Parting Tone — Leo's Divorce Revealed
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
Bartlet, visibly eager to leave, is handed documents for dinner by Mrs. Landingham while Nancy prepares for his schedule.
Mrs. Landingham and Bartlet spar over a perceived 'tone' as frustration seeps into their routine exchange.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Professional composure with underlying awareness; she notices the shift but does not intrude.
Nancy offers to have the Tokyo Exchange sent to the President's bedroom and assists with last-minute logistics, contributing to the domestic rhythm; she remains quiet as Leo's announcement shifts the room's emotional landscape.
- • Carry out the President's household requests smoothly
- • Keep routines intact during transitions
- • Avoid escalating sensitive interpersonal exchanges
- • Maintaining small routines preserves normalcy
- • Household staff should remain unobtrusive in personal conflicts
- • Discretion is part of service
Surface impatience masking deeper need to exert control; quickly becomes commanding and protective when confronted with a friend's private crisis.
President Bartlet is packing to leave the Oval and engages in clipped domestic banter with Mrs. Landingham and Nancy before being pulled back into crisis mode by Leo's announcement. He shifts from impatience to paternal authority, ordering Leo to 'fix this' and framing a private rupture as a solvable problem.
- • Leave the Oval and get to the residence as planned
- • Contain Leo's personal crisis quickly and re-establish order
- • Protect Jenny (as he perceives her) and maintain institutional calm
- • Private problems should be fixed decisively, like policy problems
- • As a leader and friend he can and should intervene to repair personal damage
- • Delay or ambiguity in personal matters breeds institutional distraction
Absent physically but present as a source of pain and moral concern for Leo and Bartlet; presumed sadness or resolve given she is asking for a divorce.
Jenny does not appear but is the focal subject of Leo's announcement; her request for a divorce catalyzes the emotional exchange and affects the behavior and demands of those present.
- • (Inferred) Seek separation from Leo to resolve personal unhappiness
- • (Inferred) Assert her needs and create distance
- • (Inferred) Personal happiness cannot be sacrificed to professional demands
- • (Inferred) Divorce is necessary for her well-being
Shock and a tired, defensive resignation; attempting to minimize conflict while also protecting himself from added guilt or blame.
Leo enters solemnly, delivers the news that he has moved out and Jenny is seeking a divorce, answers Bartlet's rapid-fire questions with defensive restraint, and ultimately retreats after Bartlet's impatient command. He is physically still at the door as Bartlet leaves, emotionally stunned and guarded.
- • Convey the facts without creating a larger scene
- • Avoid making Bartlet feel guilty or responsible
- • Protect his own dignity and limit additional emotional labor
- • Some personal wounds cannot be repaired by authority or immediate fixes
- • Confessing the situation risks provoking misplaced anger from Bartlet
- • He must contain the personal fallout to continue performing professionally
Calm practicality with quiet exasperation about Bartlet's impatience; emotionally steady even as the room's tenor shifts.
Mrs. Landingham performs her household role with steady professionalism — offering reading and arranging calls — and attempts to modulate the President's tone before exiting. She acts as a domestic anchor but steps back when Leo arrives, having set the stage for the intimate exchange.
- • Ensure the President's routine is maintained and discreet
- • Diffuse unnecessary tension in the room
- • Protect the President's domestic space and privacy
- • Practical orderliness soothes institutional leaders
- • Private matters should be handled with discretion
- • Her role is to shield the President from avoidable personal upset
Objects Involved
Significant items in this scene
The folded 'Tokyo Exchange' newspaper functions as a mundane domestic prop offered by Nancy and accepted by Bartlet, signaling his desire to shift from work to home life. It punctuates the ordinary routines that contrast with the sudden emotional rupture when Leo arrives.
Location Details
Places and their significance in this event
Leo's dining room (his family home) is implicitly central to the divorce news—Bartlet asks whether the call should come during 'the dining room' and Leo's move out references this domestic space as the site of marital breakdown and absence.
The Oval Office serves as the scene's central stage: a place where domestic routine and institutional authority collide. It houses the quick, polite rituals of departure (reading lists, scheduling) and instantly becomes the forum for a private confession that destabilizes staff equilibrium.
The President's residence is referenced repeatedly (calls, dining, bedroom) as Bartlet prepares to go home; it operates as the destination that should provide refuge but is here only referenced, highlighting the irony that the private sphere may not be safe from political life.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
"Leo's personal crisis with his daughter Mallory parallels his later admission to Bartlet about his impending divorce, both highlighting the cost of public service."
"Bartlet's initial harsh reaction to Leo's divorce news is later softened by his sincere apology and offer of support, showing the depth of their friendship."
Key Dialogue
"MRS. LANDINGHAM: "There's no need to adopt a tone Mr. President.""
"LEO: "I moved out of the house. Jenny's asking me for a divorce.""
"BARTLET: "Fix this, Leo.""