Previously on The West Wing: Josh tells Sam that Leo was in treatment for Valium addiction; Charlie and Zoe take a shine to each other, and C.J. succumbs to the charms (or something) of Fishboy.
National Reconnaissance Office, Washington Navy Yard: A peon notices something suspicious on a screen displaying kilohertz satellite photographs; he calls his colleague, Jack, over. Jack wants to know how old the picture is; the first guy says that it's about twenty minutes old. Upon enlarging one small part of the screen, they determine that they are seeing "two CVEs and four destroyers." (Actually I only see three destroyers, but whatever.) Jack: "Let's get some help."
A door swings open at the Pentagon. A guy in military uniform announces to two other official types (one in full uniform, one in a sweater-vest) that, so far, they've been able to identify elements of the northern, central and western command armies, and that they all appear to be front-line divisions. They are still working up the divisional identification. He further confirms that the naval contingent consists of two CVEs and four destroyers. Sweater-Vest asks where they're going; the first guy replies, "Pakistan." Full Uniform Guy says, "I'm sold. Let's brief the COs." Sweater-Vest dials the phone; behind him we can see the Washington Monument lit up in the darkness.
Back at the White House, Josh and Donna are walking through a hallway. Josh is explaining to Donna how much she'd like caddying. Donna, naturally, is somewhat skeptical: "Don't I just lug your golf clubs around?" Josh insists it's good exercise, and tells her that she'll also be reading the greens (at least I think that's what he said; I know zilch about golf) and helping with club selection. Before he can sell her any further on the joy of being his personal pack mule, a security guard says, "There he is now." to the security guard there's a man in a heavy coat and scarf, holding an envelope. Envelope Guy asks, "Joshua Lyman?" As soon as the Josh gets a load of this guy, he whines, "Oh, maaaaaaan!" in exactly the way a teenager would if you grounded him for not doing his homework. Envelope Guy asks again: "Are you Joshua Lyman?" Josh says, "Is this Claypool again?" Envelope Guy serves him with a subpoena to give deposition to...well, somebody, probably Claypool, but before Subpoena Guy (formerly Envelope Guy) can finish, Josh asks the security guard, "Why do you let him in the building?" Subpoena Guy asks him to just sign the form to prove that he was served. Josh snatches the form muttering, "this is the forty-third time..." and since they're in the middle of a big open area with no horizontal surfaces nearby, uses Donna's back to sign it. He doesn't ask her to turn around or say anything to her at all, but a subtle gesture from each of them and he's got the paper up on her back and he's writing his name. This bit of business was accomplished so smoothly that it quietly underlined the relatively well-oiled machine that is Josh and Donna's working relationship. While he's signing it, he asks Subpoena Guy, "This is Freedom Watch, right?" Subpoena guy confirms this. Josh mutters, "You guys are real patriots." Subpoena Guy offers, "I hope this hasn't inconvenienced you too much." "Being subpoenaed? No, why would that inconvenience me?" Subpoena Guy takes his form and wishes Josh a good day. Josh: "Thank you! Drop dead!" Donna and Josh walk away, and Josh waggles the envelope up in the air to his head, says, "That's what I do now: I'm a professional hostile witness." Donna ignores this and asks, "Would I get to drive the cart?" Turns out Josh, and apparently all "real golfers," don't use carts. Donna then wonders if real golfers don't also carry their own clubs. Josh: "No." Donna: "Would you pay me extra?" Josh: "No." "Do you play in the winter?" Josh: "We'd wait until spring but I'd want you to start practicing with that bag right away." He breezes off into Mrs. Landingham's office, leaving Donna to contemplate this irresistible offer. She and her ponytail swing off in the other direction.
Josh greets Mrs. Landingham and she asks how he's doing. "I've been subpoenaed." Mrs. Landingham says, "Oh, I'm sorry, dear. Would you like a cookie?" Josh helps himself to a cookie from the giant crystal cookie jar on her desk. He mentions that POTUS asked him to come by, and Mrs. L tells him that POTUS and Leo just left for the Situation Room. (Love the sound of that: I think I'll start calling my office "the Situation Room.") Josh looks grave and takes off.
Situation Room: it's lit slightly brighter than if you were, say, hosting a séance. Whatever. POTUS and Leo burst in, and take their seats as someone places a plastic engraved sign that says "Kashmir" under a large digital clock on the wall opposite POTUS. The clock reads 4:36:31; to it is a clock reading 6:36:31 for DC time. (Yes! They got it right. I hate it when shows goof up on the simplest details.) POTUS says, "Admiral Fitzwallace?" Hey, the admiral is John "Good Times"Amos! Fitzwallace briefs the President: less than a half hour earlier, the Indian army launched an invasion along the Kashmir ceasefire line into a part of Kashmir held by Pakistan. POTUS wants to know if India's objective is clear. Fitzwallace replies that it's not. POTUS wants to know exactly what sort of force they're talking about; is it five guys in a Humvee? A guy named Mitch, who's to Fitzwallace, tells POTUS: "They committed the Fourth Motorized Infantry Division, the Ninth and Twenty-Sixth Infantry Divisions, and two other armed brigades, as well as four CVEs and two destroyers." Hey, I thought it was two CVEs and four destroyers; whatever. ["Maybe India has some kind of Transformers technology?" -- Strega] Leo: "All told?" Fitzwallace: "Three hundred thousand troops, sir." Yikes. Leo looks at POTUS, who takes off his glasses and says, "In the last twenty-five minutes?" POTUS points out this is an extremely large piece of troop movement to have happened on a whim. The admiral agrees. POTUS: "This was long planned." Fitzwallace: "Yes, sir." POTUS: "All I'm trying to do right now...I'm trying to avoid making eye contact with the CIA director." The CIA director, a white-haired guy who doesn't seem to have the decency to at least look like he knows he screwed up big, says, "Mr. President..." POTUS interrupts: "Three hundred thousand troops? I can't move my motorcade from K street to Connecticut without it showing up on a weather satellite." "We dropped the ball, sir." POTUS stares at him very seriously and slowly says, "Pick it up again, would you, please?" CIA Guy: "Yes, sir." POTUS wants to know if there's any chance this is an exercise or a threat gesture; there's a small possibility that it's the latter. Jed then wants to know if there's any nuclear activity; Fitzwallace doesn't know. POTUS snipes, "Well, I wouldn't worry about that, that's probably not important information," and glares at CIA Guy. The director of the CIA states that intense surveillance has been ordered. Leo wants to know how intense. He's informed that the nearest orbiting satellites have been diverted to the area, and the KH superplatform has been tasked into stationary orbit over the northern subcontinent." It will be six hours before it's on station. POTUS looks at his watch and orders the crisis task force activated; he wants them to be ready to give him national security briefings.
“ Toby explains that they don't have a 'guy in Pakistan'; they never got around to appointing an ambassador. Isn't that, like, a fairly huge oversight? ”
Roll the credits. (Can you believe how much happens in four minutes on this show?)
White House, later that evening. Sam and Toby are hustling through a hallway, and Sam's asking what the ambassador is saying. Toby wants to know which ambassador; Sam indicates that he means the Pakistani ambassador. Toby explains that they don't have a "guy in Pakistan"; they never got around to appointing an ambassador. Isn't that, like, a fairly huge oversight? Especially for such an embattled area? Sam can't believe it either. They breeze past Mrs. Landingham with a cursory greeting and pause outside the door to the Oval Office. Toby asks Sam, "What are you hocking me for?" Sam points out that maybe the reason Pakistan got invaded is because it's been over a year and they have no one in Pakistan. Toby says, "Yeah." They enter the office as Leo is briefing POTUS and Josh on the Pakistani defense forces. Josh can't believe all this happened without any CIA awareness. Jed tells Toby that the UN Security Council is having an emergency meeting to try to effect a ceasefire. Toby replies evenly, "Well, I feel better already, Mr. President." Sam wants to know how they could not have an ambassador in Pakistan. Jed says they were getting to it. Toby wants to know how the CIA could have missed the movement of three hundred thousand troops across the border. Josh asks if it's only conventional weapons that are involved. POTUS doesn't answer Josh but asks Toby, "Toby, how much do you know about India and Pakistan?" Toby replies, "I know that any war between these two countries that begins with conventional weapons isn't gonna end that way." POTUS tells Josh to take care of briefing the Hill. Just then, C.J. wanders in (shouldn't they have the door closed?) and says, "Good evening," in a bright-yet-tentative, what-are-you-all-talking-about-here-without-me? kind of way. She apologizes and says that Charlie and Mrs. L had stepped away, and wonders if they'd like her to go back and wait outside. Leo says they were just breaking up. C.J. asks if she can "tell the room there's a full lid" (odd expression) and Leo says yes. C.J. says she'll send them home, and leaves. Leo says he'll brief her in the morning. Just outside the office, Charlie is typing away as Zoe wanders in. She says hi and he stands up to greet her. Zoe asks if her dad is in and Charlie says he'll tell POTUS that she's here to see him. She declines and Charlie tries to insist but Zoe says she'll just wait; then she says, "So Charlie, do you ever get a night off?" He responds, "No, actually." Zoe: "That's too bad." Charlie's cool: "No, it's all right." Zoe: "No, I meant 'cause it'd be cool to go out or something." Charlie, congenial and professional and completely unprepared for where this is going: "Yeah." Pause. The light dawns and his expression changes. "I'm sorry...you mean, with me?" Zoe doesn't really answer but says, "Charlie, you know you don't have to stand up the whole time I'm in a room." Charlie agrees; "Yeah. I don't know why I do that," and sits down. Just at that moment Josh breezes out and greets Zoe, who heads toward her father's office with a last cute glance at Charlie, saying, "Anyway...too bad." As Josh and Sam hustle out past him, Charlie sits in his chair contemplating the fact that the daughter of his boss, who just happens to be the President of the United States, has just asked him out. That was rather adorable.