I was too old to enjoy watching Sesame Street, but did watch the first episode of Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood. Toby is probably older than me, though, so how was he “raised” by Sesame Street?

They are the Batman and Robin of speechwriting. ;).

i always saw them as two sides of the same coin. you want toby in the background and you want sam out front, but both are absolute rhetorical sharks

5⁵5555555

It's very hard to see more sides of his personality without bringing family into it. But you can't use the same family member too much, because it's not reasonable that he would be that close to anyone.

​@@BradyPostma Toby is developed to demonstrate how family matters create the motivations which for the other major characters are left largely unexplained.

@@jamesduggan7200, quite so. The only other character whose family you see much is the President's: his wife first, then the daughters, individually, his father in a flashback, & his mother & brother are only mentioned in dialogue. Josh's father died during a prologue. C.J.'s father was offscreen nearly the whole time and was only shown in his decline. Sam's father was addressed only in his correspondence. Charlie has a younger sister he somehow found time to care for after the death of his mother. Leo's marriage broke up early in the first season & his daughter's appearances were sporadic.

@@richarda29 Abigail never warmed up to Charlie the way that Jebidiah did.

@@jamesduggan7200, who is Jebidiah? The president's first name was Josiah, named after the Bartlet that signed the Declaration of Independence. He never used the name Josiah, either: he went by the nickname "Jed", a contraction of J. Edward Bartlet. And Abby defended Charlie from Jed after Jed caught Charlie as Charlie left Jed's daughter's bedroom "after" her kidnapping.

TheAudioman15 and yet he didn't honor thy father is #5 not #3... 3 is don't take the lords name is vain

@@davlynnolan236 interesting, in Catholicism honouring your parents is number 4. 3 is honour the holy day and 5 is don't kill.

The order of the Commandments are different in Judaism and Christianity, and I think vary between Christian sects. Pretty sure the First Commandment is the First Commandment everywhere, though. Unusually for WW fans, I actually dislike this scene -- not the fact that there is confusion over the order, or even that someone got something wrong, it's that it's so clearly a set-up for Bartlet's walk-in, because nobody who even vaguely pretends to care about "Family Values" (the political code, not actual values, which pretty much everyone has) in the US would get that wrong. The arguments about posting the Ten Commandments (Protestant Edition) in public spaces was raging around the time this show aired. Richard Schiff's energy and Martin Sheen's embodiment of Bartlet save the scene, but it needs saving. Sam's reveal of what POTUS means is much better, although that's more to do with the constant repetition of the word and Sam's delivery than the scene with Sam. I get it, it was the pilot, rough edges are to be expected, and everything else was incredibly smooth.

@@saoirsevicteoiria2759 Not only are they different order but they're even subtly different. Catholics 9 and 10 are thy shalt not covet they neighbors possessions (9) and wife (10) but for Protestants that's just #10 and they add one about graven images that (hmm i wonder why) Catholics don't

@@davlynnolan236you got it

My favorite thing that Toby ever said is “it does not make my socks roll up and down”.

You think?

Fated Circles God Almighty!!! “You think?” Is a famous ‘Sorkinism ‘ that runs in Aaron Sorkin’s works, I thought you’ll appreciate that. Now don’t talk to me like am other people! NB. That’s another ‘Sorkinism’

I binged on this show over a period of five months where my grandmother died, my brother had a stroke and was in a coma for three weeks and then my dad died of cancer. I'd get some downtime from all that and work and I would have the DVD already in the player ready to go.

I binge watched this series on DVDs while recovering from a motorcycle accident and multiple orthopedic surgeries. Laughter is truly the best medicine and this show had plenty of great laughs along with some very poignant moments. Kristen Chenoweth was a great add to the cast.

Hope all of you are feeling better.

"What to do when the Nina the Pinta and the Get-Me-The-Hell-Out-of-Here hit Miami" lmao

That's so perfect.

Leo then is definitely Gopher.

@@Legba85, Gopher? There’s no Gopher on Winnie the Pooh. Gopher is from The Love Boat and is nothing like Leo McGarry.

@@richarda29 disney.fandom.com/wiki/Gopher_(Winnie_the_Pooh) There is such a character

Toby is a walking ulcer.

Leo - Chaotic Neutral

Love his loyalty.

Same here.

Immediately following reading this sprite burned my nostrils by shooting out too quickly. Also, I say yes to your statement.

I was about to post the same thing. Team Toby all the way.

I didn't even read this comment and that's EXACTLY what I was thinking

5:56..................................(8^P

Team Toby.

One of? One of how many? Ten? One hundred? One thousand? Using the phrase 'one of' is not only disengenuous, it's ridiculous. Schiff is a competant actor, that's it. Acting is what Daniel Day-Lewis does and I would suggest Schiff could not play a single role that Day-Lewis has.

All of them, IMHO.

Maybe not better than _The Comey Rule._

It would, yes, but listen to A. Sorkin & you'll hear just how hard it was for him to make. It's why he quit network television.

@@richarda29 you see I thought he left season 4 of the west wing due to let’s say personal issues. And it was his experience on the newsroom especially all the reshoots for season 3 that led him to say actually no I am not writing for tv ever again

Very true

Niña, but still funny.

@@richarda29 He repeated the line accurately. Have you not seen the show?

@@ericfenstermacher5925, yes, I have. I also know that the ship was called the Niña, meaning "little girl." Just because the character mispronounced it does not obligate me to repeat the mistake.

@@richarda29 It's not a mispronunciation, the line is an emphatic reference to the fact that the refugees are so desperate to get to America that they didn't have time to name the rafts they were on. It's meant to be humorous in a dark way and "mispronunciation" implies it is a mistake, which it is not. It is deliberate to call attention to the plight.

Reminds me of his "I'm smiling on the inside." =)

Time

Even hearing the theme song at the beginning of these snippets gives me chills. Loved West Wing!!!

Currently streaming on HBO Max

***** I know right? He is the Spock, the Data and Borg of the west wing.

My favorite quote from Toby is during Santos election.

blukulele he really did trip over something...

I’m sorry?

5:56.................(8^P

Noticed that too. They always had a great big sister/little brother dynamic.

@@steampunker7 exactly.

I'm from the future. that's way less funny in 2019.

@@op3129 It really is. Though CJ giving a Josh a "shut the hell up" nudge like a big sister chastising her annoying little brother at least still gives a smile.

@@steampunker7 "I outrank you" was notable (for same reason you described)

@@op3129 CJ: SO FAR UP YOUR ASS! Another of my personal favs. Gods I miss this show.

monex5 Not really, you have memorized scripts of substance, hats off to you.

So, what's the quote where Toby explains to the President that in 8 years, he, the President has about a year and a half to accomplish something?

Are you fortunate enough to have a Mrs Landingham (Old or Young) in your family?

Why Democrats should be banned from government office.

Actually it was get your fat asses out of my White House

Ann Johnson we were navigating by the North Star which happened to be the delta shuttle from LaGuardia

They tried very, very hard to "get it right." Enough even to include the flaws. Bartlet's MS, Leo's rehab. And yes, this show should be a firm reminder of what the founders had in mind when Thomas Jefferson wrote that document we call The Declaration of Independence. "Some people see things as they are and ask, "Why?" I see things as they could be and ask, "Why not?" JFK

@@richarddarlington1139 That was RFK.

He didn't win the popular vote But he won the election The majority of Americans didn't vote for him! He was sworn in! I was standing 10 feet from the chief justice!