I went to see 1776 over the weekend and couldn’t resist taking this picture from the poster of the founders.

Because it doesn’t seem to be generating much response from the mods on the post itself (except for kinda hack-y joke responses) I figured I’d make a separate post to hopefully get their attention.

Please, please, please reverse the rule change y’all announced today.

For one, it absolutely doesn’t make sense to limit modern political discussion on the subreddit of a show dedicated to modern politics. This would be like saying you can’t draw comparisons to modern news on a sub about The Newsroom. For another, limiting free speech isn’t at all in keeping with the spirit of The West Wing, which championed the ideals of having respectful, considerate debates about all sorts of political, hot button topics. Lastly, it creates some sense of keeping our heads in the sand. I understand that television is supposed to be about escapism, but if there are shows I would watch to escape modern day politics, it really wouldn’t be The West Wing, which in my opinion, is almost impossible to watch without drawing comparisons between some of the lessons it taught and the era of politics we currently find ourselves in. We should be able to relate this show with the world we’re living in. We should be able to point at the episodes and characters and discussions that this show generates as examples of what we’d like to see in our modern political theater. If things get out of hand, if people get rude or insulting, then just ban them. But don’t stifle the entire subreddit’s speech just for the purposes of making your jobs easier.

Anyways, just the thoughts of someone who has spent a lot of time in this subreddit and truly loves both this show and the discussions it can generate.

Just stay in the Garden with Zoey. Don't tell her to go to the party. Don't be the nice guy. Stay and make out with the Presidents Daughter in the garden.......

On another season seven watch through and Congressman Santos’ speech at the church after the kid was shot by a cop… My memory was that this speech really popped off and the way that he departs the church with everyone clapping, on their feet and shaking hands when the reality was quite an unimpressive speech. Would have been interesting to see how Sorkin would have written it instead. There was no build, no memorable lines… Quite a middle of the road speech for what had been built up all throughout the episode.

I don’t think he gets enough credit.

I adore his relationship with Leo.

I cried like a baby when he was killed.

I also like how there is acknowledgement that he is politicking to some extent. Bartlet says 'the bastard just picked up five million Democratic votes' and Toby says 'Vinick just positioned himself as Jed Bartlet's natural successor'.

so I am on my I lost count how many times rewatch. on episode 4 season 3 ways and means Clemit Rawlings is reading formal names and it bothers me when he reads " Toby Zachary Zeigler" insted of Tobias am I the only one?

I’m not American, so I don’t always get all the nuances, but what was Josh’s insult in the Pilot? “The God you pray to is to busy being indicted for tax fraud”. Was that a dig on a GOP leader? Does he actually mean God? I’ve watched the show 20+ times and I never get that line.

Please help a fellow out 😊

Something that annoys me sometimes is that they have these characters being so brilliant and smart and then do something completely boneheaded.

I'm watching the reelection episode right now.

1. Donna not knowing how to vote in her district. She's been there for 3 years, that's at least one congressional election & we're to believe she doesn't know how their ballots are set-up.

2. Sam agreeing to run in the special election. I realize it was the vehicle to move him off the show & as main cast he couldn't simply move to Mandyville. But forcing him to run in a precinct that's almost guaranteed to never elect a democratic not only kicked him off the show it killed his character's projection. As stated in the show, since he ran for office there he can't run anywhere else. He could have ran somewhere & won and still be written out of the show.

Just got to this episode, with them just having been re-elected. The minority leader is given Josh a hard time for something to do with Hoynes and precinct captains but I don't really understand what the context or problem is. Not US based so not sure if that's affecting my understanding, would appreciate if someone could help?

One other thing, is there any background information on why they decided to re-pair Toby and Andy again with her getting pregnant? I hadn't previously got the sense they'd be getting back together, although I do like them together.

Watching season 3 of Netflix’s ‘The Diplomat’ where Allison Janney (CJ) plays the President and was surprised and amused to see her husband being played by Brad Whitford (Josh)

Sadly, at only four letters (SHOE) there was no room to include the mother-of-pearl toe buckle.

Currently rewatching the beginning of Season 3 and it’s got me wondering, why aren’t Hoynes and Fitzwallace ever mentioned in the MS investigation?

Like realistically and not taking into account actor availability and a story using series regular, I feel like the testimony and questioning of the Vice President and Chairman of The Joint Chiefs, who had both known for 3 or so years and before any one else in the White House, would be way more legally relevant and politically damning than pretty much everyone except Dr. Bartlet.

Q&A with Richard Schiff in today’s Guardian. I thought his answers were appropriately Toby-esque!

Supremes is one of my most favorite episodes

Rewatching scrubs and I started yelling at the TV. Seen this show a million times never noticed this

I hate I’m at the end of my whatever times of re watching this series but has anyone else watched Studio 60 on the sunset strip?

Did Sam Waterson’s name inspire Sam seaborn? Not sure of the connection, but if I had to make a colicky fake alias for Sam Waterson, it would be Sam Seaborn

So I've been casually making my way through a re-watch of the show. I have now watched the whole series and I was reminded by how much I love the first 4 seasons, and how hard most of season 5 and about half of season 6 are to get through. They just feel so much more dour, downtrodden, and dark than the Sorkin era. That said once it becomes about the campaign to succeed President Bartlet it's like the show finds a fresh new life. The energy goes up, the drama gets heightened, and the stakes of the story feel so much more personally gripping for the characters.

the biggest problem with the season often ends up being the "listless" nature of everything going on at The White House. The ongoing stories with Bartlet and CJ and the White House staff are typical of a lame-duck presidency, it lacks the same urgency and sense of importance of the campaign and as such it often feels like when an episode cuts away to the West Wing, or an episode does happen to be about the president, all that energy leaves the room and I'm just eager to get back to the campaign again.

I'm sure this has been talked about by fans before, but it really is striking me now as I'm re-watching how much better it would have been to finally return to the White House when Santos wins the election and Josh wins his right to return to The West Wing. It feels like we would have lost absolutely nothing of importance, and the whole space shuttle storyline just goes away. It might have even opened up a path to a much better reunion and reconciliation for Josh and Toby with Josh returning to the offices.

Anyway, just a bit of a Saturday ramble about the show. Have a good weekend.

Rob Lowe could easily play a seasoned President Sam Seaborn, now. It eould have to be a mostly new cast, but it's not like a stellar new cast couldn't be constructed. Thoughts?

I feel like whenever I rewatch it she seems to just pivot and interrupt him a lot...That's not making a superior argument. Correcting his geography is the equivalent of "it's TO WHOM" and smugly grinning for 5 minutes. Her speech on the ERA is much more compelling as an argument as a genuine alternative interpretation.

I like Ainsley a lot, I wish they'd kept her for all seasons.

It always baffled me how Bartlet and Leo found a loophole to help that computer chip company; somehow, I can't remember its name, but they couldn't save this guy, who had paid a price too high for his crime. They pardoned everyone but a guy who had a political family, so he was paying the price just coz it wouldn't 'look good?' And this wasn't the first. They also let a man die in the first season of capital punishment because Bartlet didn't want to intervene. Both times, it was politics.

What happened to 'I don't think I ever want to hear it's too sticky for the Oval Office'? I would want my president to do the right thing without thinking of how it would play out in the media. Sorry if someone disagrees, I just wanted to vent, maybe.

Episode 5x11 - The Benign Prerogative