Fabula
S3E7 · The Indians in the Lobby
S3E7
· The Indians in the Lobby

C.J. Presses Leo for Activists' Meeting, Faces Firm Refusal

In Leo's office, C.J. passionately confronts him about the outrageous fifteen-year bureaucratic delay on Native American activists' modest land trust application for a sewage plant and health center. Empathetic to their plight and the lobby sit-in's desperation, she urges a brief five-minute meeting before the President's departure, insisting 'right is right.' Pragmatic Leo agrees to investigate the delay but categorically refuses any meeting with 'sit-in' protesters, prioritizing protocol over optics. Defeated, C.J. retreats, crystallizing internal White House tensions between moral urgency and institutional rigidity—a key escalation in the activists' storyline.

Plot Beats

The narrative micro-steps within this event

3

C.J. confronts Leo about the fifteen-year delay in addressing the Native American leaders' land trust application, emphasizing the modest nature of their requests.

frustration to persistence ["Leo's office"]

Leo agrees to investigate the delay but refuses to meet with the activists, citing their protest tactics as unacceptable.

persistence to defiance ["Leo's office"]

C.J. presses Leo for a five-minute meeting, arguing it would resolve the sit-in, but Leo firmly refuses, leading to C.J.'s defeated exit.

defiance to resignation ["Leo's office"]

Who Was There

Characters present in this moment

2
Sealy
primary

Neutral and absent, implied as routinely departed

Sealy is briefly invoked by Leo as a potential prior or alternative contact for the activists' appointment, but confirmed absent by C.J., his off-screen departure underscoring the staff churn before this confrontation erupts.

Goals in this moment
  • • Handle preliminary activist logistics pre-confrontation
Active beliefs
  • • Standard protocol routes grievances through designated staff
Character traits
efficient discreetly operational
Follow Sealy's journey
Leo McGarry
primary

Steadfast calm veiling ironclad commitment to institutional boundaries

Leo stands firmly behind his desk as unmovable barrier, acknowledges the delay's excess, promises staff inquiry into the holdup, queries Sealy briefly, and repeatedly rejects C.J.'s meeting plea citing the sit-in, ending the exchange with terse courtesy.

Goals in this moment
  • • Deflect direct engagement with sit-in protesters to preserve protocol
  • • Channel the grievance through proper bureaucratic investigation
Active beliefs
  • • Meeting sit-in activists undermines White House decorum and precedent
  • • Delays, though excessive, must be resolved via official channels, not optics
Character traits
pragmatic resolute protocol-driven calmly authoritative
Follow Leo McGarry's journey

Location Details

Places and their significance in this event

1
White House Portico

The Northwest Lobby looms as the contentious sit-in epicenter fueling C.J.'s plea, its defiant occupation cited by Leo as disqualifying rationale for refusal—transforming a distant protest space into the pivotal flashpoint that rigidifies White House response and amplifies moral versus procedural clash.

Atmosphere Implied tense and besieged, echoing with activists' unresolved grievances off-screen
Function Catalyzing protest site driving the negotiation standoff
Symbolism Emblem of Native American desperation clashing against institutional inaccessibility
Access Occupied by activists, monitored by security, off-limits for official meetings
Shadowed by Secret Service presence Vast stone expanse amplifying echoes of defiance

Narrative Connections

How this event relates to others in the story

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Part of Larger Arcs

Stockbridge-Munsee tribal activists Maggie and Jack stage a persistent sit-in in the White House lobby, demanding resolution to their 15-year bureaucratic delay on a land trust application for sovereignty, health, and sewage infrastructure, clashing wi...

Key Dialogue

"C.J.: "Fifteen years!""
"C.J.: "Five minutes!" LEO: "No.""
"LEO: "Cause I'm not taking a meeting which somebody who stages a sitting in a lobby!""