Tarmac Farewell — Bartlet's Guarded Departure
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
Bartlet and Leo arrive at Air Force One, exchanging brief farewells as they prepare to board.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Sardonic and mildly weary; outwardly polite while internally assessing operational constraints and staff morale.
Greets the President formally, answers his question about the press with a dry, candid assessment that they are not in a good mood, and deflates Bartlet's theatrical line about 'racing the sun' with understated realism, signaling exhaustion and setting expectations.
- • Provide the President accurate briefing-level context about press mood.
- • Temper unrealistic expectations and shield him from surprise.
- • Maintain professional control over messaging even in informal moments.
- • Honest, measured information is more useful than flattery.
- • Staff morale and timing materially affect press interactions.
- • Keeping the President grounded prevents avoidable mistakes.
Alert and quietly deferential; focused on being present and helpful without intruding into senior staff business.
Joins Bartlet and C.J. at the limo, offers a polite 'Good morning, sir,' and accompanies the President up the airstair, remaining deferential and practical in presence rather than driving conversation.
- • Support and be immediately available to the President during transit.
- • Follow protocol for boarding and maintain professional composure.
- • Observe and learn from senior staff behavior in crisis transitions.
- • Being reliably present is an essential way to serve the President.
- • Small, correct actions during transitions reduce risk and confusion.
Projecting buoyant optimism to steady others while privately exhausted; uses humor and ritual to avoid appearing burdened or anxious.
Steps out of the limo, exchanges a curt goodbye with Leo, greets C.J. and Charlie, and boards the plane while projecting buoyant, theatrical confidence with a quip about 'racing the sun.' His words serve to lighten mood and smooth the transition into travel while masking underlying fatigue.
- • Maintain a composed, reassuring presidential demeanor during boarding.
- • Keep staff morale from collapsing by using levity.
- • Transition quickly from on-the-ground crisis to in-flight continuity.
- • Avoid burdening Leo or staff with overt signs of personal strain.
- • A President must appear composed in public rituals because perception affects governance.
- • Humor and ceremony can temporarily steady a fatigued team.
- • Delegation to trusted aides (like Leo) preserves operational stability.
Calm, professional, and privately concerned; intentionally reserved to preserve presidential focus and avoid dramatizing the situation.
Delivers a short, businesslike send-off — 'Have a good flight, Mr. President.' — then watches Bartlet board, communicating steadiness and the quiet assumption of ongoing responsibility; his brevity carries institutional weight rather than warmth.
- • Provide a clear, authoritative hand-off so Bartlet can leave without tangents.
- • Protect the President from distraction and maintain continuity of command.
- • Signal to staff that operational business continues despite exhaustion or crisis.
- • Decisive, compact communication preserves institutional order.
- • His role is to anchor the President and absorb burdens quietly.
- • Longstanding loyalty is expressed through action, not emotion.
Objects Involved
Significant items in this scene
The black government limousine functions as the immediate logistical and emotional threshold: it brings Bartlet and Leo to the tarmac, provides the private moment for Leo's brief farewell, and serves as the physical starting point of the transition from ground to aircraft.
Air Force One provides the stage and destination for the exchange: its lowered airstair receives the President and his aides, framing the boarding as both a practical movement and a ceremonial exit into the isolating realm of the presidency in transit.
Location Details
Places and their significance in this event
Andrews Air Force Base tarmac functions as the public yet contained transition point where private staff rituals and institutional logistics intersect. The site stages a compressed handoff from on-the-ground crisis work to the ceremonial isolation of presidential travel.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
No narrative connections mapped yet
This event is currently isolated in the narrative graph
Key Dialogue
"LEO: "Have a good flight, Mr. President.""
"BARTLET: "I'll see you tomorrow.""
"BARTLET: "Oh, it's going to be great. We're going to race the sun to the pacific horizon!" / C.J.: "No, Mr. President, I wouldn't say they were.""