Season 7 – Episode 8 – “Undecideds”

Episode Summary:

After getting a slight boost from the presidential debate, Santos (Jimmy Smits) courts controversy when he makes the difficult decision to visit the tense Los Angeles community where an African-American boy was shot by a Latino police officer. Meanwhile, Ellie continues to make preparations for her wedding.

Script:

THE WEST WING
7x08 - "UNDECIDEDS"
WRITTEN BY DEBORA CAHN
DIRECTED BY CHRISTOPHER MISIANO

Transcribed by Soundman for www.twiztv.com. Send feedback to
[email protected].

TEASER

FADE IN: INT. - HOTEL ROOM - DAY
      DENVER 5:45 AM
      52 DAYS UNTIL ELECTION DAY

Santos is in the washroom getting ready for his next campaign. Lou, Edie, and
Bram are in the main room. Lou is reading some polling information to Santos.

SANTOS [VO]
Go ahead.

LOU
46% of voters polled say they have a more favorable opinion than they did
before the debate. CNN/USA Today polls call the debate a tie. So does Newsweek.

She stops reading when she hears a hair dryer going.

LOU
She's running the hair dryer.

EDIE
Yes.

LOU
Makes it hard to hear.

EDIE
Yes, it does.

Helen comes out of the bedroom. The hair dryer is still running. Helen goes
back into the bedroom.

EDIE
He's running the hair dryer.

LOU
Kind of wish you didn't know.

Santos turns the hair dryer off.

SANTOS [OS]
Sorry. One more time.

LOU
CNN/USA Today poll calls the debate a tie. So does Newsweek. We now have 43%
of all eligible voters.

Santos walks into the main room. Helen is with him.

LOU
You're only seven points down.

HELEN
You're a rock star, sweetheart.

LOU
You got a four-point bump. Vinick only got a two-point bump.

HELEN
What happened to the old, "We go up, he goes down"?

LOU
You're both polling from undecideds. We have to be happy with "He went up,
we went up more."

EDIE
This is the schedule for the weekend, if you could take a look at it.

SANTOS
Yeah. Stick it in my bag, please.

BRAM
The bus is here. We've really got to move.

LOU
Sir, do you know what average SMT time was this week?

SANTOS
Bram clocks this. He rounds up because he's got money on it.

LOU
92 minutes.

SANTOS
That's a lie.

HELEN
SMT?

EDIE
Santos Mean Time.

HELEN
92 minutes late?!

SANTOS
The notion that I'm the problem is convenient but completely fallacious.

HELEN
Honey.

SANTOS
This is a national campaign. You think I'm driving the bus?

LOU
Wednesday, 12:55. Six extra press questions after we called it.

SANTOS
It was a conversation.

LOU
A fascinating one. Just look at the schedule and see if it's something you
can commit to.

EDIE
And initial. At the bottom.

She hands him a piece of paper and a pen.

SANTOS
What's C.S.?

EDIE
Change shirt.

SANTOS
Every two hours?

HELEN
It's for the sweating.

SANTOS
There's too many women in this room.

EDIE
Nothing we haven't talked about before. Today in Denver, tomorrow in L.A.

HELEN
I thought that was last weekend.

LOU
We cancelled it for the debate, which was also a personal addition of yours
to the schedule.

SANTOS
Four-point bump.

Donna walks in.

DONNA
Lou, can I get you for a second?

LOU
On the bus.

DONNA
You may want to talk to Scheduling. I'm getting a lot of press calls about
a 12-year-old black kid who was killed last night by the L.A. police.

SANTOS
What do we know?

DONNA
No details yet, but the community's kind of reeling. We need a statement
sooner rather than later.

EDIE
We're at the Page Church in L.A. tomorrow morning.

LOU
Might not be a bad time to be in a black church, show 'em we feel their
pain. See if we can't get some traction in the community.

EDIE
Yeah, we need it. Our debate bump did not include a bump in black voters.

BRAM
Sir, this is the updated stump. Do you want to give it one last look?

SANTOS
Yeah.

They begin walking.

DONNA
Lou?

LOU
Hang on.

BRAM
I don't see why the African-American community doesn't like the idea of a
Latino candidate.

EDIE
A little black/brown friction in the 'hood, if you haven't noticed.

BRAM
Hasn't been my experience.

EDIE
Yeah, you're a Venezuelan from Princeton.

SANTOS
Yeah, this is fine.

DONNA
I'm sorry, Lou. Gerard in Scheduling was considering a bigger change. I
think he may be right.

They have come to the elevator. Everyone gets in except Donna who stays at
the door.

LOU
Gerard is obsessive-compulsive and should be taking slow breaths out of a
paper bag.

DONNA
I think you may want to give him a call.

SANTOS
What's the cop's name?

LOU
No, this is why we run late: because you take time listening to people like
Gerard from Scheduling.

SANTOS
Donna, what's the officer's name?

DONNA
Rafael Martinez.

SANTOS
Yeah, that's what I was afraid of.

Lou takes out her phone and dials.

LOU
Get me Josh Lyman at HQ, Annabeth Schott on the McGarry plane, and Gerard
from Scheduling.

SMASH CUT TO: MAIN TITLES.
END TEASER.
* * *

ACT ONE

FADE IN: INT. - LOBBY - WHITE HOUSE - DAY

We see C.J., dressed casually, walking through the lobby. She meets Will.

C.J.
Mr. Bailey.

WILL
And a good morning to you.

C.J.
You were here last Saturday.

WILL
As were you. You here for lunch? We could order something soggy, served
in plastic.

C.J.
I'm hoping to be gone in an hour. I just have to sit with Ellie and the
fiance, sort out some wedding stuff.

WILL
I didn't realize that was part of your portfolio.

C.J.
The social secretary should be doing it but Ellie doesn't know her and she
already feels the whole things not so much a wedding as an act of Congress.

WILL
Tell her I saw her band's playlist for the reception. We may need to make
a few adjustments.

C.J.
One too many double entendres?

WILL
It's the single entendres I worry about.

C.J.
Right.

WILL
World stage, shadow of our forefathers.

C.J.
I'll get into it.

She walks into Margaret's office and looks surprised to see Margaret there.

MARGARET
They're in the Mural Room.

C.J.
Remember how we used to talk?

MARGARET
Everything you need is in the folder.

C.J.
I told you not to come in today.

MARGARET
That never works out. The only new piece is we're squabbling with Fish and
Wildlife on the salmon flow schedule, so she should think about sea bass or,
perhaps, a trout.

C.J.
Sea bass is endangered. Whitman does a great swordfish with green
peppercorns. That'd be nice.

MARGARET
Let's stay with the trout.

C.J.
Nobody wants trout at a wedding. It's not festive.

MARGARET
It's flavorful and underappreciated. No swordfish or tuna or brie.

C.J.
You know this isn't your wedding, right?

MARGARET
I'm asking you to take my word for it because you're a busy woman and
sometimes you don't need anymore information than I give you.

C.J.
I'll push the trout.

MARGARET
Great idea.

She hands C.J. a large folder. C.J. takes it and walks into the Mural Room
where Ellie and Vic are waiting.

C.J.
Look at you! Congratulations!

ELLIE
Thank you.

C.J.
It's so exciting.

ELLIE
Have you met Vic? C.J. Cregg.

C.J.
It's a pleasure.

VIC
Hi. Thank you.

ELLIE
I'm so sorry you're here on a weekend for this.

C.J.
Please, not at all. It's bad enough you have to coordinate with three branches
of government. Anything I can do to help. Sit, please.

As they sit, Margaret knocks and comes in.

MARGARET
Excuse me.

C.J.
We're not up to trout yet.

MARGARET
Kate Harper needs you.

C.J.
No, she doesn't. She doesn't know I'm here.

MARGARET
Imagine her delight when she learned.

C.J. turns to speak to Ellie.

C.J.
One minute?

MARGARET
Ten minutes. Just a guess.

CUT TO: INT. - SANTOS HQ - DAY

Josh and Ronna are walking and talking.

RONNA
Surrogates on the Sunday shows.

JOSH
Do they know what they're saying?

RONNA
They're saying that he won the debate.

JOSH
Do they have talking points or are they just going to flash a big
V-For-Victory?

RONNA
You'll have language to proof in ten minutes.

They meet a man named Lester and Ronna walks off. Josh and Lester keep walking.

LESTER
Hey.

RONNA
Hi, Lester.

JOSH
What do we know?

LESTER
I'm waiting on more from the L.A.P.D. but it's a 12-year-old black male named
Ronnie Burke. He's passenger side in a stolen Escalade at 11:00 at night,
gets out holding a weapon which turns out to be made of plastic, though it
looks pretty darn real.

JOSH
The cop is Latino?

LESTER
Oh, yeah.

They walk into Josh's office.

JOSH
No way the guy could have known the gun was fake?

LESTER
Probably not, but local news has a tape of a bystander claiming the kid was
putting his hands in the air to surrender when the officer fired.

JOSH
Can anybody corroborate that?

LESTER
It doesn't matter, it's on the news. People are going to assume it's true.

JOSH
There were demonstrations at police headquarters last night.

LESTER
There'll be more this morning.

JOSH
What do you think?

LESTER
It was going to be a tough crowd, even before this happened. The black
community's wondering how we got a Latino nominee before we got an
African-American nominee. There's always been tension between the two
communities and now a cop named Martinez guns down one of their kids?

JOSH
Two days later, we send our guy to their church to stump for votes.

LESTER
If he shows up in L.A. and does a tap dance on the head of a pin, great. If
not...

JOSH
You may be getting on a plane.

LESTER
I had a hunch.

JOSH
I should have sent you on the L.A. trip in the first place. Why didn't I
think of that?

LESTER
You can't put me on a plane every time he's going to talk to a black person.

JOSH
I'm prepared to reconsider that.

CUT TO: INT. - C.J.'S OFFICE - DAY

Kate is in C.J.'s office when C.J. comes in.

C.J.
I'm doing Ellie Bartlet a favor. I'm not really here.

KATE
NSC just got a call. There's a China/Russia/Kazakhstan thing happening.

C.J.
Okay.

KATE
My office is supposed to be sending up the briefing book but it's not here yet.

C.J.
Well, let's go for the nutshell.

KATE
It's better with the book.

C.J.
Kate...

KATE
Tarimov just booted a Chinese government delegation out of the country. He's...

C.J.
The acting President of Kazakhstan.

KATE
Installed after Issetov was assassinated. They were negotiating a
China-Kazakhstan strategic partnership making plans for an oil pipeline from
Kazakhstan to China.

C.J.
And Issetov called it off.

KATE
Tarimov.

C.J.
Oh, Tarimov.

KATE
Yes.

C.J.
Issetov's dead.

KATE
Yes. Issetov wanted to do business with the Chinese. Tarimov has stronger
ties with the Russians.

C.J.
And he killed the China oil deal and China's pissed.

KATE
Exceptionally.

C.J.
Margaret?!

KATE
Sorry. I was golfing.

C.J.
You golf?

KATE
Mini.

CUT TO: INT. - JOSH'S OFFICE - DAY

Josh is at his desk. Lester is seated on the windowsill. Ronna walks in.

RONNA
Josh, it's the bus.

She hits the speaker button on the phone.

JOSH
Morning.

CUT TO: INT. - SANTOS BUS - CONTINUOUS

Santos, Lou, Edie, Bram, and Donna are on the bus on their way to the
Denver stop.

LOU
Is Lester there?

LESTER [VO]
Yeah.

LOU
Lester, I don't think we should go.

CUT TO: INT. - JOSH'S OFFICE - CONTINUOUS

JOSH
Are you getting skittish?

LOU [VO]
There are a lot of angry people on the streets.

CUT TO: INT. - SANTOS BUS - CONTINUOUS

LOU
We could push it to next week.

CUT TO: INT. - JOSH'S OFFICE - CONTINUOUS

JOSH
We pushed last week for the debate.

LOU [VO]
He's got the flu, rickets, anything.

CUT TO: INT. - SANTOS BUS - CONTINUOUS

SANTOS
We are not canceling.

LOU
Sir, I don't think you want to be booed by angry churchgoers.

SANTOS
They're not going to boo me.

EDIE
How about we go to the house instead? Pay our respects to the mother;
less booing.

SANTOS
It'll look like we're exploiting the grief of a family in mourning.

JOSH [VO]
The mayor's doing it.

SANTOS
Yeah, well, the mayor's got a relationship with the community. They won't
notice if he exploits it.

DONNA
Yeah, but if he exploits and we don't, we look callous.

SANTOS
It's a chance I'm willing to take. I'm going to the church.

CUT TO: INT. - JOSH'S OFFICE - CONTINUOUS

JOSH
Lou, call Joe Farley at the mayor's office. See if he'll help us out, keep
him away from the house.

CUT TO: INT. - SANTOS BUS - CONTINUOUS

JOSH [VO]
Lester is on his way to... where are you now?

EDIE
Denver.

BRAM
Sir, the foreign policy team's waiting.

DONNA
Are we making any statements?

CUT TO: INT. - JOSH'S OFFICE - CONTINUOUS

JOSH
All we say now is "this is a terrible situation. The Congressman hopes he
can provide some relief on his visit tomorrow.

CUT TO: INT. - SANTOS BUS - CONTINUOUS

LOU
What's he going to say tomorrow?

SANTOS
Good question.

He gets up and goes into the back of the bus.

CUT TO: INT. - C.J.'S OFFICE - DAY

Kate and C.J. are sitting, waiting. Will walks in.

WILL
I was summoned.

C.J.
You were. Do me a favor and talk to Ellie about whatever problems you're
having with her music.

WILL
Now?

C.J.
I was supposed to be in there but the Kate happened. It's going to take a
few minutes. I thought you could do your thing.

WILL
I was working.

KATE
I was golfing.

C.J.
Mini.

WILL
I've mastered the windmill shot, with the bridge.

KATE
That's a hard one.

WILL
Hole-in-one.

C.J.
People.

WILL
Five minutes and then I'm out of there.

As Will walks out, Kate watches him. C.J. looks at her.

KATE
What?

CUT TO: INT. - COMMUNICATIONS OFFICE - DAY

We see Will leading Vic and Ellie into his office for them to talk about
their wedding.

VIC
You were saying there was something we needed to talk about.

WILL
Uh, yes. The music.

VIC
Schroedinger's cats. It was a band I played with in grad school.

WILL
Reunion show at the White House?

VIC
They do weddings and barmitzvahs all the time.

WILL
Great.

ELLIE
It's better than it sounds.

WILL
It would have to be. They sent us a copy of the playlist. We're wondering
if we can pull some things.

ELLIE
Is there a problem?

WILL
Well, is "Baby Got Back" something you're particularly attached to?

CUT TO: INT. - C.J.'S OFFICE - DAY

C.J. and Kate are talking.

C.J.
I can't make a bullying phone call to the Russian Foreign Minister because
the Chinese got bounced out of an oil deal.

KATE
Tarimov is acting President. He was supposed to hold elections but he called
them off.

C.J.
He suspended them. He didn't call them off.

KATE
He suspended them weeks ago and has made no move to reschedule. They guy's
a Russian puppet. It was looking like the Chinese were getting there foot
in the door so he halts negotiations and boots the Chinese out of the country.

C.J.
Kazakhstan isn't China's only oil source.

KATE
They're their most promising one. The Kazakh people, meanwhile, are rioting
in the streets because they've just been screwed out of an election. China's
looking at major instability on their border, not to mention the 300,000
ethnic Chinese living in Kazakhstan who aren't looking particularly safe, all
because the Russians want the oil and are willing to fight for it. Best-case
scenario, I'm ruining your Saturday. Worst-case scenario, two nuclear powers
are positioning themselves to actively engage in an armed conflict over oil.

Margaret knocks from her office.

MARGARET
Ted Barrow's on his way.

C.J.
Margaret? See if you can track down the Russian Foreign Minister.

FADE OUT.
END ACT ONE.
* * *

ACT TWO

FADE IN: INT. - BUILDING - DAY
      DENVER
      COLORADO CONVENTION CENTER

Lou and Edie are watching a TV spot from the debate.

SANTOS [on TV]
First they cut taxes, then they never get around to cutting spending, so
they run up huge deficits for our children.

LOU
There we go.

EDIE
Okay. Nice. What's the time code?

LOU
35:02. Send a copy to Josie at CNN and ask her to please stop running that
stupid line about the EPA. Enough, already.

Lester walks in with a bag slung over his shoulder.

LESTER
Ladies.

LOU
Well, welcome to Denver. I spoke to the L.A. mayor's office. I think I talked
them off a visit to the dead kid's house at least until tomorrow.

LESTER
You got a confirmation or they're thinking about it?

DONNA
Lou?

LOU
They like me and they don't want to mess with me. I'm prepared to call it
a confirmation.

DONNA
I'm sorry. Lou?

LESTER
They like you?

LOU
I'm very personable. It goes a long way.

DONNA
The mayor's on his way to Ronnie Burke's house.

LOU
No, he is not.

DONNA
He's going there now. His people want to know if we want to coordinate
press statements.

LOU
Joe Farley. You get them to put Joe Farley on the phone. He is a mealy-mouthed
little snot.

DONNA
This is him. He doesn't seem to want to talk to you.

LESTER
Personable.

EDIE
Mayor didn't have a choice. It was a bomb in his own backyard.

LOU
It kind of backs us into a corner.

LESTER
It was a good idea to go to the house even before we were in a corner.

LOU
The Congressman hates it.

LESTER
The Congressman may have to get over it. We need to cover as many bases as
we can.

LOU
Okay. Edie, call Secret Service and Advance and tell them we may need to
add another stop in L.A. tomorrow. What's the mom's name?

DONNA
Brenda Burke.

LOU
Call her. Tell her that Congressman Santos will be visiting Page Church
tomorrow morning and can he stop by on his way and pay his respects.

EDIE
No, we're not going to have time in the morning. We have to be at the church
by 9:00 am. We should scrap the afternoon in Denver, go to L.A. now, and be
at the house by early evening.

LOU
All right, let's look into it. Who's going to tell the Congressman?

She looks at Lester.

LESTER
I'm evens.

They play a chance game of sorts.

LOU
Once, twice, three, shoot. Damn.

CUT TO: INT. - C.J.'S OFFICE - DAY

C.J. is at her desk when Will walks in.

WILL
Hey, I covered the music. No offensive lyrics by Schroedinger's Cats. I am
sending the happy couple back in here.

C.J.
That's not going to work.

WILL
They're cleaning the carpets in the Mural Room. Better here than in there.

She gets up and walks to where he is standing.

C.J.
Problem in Kazakhstan. Nuclear powers pissing off other nuclear powers. I
need you to stay with them.

She hands him a folder.

WILL
Seriously?

C.J.
Just look at this folder, deal with whatever's on the list. I'll take over
in 20 minutes.

She hands him the blue folder that Margaret gave her.

WILL
I'm really not your man on weddings.

C.J.
Margaret laid the whole thing out. Half hour, tops.

He walks out.

CUT TO: INT. - CONVENTION CENTER - DENVER - DAY

Lou and Lester are talking.

LESTER
You ask him?

LOU
I'll ask him on the bus.

LESTER
Coward.

LOU
Absolutely.

LESTER
I've been thinking. This is a national story. The church is going to be full of
cameras. If African-Americans stay home on Election Day, we're out of the game.

LOU
Are you trying to raise my anxiety level, because it's already pretty high?

LESTER
I think we need reinforcements.

LOU
Hey, Edie? Call Annabeth, get Leo McGarry on the plane. We want backup at
the church tomorrow.

LESTER
I'm talking serious reinforcements.

She looks at him and realizes who he's talking about.

LOU
No.

LESTER
We need 90% of black voters. We've got 81%. 12% of African-Americans are
undecided in this race. The black vote's never had undecideds, but they're
willing to hang back and weigh their options because they don't hate Vinick
and they're not sure they like the whole idea of Santos. This is not a
small problem.

She picks up her phone and dials.

LOU
Get me Josh, please.

She hands the phone to Lester.

CUT TO: INT. - WILL'S OFFICE - DAY

Will is at his desk. Ellie and Vic are seated in front of the desk. Will is
looking at the folder that C.J. gave him.

WILL
Sorry, hang on. Uh... yeah, this is pretty straightforward. Okay. C.J.'s
going to be back in a few minutes, she just thought we could get the ball
rolling. Everybody's dream scenario: me planning your wedding. Okay, anything
I should know before we get started?

ELLIE
Look, we realize there's a lot the goes along with having a wedding at the
White House, but anything we could do to keep the numbers under control?

WILL
Sure.

ELLIE
I know my father needs to invite a lot of people but I'm not crazy about
the spotlight and Vic's a little agoraphobic.

VIC
It's not a phobia.

ELLIE
I was exaggerating.

VIC
It's the occasional shortness of breath.

ELLIE
It's really nothing.

VIC
Sometimes I pass out.

WILL
Okay, let's see what we've got. White House invitees, this looks right.

He begins handing some of the papers to Vic and Ellie.

WILL
A copy for you and you and me. Oh, sorry. There's a second page.

He hands them some more papers.

WILL
Yeah, that's it. Okay.

VIC
This has got to be 1000 names!

WILL
Shall we start with the A's?

CUT TO: INT. - C.J.'S OFFICE - DAY

C.J. and Kate are talking with Ted Barrow.

BARROW
The Russians should be putting pressure on Issetov to resume the talks with
the Chinese.

C.J.
Tarimov.

BARROW
What?

C.J.
Issetov is dead, we want them putting pressure on Tarimov.

BARROW
Fine, yes.

C.J.
They don't want to.

BARROW
What do they think at the embassy?

KATE
They'd like us to get the Russians to talk to Tarimov.

BARROW
Seems to be the consensus.

C.J.
The Russians don't want to talk to Tarimov. The Russian Foreign Minister
told me Tarimov's doing a fine job.

KATE
It's a big, fat lie.

C.J.
Oh, dear, I should have told him that. All right, you two put a call in to
Camp David, let the President where we are. I'll see what we can do with
China. Margaret!

BARROW
What are you going to say?

C.J.
I'm going to urge them to remain calm. You got a better idea?

CUT TO: INT. - WILL'S OFFICE - DAY

Will is going over the guest list with Ellie and Vic.

WILL
Newton and Allina Hackett, Chairman of Senate Armed Forces.

ELLIE
Fine.

WILL
Newton and Allina Hackett are a yes. Owen Hellman, Majority Whip.

ELLIE
My father doesn't even like him.

WILL
Yes, but with the energy bill on the rocks, it's not really the time to
point that out. Owen Hellman is a yes. Andrew Edward. What's he doing in
the H's? Oh, right. His Royal Highness, Duke of York.

Vic stands up and looks as though he is nervous and possibly sick.

ELLIE
Do you want to get some air?

WILL
Hey, at least he's not bringing the queen.

Will looks back at the list and pulls a sticky note off.

WILL
Oh, maybe he is bringing the queen.

Vic plops down on the couch.

CUT TO: INT. - C.J.'S OFFICE - DAY

C.J. is sitting at her desk. Margaret is talking to her.

MARGARET
It's going to be a few minutes before we've got Beijing.

C.J.
I should probably make some headway with Ellie and Vic.

MARGARET
Josh Lyman's here.

C.J.
Really, Josh?

She goes to the door and sees Josh standing in Margaret's office.

C.J.
Aren't you supposed to be running around the country with some politician?

JOSH
I brought you some doughnuts.

C.J.
I sense a favor on my horizon.

JOSH
Can we sit?

C.J.
Quickly. I'm on my way to Ellie Bartlet, who I blew off hours ago.

They come into her office and sit.

JOSH
What are the chances I can get the President at a Santos appearance tomorrow? I
know its short notice.

C.J.
You think?

JOSH
If I wasn't desperate...

C.J.
Secret Service needs a week to advance a trip like that.

JOSH
Our detail has already cleared the zone.

C.J.
He's in Camp David. He's got a South American delegation. He's tearing his
hair out over a trade agreement. You want him to hop a red eye to California?

JOSH
You hear about this kid, Ronnie Burke, got shot by a cop? It's a perfect storm.

C.J.
You knew some people were going to have a tough time with the notion of a
Latino President. If it wasn't Ronnie Burke, it'd be something else.

JOSH
Yeah, well, Ronnie Burke seems to be it.

C.J.
I'll take it to the President, see what he thinks.

JOSH
Bless you.

C.J.
Yeah, yeah. Get out of here.

He stands to leave.

C.J.
Hey, have you talked to Toby?

JOSH
No. I meant to call him but I guess I didn't. Did you?

C.J.
No. I mean, I would, but I can't. No one can while the investigation's
still going.

JOSH
Right.

C.J.
I just want to make sure he's in one piece.

JOSH
I don't know.

He leaves.

CUT TO: INT. - WILL'S OFFICE - DAY

Will is nearing the end of the White House Invitees list.

WILL
Mr. and Mrs. Max Zelikovsky. He is the Chairman of the AFL-CIO, helping us
out on a very testy negotiation with the steel workers.

ELLIE
Fine.

WILL
Great.

VIC
No! No, no! This wedding is not the solution to every political problem the
White House has. That's not its purpose. We have a list of 742 people. We
are not inviting the Zelikovskys. They are a bridge too far.

ELLIE
Honey, Carol Zelikovsky was my mother's college roommate. I've known her my
whole life.

WILL
744. Uh, but the good news is: that's it. Now, it's all about your
lists. That's nice, right?

Will puts up the paper and grabs another one out of the folder.

WILL
Ellie Bartlet guests, page one. Oh... that's the whole thing. Great. Couple
of little questions, looks like. Uh, Arianna Grey?

ELLIE
She's my maid of honor. She's flying in from London for the wedding.

WILL
Right. Well, looks like there was a problem with her security
clearance. Apparently, the last time she was in the country, her Visa was
flagged by the DEA, which suggests somebody had something they shouldn't
have had in their suitcase. You've got other friends, right?

CUT TO: INT. - CONVENTION CENTER - DAY

Lou, Lester, Edie, and Donna are waiting for Santos to finish.

EDIE
Two more questions and he's out.

LOU
I've heard that before.

EDIE
No, he can't mess around on this one if we're going to make it to California
today.

LOU
He hasn't exactly cleared that, yet.

DONNA
Any word on the President?

LESTER
Josh asked. The White House is looking in to it.

DONNA
Speech for the church tomorrow.

She hands Edie three papers.

EDIE
Why do I have three?

LOU
One where he denounces the cop, one where he doesn't denounce the cop,
and one where he loves everybody.

EDIE
My head hurts.

LESTER
The audience at the church is going to want to hear him denounce the cop.

EDIE
On general principle?

LESTER
For shooting at children, I think is the part they have their knickers in
a twist about.

EDIE
The kid had a weapon.

LESTER
And a stolen car. I'm just telling you what I think they'll want to hear.

DONNA
He can't denounce the cop. We don't even know what happened yet. He could
prejudice the whole investigation.

EDIE
Well, the Latino community is not going to like it if he jumps all over the
cop, not to mention the law and order vote. They're definitely looking for
us to support the cop.

LOU
And without the law and order vote we lose...?

LESTER
All white people.

LOU
Okay. The two speeches where we take sides go in the garbage. We are a
community divided.

LESTER
Uh, you don't want to say that.

EDIE
It's two communities, not one.

LESTER
Different identities, different issues.

DONNA
Maybe it's a "we must face our differences" thing.

LESTER
That's just another way of saying Blacks hate Latinos, Latinos hate Blacks.

EDIE
Which is kind of true, but shouldn't be said.

LESTER
It's not true.

EDIE
Yeah, it's a little true.

LESTER
Perhaps some of the folks are a little riled about the coming in and taking
of the jobs.

EDIE
Well, who do you know that wanted an avocado-picking job? Do you know how
hot it is out there?

LESTER
Yeah. We had about enough of picking with the cotton.

Santos walks out of the auditorium.

LOU
How'd it go, sir?

SANTOS
A lot like it did the last 80 times.

CUT TO: INT. - SANTOS BUS - DAY

Santos, Lou, Lester, Edie, and Donna get on the bus.

SANTOS
We making any progress?

LOU
Edie and Lester are fighting about avocados. Aside from that, not much.

SANTOS
You know, there's a psalm that I think would be appropriate. It will speak
to the moment more than any platitudes that we can string together. I want
to make sure we get some time tomorrow before that rally in Sacramento to
speak to the governor.

LOU
A psalm?

SANTOS
Yeah.

LOU
You can not go out there and give them a prayer. This is not bad luck, or
bad timing; this is a country with huge racial issues that's looking to you
for guidance. They don't want you to close your eyes and pray: they want
you to open your eyes and lead.

SANTOS
You want to show me what you've come up with?

She says nothing.

SANTOS
I look forward to seeing a draft.

Santos grabs his coat and goes into the back.

LESTER
You going to ask him now about the dead kid's house?

CUT TO: EXT. - APARTMENT BUILDING - DAY

A cab pulls up to the curb of an apartment building. Josh gets out.

JOSH
Thank you, sir. You can keep that.

He walks up to the door of the building and hits the buzzer. After a moment,
we hear a familiar voice.

TOBY [VO]
Yeah?

JOSH
It's me.

Toby doesn't reply.

JOSH
Let me in the door.

A woman opens the door and Josh moves aside for her to leave.

JOSH
Sorry. Thank you.

He walks in and shuts the door behind him.

CUT TO: INT. - HALLWAY - APARTMENT - DAY

Josh walks into the hallway and knocks on a door. We hear the latch slide
open and Toby answers the door. There's a moment of awkward silence.

JOSH
You going to invite me in?

Toby steps aside and Josh walks in. Toby shuts the door behind him.

FADE OUT.
END ACT TWO.
* * *

ACT THREE

FADE IN: INT. - TOBY'S APARTMENT - DAY

Toby and Josh are standing. Josh sits his bag down.

TOBY
Something to drink?

JOSH
Sure.

TOBY
I had some coffee, but I seem to no longer have any coffee.

JOSH
I'm fine.

TOBY
We can go to the corner. There's a coffee shop. Oh... right. That won't
work. What if someone saw?

JOSH
I don't need any coffee.

TOBY
Kind of a stupid move anyway, you coming here. Some reporter could have
followed you.

JOSH
They didn't.

TOBY
They're pretty sly.

JOSH
I checked.

TOBY
You checked? That's great.

Josh's phone rings. He takes it out of his jacket pocket and looks at it. He
silences it.

JOSH
So, how are you?

TOBY
Indicted. You?

JOSH
I meant to call, but it's been insane.

TOBY
Mm-hmm.

JOSH
You see the debate?

TOBY
Kind of a rush with the prep, looked like.

JOSH
Not really. I mean, it was quick, but he was ready. We got a four-point bump
off that thing. He kicked ass.

TOBY
Good.

JOSH
So, jail?

Josh's phone rings again.

JOSH
Sorry.

He takes it out and silences it again.

JOSH
Are you actually going or are they cutting a deal?

TOBY
Nope. Actually going.

JOSH
I saw the op-ed piece in the Times. You're quite the hero with the disarmament
movement.

They sit at Toby's table.

TOBY
Patron saint of the daisy chain contingent. People calling about speaking
engagements; someone from Simon & Schuster is calling about a book deal.

JOSH
You going to do it?

TOBY
I don't know. Maybe. I may need the money. People I'd rather work with can't
come within a ten-block radius of me.

JOSH
You'll be less radioactive in a few months.

TOBY
Oh, yeah? How many months do you think?

CUT TO: INT. - C.J.'S OFFICE - DAY

C.J. and Kate are preparing for the phone call.

C.J.
We realize this is a very disconcerting turn of events. We'd like to encourage
them to keep an open mind. President Bartlet will be speaking to Acting
President Tarimov tomorrow and also contacting President Chigorin of Moscow.

KATE
We feel confident they'll find a way to reopen negotiations for a
China-Kazakhstan partnership.

C.J.
Great.

Margaret comes in.

MARGARET
We've got Beijing. Translator's patched in.

C.J.
Thanks.

C.J. walks to her desk and picks up the phone. Kate walks to one of the end
tables and also picks up the phone to listen in.

C.J.
Good morning, Mr. Liu, thank you for speaking with us. We realize this is
a very discouraging...

Over the phone, we hear the angry sounding voice of Liu and the calm, paced
voice of the interpreter.

C.J.
Sir, if I could...

She is drowned out.

C.J.
Mr. Liu, President... President Bart... If I could finish... my...

She covers the mouth and speaks to Kate.

C.J.
Fat lot of good this is going to do.

CUT TO: INT. - TOBY'S APARTMENT - DAY

Josh and Toby are still seated at the table. Josh is looking at his phone. He
sets it down.

JOSH
Sorry. So, you were saying?

TOBY
I have no idea what I was saying.

JOSH
Your kids, how they are.

TOBY
They're fine.

JOSH
It must be good to have more time to spend with them.

TOBY
It's fantastic.

Josh's phone rings yet again.

JOSH
Shoot. Sorry, I've got to take this.

He gets up and walks away from the table.

JOSH
Hello.

CUT TO: INT. - SANTOS BUS - CONTINUOUS

Lou is sitting at the window, talking to Josh.

LOU
I think I just screwed up.

CUT TO: INT. - TOBY'S APARTMENT - CONTINUOUS

JOSH
I can't imagine.

LOU [VO]
I think I just told the Congressman it was his responsibility to...

CUT TO: INT. - SANTOS BUS - CONTINUOUS

LOU [cont.]
... solve the race problem in America, if possible, before noon tomorrow.

CUT TO: INT. - TOBY'S APARTMENT - CONTINUOUS

JOSH
That's quite a mouthful.

CUT TO: INT. - SANTOS BUS - CONTINUOUS

LOU
It kind of pissed him off.

JOSH [VO]
He'll bounce. Don't worry about it.

CUT TO: INT. - TOBY'S APARTMENT - CONTINUOUS

LOU [VO]
We'd like to leave L.A. early, make a stop at the kid's mother's house.

CUT TO: INT. - SANTOS BUS - CONTINUOUS

LOU [cont.]
Assuming we can talk the Congressman into it, is that okay with you?

CUT TO: INT. - TOBY'S APARTMENT - CONTINUOUS

JOSH
Are you sure we need it?

LOU [VO]
The mayor already went.

CUT TO: INT. - SANTOS BUS - CONTINUOUS

LOU [cont.]
We're kind of boxed in. We leave Denver in half an hour, we should make it
to the house by early evening, West Coast time.

CUT TO: INT. - TOBY'S APARTMENT - CONTINUOUS

JOSH
All right. Call me after.

He hangs up.

JOSH
Sorry. We landed in some racial tension in L.A.

TOBY
The cop thing?

JOSH
Yeah. We had an event planned in the neighborhood.

TOBY
Nice.

JOSH
So the black vote, which was already not in the bag...

TOBY
Maybe it's an opportunity. A charismatic guy, he can turn it around.

JOSH
Really?

TOBY
Maybe.

JOSH
I spoke to C.J. I'm going to try to get the President down to sing backup.

TOBY
Good luck with that.

JOSH
I think she's going to work it out.

TOBY
Yeah? What'd she say?

JOSH
She said she was going to try and work it out.

TOBY
She say she'd take it to the President, see what he thinks?

JOSH
Yeah. That's exactly what she said.

TOBY
That's a catchphrase for "It's never going to happen.

JOSH
I know it's last minute, but...

TOBY
It's got nothing to do with last minute, it's got to do with he doesn't
think your guy is going to win.

JOSH
What the hell is that supposed to mean?

TOBY
It means it's unlikely he gets on a red eye.

JOSH
I am constantly amazed at your ability to continue to be a bastard. It really
is something.

TOBY
Thank you.

JOSH
You think I need to come here to be your punching bag?

TOBY
I really have no idea why you needed to come here.

JOSH
Yeah, well, I don't know either. Nostalgia? It's been a pleasure. I'll see
you later.

TOBY
No you won't. You won't be coming back. At least have the integrity to say
that out loud.

Josh has walked to the door. He stops and turns to look at Toby. Toby walks
off. Josh leaves.

CUT TO: INT. - C.J.'S OFFICE - DAY

C.J. and Kate are talking with Barrow.

BARROW
Did you tell him the President would be calling?

C.J.
I didn't get a word in.

BARROW
But does he understand...

C.J.
I did not get a word in.

KATE
We can try again tomorrow.

C.J.
I think we're going to make more headway with the Russians.

Will knocks and walks in.

WILL
Excuse me. Ellie's in tears. I've ruined her wedding. Someone else needs to
take over.

C.J.
Is Margaret not out there?

WILL
You need to step in. Sorry about Central Asia. It's been a disaster for
years. You're not really going to fix it today.

Margaret walks in carrying two wedding dresses.

C.J.
Oh, good. Maybe you can help will.

MARGARET
Shirley stopped by, the social secretary. You need to talk to her about
the dress.

WILL
I really don't.

MARGARET
Apparently Ellie bought a dress all on her own, which is sweet, but it's
got applique flowers on it that Shirley's worried about.

C.J.
I'm sure it's lovely.

MARGARET
There's some concern that they may have been hand-stitched in Saipan by
little slave children.

C.J.
Oh, God.

MARGARET
A number of designers have expressed an interest in making Ellie a dress. These
are a couple of samples.

She hands them to Will.

MARGARET
Josh called again.

C.J.
Take care of it.

Margaret leaves.

C.J.
You're doing great. Just make sure you get a decision about the food. Salmon's
out, and so is swordfish and tuna and brie, which Margaret seems to think
is a fish as well.

BARROW
She's pregnant?

C.J.
Excuse me?

BARROW
Swordfish, tuna, soft cheeses... am I the only one in the room with kids?

It dawns on C.J. that what he is saying is true.

C.J.
Tell her we'll find something with an empire waist.

WILL
I don't even know what that means.

BARROW
In the service of your country, son.

He walks away, carrying the two dresses.

CUT TO: INT. - SANTOS HQ - DAY

Josh is walking toward his office. He speaks to Ronna on the way.

JOSH
Did we work out Meet the Press?

RONNA
Mancini's doing it. White House on line 3 for you.

He walks into his office and picks up the phone.

JOSH
Hello.

MARGARET [VO]
Hi.

JOSH
Margaret, you miss me already, don't you?

MARGARET [VO]
Terribly. C.J. wanted to call you herself.

JOSH
No, that's okay. I know how busy she is.

MARGARET [VO]
She ran it by the President. He can't make it to California, not on this
short notice.

JOSH
No, I get it.

MARGARET [VO]
She's really sorry.

JOSH
Sure. It was all very last minute. Tell her thanks for trying.

MARGARET [VO]
Of course.

We hear the line go dead at the other end.

CUT TO: EXT. - BURKE HOME - DAY
      INGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA

We see several policemen and Secret Service agents standing guard in front
of the house.

CUT TO: INT. - BURKE HOUSE - DAY

We see Bram holding the back door open for Santos. They walk in together.

BRAM
We're in the kitchen. Brenda Burke. Everything okay?

SANTOS
Yeah.

They walk into the kitchen where Lou and BRENDA BURKE are waiting.

LOU
Congressman, this is Brenda Burke, Ronnie's mother.

He walks over and shakes her hand.

SANTOS
Mrs. Burke. I'm so sorry for your loss.

BRENDA BURKE
Thank you. You're sweet to come. The mayor came today too. A lot of people.

SANTOS
I'm sure this is all terribly overwhelming. I can't even begin to imagine
how you're feeling today.

BURKE
Can I offer you something to eat?

SANTOS
No, please. Don't trouble yourself.

BURKE
It's no trouble. People keep bringing food. You should have one of those
cookies.

SANTOS
That's very kind of you. They do look delicious.

We hear a man speaking very loudly to one of the Secret Service agents.

MAN [VO]
You need to move the vehicles at the end of the street.

AGENT [VO]
Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to wait here for a few minutes.

SANTOS
Excuse me.

MAN [VO]
There are people who need to get up the street.

AGENT [VO]
We'll be removing the roadblock in about 15 minutes, sir.

Santos leaves the kitchen and walks into the hallway where the man and the
agent are talking.

MAN
Her sister is at the end of the block!

AGENT
Please, step back, sir.

SANTOS
I'm Matthew Santos. I'm so sorry for your...

MAN
I know who you are. You need to take your people out of here and get your cars
off the street so her sister can get up the block and into this house. The
family needs to be here, you do not.

SANTOS
Sir, I just wanted to let you and your family know how very sorry I am for
your loss.

The man takes a step toward Santos. The Agent moves between them.

MAN
You should know better.

AGENT
Please, step back, sir.

LOU
All right, we're done here.

SANTOS
Mrs. Burke, I'm so sorry...

LOU
Congressman, we really need to get going. Thank you, Mrs. Burke.

SANTOS
Sorry.

They walk out, Santos with a look of defeat on his face.

FADE OUT.
END ACT THREE.
* * *

ACT FOUR

FADE IN: INT. - HALLWAY - HOTEL - DAY
      LOS ANGELES
      SUNDAY MORNING

We see Lou walking down the hallway with some papers in her hand. She walks
up to a door and knocks. Santos answers the door.

LOU
Morning, sir.

SANTOS
Is that the speech?

LOU
Yeah, it is. If you want to give it a look, and then we can talk about it.

SANTOS
No, I'm fine. Thank you.

He closes the door. Lou walks away.

CUT TO: INT. - HOTEL ROOM - DAY

Santos comes away from the door and over to the bed where Helen is sitting,
watching a news story about Santos' visit to the Burke house.

HELEN
You know, it doesn't play that badly on TV.

Santos folds the paper and drops it in the trash bin. He continues getting
ready.

HELEN
What's that?

SANTOS
That was the speech I'm not going to give.

HELEN
For the church?

SANTOS
Yeah.

HELEN
So, you're just going to stand up there and sing "Oh, Heavenly Shepard"?

SANTOS
Oh, that's an idea.

HELEN
You know you slide off-key on the chorus.

SANTOS
You all think that there is something I can get up there and say that's
going to bridge the divide? Well, there isn't.

HELEN
I don't think that's true.

SANTOS
Well, the staff doesn't either, so maybe you should get together and talk
about it.

HELEN
You don't have to say the right thing, which, conveniently, doesn't exist,
but you do have to say something from your heart.

SANTOS
I do, huh?

HELEN
Yeah.

SANTOS
Nobody wants to hear that, Helen. They want to hear what I have to say as
the representative for every Latino man, woman, and child in the 50 United
States. And let me tell you something: I'm frankly getting very tired of
being responsible for every Jose Miguel Rodrigo Garcia Martinez de Lopez in
America. I'm exhausted!

HELEN
Nobody expects that.

SANTOS
Of course, they do! They want me to make sense out of all of this. And you
know what, Helen, I've got nothing. Why the hell do they shoot a kid who is
trying to surrender?! There's some guy on the scene that says the kid was
trying to put his hands up in the air. The cop couldn't have waited, like,
a half a second more before he fired? And who walks around South Central
with a plastic M-16?! Where did this kid think he was living, Martha's
Vineyard? Nobody figured out that when you live in the ghetto, you carry
around something else if you don't want to get your ass blown away? That's
what I've got right now. You think that's going to make anyone feel better?

Bram knocks and walks in.

BRAM
Good morning, ma'am. We've got to go.

CUT TO: INT. - SITUATION ROOM - DAY

C.J. and Kate are standing at the table as several people walk in.

C.J.
Nice to see you all. I hope I didn't pull anybody out of church.

Barrow grunts as if in protest.

C.J.
Sorry, Ted.

They sit.

C.J.
Where are we?

KATE
At 1:30 am Eastern Standard, Keyhole satellite images picked up movement on
the northwestern border of the Xinjiang Province, up here, which continued
the following three hours.

C.J.
Could this be something else?

BARROW
It's possible. It could be training drills, but it's unlikely.

KATE
What's likely is that China is massing troops on the border of Kazakhstan.

CUT TO: INT. - TOBY'S APARTMENT - DAY

We hear a knock at the door and we see Toby walk to the door and open it. Josh
is there with two coffee cups in his hand. He takes a drink of one.

JOSH
I brought coffee. You seem to be out.

He hands Toby the other coffee.

JOSH
I've given a lot of thought to the heartwarming insight you shared with me
about how the President thinks Santos is a loser and I think you're full of it.

TOBY
Eight packets of splenda, you couldn't rustle up a bagel?

JOSH
This isn't about the President doesn't think Santos can win, it's about you
don't think he can win.

TOBY
That's true, I don't.

JOSH
Because it will kill you to see me do this and succeed. You're not wired
for such an event. You're entire neurological infrastructure would fritz out.

TOBY
You really think I built up some Freudian fratricidal mania built around
your success? You don't think I have anything other than that against the
Democratic nominee for President?

JOSH
Name something else, please.

TOBY
He's not Presidential material.

JOSH
Why?

TOBY
Why? Because he left. He left Congress, he left Washington to go home and
do small, important work. You had to haul him by the hair out of the family
bed. Did you never stop to wonder if that was a good choice?

JOSH
He stepped up when presented with the opportunity.

TOBY
The man in that job shouldn't have to be presented with anything! It's for
someone who grabs it and holds on to it, for someone who thinks the gods
have conspired to bring him to this place, that destiny demands of him this
service! If you don't have that kind of drive, that hubris, how in the hell
are you going to make the kind of decisions that stump every other person
in this country? How in the hell are you going to hold that kind of power
in your hand?!

JOSH
You don't know he's not that man.

TOBY
You don't know that he is. Is he? Look me in the eye and tell me that you
know, without a shadow of a doubt you know.

Josh says nothing.

TOBY
That's why the other guy wins.

CUT TO: INT. - GREATER PAGE TEMPLE - DAY

There is a large audience. A black woman is on the stage, singing.

WOMAN
I am listening to the music of the holy Holy Spirit
Oh, what a song God is singing
I will listen all day long
yes, I will listen all day longing
I'm a-singing, oyaheya

CHOIR
Oyaheya

WOMAN
Oyaheya

CHOIR
Oyaheya

WOMAN
Oyaheya

CHOIR
Oyaheya

WOMAN
Hallelujah

CHOIR
Hallelujah

CUT TO: INT. - ENTRANCE - CHURCH - DAY

We see Donna, Lester, and Lou walk from their suburban to the door where
Leo and Annabeth are standing.

LOU
Thanks for joining us.

LEO
Anytime.

LOU
We tried to get the President here, couldn't make it happen.

LEO
Short notice.

LOU
Yeah. Maybe you should do a longer speech, take some of the pressure off
the Congressman.

LEO
I'm happy to do an introduction, but I think the Congressman should handle
the rest of it.

LOU
Yeah.

LEO
Oh, how did yesterday go?

LOU
The visit to Ronnie Burke's mother's house was a disaster. The Congressman
hates the very idea of the speech, never mind the speech itself. I think
he's planning on replacing me with a Labrador retriever. [pause] Is that
more information than you were looking for?

LEO
A little bit.

CUT TO: INT. - AUDITORIUM - DAY

The Pastor is speaking to the congregation.

PASTOR
We can hold the hand of the Lord and walk through the darkness!

CONGREGATION
Amen!

PASTOR
Through the pain!

CONGREGATION
Yes!

PASTOR
Through the storm! Let's give God some praise.

The congregation and the choir clap. We pan to the side of the building
where Donna and Lester are watching.

LESTER
They're supposed to be here already.

DONNA
They got stuck with the mayor, they're five minutes behind.

LESTER
This is not the place to show up late.

DONNA
I know. I don't know what to tell you.

Lou, Leo, and Annabeth join them.

LESTER
He's late.

LOU
Yes, he is.

Lou's phone rings. She answers it.

LOU
Edie, where the hell are you?

She hangs up.

LOU
They're here.

She leaves to meet the Congressman.

CUT TO: INT. - ENTRANCE - DAY

Lou walks out to meet Santos, who is getting out of the car.

LOU
We've got the Reverend Dr. James Berlan Whitman. First Lady Denise Whitman
is sitting in the first chair on your right. Choir Master Wilson Bennett.

CUT TO: INT. - AUDITORIUM - DAY

Leo is speaking to the congregation.

LEO
We've been traveling the country talking about Matt Santos' vision for America,
talking about the positive plan he has to move this country in the right
direction, talking about an America of possibility. I am proud to introduce
to you a great leader, a fine and honorable man, Congressman Matthew Santos.

The audience lightly applauds as Santos walks to the stage. He shakes Leo's
hand on the way to the pulpit.

SANTOS
Good morning. My prayers are with Ronnie Burke's family today. I know yours
are too. My prayers are with Officer Rafael Martinez and his family. They
are not struggling with the loss of a child but they are struggling with a
terrible truth. My prayers are with those families and with this one.

The audience seems put out that they have to listen.

SANTOS
You know, I find myself on days like this casting around for someone to
blame. I blame the kid, he stole a car. I blame the parents, why couldn't
they teach him better. I blame the cop, did he need to fire. I blame every
one I can think of and I am filled with rage. And then I try and find
compassion. Compassion for the people I blame, compassion for the people I
do not understand, compassion. It doesn't always work so well. I remember
as a young man listening on the radio to Dr. King in 1968. He asked of us
compassion and we responded, not necessarily because we felt it but because he
convinced us that if we could find compassion, if we could express compassion,
that if we could just pretend compassion it would heal us so much more than
vengeance could. And he was right: it did but not enough. What we've learned
this week is that more compassion is required of us and an even greater
effort is required of us. And we are all, I think everyone of us, are tired.

The audience has begun to turn toward the Congressman. We hear some light
consent.

SANTOS
We're tired of understanding, we're tired of waiting, we're tired of trying
to figure out why our children are not safe and why our efforts to try to
make them safe seem to fail. We're tired. But we must know that we have made
some progress and blame will only destroy it. Blame will breed more violence
and we have had enough of that.

More people begin to join in the vocal agreement.

SANTOS
Blame will not rid our streets of crime and drugs and fear and we have had
enough of that. Blame will not strengthen our schools or our families or
our workforce. Blame will rob us of those things and we have had enough
of that. And so I ask you today to dig down deep with me and find that
compassion in your hearts because it will keep us on the road. And we will
walk together and work together. And slowly, slowly, too slowly, things will
get better. God bless you. God bless you and God bless your children.

The audience applauds lightly at first, and then the entire audience joins
in. Santos moves away from the pulpit and shakes the pastor's hand. The
audience is beginning to come to their feet as they continue to applaud. We
follow him as he heads off the platform and down the aisle toward the
door. Helen joins him. As they come to the foyer, We see Santos grab Helen's
hand and together they walk out the door.

DISSOLVE TO: END TITLES.
FADE TO BLACK.
THE END.
* * *

The West Wing episode 7.08 "Undecideds", original air date 4 December, 2005.

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