Bartlet Confronts MS Poll Catastrophe
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
The devastating poll results are revealed: 74% believe MS is fatal, 71% wouldn't vote for a sick leader, and key demographics abandon Bartlet.
Bartlet delivers the crushing line, 'They may be right,' acknowledging the political death sentence the numbers represent.
Joey confirms there's no good news in the poll, sealing the scene's tone of irreversible crisis.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Grim realism laced with exhaustion
Already seated, agrees with Sam's minimization pre-polls, then delivers gut-punch analysis: 'You just lost Florida' and flags 74% fatal belief as worst stat, sharpening the blade.
- • Highlight most damaging metrics
- • Force confrontation with electoral reality
- • Florida's loss is irreversible math
- • Public misperception of MS amplifies damage
Defensive skepticism cracking into grim acceptance
Sits tensely after arguing polls' meaninglessness to Joey via Kenny, listening as Josh reads the devastating Michigan results, his earlier defensive logic undermined by the raw numbers' onslaught.
- • Minimize poll impact through context arguments
- • Bolster team morale against bad data
- • Polls lack true context without education
- • Bartlet's trust reservoir can offset hypotheticals
Anxious dread masked by procedural focus
Puts on jacket pre-entry, uses 'Sagittarius' code, taps Joey's shoulder amid heavy sighs, then sits coiled as polls confirm doom, his anxiety palpable in the hush.
- • Secure entry and initiate briefing
- • Gauge Joey's data for strategic pivots
- • Secrecy protocols are non-negotiable
- • Personal connections temper crisis brutality
Somber detachment shielding professional duty
Seated somberly, avoids Toby's gaze initially, confirms no photocopies, then bluntly responds 'No, sir' to Bartlet's plea for good news, her data oracle role peaking in merciless honesty.
- • Deliver unvarnished poll truth
- • Uphold oath of no copies for secrecy
- • Data demands raw presentation
- • No silver linings in catastrophe
resigned
enters with Leo, greeted by staff who rise, interrupts to ask how many know Kenny's last name, concedes 'They may be right' to MS being fatal, asks Joey if any good news
- • humanize the group amid crisis
- • concede political reality of MS diagnosis
Calm reliability under scrutiny
Seated as Joey's interpreter, translates Sam's pre-poll defense to her, remains steady as his name sparks Bartlet's humanizing interrupt and Leo's dismissal, bridging amid the data storm.
- • Accurately convey communications
- • Maintain low profile in secrecy
- • Interpretation ensures equity
- • Names foster unnecessary risks
Stone-faced professionalism amid inner tension
Guards the basement door stoically, cracking it open only at Toby's 'Sagittarius' code, sealing the group inside for the poll revelation's unyielding containment.
- • Enforce access protocols rigidly
- • Protect confidentiality of high-stakes meeting
- • Code words prevent leaks
- • Physical barriers safeguard national security
Objects Involved
Significant items in this scene
Josh seizes and reads aloud from Joey's papers the Michigan poll's carnage—1,170 voters, 74% fatal MS view, 71% reject ill governor, women 55+ at 78% opposition, 62% Democrats/65% liberals bolt over lies—functioning as the unassailable evidence gutting reelection hopes, no photocopies preserving its volatile power.
Location Details
Places and their significance in this event
Code-locked basement chamber hosts the intimate seven-person huddle where Michigan polls are dissected in press-proof isolation, stairs descending into stale tension amplifies the ritual of defeat, symbolizing the administration's plunge into MS disclosure's electoral abyss amid external Haitian chaos.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
"Oliver's exposure of Abbey's interstate prescription violations mirrors the poll's exposure of Bartlet's MS—both reveal the administration's vulnerability through medical secrets."
"Oliver's exposure of Abbey's interstate prescription violations mirrors the poll's exposure of Bartlet's MS—both reveal the administration's vulnerability through medical secrets."
"Bartlet's admission 'They may be right' about the political consequences of his MS diagnosis foreshadows Toby's later revelation of the same diagnosis to Donna, showing the ripple effect of the truth."
"The poll revealing public distrust of Bartlet's concealed MS parallels Oliver Babish's exposure of Abbey's medical ethics violations—both show the cost of secrecy."
"The poll revealing public distrust of Bartlet's concealed MS parallels Oliver Babish's exposure of Abbey's medical ethics violations—both show the cost of secrecy."
Key Dialogue
"C.J.: "You just lost Florida.""
"BARTLET: "They may be right.""
"BARTLET: "Joey, is there any good news there at all?" JOEY: "No, sir.""