Toby Alerts CJ to Barrie's Media Blitz; She Summons Him for Showdown
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
Toby shifts the conversation to warn C.J. about General Ed Barrie's planned media appearances to criticize the administration.
C.J. orders Carol to bring General Barrie to the White House immediately, asserting her authority over the military chief.
Toby offers assistance, but C.J. declines, and they briefly discuss the impending confrontation between Leo and Tribbey over Ainsley's hiring.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Defiant antagonism toward administration
Retiring General Barrie looms as the absent aggressor, his Sunday media blitz across three shows dissected and targeted for disruption, positioning him as the crisis catalyst whose critiques demand immediate White House seizure.
- • Publicly savage military readiness policies
- • Exploit retirement spotlight for partisan leverage
- • Administration undermines Army readiness
- • Media evasion beats direct confrontation
Untapped operational anchor
Judy named by CJ as overlooked DOD press contact amid Barrie intel scramble, highlighting comms gaps.
- • Bridge Pentagon-White House
- • Coordinate defense narratives
- • Direct contacts pierce bureaucracy
- • Timely loops avert crises
Icy command masking controlled fury at institutional sabotage
CJ strides from hallway into her office, pivoting sharply from Ainsley defense to absorb Toby's Barrie intel, probes DOD evasion and Judy contact, summons Carol with precise instructions for incognito Pentagon retrieval, rebuffs Toby's aid, and quips on Leo-Tribbey clash with anticipatory wit.
- • Neutralize Barrie's media threat before broadcast
- • Reassert White House dominance over military chain-of-command
- • DOD opacity demands direct intervention
- • Presidential authority overrides general's convenience
Proactive vigilance
Sam Seaborn referenced as intel source who extracted Barrie's schedule from Mark Gottfried, fueling Toby's warning.
- • Gather critical media intel
- • Arm comms team against threats
- • Early warning prevents damage
- • Networks yield key leaks
Alarmed persistence tempered by patient camaraderie
Toby pursues CJ from hallway into office, urgently delivers Barrie blitz details sourced from Sam/Gottfried, confirms DOD non-cooperation, compliments her beauty amid Ainsley talk to defuse, offers retrieval help which she declines, and banters on Leo-Tribbey maiming risks.
- • Alert CJ to impending PR crisis
- • Bolster team unity via compliment and aid offer
- • Barrie's blitz threatens administration core
- • Ainsley tensions distract from real threats
Focused deference with mild logistical concern
Carol responds from outside, enters CJ's office promptly, jots down Pentagon mission to fetch General Barrie incognito for West Wing avoiding press, queries convenience and Army chain-of-command, then exits to execute under CJ's unyielding directive.
- • Accurately capture and execute CJ's retrieval orders
- • Clarify operational feasibility amid chain tensions
- • CJ's authority supersedes Army protocols
- • Incognito transport minimizes media exposure
Pragmatic conduit
Mark Gottfried credited as Toby/Sam's broadcast intel pipeline leaking Barrie's Sunday lineup.
- • Maintain show flow intel
- • Facilitate guest bookings
- • Schedules are public leverage
- • Aides extract amid chaos
Resilient amid hazing (inferred from defense)
Ainsley Hayes frames the opening dialogue pivot, defended by CJ against sexist staff resentment as a capable Republican woman, her hire fueling internal tensions that Toby endures before shifting to Barrie crisis.
- • Integrate as Associate Counsel
- • Prove merit beyond ideology
- • Sexism taints opposition to her
- • Conservative intellect bolsters team
Ferocious partisanship brewing
Lionel Tribbey cited in Toby's maiming joke as Ainsley's incoming boss, his partisan fury over the Republican hire hyped as 'dinner theater' by CJ.
- • Protect Democratic legal purity
- • Challenge Ainsley's perch
- • Republican hire undermines core
- • Hierarchy demands confrontation
Mentioned as target of General Barrie's media attacks.
Location Details
Places and their significance in this event
Pentagon invoked as Barrie's fortress and Carol's mission target, its granite halls and classified lairs framed for incognito breach to yank the general amid chain-of-command defiance, heightening stakes of White House intrusion into military domain.
West Wing positioned as confrontation arena where Carol must deliver Barrie press-free, its shadowed back channels and locked doors pulsing with executive resolve to shatter the general's evasion in raw power nexus.
Organizations Involved
Institutional presence and influence
Capitol Beat caps Toby's blitz rundown as third prong in Barrie's readiness shredding, solidifying the threat scale that ignites CJ's retrieval order amid intel from Gottfried.
Department of Defense implicitly looms through press office evasion and Barrie's Army chief status, its fiscal warfare via ratings ploys challenged by CJ's chain-override dispatch.
DOD Press Office stonewalls CJ's intel probe on Barrie's blitz, refusing schedule confirmation and forcing Carol's direct Pentagon raid—exemplifying bureaucratic bulwark that escalates PR crisis into kinetic retrieval.
Meet the Press flagged as Barrie's Sunday launchpad for readiness broadsides, catalyzing Toby's alarm and CJ's dispatch in a blitz spanning rivals—thrusting broadcast arenas into White House crosshairs.
Late Edition slotted in Barrie's multi-show evisceration alongside Sam and Cokie, heightening urgency as Toby details the coordinated assault prompting CJ's incognito countermeasures.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
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Key Dialogue
"TOBY: "Ed Barrie is doing the Meet the Press on Sunday. Did you know that?" C.J.: "No. This Sunday?" TOBY: "Day after tomorrow.""
"C.J.: "Carol! I need to see General Barrie. I want you to go to the Pentagon and get him and I don't want him anywhere near a press line when he comes into the West Wing." CAROL: "Earliest possible convenience?" C.J.: "I could give a damn if it's convenient or not.""
"C.J.: "Hey, has Leo told Tribbey about his new Associate Counsel yet?" TOBY: "I'll check the wire to see if any maimings have been reported, but I don't think he's told him yet." C.J.: "Should be some decent dinner theater.""