Toby's Anguished Probe: Leo Confirms Hoynes Knows the MS Secret
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
Toby sits in visible distress on a bench, his head in his hand, as Leo slowly approaches from the Residence, signaling tension and an impending confrontation.
Leo informs Toby that the President is still on the phone with State, momentarily delaying the confrontation, as distant thunder rumbles ominously.
Toby directly asks if Hoynes knows about the President's condition, cutting through the tension with a sharp question.
Leo confirms Hoynes is one of the 16 who know, revealing the extent of the secret's spread and deepening Toby's sense of betrayal.
Toby presses further, asking if Hoynes believes the President won't run again, underscoring the political implications of the secret.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Coldly calculating ambition (inferred from beliefs)
Hoynes is invoked by name and confirmed by Leo as one of the 16 aware of Bartlet's MS diagnosis, revealed to believe the President won't seek re-election, crystallizing his opportunistic betrayal without physical presence.
- • Position for 2002 presidential ticket using insider knowledge
- • Exploit perceived Bartlet vulnerability for personal gain
- • Bartlet's MS ensures he won't run again
- • His polling and maneuvers justify preemptive power grab
Visibly shattered anguish laced with seething fury over betrayal
Toby sits despondently on a bench with head in hand, looks up intensely as Leo nears, then unleashes pointed questions confirming Hoynes' knowledge of the MS secret and his disbelief in Bartlet's re-election, driving the confrontation's emotional core.
- • Extract brutal truth about Hoynes' inclusion in the secret circle
- • Gauge the depth of disloyalty threatening Bartlet's future
- • Hoynes' actions stem from insider knowledge of the MS diagnosis
- • The administration's unity crumbles under concealed ambitions
mentioned as still on the phone with State in the Residence; subject of Hoynes' belief that he won't run again
Location Details
Places and their significance in this event
The Residence serves as the referenced origin for Leo's approach and the site of President Bartlet's ongoing secure call with State, underscoring his dutiful isolation amid personal crisis; it heightens tension by contrasting private diplomacy with the portico's raw exposure of internal fractures.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
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Key Dialogue
"TOBY: "So Hoynes knows?""
"TOBY: "Hoynes is one of the 16?" LEO: "Yeah.""
"TOBY: "And he thinks the President won't run again?""