The Midterms
Encyclopedia
"The Midterms" is the 25th episode of The West Wing
and the 3rd episode of the second season.
is out of the office for the entire time, but communicates over the phone with the staff. Sam
persuades an old law school friend to run in his home district for the House, but when the friend is accused of racism (due to picking white juries for black suspects during his tenure as D.A., and membership in an all-white fraternity while he attended college), Leo
pulls the plug, cutting off money and cancelling a visit by the President. Sam, powerless to offer the support that he promised, must watch as his friend's campaign is destroyed.
Toby
is obsessed with finding a new way to lean on terrorist groups. Specifically, he wants groups like the KKK
to have to register with the FBI. Bartlet
consoles Toby by saying that the shooting has frustrated both of them because it was not merely an assassination attempt; it was a lynching
attempt against Charlie
. Charlie has been having a hard time coping as well, which strains his relationship with Zoey
until the end of the episode.
President Bartlet becomes obsessed with an old political foe - an opponent in his first race for the House - who is running for a seat on a local school board back in Manchester. The President focuses more on the school board race than on the Democrats' attempt to win back the House, in part because the attempt on Charlie's life has brought his former opponent's bigotry to the forefront of his mind. The President admits to Toby that he cannot remember how he beat the foe in the long-ago election.
On the night of the election, the White House hosts a reception for talk radio hosts. Amongst them is a conservative advice show host, Dr. Jenna Jacobs (a caricature of Dr. Laura Schlessinger, played by Claire Yarlett
). When the President joins the reception, Jacobs remains seated, and the President notices her. He attacks Jacobs' position on homosexuality by listing off other Scriptural taboos (touching a pig's skin, wearing clothing woven of two different threads, etc.). He ends with the admonishment, "In this building, when the President stands, nobody sits." The embarrassed Jacobs hesitantly rises, and the President tells Toby that this is how he beat his old foe. Sam takes some of her appetizers.
At the end of the night, some of the staffers visit Josh at his home. The results of the election come in: twelve incumbents all lost their elections, resulting in the Republicans maintaining control of Congress.
Apparently turning their attention to the rights of hate groups such as the one responsible for Josh's shooting, the staffers marvel at the notion that a democracy protects the rights of those who would destroy it. They consider the notion then respond with the refrain, "God bless America."
The West Wing (TV series)
The West Wing is an American television serial drama created by Aaron Sorkin that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1999 to May 14, 2006...
and the 3rd episode of the second season.
Plot
This episode is fast paced, taking place over the course of 12 weeks at the end of the 106th Congress, and focusing primarily on the run-up to the midterm elections. JoshJosh Lyman
Joshua "Josh" Lyman is a fictional character played by Bradley Whitford on the television drama The West Wing. For the majority of the series, he was White House Deputy Chief of Staff in the Josiah Bartlet administration...
is out of the office for the entire time, but communicates over the phone with the staff. Sam
Sam Seaborn
Samuel Norman "Sam" Seaborn is a fictional character portrayed by Rob Lowe on the television serial drama The West Wing. He is best known for being Deputy White House Communications Director in the Josiah Bartlet administration throughout the first four seasons of the series.-Creation and...
persuades an old law school friend to run in his home district for the House, but when the friend is accused of racism (due to picking white juries for black suspects during his tenure as D.A., and membership in an all-white fraternity while he attended college), Leo
Leo McGarry
Leo Thomas McGarry is a fictional character played by John Spencer on the television serial drama The West Wing. The role earned Spencer the 2002 Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series. McGarry's character, the former United States Secretary of Labor, begins the series as the White...
pulls the plug, cutting off money and cancelling a visit by the President. Sam, powerless to offer the support that he promised, must watch as his friend's campaign is destroyed.
Toby
Toby Ziegler
Tobias Zachary 'Toby' Ziegler is played by Richard Schiff on the television serial drama The West Wing. For most of the series' duration he is White House Communications Director.-Creation and development:...
is obsessed with finding a new way to lean on terrorist groups. Specifically, he wants groups like the KKK
Ku Klux Klan
Ku Klux Klan, often abbreviated KKK and informally known as the Klan, is the name of three distinct past and present far-right organizations in the United States, which have advocated extremist reactionary currents such as white supremacy, white nationalism, and anti-immigration, historically...
to have to register with the FBI. Bartlet
Josiah Bartlet
Josiah Edward "Jed" Bartlet is a fictional character played by Martin Sheen on the television serial drama The West Wing. He is President of the United States for the entire series until the last episode, when his successor is inaugurated...
consoles Toby by saying that the shooting has frustrated both of them because it was not merely an assassination attempt; it was a lynching
Lynching
Lynching is an extrajudicial execution carried out by a mob, often by hanging, but also by burning at the stake or shooting, in order to punish an alleged transgressor, or to intimidate, control, or otherwise manipulate a population of people. It is related to other means of social control that...
attempt against Charlie
Charlie Young
Charles 'Charlie' Young is a fictional character played by Dulé Hill on the television serial drama The West Wing. For the majority of the series, he is the Personal Aide to President Josiah Bartlet.-Creation and development:...
. Charlie has been having a hard time coping as well, which strains his relationship with Zoey
Zoey Bartlet
Zoey Patricia Bartlet is a fictional character played by Elisabeth Moss on the television serial drama The West Wing. Zoey is the youngest of President Josiah Bartlet and Abbey Bartlet's three daughters, and is more prominently featured in the series than either of her sisters.Zoey and...
until the end of the episode.
President Bartlet becomes obsessed with an old political foe - an opponent in his first race for the House - who is running for a seat on a local school board back in Manchester. The President focuses more on the school board race than on the Democrats' attempt to win back the House, in part because the attempt on Charlie's life has brought his former opponent's bigotry to the forefront of his mind. The President admits to Toby that he cannot remember how he beat the foe in the long-ago election.
On the night of the election, the White House hosts a reception for talk radio hosts. Amongst them is a conservative advice show host, Dr. Jenna Jacobs (a caricature of Dr. Laura Schlessinger, played by Claire Yarlett
Claire Yarlett
Claire Yarlett is a British-born American actress, best known for her role as Bliss Colby in The Colbys, the spin-off series to the 1980s prime-time soap opera Dynasty....
). When the President joins the reception, Jacobs remains seated, and the President notices her. He attacks Jacobs' position on homosexuality by listing off other Scriptural taboos (touching a pig's skin, wearing clothing woven of two different threads, etc.). He ends with the admonishment, "In this building, when the President stands, nobody sits." The embarrassed Jacobs hesitantly rises, and the President tells Toby that this is how he beat his old foe. Sam takes some of her appetizers.
At the end of the night, some of the staffers visit Josh at his home. The results of the election come in: twelve incumbents all lost their elections, resulting in the Republicans maintaining control of Congress.
Apparently turning their attention to the rights of hate groups such as the one responsible for Josh's shooting, the staffers marvel at the notion that a democracy protects the rights of those who would destroy it. They consider the notion then respond with the refrain, "God bless America."
Trivia
- The biblical tirade that President Bartlet unleashes on Dr. Jacobs is based on an anonymous email that Sorkin received. He notes that every effort was made to find the original author of the email to give them proper credit on the episode but searches came up empty.
- In the Sixth Season, Congressman Matt SantosMatt SantosMatthew Vincente "Matt" Santos is a fictional character on the American television show The West Wing, played by Jimmy Smits. His initial appearance is as a Democratic U.S. Representative from Houston, Texas. According to West Wing writer and producer Eli Attie, Santos was based on the then...
is in his third term as US Representative for Texas's 18th congressional districtTexas's 18th congressional districtTexas District 18 of the United States House of Representatives is a Congressional district that serves much of inner city Houston and the surrounding area...
. This means that he must have been elected for the first time in these midterms
- Sam points out that his former law school classmate-turned-congressional hopeful attended OberlinOberlin CollegeOberlin College is a private liberal arts college in Oberlin, Ohio, noteworthy for having been the first American institution of higher learning to regularly admit female and black students. Connected to the college is the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, the oldest continuously operating...
and Duke Law School. Later in the episode he is dropped from the list of candidates receiving top-priority from the White House based in part on the racial implications of having been a member of an all-white fraternity. Oberlin College, however, does not and has never had fraternities or Greek life of any kind.
External links
- The West Wing Episode Guide
- Letter to Dr. Laura – Many of the president's biblicalBibleThe Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
references in his comments to Dr. Jacobs are thought to have come from a letter circulated online in early May 2000.