Presidential Instruction: "No Extra Cumin" (Charlie-delivered slip)

A terse, folded slip of White House stationery carrying a single clipped presidential directive forbidding the addition of "extra cumin" to Zoey Bartlet's chili. Rendered as a small, formal communication delivered or recited by Charlie Young in the residence kitchen, it functions as a comic, ceremonial assertion of presidential authority that interrupts conversation and reveals staff dynamics.

2 appearances

Appearances in the Narrative

When this object appears and how it's used

2 moments

S1E5 · The Crackpots and These Women

Kitchen Startle and Protocoled Play

The President's instruction (manifested through Charlie) operates like an objectified order: it converts a personal preference into enforceable instruction. Even if only verbal here, it functions as a tangible constraint in the scene.

Before: Held institutionally by the President's household rules; not directly present in the kitchen until Charlie delivers it verbally.

After: Now active in the kitchen as an enforced restriction (no extra cumin), influencing behavior and conversation.

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S1E5 · The Crackpots and These Women

Seasoning the Rules

The President's instruction (the message Charlie conveys) is the textual/performative object that converts a spice into a mandate. Delivered verbally, it functions less as a document and more as a voice of institutional authority intruding on a private moment.

Before: Held in protocol as an instruction from the President, unspoken to the kitchen participants.

After: Voiced by Charlie and thereby transformed into a prompt for play and mild rebellion; its literal enforcement is undermined by interpersonal dynamics.

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