Talking Points 

The president and staff are about to head for Brussels to sign an international free trade deal that Josh has just spent a lot of time and effort negotiating, to nearly everyone's ... See full summary »

Director:

Richard Schiff

Writers:

Aaron Sorkin (created by), Eli Attie

Stars:

Dulé Hill, Allison Janney, Joshua Malina

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
Dulé Hill	...	Charlie Young
Allison Janney	...	C.J. Cregg
Joshua Malina	...	Will Bailey
Janel Moloney	...	Donna Moss
Richard Schiff	...	Toby Ziegler
John Spencer	...	Leo McGarry
Bradley Whitford	...	Josh Lyman
Martin Sheen	...	President Josiah Bartlet
Mary McCormack	...	Kate Harper
Jesse Bradford	...	Ryan Pierce
John Amos	...	Percy Fitzwallace
Lily Tomlin	...	Deborah Fiderer
Anna Deavere Smith	...	Nancy McNally
Steven Culp	...	Speaker of the House Jeff Haffley
Sam Robards	...	Greg Brock

Storyline

The president and staff are about to head for Brussels to sign an international free trade deal that Josh has just spent a lot of time and effort negotiating, to nearly everyone's satisfaction; at the 11th hour, the CEO of an IBM-like company tells Josh that the first effect of the new agreement, of which his company is a huge beneficiary, will be the immediate transfer of 17,000 programming jobs to India; the head of the communications workers' union, which is representing the affected programmers, brings one of the programmers to Josh's office, and they refuse to leave, leading Josh to question the underlying adverse effects of the trade deal. Throughout the episode, Ryan tries to make Josh care that he's completing his internship that day, while Donna pesters Josh to bring her on the Brussels trip in an effort to make her a more active player in west wing activities, eventually leading to a trade-off that will mean even bigger things for Donna in the long run.

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

TV-14

Did You Know?

Trivia

Although mentioned as a major media conglomerate, MertMedia does not actually exist.

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Goofs

Josh hands a passport to Donna, she looks at it and asks "What is this?" Josh replies "It's your Diplomatic Passport." The passport Josh hands Donna is maroon in color which is an "Official Passport" issued to Members of the U.S. Government. Diplomatic Passports are black and ordinary citizens are issued blue passports.

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Quotes

Josh Lyman: We made a promise.
President Josiah 'Jed' Bartlet: There was a man named Canute, one of the great Viking kings of the 11th Century. Wanted his people to be aware of his limitations, so he led them down to the sea and he commanded that the tide roll out. It didn't. Who gave us the notion that Presidents can move the economy like a play-toy? That we can do more than talk it up or smooth over the rough spots? It's a lie. What we really owe that union is the truth.
Josh Lyman: We run around saying free trade creates high-paying jobs.
President Josiah 'Jed' Bartlet: And it ...
[...]

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Connections

References The Exorcist (1973)

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Soundtracks

West Wing Main Title
(uncredited)
Written by W.G. Snuffy Walden
Performed by Pete Anthony

User Reviews

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 April 2004 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Stage 23, Warner Brothers Burbank Studios - 4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

John Wells Productions, Warner Bros. Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

42 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1