Alan Broderick

Alan Broderick commands the Senate Republican leadership, blocking President Bartlet's push to balance domestic funding with foreign aid amid cuts that rank the U.S. last in GNP percentage spent. C.J. cites him in briefings to spotlight GOP resistance fueling shutdown threats over continuing resolutions. On CNN from Air Force One's TV, he pitches the $800 billion GOP tax cut as returning earned money to hardworking Americans, sharpening partisan lines on economic policy and pressuring the White House during Sam's campaign and Bartlet's crises.

4 appearances

Also known as: Republican Leader, GOP Leader

Alan Broderick's Journey

A timeline through the narrative

4 moments

S4E12 · Guns Not Butter

Midnight Deadline: C.J.'s Press Ultimatum

Positioned as adversarial and politically calculative (as referenced).

Referenced by C.J. as the person the President wishes would 'throw some money' at domestic problems—serves as a foil embodying partisan opposition.

View full event

S4E12 · Guns Not Butter

C.J.'s Quiet Summons — A Pressroom Pivot to Private Leverage

Represented as politically aggressive and responsible for policy choices the administration condemns.

The Republican Leader is indirectly invoked as the foil for Bartlet's criticism — an oppositional actor blamed for domestic underfunding and retreat from global leadership.

View full event

S4E12 · Guns Not Butter

Vote Night: Optics Unravel — The Goat Is Canceled

Not present; characterized as adversarial in Danny's critique.

Mentioned indirectly as representative of Republican opposition; invoked in Danny's argument that Republican senators are vulnerable on self‑interest grounds.

View full event

S4E16 · The California 47th

Broderick Frames the $800B "You Earned It" Tax Cut

Assured and appealing; projecting certainty to persuade and put opponents on the defensive.

Senator Alan Broderick appears in the TV clip delivering a populist, confident line — claiming the tax cut returns "your" money to hardworking Americans — thereby owning the moral frame …

View full event

Affiliation

United States Senate Finance Committee