Plot

C.J. realizes that she barely has any time left in office and decides to try and solve the (real world) crisis in Darfur

Darfur conflict

The Darfur Conflict was a guerrilla conflict or civil war centered on the Darfur region of Sudan. It began in February 2003 when the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army and Justice and Equality Movement groups in Darfur took up arms, accusing the Sudanese government of oppressing non-Arab Sudanese in...

, Sudan

Sudan

Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...

, along with the (fictional) crisis between Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

 and China

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

 over Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...

. C.J.'s plan involves having Germany and France propose a UN Security Council resolution on Sudan while offering China (Sudan's supporter on the UNSC) economic and military incentives to not veto the measure. A visit from an impassioned human rights activist about the genocide in Darfur horrifies C.J. and later leads to the President's approval of the plan. Kate Harper notes optimistically near the episode's end that the Chinese UN delegation passed on an immediate veto of the Sudan resolution and debate on it continues.

Adding more to her stress level, the President's son-in-law, Doug Westin, is rumored to be having an affair with his kids' nanny. C.J. is angry at Doug for embarrassing Elizabeth but also doesn't want the President to make a scheduled campaign trip for Doug's Congressional bid if it's true. Danny Concannon

Danny Concannon

Daniel "Danny" Concannon is a fictional White House correspondent for the Washington Post played by Timothy Busfield on the television serial drama The West Wing. Danny first appeared in the third episode of Season 1, "A Proportional Response," where he mentioned that he had been a White House...

makes his first appearance (outside of the season opener flash forward) since the fifth season to go on a date with C.J., and later confirms for her that Doug did have the affair. C.J. orders Doug to cancel the President's campaign trip, which he does. She weighs whether or not she'll tell Elizabeth but finds out that Elizabeth knows the truth but is keeping it private. Elizabeth asks C.J. to change the cancellation, but C.J. says she can't do it.

In a final management headache for her busy day, C.J. faces a party conflict when Josh and Matt Santos want to announce that a huge scientific project is being moved from Kentucky to Texas. This is a problem because it could ruin the re-election bid of an elderly Democratic Senator from Kentucky, even though Josh describes him as a "pious old pork hog who votes like a schizophrenic". She brokers a deal where the project deal will be announced in tandem with Santos and the President campaigning for the Senator.

During her date with Danny, where he says they should take a leap of faith together, C.J.'s beeper goes off with an emergency warning. She gets to the White House and is met by Kate Harper, but it's not about the Sudan resolution; there's a nuclear power plant in California that may be facing a meltdown.

External links

• The West Wing Episode Guide