Just a quick question. I wasn’t paying full attention to the show and I guess I missed the signifigance of the final scene with Leo and Kate in 1995. Can somebody pull it all together for me?
I really didn’t get it myself. I thought “well…it would be interesting if we the viewers were left to guess at whether she was really telling the truth or…oh good, they’re flat out telling us. That’s lovely.”
It really made no sense, though perhaps they’re planning on following it up with a little more flashback in later episodes.
I am now the third person who was wondering just what the heck was going on too?
There will have to be more to this story in the last 3 episodes. And it is giving a justification to keep Mary McCormack’s character around longer because until today, she was pretty useless.
I am surprised that the President’s Chief of Staff doesn’t have the security clearance to read everything in the Deputy NSA’s file. If the CIA is hiding information from the upper levels of the White House, literally one step away, just what are they hiding and what is their justification.
What if President Bartlet asked for the file? Would it be all blacked out?
I’m glad to see it isn’t just me. I was thinking I was supposed to put a bunch of subtle hints together and have a “a-ha” moment at the end.
The flash is probably not finished. I’m sure there is much more to it.
Though next week, it’s back to the campaign! YAY!
I figure she was watching him in an offical capacity; the CIA figured a cabinet member who drank to much was a security risk.
From what I gathered (and the final bits I put together in the shower this morning)
The CIA and the Florida Senator (Brian Dennehy) had vested interests in keeping the status quo on Cuba in effect. Leo, as Secty of Labor, was down there trying to change things.
The CIA knew he drank.
They got the sentor to get him drunk during the conference he was in.
Kate was assigned to hang out by his car, and get him as far away from things as she could when he was drunk.
Implied, but I have no proof, CIA/Cuba expartriates then cause hate and discontent in the meeting whi8le Leo was gone.
Do that track with everyone? It makes sense to me, but I may be missing some things.
In other news, TWW was picked up for a seventh season, announced yesterday.
sentor = Senator
expartriates = expatriates
cause = caused
whi8le = while
(Secret CIA coding)
Sounds pretty good to me. Why did she have the black eye though? Something to do with the Cuban guy she was meeting in the bar?
What a crap episode. I’m looking forward to getting back out on the campaign trail. Those have been the good eps this season.
The termite storyline was about the worst thing they’ve ever done. The idea that Charlie gets some sort of say in how the building is managed is laughable. It’s a national landmark! They’re going to let some 22 year old staffer give some nimrod with a big power drill permission to destroy the mural room?!? Come on.
Not to mention the the White House is not made of wood. It’s stone and steel. (Or, at least, the outside is.)
I could see why the etymologists were interested, though – some termites!
Yeah, figuring out where that word came from would be high on my priority list!
Etymology of the word termite. This should be of some interest to entomologists. 
Is this the first time they’ve used a real-life contemporary (and not historical) political figure in the show? I seem to remember “counterparts” to various British, Russian, and Asian figures (Tony Blair, Kim Jong Il, etc.) we recognize in the real world, but never naming them, per se. Or am I wrong?
Surprisingly enough, Osama bin Laden was mentioned by name on the show, almost a year before the 9/11 attacks.
I was very happy to see Margaret with more of her insanity. Her analysis of CJ’s handwriting, and her list of what she had to go through to get Kate’s record. And, of course, her totalling missing CJ’s jab of “No psychological testing?” “I didn’t think of that.” I’ve missed Margaret’s flakiness of late.
As for the CIA keeping secrets, well, not really. CJ was in a position to get the record - she just couldn’t go and get it. The CIA is institutional - it’s been around since just after WWII, and they’ll be around for a long time to come. Administrations come and go. Cj was able to get the record - she just had to give a reason why she wanted it in writing. As for the stuff that was blanked out, it all could have been provided had CJ shown an absolute need to know it. Remember that Nancy, in the first or second season, showed the complete file on a woman’s grandfather who was an accused spy.
And CJ showed that she cannot be trusted to have access to CIA personel files. She went and showed it to Leo. A big no-no. I hope some one was listening to the bug inher office, and won’t let her get any more classified info again. 
I thought what Rob Lowe looked at had stuff blacked out as well.
Yeah, sounds good. Didn’t Leo say something earlier that episode that he almost had a deal but something happened and it got lost? I didn’t catch what that something was.
Btw, was it insinuated that there was a Democrat President in the 80s or was Leo just the token Democrat in the Republican administration back then?
I thought he blamed himself for going drinking with the Senator and causing the deal to fall through.
Leo was Chief of Staff, though - would his security clearance have been pulled that quickly? Himself (my SO) said something about it, but I just figured he still had his clearance, especially since he’s still working in the WH with the President.
If the file is so darn secret, why did they hand it to a secretary/administrative assistant, who then had to walk it back from wherever she got it to the White House?
If it’s so darn important, wouldn’t the CIA send a messenger carrying a guy or something like that.
“Hi, I’m here for the top secret file.”
“Your name.”
“Margaret, but it’s for CJ Cregg”
“Oh, this one, here you go.”
Margaret said she had to pass through a lot of security, but she still had to carry it around.