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The West Wing, Season 7, Episode 20 (Patreon)

Published:
2025-09-01 22:21:27
Imported:
2026-06
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Content

The Last Hurrah

Files

Previews only

WW7 20

Comments

Jeff

Next week is one of my favorite episodes; it makes me break down every time. Actually, I'll probably just be crying nonstop over the entire next two weeks.

trenton gragg

Alda won the Emmy award for supporting actor in a drama series, for this season. I think this might’ve been one of the episodes he submitted.

Martin Nicholls

This is a good episode even though very little actually happens, it's a odd one in that regard. Also RFK literally ran against Joe Biden in the presidential primary, whist it isn't the exact same thing, very few people have Democrat creds quite like him and whist he's now technically not a Democrat, he really is. Tulsi Gabbard was a Democrat representative in a left-leaning seat of a left-leaning state only a few years ago, and now she's Trump's DNI. Again, not quite the same thing, but very very deeply blue; ally of Bernie Sanders, heck, she was vice-chair of the DNC. I doubt her politics, or that of RFK, have moved an inch in the last 20 years. My point being the Sate job at least, isn't that wild anyway.

D Gyre
>>185879832

I understand why you are attempting to make this point, but objectively RFK and Gabbards policy platforms have never matched well with the core DNC platform, and the Dem party has long been wary of RFK's anti-vax theories. (Also remember Sanders isn't a Dem, he's an Independent who caucuses with Dems). Most notably, they both basically 'gave up' any Dem identity or loyalty to the party to become MAGA under Trump, where Vinnick is stating he wouldn't give up an inch of that if he were to take the job. Basically they don't qualify as 'bipartisanship' and neither of them is anything close to the kind of mainstream politicians that Arnold Vinnick would represent.

D Gyre

Been waiting for this one, one of my absolute favorites of the show. Vinnick is one of my favorite characters and this is just such a great way for him to continue to serve for just a little while long. This episode especially I feel was somewhat written on John McCain, with his foreign policy skills (although obviously Vinnick isn't a vet) but especially that "last honorable senator" line. It's been used to describe him. Honestly, I'm not sure I would want a Sorkin show currently. I could absolutely be wrong, and I'm not a democrat/liberal so I'd be viewing this kind of from the other side. Sorkin did endorse Harris, certainly. But I'd be afraid he'd go down that Nate Silver type path, especially after seeing that Newsroom speech that is so popular/famous. I'm a little fearful of how modern issues like undocumented immigrants and trans rights would be treated in a Sorkin show. Maybe I'm completely wrong, I hope I am. But I get that vibe.

Cosmic Slice

Right now, I prefer to live in the imaginary Bartlett/Santos world than real American politics..,

Ryan Fisher

Wonderful reaction, guys. To answer your question at the end, the last time a President of one party served with a Vice President of another party was Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson, and we all saw how well that worked out. There was fan discussion in Season 5 (and scripted reaction!) that Walken might stay on as Bartlet’s VP, so it was wild that they acknowledged it it outright. I feel so old watching this because as others have said, the genesis behind Seasons 6 and 7 was “what if that guy from the 2004 DNC with the funny name ran against John McCain?” And we’re in very early 2006 as these episodes are being written. The idea that a Democrat would award a vanquished rival with Secretary of State was preposterous, but would happen less than three years later. At the golden Oval Office comment I snorted coffee so far up my nose, we may never see it again. I have difficulty enjoying the show in this period of ultra-partisanship, but if you’re a fan of Chuck, the White House Decorator was General Beckman. To the comments on Helen Santos, she definitely has the Abbie Bartlet “I’m channeling ornery” thing going on. She starts the episode off fully cognizant of the dangers of being in the First Family, but in her mind she’s thinking she and the kids lived in Houston during the campaign, they’d just keep doing it, and didn’t have an understanding of how hard that would be to maintain. I forget if it’s been discussed already, but WB cut its price for the show to get NBC to buy more episodes so it would have the episodes made and could later sell them into syndication, so bringing on Alda and Smits and the production costs (many all over the Warner Brothers lots) led to salary cuts for the cast. Cast members were only paid for episodes they were in. Dule Hill and Stockard Channing left for other series and were only paid for episodes they appeared in, as did Martin Sheen, who was written out of this episode. No spoilers on what’s to come in the next two episodes, but Bradley Whitford wasn’t paid for this one on vacation, and Rob Lowe is expensive. I raise this point because while everyone agreed to pay Allison Janey whatever it took to have her on as much as possible, and while Stockard Channing was likely unavailable, it sort of fit for me that she would fly off to the G8 where she had no official role rather than show Helen Santos around. I can actually hear her rolling her eyes saying she doesn’t give a damn.

Ryan Fisher

And not knowing how many readers were into fandom sort of things, but there was a fan fiction I read decades ago that is likely still around somewhere called “The Twentieth Amendment” that shows the security and political risks of not asking the Electoral College to vote on a Vice President. For those who are back in the WW mood!

Daniel McQueen

Last time a major party president gave the VP to the other side was Lincoln nominating Johnson in 1864 in a unity ticket. And Johnson blew up reconstruction right after Lincoln died.

Brian Harris

Not as far fetched at the time as it seems now that you might have a president and veep from different parties. In 2008, John McCain’s first choice for his running mate was Al Gore’s running mate from 2000, Senator Joe Lieberman. Lieberman was McCain’s best friend in the Senate. The only reason McCain went with Sarah Palin instead was his campaign’s absolute certainty that Lieberman could not be approved by the convention because he was pro-choice. I often wonder what a McCain-Lieberman ticket would have done for that campaign and subsequently this country. I don’t think they would have won, not with the economic crisis of 2008. But it would have been a useful demonstration of personal and political bipartisanship at a time when we could have sorely used the example.

kosmickrab

Hey, guys. I just want to remind you there's a reunion special done for HBO Max in 2020 (When We All Vote) that I hope you will react to after the series finale too.

Kelsey Krehbiel

For the record, at the time DCPS test scores were the lowest in the country. Even below Puerto Rico. It really was quite sad I’m a die hard public school supporter (and teacher), but the reality of the First Family security concerns are just way too complicated for public schools to handle. All First Kids have gone to Sidwell for a while now. They’ve got security protocols in place and a super secure campus. In contrast, many of the public schools have maybe a chain link fence around the playground Also, fun fact: DCPS does not do school buses! We got student passes for metro and buses; free public transit everywhere in city limits

Youtalkingtome
>>185991814

I hated the school bus as a kid! That's pretty awesome they have that available. Also the public school angle of this storyline is a bit of a stretch

Michael Bennett

I would love another TV series from Sorkin, I think he just hates doing them. He only lasted 4 years on TWW and 3 on The Newsroom (which was also fantastic) until he just burned out. That being said, the way that TV series are produced nowadays is very different, with long waits between seasons. As a viewer, I hate this, but maybe it's a schedule that Sorkin could live with. After TWW, Sorkin wrote Charlie Wilson's War, which is a MUST watch, with outstanding performances by Tom Hanks and Philip Seymour Hoffman. PSH returned for Moneyball, another great watch though it has nothing to do with politics. Returning to politics was The Trial of the Chicago 7, another film that glued me to my seat for the duration. Back to TWW :D This episode was consequential in that we got an unusual pick for SoS, but the "mood" of the episode was so relaxed. I like that they can still do great storytelling without an abundance of tension. Ronna once again reminds me of an era when I enjoyed politics.