Five Votes Down

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From NBC:
Presidential Chief of Staff Leo McGarry (John Spencer) needs five more House votes to pass a bill restricting the sale of automatic firearms -- but the cost might be too high, especially if he has to go to the unpredictable Vice President (Tim Matheson) to help put them over the top. The staff's annual financial disclosure statements prove to be thorny for Toby (Richard Schiff), whose innocent technology stock purchase last year proved to be wildly profitable, which raises eyes due to his association with an expert in the field. In addition, Leo's long hours on the job cause an unforeseen crisis at home, and the President (Martin Sheen) unintentionally mixes up the potent medications he receives for his ailing back.

[Joey Lucas]

From The Official Companion:

As the episode begins, Bartlet is speaking at a black-tie event in a hotel ballroom. The audience is comprised of Democrats who’ve paid five hundred dollars a plate to hear the President speak, and from the energy in the room, Bartlet’s been giving them their money’s worth. Bartlet knows how to work it, especially when he’s preaching to his own choir. As Bartlet energetically discusses a vital gun control, word comes to Leo backstage that they’ve lost five votes. As Leo takes in the bad news, the President ramps it up for the final crescendo: We’re going to win on Wednesday! As the audience stands and cheers, the band strikes up “Happy Days Are Here Again” and the President is taken out through the kitchen of the hotel by his Secret Service detail. After such an outstanding speech, everyone’s upbeat, although Toby thinks the President blew the D-section. On the down low, Josh informs C.J. they lost the five votes, and they’re trying to find out who. C.J. keeps here composure.

The group brushes past event volunteers and hotel employees lining the corridors, all wanting to glimpse the President and be part of the excitement. Toby can’t help asking Bartlet about the D-section. The President admits he gave it a little polish, right there on his feet. As they reach the motorcade, Charlie reminds Bartlet of the first lady’s instructions, to take his back medication. Bartlet can imagine what her tone was. Three members of Josh’s fan club shout out “We love you, Josh!” C.J. rolls her eyes. “It helps not to know him.” Chatting, debating, arguing and laughing, the group gets to their cars and moves out. With hustle and bustle, energy and chaos, and fast-paced, breathless dialogue, it’s the classic walk-and-talk.

Back at the White House, the mood of celebration is overshadowed by the intense need to win the vote on the gun bill. Now that they’ve publicly announced that the bill will pass, they have seventy-two hours to get it done, and it doesn’t matter how.

LEO: There are two things in the world you never want to let people see how you make ‘em: laws and sausages.

The staff devises a strategy. They’ll attend to the three defectors, Katzenmoyer, Wick and O’Bannon, individually. Hoynes can deliver Tillinghouse, but Leo wants to exhaust every option before he depends on the vice president to save Bartlet. Mandy says that as a diversion they can talk up the human-interest aspect of their financial disclosure statements. Toby says he owns the tuxedo he’s wearing, twenty-three dollars, and a 1993 Dodge.

Leo gets home after 2:00 A.M. his wife, Jenny (Sara Botsford), asks him where’s he’s been. Leo tries to explain the gun bill emergency, but Jenny cuts him off; she wants to know what she could possibly change at two in the morning. As they argue, Leo notices a small gift-wrapped box. It’s a gift for him, a wristwatch. It’s their anniversary and he forgot.

Toby does, in fact, have more than twenty-three dollars in his pocket. He explains to Leela Radner (Jillian Armenante), a White House counsel, about a stock he bought last year, his first-ever foray into the market. Without lifting a finger or breaking a sweat, Toby turned his $5,000 into $125,000. Radner knows the story: 71% of the increase came after a Cal Poly professor testified before the Commerce Committee on Internet stocks. She also knows Toby arranged for the professor, his old college roommate, to testify. Radner asks Toby if he knows manipulating the market is a federal crime. He should have known his $125,000 came with a few strings – should he talk to lawyer? “You’re talking to one right now,” she replies.

Scanning the Financial Disclosure Report, Donna tells Josh he won the award for “Best Gift Valued Over Twenty-five Dollars”: A $1,189 Vianatelli silk smoking jacket from Ms. Sarah Wissinger. He was also the runner-up with a $345 antique scrimshaw cigarette holder.

Leo knows he’s in the doghouse at home, and is arranging a silver service dinner to apologise to Jenny. He’s ordered a Harry Winston choker to be delivered from New York and a violinist to play during dinner. Margaret (NiCole Robinson) declares he’s spending too much money. Leo says Margaret can squeeze the life out of a nickel better than anyone, but Margaret shoots back: She’s not making $40,000 a pop on the lecture circuit. Leo demands she stop reading the disclosure reports.

As he sets out to retrieve the votes that jumped ship, Josh proclaims he will kick ass. The congressmen want big concessions for their votes, but Josh is determined to play hardball. These people should be grateful the White House remembers their names. Leo gives Josh the green light.

Toby’s stock windfall looks bad, and Sam advises him to hire a lawyer for precautionary measures. It’s better to be on the offensive, and Sam’s happy to help Toby after Toby supported Sam during the Laurie situation. Unable to let a good opportunity pass her by, C.J. sticks her head in Toby’s office, says she’s a little short for lunch, and asks Toby if he has a hundred and twenty-five thousand she could borrow.

Hunting for votes, Josh want to reel in Congressman Katzenmoyer (Mark Blum), a forty-something man with the demeanour of an insurance salesman. Josh wastes no time asking if Katzenmoyer’s constituents hunt quail with Uzis. Katzenmoyer tries to justify himself. He won his district with just 52% of the vote, he needs to raise $10,000 a day for re-election, and is only getting $6,500. If the NRA targets him, he’ll lose. He can’t give them his vote, not right now. Josh argues that in two years, after the election, 55,000 more people will be dead.

JOSH: Forgive my bluntness, and I say this with all due respect, Congressman, but vote “yes,” or you’re not even gonna be on the ballot two years from now.
KATZENMOYER: How do you figure?
JOSH: You’re gonna lose in the primary.
KATZENMOYER: There’s no Democrat who’s challenging me.
JOSH: Sure there is.
KATZENMOYER: Who?
JOSH: Whomever we pick.

Josh paints a picture for Katzenmoyer. If he failed to cast his vote in favour of the gun control bill, the party would dig up a challenger and bring in Bartlet, whose popularity in Katzenmoyer’s district is far-reaching. The moment there is a photograph of Bartlet endorsing a challenger, the congressman’s finished.

JOSH: President Bartlet’s a good man, he’s got a good heart. He doesn’t hold grudges. (beat) That’s what he pays me for.

Josh isn’t done kicking asses. He arranges to meet with Chris Wick (Jay Underwood), a Hollywood type who surrounds himself with aides and greets Josh with “dude.” Josh kicks out the aides without blinking and tells Wick to “Shove it, dude, we’re not in the frat house anymore.” Josh continues on the attack. Wick had no idea what weapons are even banned in the bill but he’s determined to stand in opposition just to prove a point. Wick says he’s taken for granted, he’s been in the House a year and he’s had one photo op with President. Where’s the courtship? This one’s easy, morals aside; Josh buys Wick off with a game of chess and a glass of brandy, photographers included. He has two of the five votes back.

Mandy and C.J. are cooing over the diamond choker Leo got for Jenny, and Sam kids Toby he should invest in a few of those. “There’s literally no one in the world I don’t hate right now,” says Toby. Leo has to choke down his pride to ask for Hoynes’s help in turning Tillinghouse, but first he’s going to try to convince Congressman Mark Richardson (Thom Barry) that his vote would be better spent on the other side.

Leo and Richardson take a walk. Richardson knows exactly what Leo is up to and he says he’s voting no. The congressman wants to know what happened to the TEC DC-9 and the TEC 22 and the Striker 12 and the Streetsweeper? Richardson tells Leo he didn’t fight for them and that he’s just interested in keeping the White House strong. Leo says if the White House isn’t strong, he can’t do anything. And a whole generation of African American men is being eaten alive. Richardson says the bill is a waste of money. He tells Leo if he writes a law that saves some lives, he’ll sign it. Richardson advises Leo not to lecture him on being a leader of black men.

So Leo has to see Hoynes. Leo goes home for his dinner with Jenny first and sees a cab waiting. Inside, there’s a couple of suitcases at the bottom of the stairs. Jenny tells Leo she can’t do it anymore. It’s not the anniversary, it’s everything. Leo says this is the most important thing he’ll ever do. Jenny asks if it’s more important than his marriage.

LEO: It is more important than my marriage. Right now, these few years, while I’m doing this, yes, of course it’s more important than my marriage. I didn’t decide to do this myself, Jenny, there were many discussions.

Jenny relays a message: Margaret called to confirm his nine o’clock meeting with Hoynes. Leo couldn’t even make time to apologise for missing their anniversary. Leo swears he was only going to be forty-five minutes, but Jenny tells him to take his time, she’ll be at the Watergate.

[Joey Lucas]

From The Official Companion (cont.):

Unable to postpone the inevitable, Leo dutifully goes to see Hoynes. He’s shaken up from the night’s events: he’s subdued and distracted. Somewhat concerned for Leo, Hoynes assures him he’ll deliver Tillinghouse, no problem. Switching gears, he asks Leo, “When was the last time you went to a meeting?” Leo’s puzzled: Hoynes explains he goes once a week in a basement office at the Old Executive Office Building. With three senators, two cabinet secretaries, a federal judge, and two agency directors. All our people. It looks like a card game, and maybe Leo should go and reconnect with himself once in a while.

Josh is in more hot water over the disclosure report. Mandy tell him he received the gifts on July 3, and he and Mandy broke up on July 9. A mere coincidence? Josh assures her that they weren’t presents to say thanks for the rollicking time in bed. Meanwhile, Leo is avoiding questions, telling everyone that last night with Jenny went great.

The staff is congregating in the Oval Office when the President comes in dressed like he’s about to go fishing and spouting nonsensical advice. It’s clear that Bartlet’s on another planet. C.J. asks if he took any of his back pills, the Vicodin or the Percocet? Bartlet asks, “I wasn’t supposed to take both?”

Considering his boss’s mental state, Sam decides this is a good time to bring up Toby’s stock windfall. Helpfully, Mandy says Toby could resign, but Sam suggests that to avoid even the appearance of impropriety, Toby should cash out on the stock and reduce he salary to one dollar for a year. After complimenting Toby on the beauty of his name, Bartlet declares Sam’s idea perfect. Everyone in the room approves, except Toby says he feels like he got screwed with his pants on.

As promised Hoynes pays a visit to Cal Tillinghouse (Michael McGuire). The congressman says he’s voting his conscience. With 240 million guns floating around in the United States, he wants his wife and his daughter to have the protection of one. He wants one himself. Tillinghouse tells Hoynes that congressmen are annoyed at being bullied by the White House and they want to retribution. Hoynes looks smugly satisfied at this response, and explains that’s why he wants Tillinghouse to vote yes. And he might want to mention their talk to his colleagues.

TILLINGHOUSE: Tell me something: what’s in it for me?
HOYNES: Right now?
TILLINGHOUSE: Yes.
HOYNES: Nothing.
TILLINGHOUSE: Then why am I handing you a personal political victory?
HOYNES: Why?
TILLINGHOUSE: Yes.
HOYNES: Because I’m gonna be the President of the United States one day and you’re not.

As the staff watches the news on the television, they learn the bill passes by one vote. However, the atmosphere of the West Wind is glum. Newscasters are crediting Hoynes for the White House victory, and with their work and sweat fresh in their memory, the staff is incredulous. Josh shoulders the blame; he knows he pissed the congressmen off and they’re getting him back by giving Hoynes the curtain call. Leo says they got what they deserved for their hubris. But hey, they won.

Against his will, Josh knows he needs to congratulate Hoynes on his victory with the gun bill. Josh admits it’s a crappy law, but that Hoynes had a good day. Hoynes knew how it would play out. “Welcome to the NFL,” he says to Josh.

As the day comes to a close, Leo makes his way through the corridor at the OEOB. An undistinguished-looking door is being guarded by a Secret Service agent. Leo tells him he’s here for the card game, and the guard allows him in.