potential radical associations.

assertive to accusatory

Who Was There

Characters present in this moment

2
Raqim Ali
primary

Defensive resolve masking underlying frustration

Raqim Ali sits under scrutiny, defensively acknowledging the two-year-old arrest while insisting charges were dropped, his response clipped yet firm, bracing against the implication that his activism fuels terror profiling.

Goals in this moment
  • • Minimize the arrest's perceived threat
  • • Assert innocence to deflect suspicion
Active beliefs
  • • Dismissed charges prove no wrongdoing
  • • Profiling equates protest with peril unjustly
Character traits
defensive resilient forthright
Follow Raqim Ali's journey
Several FBI Agents
primary

Calculated suspicion laced with procedural urgency

The FBI agent leans into the interrogation, sharply confirming Ali's arrest details with pointed questions, disclosing the rally permit violation to probe deeper into potential radical ties, his tone methodically accusatory in the dim office tension.

Goals in this moment
  • • Verify and contextualize Ali's criminal history
  • • Establish connections between past activism and current terror suspicions
Active beliefs
  • • Past arrests signal potential extremism risks
  • • No detail is too minor in national security probes
Character traits
methodical suspicious interrogative
Follow Several FBI …'s journey

Location Details

Places and their significance in this event

1
White House Dark Office

The dark office serves as a claustrophobic interrogation bunker during White House lockdown, its shadows amplifying the verbal joust over Ali's rally arrest, confining the exchange to raw suspicion and defense, symbolizing institutional isolation in terror's grip.

Atmosphere Oppressively dim and tense, choked by night shadows and unspoken accusations
Function Interrogation chamber for high-stakes questioning
Symbolism Embodies profiling's cold machinery and prejudice's vise
Access Lockdown-sealed, limited to interrogators and suspect
Scarred table under low light Night's unyielding grip through windows

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

"AGENT: "You were arrested two years ago?""
"ALI: "Yes, and the charges were dropped.""
"AGENT: "You were arrested for holding a rally without a permit.""