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Main Characters

President Josiah "Jed" Bartlet

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Chief of Staff Leo McGarry

Deputy Chief of Staff Josh Lyman

Communications Director Toby Ziegler

Press Secretary C.J. Cregg

Deputy Communications Director Sam Seaborn

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Media Consultant Mandy Hampton

Media Consultant Mandeline Hampton Portrayed by: Moira Kelly Mandy is a professional political and publicity consultant, initially working for a Democrat who wanted to primary Bartlet before changing his mind. Leo hired her as Media Consultant to help with staging events and the like. Her character didn't fit in with the rest of the senior staff for various reasons and she vanished at the end of the season. Amicable Exes: With Josh, more-or-less. They still argue a lot but it's not really romantic or ex-romantic. There is some romantic tension between them, but it is somewhat weak and forced.

Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: Her relevance gradually diminished and her last appearance is talking about Bartlet's forthcoming lecture at Rosslyn. She vanishes somewhere between then and the shooting, never to be seen or spoken of again. (They were thinking about putting her into a later episode, but this didn't happen.) The complete lack of acknowledgement that she had ever existed led to the fans' nickname of "Mandyville".

The Complainer Is Always Wrong: Frequently, Mandy would argue for the option that was more politically expedient and easier to spin positive, then be overruled by the rest of the staff doing what would feel better morally. For example, arguing for the Ivy-league moderate Supreme Court nominee (who doesn't believe in the right to privacy) over the liberal Hispanic who went to night classes for his law degree.

Drives Like Crazy: Her first appearance is getting pulled over while arguing on her cellphone. She also drives up an over a curb while leaning on the horn before getting out and yelling at her now-former boss for essentially letting her go without telling her first. note He'd hired her because he wanted to primary Bartlet but gave it up when he threw his support behind an important piece of legislation.

Foil: She was intended to be one for Josh, but Donna took the role almost immediately.

Noodle Incident: The circumstances that led her to break up with Josh and leave the Bartlet campaign were apparently acrimonious, because she mentions hating him and her explanation for the below-mentioned memo is not "it was my job" but "I was still mad". But the details are never explained, probably due to her being written out.

Stress Vomit: After learning that the FBI negotiator she'd convinced the President to use in resolving a standoff was shot, she bolts to get sick in the nearest ladies' room.

What the Hell, Hero?: For writing (while in Senator Russel's employ) a scathing memo on how to beat Bartlet. The memo's emergence and how accurate it is gets her shunned for a while.

Assistant to the Deputy Chief of Staff Donna Moss

Personal Aide to the President Charlie Young

Deputy Communications Director; Chief of Staff to the Vice President Will Bailey

Cmdr Kate Harper, Deputy National Security Adviser

Commander Kate Harper, Deputy National Security Adviser Portrayed by: Mary McCormack Nancy McNally's assistant, introduced near the end of season 5. She plays a key role in brokering an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal and essentially takes over McNally's role as "sit room crisis person," but as a member of the main cast rather than a recurring character. Action Girl: Heavily implied. She's also the West Wing equivalent of this; a good chunk of her screentime is dealing with some kind of crisis in the Situation Room.

Assurance Backfire: When Josh questions the safety of an unofficial diplomatic meeting with a Palestinian group, Kate points out that he flew to Germany on a commercial jet and has been walking around in public, so anyone looking to kill him would have done so already. Josh: Yeah, that's not so reassuring.

Category Traitor: Mild version. She votes for Vinick rather than Santos, to Will's dismay .

. Disproportionate Retribution: Tends to (non-seriously) suggest military interventions in response to slights against her friends.

Mysterious Past: She used to work for the CIA, apparently had a rough time in Cuba.

No Social Skills: In her early appearances particularly, she often gives off the impression of someone who is very awkward and not very good at communicating with other people, which appears to have something to do with her past in the CIA and the secretive nature of her work there. She gets better as the series goes on.

Only Sane Woman: Sometimes, particularly in the episode where an international crisis happens on the border... with Canada.

Sixth Ranger: Added to the main cast late in the fifth season, but as her duties are centered around the military and the Situation Room and she knows many things that are restricted knowledge even from characters with codeword clearance, she lacks the True Companions kind of relationship that most of the senior staff have. (She and Will eventually start up a romantic relationship, but neither of them seem to be sticking around for the Santos administration towards the end of the series.)

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Deputy Press Secretary Annabeth Schott

Deputy Press Secretary Annabeth Schott Portrayed by: Kristin Chenoweth "That little pixie from the Taylor Reid show." Anna applies for the post of Deputy Press Secretary when Toby takes over the job and teaches him how to present himself as less like himself (i.e. friendly and engaging to the press). She serves as his assistant and later joins the Santos campaign as Leo's aide. The Cast Show Off: Bursts into song at the start of "Welcome To Wherever You Are".

Height Angst: From the opposite end as C.J. There are a lot of sight gags involving her lack of height—she's invisible behind the press podium, and one scene has her and C.J. walking side by side down a hallway.

The Password Is Always "Swordfish": Leo uses her email to leak his bad debate practice tape and advises her not to use the name of her cats as her password.

and advises her not to use the name of her cats as her password. Shorter Means Smarter: She's absolutely tiny, but extremely savvy about publicity and public speaking.

Sixth Ranger: Debuted right into the opening titles of the sixth season. Her top resume item is making the career of an obnoxious right-wing pundit who plagues C.J. for a few episodes.

Southern-Fried Genius: She doesn't have Ainsley's strong accent, but she's a NASCAR fan from the South.

Stage Fright: Although she's happy to talk to the press in the communications bullpen, she can't make herself brief from the actual podium and does several circuits around the press room.

UST: With Leo, a bit. She lampshades it to his face in "Mr. Frost". Annabeth: I just think it's better whele we're spending so much time together that we try and keep our distance whenever possible.

Leo: Keep our distance?

Annabeth: Because of the tension. *walks out*

Leo: ....What tension?

Other White House Characters

Vice President John Hoynes

Vice President John Hoynes Portrayed by: Tim Matheson A former Texas Senator and Bartlet's first Vice-President, Hoynes has a troubled relationship with the President. Both men resent each other from the Democratic primaries: Hoynes had been the front-runner until Bartlet unexpectedly overtook the pack, and Bartlet had to beg him to be veep to secure Southern votes. Despite their antagonism, Hoynes does prove useful to Bartlet on several occasions. He resigns due to a sex scandal near the end of Season 4. The Alcoholic: It's revealed that Hoynes has his own issues with the bottle, stemming from his rowdy college days. He hasn't taken a drink since then, but he runs an A.A. meeting because he was so disturbed by what it was like.

Big Bad Wannabe: Still seething from Bartlet stealing the Presidency from him — even more so once he found out about Bartlet's medical condition, and was obliged to drop out of the race anyway. Unfortunately for Hoynes, he's not as good at listening to other people as Bartlet and his messy personal life compounds his political problems.

The Casanova: Shown to have slept with many women. This is what leads to his political end, not once but twice .

. Expy: Of Lyndon B. Johnson (Hoynes' former position as a Texas Senator, the situation between Bartlet and Hoynes in the Primary, and his raw presidential aspirations are all pulled directly from LBJ) and to a lesser extent Al Gore (the Bartlet Adminstration mirrors the Clinton administration in many ways, and Hoynes' less than friendly relationship with Bartlet, particularly the belief he is sidelined as VP, mirrors Clinton's relationship with Gore). He can also seem to be one of John Edwards, as a Southern Democrat whose Presidential aspirations were sunk by a sex scandal, but Edwards' scandal actually occurred after the show had finished airing.

Friendly Enemy: To varying degrees with the President's senior staff, particularly with Leo and Josh. With Leo, although the two lock horns frequently they nevertheless have a more cordial relationship than Hoynes and Bartlet due to their shared experience with alcoholism. Josh, meanwhile, was Hoynes's Chief of Staff and briefly his campaign manager while Hoynes was a senator running for President, and despite Josh moving to Bartlet's campaign there's still residual respect on both sides. To a lesser extent, while they interact less often he also seems to get along quite well with Sam on the few occasions they do interact, while C.J and Toby openly dislike him and usually approach him with only the bare minimum respect and politeness that his position demands.

The Friend Nobody Likes: His position in the Bartlet White House, due to a bruising Democratic primary that saw him narrowly lose to Bartlet. While he's helpful at times, neither the White House Staff or Hoynes himself have forgotten or forgiven, and the staff correctly view Hoynes's ambitions as a political threat.

view Hoynes's ambitions as a political threat. Hoist by His Own Petard: He withholds his delegates to try and strike a deal with Santos, but when another Democrat throws his hat into the ring on primary night, this threat loses its teeth

Jerkass / Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He goes back and forth between these two tropes, from episode to episode. One notable incident on the better side is when a fellow politician in his AA meeting suggests that Leo's presence might draw unwanted attention. Hoynes responds that it's his meeting, and if he wants Leo there then Leo stays.

Oh, Crap!: The look on his face in the Season 2 opener when a squad of Secret Service agents storm into a photo-op, grab him by the arms, and practically carry him out of the room because of the Rosslyn shooting. It's probably less to the image of a squad of burly men barreling straight for him, and more of the realization that something horrible has happened to the President.

Smug Snake: Throughout his career. He's too careful and tries to steer too often into the political winds to win enough support for the Democratic nomination in the first place, and he's not nearly careful enough in concealing his extramarital affairs.

What the Hell, Hero?: Bartlet had told him (along with the First Lady) he would only serve one term thanks to the MS. When Bartlet tries to blame Hoynes for outing him by preparing to run (setting off the chain of events that led to Toby figuring it out) Hoynes is incensed and points out that Bartlet never said that he'd changed his mind until he announced it on national television.

Worthy Opponent: Bounces between this and The Starscream with President Bartlet. He makes absolutely no secret of his desire to become President and feels that Bartlet holding the office is an obstacle. But he ran a clean campaign during the primary and kept Bartlet's MS disclosure to himself when he could have let the press know and rekindled his own election hopes when Bartlet let him in on the secret... mainly because Bartlet chose him for the V.P. spot because he thought Hoynes had it in him to be a good President and there was a better-than-normal chance that Bartlet could die in office. That still does not stop Hoynes from being insubordinate at times when he feels snubbed and put on the sidelines when there's governmental heavy lifting to be done. In fact, he wants to be seen as The Dragon to Bartlet himself, but despite his own extensive government and public experience, he is sidelined and his input ignored in favor of Leo and other staff members, being shoved into the stereotypical role of Vice Presidents attending funerals for third world dictators and inquiring daily into the President's health.



National Security Adviser Dr. Nancy McNally

National Security Adviser Doctor Nancy McNally Portrayed by: Anna Deavere Smith First appearing in the second season premiere. Dr. McNally is an expert in foreign policy, mainly the parts about people threatening America, so she's usually seen in the Situation Room. She advises Bartlet and Leo through several crises, from domestic terrorism to the civil war in Kundu. General Ripper: Parodied. She half-seriously proposes nuking the Middle East because "I've had it" and Fitz calls her "Dr. Strangelove."

Not That Kind of Doctor: The show doesn't specify what her Ph.D. is in, though.

Put on a Bus: Kate Harper's introduction basically marks the end of her role as a character. She does appear during the transition between Bartlet and Santos, though.

Remember the New Guy?: A mild case. There were been several big national security and/or foreign crises in the first season, but she's not played as a new character in "In the Shadow of Two Gunmen."

The Spock: She often favors a hardline approach and accepts the need to cooperate with abhorrent governments like Qumar.

Admiral Percy Fitzwallace, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs

Admiral Percy Fitzwallance, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Portrayed by: John Amos "Fitz," as Bartlet and Leo call him, is a veteran of the Sit Room and international crises. He's a steady and solid adviser who helps Bartlet make some of the really tough calls and deal with the aftermath. Back for the Dead: Retires from the White House at the beginning of season five and returns in the last few episodes, just in time to be killed in the Gaza bombing.

Bunny-Ears Lawyer: Not really. But he will go off on irrelevant tangents during tense or otherwise serious situations (like when waiting to receive intel) to get a reaction out of the President or Leo.

Embarrassing First Name: Most people call him "Chairman". Bartlet Calls him "Fitz".

Establishing Character Moment: This little waiting-for-news-in-the-Sit-Room exchange in "A Proportional Response." Fitz: I've been thinking something.

General: What?

Fitz: This is different coffee than we usually have.

Good Is Not Soft: He's a decent man, but he's a strong proponent of assassinating Sharif and never sugarcoats any news.

and never sugarcoats any news. Informed Ability: Supposedly an expert on warfare. When he discusses the Battle of Agincourt in episode 3.22 he gets pretty much everything wrong. He claims that heralds observed the battle to determined who won. A ridiculous claim. The winner was determined by the fact that the French ran from the battlefield. He claims that a soldier who lay down his weapons was treated humanely. That only applied if he was a rich nobleman who could pay a ransom. Common soldiers were slaughtered like sheep. Finally, he claims that Medieval warriors would never target a single individual, when in fact a large press of French soldiers tried to get at Henry V to gain the honour of killing him. The latter phenomenon was quite common and had already been observed in witness accounts of the Battle of Hastings, four centuries earlier. It led to kings dressing up knights in copies of the royal armour to act as decoys. In fact, the the Battle of Agincourt became notorious because of what happened to the prisoners. The medieval chronicle 'Gesta Henrici Quinti' (The Deeds of Henry V) records how the English ended up killing many of the French prisoners that they did manage to capture. The French noble Ghillebert de Lannoy, lord of Willerval, who was himself taken prisoner by the English, describes how his captors set fire to the barn where all the prisoners were being held. Only a few, including Ghillebert himself, managed to escape. The fact that Fitzwallace, a supposed military expert, would use Agincourt as an example of "humane treatment of prisoners" is all the more egregious.

Nice to the Waiter: Shown as treating men under him in a rather fatherly way and respecting their opinions and intelligence.

Put on a Bus: For Season 2 and most of Season 3, he's conveniently out of the country when a crisis occurs. Eventually he comes back.

Reasonable Authority Figure: The President has authority over him, but his opinion is always thought through well, and Fitzwallace is thoroughly committed to doing his job properly without any thought to politics.

Retirony: He'd actually been in retirement for a little while when Bartlet asked him to join the Congressional delegation to Gaza.

Seinfeldian Conversation: A bit of a Running Gag in the series is that the first time we see him in an episode (or at least at some point during his appearance), he'll be fixated on some triviality about his surroundings, such as a change in the coffee, new curtains, or the way the seal of office on the Oval Office floor seems to change depending on the circumstances.

Those Two Guys: With Nancy McNally. She calls him "Admiral Sissymary".

Associate White House Counsel Ainsley Hayes

Executive Secretary to the President Delores Landingham

Executive Secretary to the President Delores Landingham Portrayed by: Kathryn Joosten / Kirsten Nelson (flashbacks) Mrs. Landingham has been working for Bartlet since he was New Hampshire's governor and long before. As such, she is affectionally unimpressed with him and his senior staff, but she'll give them a cookie if they behave well. She is very loyal to Jed, and very patriotic despite having lost both of her sons in Vietnam; she takes her job very seriously. Cool Big Sis: Appointed herself this job for Jed back when he was in college.

Cool Old Lady: One of the coolest, and all the moreso because it's never at the expense of her dignity. "I've got a secret for you, Mr. President. Your father was a prick who couldn't get over the fact that he wasn't as smart as his brothers." Admittedly that line is from an imagined conversation after she's killed, but Bartlet knew her better than anyone, and presumably he'd know whether it was something she'd say in real life .

Death by Irony: She buys a car for the very first time and is killed by a drunk driver while driving home. Bartlet even goes so far as to call out God on that score. Bartlet: She bought her first new car and you hit with a drunk driver. What, was that supposed to be funny? (proceeds to rant against The Almighty. In the National Cathedral. In Latin.)

Last-Name Basis: All other assistants are "Donna" or "Carol" or "Bonnie" or what have you, but she is always "Mrs. Landingham." This is due to the fact that she's been looking after Jed since he was a young man, and he's simply always known her as "Mrs. Landingham" due to the age difference. She was his father's secretary, but she ended up becoming the chief maternal influence in Bartlet's life. Jed only calls her "Dolores" about twice in the show: In "18th and Potomac" just before she's killed and in the flashback to the first time they met, when she firmly corrects him.

No Badass to His Valet: Basically the only person in the cast other than Abbie who is never intimidated by the President.

Old Retainer: She was originally Bartlet's father's secretary.

Servile Snarker: Not on Charlie's level, but she and Bartlet have been through so much together that she's more than earned the right—and sometimes, she does exercise it.

Team Mom: A bit of a tough love mom, but she's got a jar of cookies on her desk to give out when someone suffers a massive legislative defeat.

Vice President Bob Russell

Vice President Robert Russell, Jr. Portrayed by: Gary Cole Bartlet's second Veep. A back-bencher congressman from Colorado, Russell is widely known as bland and mediocre; he was picked mainly by the Republican House because they figured he wouldn't be a threatening candidate in four years. Russell is aware of this and actively cultivates political reputation and capital as much as he can. He's the frontrunner in the primaries until Matt Santos overtakes him. Actually Pretty Funny: Toby and Will accidentally load Bartlet's teleprompter with a gag speech draft lambasting Russell for his overwhelming mediocrity. Bartlet improvises, but Russell sees it. He interrupts their profuse apologies to tell them that he found it hilarious and would like a copy. This immediately becomes evidence of his Manipulative Bastard tendencies, because he makes it clear with his next words that he's pissed, and that he is prepared to use the incident as leverage against Toby and Will to make him look better: Russell : I know my public profile, my political persona. I'm just glad to see there's such a keen awareness of the scale of the job you've all got ahead of you. I'm part of the team now, which makes all this pretty much your problem. Good luck with it.

Drunk with Power: To a degree; his more Jerkass tendencies get increasingly pronounced the more he gets used to being both the Vice President and the Democratic Party's presumptive nominee for President.

Hidden Depths: Picked to fill Hoynes' spot as Veep, Russell was meant by Haffley to be a thorn in the side of Bartlet's administration AND a non-threat to Congressional Democrats who were hoping to run for President once Bartlet's second term ended. Russell spites both expectations by proving reliable to Bartlet as well as garnering front-runner status for the 2006 campaign. At one point, he's the only person in the entire administration to figure out which country performed an unannounced nuclear test in the Indian Ocean. Not Bartlet or Leo, not the CIA or NSA, Bingo freakin' Bob. His bland personal demeanour masks a mind as good as that of anyone else on the show.

Pointy-Haired Boss: It becomes apparent during the Presidential campaign that Russell is mostly detached from what's going on, to the point that Will and his staff have to constantly micro-manage events by reminding him who he is speaking to, what they're doing for the campaign, and what he needs to say.

Self-Deprecation: He's well aware of how bland he seems and jokes that his secret service codename is simply "Bob Russell".

Sleazy Politician: To an extent, and probably the most prominent example on the Democratic side. Zig-zagged in that his argument as to why he is so close to a big mining corporation is actually quite reasonable: They employ more of his constituents than anyone else, so he has good reason to listen to them.

Strawman Political: Russell is basically the walking personification of every negative stereotype about modern politicians: he's bland, graspingly ambitious, has no firm ideological convictions, takes special-interest money by the forklift-load, and will do just about anything to win an election.

Executive Secretary to the President Deborah Fiderer

Executive Secretary to the President Deborah Fiderer Portrayed by: Lily Tomlin When she was Debbie DiLaguardia, she passed on Charlie's resume over the son of a prominent donor because she saw Charlie would be better and got fired for her troubles. Charlie seeks her out to take Mrs. Landingham's place. Despite a rocky start, Debbie takes to the job and becomes a reliable, no-nonsense gatekeeper of the Oval. Bait-and-Switch Tyrant: Bartlet and Josh, most notably, don't like her new rules and regulations for Bartlet's time. However, she has very good reasons for doing so and her changes do make the day go much more efficiently.

Chekhov's Gunman: Her name was mentioned in Season 1 as the staffer who recommended Charlie for his job note under her married surname . When Jed finally accepts the need for a new secretary, Charlie calls her first.

. When Jed finally accepts the need for a new secretary, Charlie calls her first. Bunny-Ears Lawyer: She's written inflammatory letters to the White House and claims to be an alpaca farmer when Charlie calls, but she's very good at her job and takes it quite seriously.

Do Not Call Me "Paul": Hates being called "Deb," but she can't find a good way to tell Bartlet that.

Establishing Character Moment: Bartlet initially thinks that hers is in her first interview, where she's on two valiums and, when he asks her why she was fired from the White House, she uses language colourful enough for him to reject her immediately. In fact it's her second, by which time he's learned that she recommended Charlie for the personal assistant job, which shows that she's a good judge of character. When Bartlet again asks her why she was fired from the White House, she refuses to tell him, which annoys him enough that he rejects her a second time. However, he's intrigued enough to figure out that it's because she recommended Charlie over the son of a prominent party donor ; her unwillingness to admit to this shows that she has impeccable discretion. Bartlet then tests her memory by asking her to repeat some financial figures that she can only have overheard a few minutes earlier, and when she does it flawlessly, he indicates to Charlie that she's hired.

; her unwillingness to admit to this shows that she has impeccable discretion. Bartlet then tests her memory by asking her to repeat some financial figures that she can only have overheard a few minutes earlier, and when she does it flawlessly, he indicates to Charlie that she's hired. The Gambler: She begs to be let into the staff poker game and pulls out a wad of cash she's brought for the occasion when Bartlet tries to dissuade her. She cleans up.

Honor Before Reason: She refuses to tell Bartlet why she was fired even when he tries to order her as the President. She was fired for hiring Charlie instead of a donor's kid. Bartlet finds out anyway when the guy who fired her accuses her of tattling on him outside the Oval Office.

Hypercompetent Sidekick: Consciously takes this role. She creates new protocol for calls and staff meetings to ease stress on Bartlet's MS.

In Vino Veritas: She took a couple of Valium before her first interview to steady her nerves. When Bartlet asks why she was fired from the White House, she says "If you want to talk about getting screwed with your pants on..."

Insistent Terminology: She wrote a letter to the White House in which she said "let's put arsenic in President Bartlet's drinking water and see if he delegates responsibility to the World Bank then" (on the subject of water safety). Bartlet decides that the fact that she called him President Bartlet shows class.

Meaningful Rename: From DiLaguardia back to Fiderer, due to divorce.

Photographic Memory: She's able to quote back market figures exactly several minutes and some emotional turmoil after hearing them. This is one of the several reasons that Bartlet decides to hire her after all.

Refusal of the Call: Literally. She hangs up on Charlie and then closes the door in his face because she doesn't want to work for the White House again.

Sassy Secretary: More this than Mrs. Landingham was.

Suspiciously Similar Substitute: Averted; she's quite a different character from Mrs. Landingham.

Head of Presidential Detail of the Secret Service Ron Butterfield

Head of Presidential Detail of the Secret Service Ron Butterfield Portrayed by: Michael O'Neill The lead agent of President Bartlet's Secret Service detail. Almighty Janitor: One of the only people in the government who can just flat-out tell the President the way things are going to be. C.J.: Sir, can I ask why you think this is necessary...?

Bartlet: Because Ron says it is and around here we do whatever Ron says.

Consummate Professional: Protecting the President is his singular goal, no arguments, no discussions. The President himself can't tell him not to do his job, and he will do it so well and so discretely you'd barely notice his people were even there. "I have to put you inside the White House, Mr. President. This isn't something we discuss."

Only a Flesh Wound: Gets wounded when white supremacists fire on Charlie, but insists to President Bartlet that he's fine despite the copious amount of blood.

OOC Is Serious Business: When he comes to report that Zoe is missing and there's a dead agent at the scene, he is visibly shaken, and Leo can clearly tell something bad went down because he is normally professionally unflappable.

Plausible Deniability: Whenever the Secret Service is questioned for its methods and/or failures, his go-to response is "The Secret Service does not comment on procedure".

Reasonable Authority Figure: Despite his cold, no-nonsense demeanor, he refuses to reveal a crucial oversight that possibly led to the President being shot note Toby had insisted the President not travel with a canopy, which gave shooters a better view to attack from a high vantage point which would absolve the Secret Service on their failure to protect the President, and telling Toby that the attack was nobody's fault except the perpetrators'.

The Other Senior Staff Assistants

Bunny-Ears Lawyer: Margaret, who practices the President's signature for fun, makes corny jokes, and eavesdrops, but who is incredibly loyal to Leo and keeps up with the insane hours he puts in.

Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: Cathy disappears after Season 1. Bonnie stops appearing after "Shutdown" in season 5. Elsie Snuffin also disappeared partway through season four, a particularly odd example as Will never mentions his sister for the rest of the series.

The Comically Serious: Margaret, in spades.

Deadpan Snarker: Cathy.

Hidden Depths: When Sam asks (half-seriously) for a condensed compendium of all human knowledge so he can fill in for Josh, he's told that they usually just ask Margaret. When the assistants' secretaries's salaries are to be published, the secretaries hold a meeting, headed by Donna and Margaret, in which we see them agreeing not to complain in public about how little they get paid because it makes their bosses' jobs more difficult if they have to deal with stupid press questions about assistants' salaries. A small moment, but it goes to show how conscientious and dedicated the assistants are, in spite of all the gossip and snarking they do.

Gossipy Hens: The assistants all chat frequently, which is how they figured out who leaked Leo's rehab records to the Republicans.

OOC Is Serious Business: Ginger, usually one of the sunniest of the staff assistants, is visibly shaking after the President is shot at the beginning of Season 2.

The Reliable One: All of them, but Margaret is this in particular, to Leo: she's always there, she's always on top of things and when at one point during a crisis he tells her to go home and get some sleep, she replies "I sleep when you sleep." CJ remarks that Margaret ran Leo's office like a Swiss watch, which is high praise considering the insanity that is the Chief of Staff's office.

Running Gag: Carol's lousy spelling.

Sassy Secretary: All, but especially Margaret and Cathy.

Say My Name: You could make a drinking game out of the number of times the senior staff yell for their assistants at the top of their lungs. Leo: Margaret!!

Josh: Donna!!

C.J.: Carol!!

Toby: Ginger!!

Sam: Cathy!!

C.J.: Margaret!!! Margaret!!Donna!!Carol!!Ginger!!Cathy!!

Unresolved Sexual Tension: Margaret has this with Bruno Gianelli, who she starts off disliking because he persistently addresses her as "Stacy"...until the day he hands a box to her saying "Somebody asked me to give you this" and it turns out to contain a necklace consisting of the name "Margaret". (Cue big smile from Margaret.) Possibly resolved later on, because when NiCole Robinson became pregnant in season 6 and they wrote it into Margaret's character but never revealed who the father was, Word of Saint Paul said that it was either the UPS guy or Bruno. Assistant to the Chief of Staff Margaret Hooper, Assistant Press Secretary Carol Fitzpatrick, and Communications Assistants Bonnie, Ginger, Cathy, and Elsie Snuffin.

White House Counsel Oliver Babish

First Family

First Lady of the United States Abbey Bartlet

First Lady of the United States Abigail Anne "Abbey" Barrington Bartlet Portrayed by: Stockard Channing Abbey is a brilliant doctor. She helped Jed to manage and conceal his multiple sclerosis during the campaign and got into ethical trouble for doing so. She and Jed love each other very much, but being married to the President is not easy and they clash more than once over various decisions of Jed's. Acceptable Feminine Goals and Traits: Sometimes comes up in the in-universe court of public opinion, as she's the nation's most visible working mother.

The Confidant: To Jed.

Deadpan Snarker: She has to be, to keep up with her husband. Half her time on the show is spent making snarky remarks about the vagaries of politics.

Demoted to Extra: In Season 7, where she no longer appears in the opening titles unless she appears in the episode. She's also absent for quite a while in Season 5 as she is in New Hampshire, helping Zoe recover from her abduction and blaming Jed for Zoe being a target .

. Doctor's Orders: Frequently invoked, whether Jed has a bout of flu or is suffering an MS attack. It becomes a point of conflict later on when she thinks he's trying to do more than he's capable of.

Dude, Where's My Respect?: Abbey is one of the few people in the world who can claim to be a true equal to the President, being a world-class physician and adjunct professor at Harvard Medical School, and she knows how to play politics, although not as well as the President and his team (she does have a higher approval rating than the President though). That being said, she constantly gets mocked by the press and sidelined in favor of the President's agendas.

Happily Married: Usually, although they have several notable fallings-out over the course of the show. Presidential marriages are not easy.

Heroic Sacrifice: She voluntarily gives up her medical license to ease the fallout from the MS scandal, in which she committed an ethics violation by medicating her husband. In season 5 she picks it up again to volunteer at a free clinic in Washington DC.

Insistent Terminology: In the second season, she decides she wants to be called Dr. Bartlet again, because it's pretty frustrating that she's "more appealing" as a Mrs. rather than a professional title that she earned.

Ms. Exposition: Whenever something medical is being discussed.

Open Heart Dentistry: A mild case, probably not noticeable to most viewers. Her areas of expertise are internal medicine and thoracic surgery, but these fields require very different residencies and courses of study.

Silk Hiding Steel: She may seem the typical gregarious and diplomatic spouse to the most powerful man in the world, but her husband didn't marry her because she was some demure flower. In a fight between the President and the First Lady, it's always 50/50 who would win, because she is just as fierce, intelligent, and compassionate as he is.

Secret Keeper: For the President's multiple sclerosis. She discloses it out of necessity when he is shot at Rosslyn.

Stay in the Kitchen: Throughout the series, she's harangued about what she'll be wearing for formal dinners, where her family will be spending Christmas, and a thousand other little insulting questions, when she is an accomplished doctor and politician in her own right. She suffers these indignities quietly to support her husband and for the sake of the nation, but when pushed, she is the only person in the world who has the guts to treat the President as a man first and an institution second.

What the Hell, Hero?: She and Jed had a deal when he won the election: one term, because of his multiple sclerosis. She's very angry at him when he breaks it and retreats to their New Hampshire home for a while. She retreats to New Hampshire again in season five after Zoe is kidnapped, blaming Jed for making her a target. She's also there to help Zoe recover out of the Washington spotlight .



First Daughter Liz Westin

First Daughter of the United States Elizabeth "Liz" Bartlet Westin Portrayed by: Annabeth Gish Bartlet's oldest daughter, least seen on screen, mother of Annie and Gus Westin.

First Daughter Ellie Faison

First Daughter of the United States Eleanor "Ellie" Emily Bartlet Faison Portrayed by: Nina Siemaszko Bartlet's middle daughter, attending medical school at John Hopkins. Hero Killer: A non-fatal version. Of all the tribulations that President Bartlet has had to endure throughout his tenure, one argument with his middle daughter is all it takes to give him a brief Heroic BSoD.

Mistaken for Gay: To the point that her parents are surprised by her engagement and pregnancy.

Shrinking Violet: The quietest and most timid of the Bartlet children, but also possibly the most accomplished and brave.

The Unfavorite: Believes herself to be this among her sisters, but the truth couldn't be further from that. Bartlet likens their relationship to King Lear, implying her to be Cordelia note The beloved daughter who speaks the truth against her father to his Lear.

First Daughter Zoey Bartlet

Politicians

Congresswoman Andrea Wyatt (D-MD)

Congresswoman Andrea Wyatt Portrayed by: Kathleen York Andy Wyatt is the incumbent Democratic Congresswoman of Maryland's 5th district. She's also Toby's ex-wife. They're usually reunited by politics, whether the White House wants her help moving things in Congress or if they'd prefer her to knock of whatever she and her Congressional allies are doing. Amicable Exes: With Toby. She doesn't want to marry him again, but she's okay with friendship and sleeping together. She also goes out of her way to try and get a pardon for him in the final season.

Playing Hard to Get: Subverted. Toby thinks she's doing this because she wants to be chased, but she really doesn't want to marry him again and turns him down when he proposes.

Recurring Character: Appears sporadically through all seven seasons.

Spirited Competitor: Very keen on political fights. She even uses her pregnancy for one by not disclosing it during her campaign, deliberately bringing on an investigation.

Unwitting Instigator of Doom: She leads a Congressional junket to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Their vehicles are bombed, resulting in the death of two Congressmen and Fitz, as well as near death for Donna.

Uptight Loves Wild: Subverted. She's considerably more cheerful than Toby, but while uptight may love wild, wild is determined to keep uptight at arm's length because he's just too depressing to live with.

Speaker of the House Glen Allen Walken (R-MO)

Portrayed by: John Goodman As the Speaker for much of Bartlet's first term, Walken often serves as an antagonist to the main cast (although usually a more amiable one than Speaker Haffley—see below). However, after Bartlet steps down during the kidnapping crisis, with the office of Vice President vacant due to Hoynes' resignation, he briefly becomes President of the United States. Alternative Character Interpretation: Walken notably refuses to pursue political goals in his capacity as President . Is this mainly out of a sense of ethics and professionalism, or is he simply aware that under the circumstances, doing so would likely backfire spectacularly on him and his party? Or both?

Alternative Character Interpretation: Walken notably refuses to pursue political goals in his capacity as . Is this mainly out of a sense of ethics and professionalism, or is he simply aware that under the circumstances, doing so would likely backfire spectacularly on him and his party? Or both? Cincinnatus: Despite the senior staff's fears Allen doesn't take advantage of being handed power and only does what's necessary to keep the country running. Once the crisis is over he amicably steps aside with no fuss from his staff.

Deadpan Snarker: After Zoey is rescued , Bartlet offers to campaign on Walken's behalf the next time he's up for re-election. Walken's response: "I'm not sure that'd be a plus in my district."

, Bartlet offers to campaign on Walken's behalf the next time he's up for re-election. Walken's response: "I'm not sure that'd be a plus in my district." One-Scene Wonder: In the Season 4 finale, "Twenty-Five." You're relieved, Mr. President.

One-Scene Wonder: In the Season 4 finale, "Twenty-Five." Reasonable Authority Figure: Against the expectations of several staffers.

Speaker Of The House Jeff Haffley (R-WA)

Speaker of the House Jeff Haffley Portrayed by: Steven Culp Haffley replaces the previous Speaker and immediately makes a name for himself by forcing Bartlet to accept a thoroughly mediocre Veep. He pushes huge budget cutsnote they're single-digit percentages, but that's a huge amount of dollars to the point of a government shutdown; although this ultimately backfires on him, he continues to fight the Administration in other ways. Big Bad: He's about as close as the later seasons come to having a main antagonist, and can usually be counted upon to be behind any attacks on the administration or its policy.

The Chessmaster: Fancies himself one. Compared to Bartlet AND Santos, he's not.

Hypocrite: Right before the shutdown, during the negotiations for the budget, he moves the budget cut from one percent to three, after they had a deal to only make it one. He then says "There is not altering this deal," pretty much immediately after he altered it himself. And then he tries to have the shutdown blamed on the President.

Jerkass: Contrasted with the Republican Majority Leader, who is much less partisan. Haffley loves it when the White House is in trouble and he actively enjoys screwing with them.

No Celebrities Were Harmed: His antagonistic relationship with the Bartlett administration and his hard-right policy views (with a particular emphasis on austerity) make it clear that Haffley is based on former Speaker Of The House Newt Gingrich.

Put on a Bus: Although a huge part of Season 5, he's rarely seen in Season 6 and disappears entirely in Season 7 - though he is given a bit of a final offscreen comeuppance when the Republicans lose control of the house, and the last we hear about Haffley is that he's out of a job.

Recurring Character: Through season 5, much less so in the later seasons.

Smug Snake: Very bright, and capable of using the Republican majority in Congress quite effectively, but unable to alter his plans, and extremely stuck-up and unlikable in person.

Villainous Breakdown: Has a minor one when the President pays him a surprise visit during the government shutdown. He can't think on his feet and he insists that Bartlet not be let in until they've worked out what their game plan is. It only takes them seven minutes to come up with one, but in that time, Bartlet leaves, which turns public opinion against the Republicans.

Well-Intentioned Extremist: He's an unlikable jerk, but his portrayal never becomes significantly worse than this. He's not evil, just very, very right wing.

Your Approval Fills Me with Shame: He congratulates Josh on a trade bill that will gut American tech jobs (something that Josh hadn't realized until it was too late).

Senator Arnold Vinick (R-CA)

Congressman Matthew Santos (D-TX)

Other

Danny Concannon

Daniel "Danny" Concannon Portrayed by: Timothy Busfield A reporter who works as the chief White House correspondent for the Washington Post who has a thing for C.J. Naturally, this causes problems—the attraction is mutual, but they dance around each other's jobs a lot and the relationship takes quite awhile to get off the ground due to conflicts of interest. Badass Beard: Intrepid reporter with the guts to uncover the stories the Press Secretary wants to not be covered (and try to date her at the same time).

Beta Couple: In Season 7, to Josh and Donna's Alpha Couple. Hell, probably C.J. and Danny in the whole series to Josh and Donna's Alpha Couple.

Beware the Nice Ones: He's one of the most genial and well-meaning characters on the show, but he is still a veteran and savvy investigative reporter. He uncovers the Shareef assassination when only few dozen people at most knew about it.

Commuting on a Bus: He leaves the Press Room for a while in the early half, comes back a while later, and takes off again until Season 7.

Dating Catwoman: Conflict of interest is almost inherent in their relationship.

Deadpan Snarker Danny : How's the President?

C.J. : Off the record?

Danny : Of course.

C.J. : He's fine.

Danny : Well, wouldn't want that to get around.

Dogged Nice Guy: Takes seven years and a lot of false starts, but he finally gets C.J. in the end after years of pining. Unusually for the trope, though, CJ is not only fully aware of his feelings for her, but also of the fact that she returns them completely. Danny's just trying to convince her that those feelings are worth acting on.

Intrepid Reporter: So, about Sharif's death....

Recurring Character: Almost certainly the most appearing recurring character who didn't work for the President.

Amy Gardner

Joey Lucas

Josephine "Joey" Lucas Portrayed by: Marlee Matlin A deaf pollster and political operative who first appears trying to get support for her dead-fish candidate. Although Bartlet and Josh aren't impressed with him, they are with her, and employ her as a pollster and consultant for the MS scandal, re-election, and at least two State of the Union addresses. Josh later hires her onto the Santos campaign. Aborted Arc: Bartlet and Josh suggest that she run for Congress. She never does.

Gender-Blender Name: Her nickname leads Josh to assume that she's a man; Leo makes the same assumption a few episodes later, when Donna says Josh got a new suit "for Joey."

Deadpan Snarker: "Your staff likes to decorate their desks with hand lotion?"

Platonic Life-Partners: With Kenny, her interpreter. They've been working together for over a decade, and when his trustworthiness is called into question (by the President, no less!), Joey comes to his defense without hesitation, saying in no uncertain terms that trusting her means trusting Kenny, too.

Hide Your Pregnancy: Averted. When Josh is enthusiastic about restarting their UST in a late-season episode, she walks into the room visibly pregnant.

Hide Your Pregnancy: Averted. When Josh is enthusiastic about restarting their UST in a late-season episode, she walks into the room visibly pregnant. Inspirationally Disabled: Notably averted, probably at the insistence of Matlin herself. Joey's deafness is entirely irrelevant to her ability to do her job — she's a political genius, but so is most of the cast. Also notably, the senior staff takes her use of an interpreter entirely in stride. Joey: (through Kenny) Joshua Lyman, you have the cutest little butt in professional politics.

Josh: (without missing a beat) Kenny, really, that better have been her talking.

Real Life Writes the Plot: Marlee Matlin is deaf and playing a deaf character.

Recurring Character: Unusually for the show, she made at least one appearance in all seven seasons. She also works in the White House for a short time.

UST: With Josh, who tries to flirt with her in his usual ineffective way. Donna is a Shipper on Deck, but Joey doesn't pursue it because she can see Donna is in love with Josh.

Kenny Thurman

Kenneth "Kenny" Thurman Portrayed by: Bill O Brien Kenny is Joey's interpreter, and appears alongside her in all but two of her episodes (notably, his absence in The Fall's Gonna Kill You results in Josh having to get a little creative in his communication with Joey, as Josh is planning to reveal sensitive information to Joey, and he can't be certain of her substitute interpreter's trustworthiness). Platonic Life-Partners: With Joey. He's been her interpreter for over a decade. They work seamlessly as a team, and they're obviously very close friends. Joey trusts Kenny without question, and has little tolerance for anyone else questioning his trustworthiness.

Red Oni, Blue Oni: The Blue to Joey's Red. Joey is hotheaded, snarky, feisty, frequently engages in spirited debates with Josh and Sam, and often becomes exasperated with the White House senior staff. Conversely, Kenny is amiable, perpetually cheerful, and generally unfazed by everyone's antics. Some of this may simply be that he is a professional focused on doing his job, but the occassional glimpses we get of his personality seem to suggest that he really is just a very calm and levelheaded guy.

The Reliable One: It's his job to be. Kenny is constantly alert to his surroundings, in order to effectively communicate everything Joey needs to know. He is extremely competent, and has no trouble keeping up with Joey in the fast-paced world of politics. A consummate professional, he never hesitates to interpret everything Joey signs, no matter how strange or awkward her words might sound coming out of his mouth (much to the amusement of Josh, who lampshades it occasionally).

Unfazed Everyman: A non-supernatural version of this trope. Kenny is largely unaffected by the wide range of spectacular and ridiculous things that happen in the White House. He doesn't even show a strong reaction to meeting the President for the first time.

Bruno Gianelli

Abdul ibn Shareef

Abdul ibn Shareef Portrayed by: Al No Mani Minister of Defence for Qumar, Abdul ibn Shareef is the younger brother of the reigning Sultan, and a supposed ally of US intelligence. In reality he's the leader of a major Bahji cell, and is behind numerous attacks on the USA, including an attempt at blowing up the Golden Gate Bridge. Aristocrats Are Evil: He's the Sultan's younger brother, and a Prince of Qumar.

Big Bad: The closest thing the show ever has to one, serving as an Arc Villain for Season 3.

Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: After the revelation that he works with the Bahji.

Cain and Abel: Played with. He and his brother, the Sultan, weren't close, and the Bartlett White House later uses that against Qumar after his assassination, leaking false reports that he is hiding out in Libya, plotting to overthrow his brother.

The Fundamentalist: A member of an Islamist terrorist group that aims to strike out against the West.

Villainous Legacy: Shareef is assassinated at the end of Season 3, but the fallout from his death continues throughout Seasons 4 & 5, culminating in Zoey's kidnapping by Bahji agents in the Season 4 finale.

Villain with Good Publicity: Has a public face as an antiterrorist crusader and an ally of the United States, while actually leading the Bahji.

Lord John Marbury

Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Ashland