C.J. Pulls Josh Into Damage Control Over Danny's Bermuda Lead
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
C.J. informs Josh that Danny is pursuing a potentially explosive story linking Shareef's plane disappearance to a secured airstrip in Bermuda.
Josh and C.J. acknowledge the sensitivity of Danny's investigation and the need to address it directly before it becomes public.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Stressed and defensive on the surface; incredulous and nervy underneath, using humor to mask concern.
Josh finishes a policy call in the bullpen, exchanges terse banter with Donna, starts down the hallway and is then pulled into C.J.'s office where he processes C.J.'s intelligence with incredulity, dark humor, and a decision impulse to see the President.
- • assess the credibility and political danger of Danny's allegation
- • determine next steps for the President and administration
- • protect the White House from an explosive press narrative
- • buy time to verify facts before a public response
- • Reporters like Danny will spin conspiracy theories unless pre-empted
- • The administration must control narrative before reporters define it
- • Some internal actors (e.g., Jack) may already be managing operational fallout
Not present; referenced as the human center of the possible wrongdoing.
Abdul Shareef is the subject of the alleged incident; he is not active in the scene but his downed plane is the core of Danny's story and the administration's potential crisis.
- • N/A (subject rather than actor)
- • Serve as the factual touchstone for the reporter's allegation
- • The facts of his plane's downing will determine the story's political impact
- • His case requires investigation
Driven and relentless, confident in his sourcing and eager to break the story.
Danny is off-screen but central: his investigative email triggered Josh's awareness and C.J.'s warning; he is portrayed as the active journalist chasing a provocative national-security lead.
- • expose the truth about Shareef's downing
- • force the White House to respond publicly
- • win a major investigative scoop
- • There is a true story of misconduct or cover-up to be revealed
- • Powerful institutions will obfuscate unless held publicly accountable
Off-screen; implied potentially preoccupied due to holiday travel/activities.
President Bartlet is referenced by Josh as someone he must see; the President is offstage but his presence looms as the decision-maker whose name and authority will shape the response.
- • be informed about potentially explosive national-security allegations
- • decide whether to authorize disclosure or containment
- • Major national-security allegations require presidential attention
- • Public trust may be at stake if the allegation is true
Tired but steady; mildly amused by Josh's levity, quietly attentive to the shift into crisis mode.
Donna participates in the bullpen exchange about policy offsets and listens as Josh is pulled away; she is present for set-up but not active in the C.J.-Josh intelligence exchange itself.
- • support Josh operationally
- • ensure policy work (infant-mortality/tax offsets) continues despite distractions
- • The policy work needs continuity even during crises
- • Josh is someone to rely on for decisions and direction
Implied focused and active; tasked with field work related to the allegation.
Jack is referenced by Josh as already 'down there' — implying he is engaged on-the-ground with the matter; he is not present but his deployment is used to reassure or explain.
- • manage the on-site facts or operational fallout
- • report back to White House staff with ground truth
- • Rapid, on-site action is necessary for clarity
- • Field personnel can contain or clarify rumors
Objects Involved
Significant items in this scene
The Press Briefing Room seats are invoked as the destination for the little snowmen photo; they function as symbolic props for the administration's public-facing rituals — precisely the terrain that will be contested if Danny breaks the Bermuda story.
Josh references an email from Danny that alerted the White House to the Bermuda/Rangers lead; the e-mail acts as the informational catalyst that moves the exchange from idle banter into crisis triage.
C.J.'s staff's little snowmen are mentioned by Josh as a fielding of holiday optics — a small, humanizing prop that contrasts the developing crisis and underscores the staff's attempt to manage appearance even while scrambling.
Abdul Shareef's plane is the factual hinge of Danny's allegation: whether it was landed, disassembled and dispersed anchors the conspiracy Danny is chasing. Its fate provides the concrete claim the White House must verify or refute.
Location Details
Places and their significance in this event
The West Wing hallway functions as the transitional pinch point where C.J. intercepts Josh and moves him into a private office to deliver urgent intelligence — a liminal, institutional conduit for crisis communication.
Josh's bullpen is the scene's operational nucleus: Josh takes a call here, discusses policy and offsets with Donna, and departs from this workspace — it is where normal White House work collides with the incoming national-security lead.
The RAF strip in Bermuda is the specific geographic allegation Danny is chasing — the claimed site where Rangers secured an airstrip on the day Shareef's plane went down, making it the physical locus of the supposed illicit operation.
The Bermuda Triangle is invoked metaphorically in the staff's banter about the plane's disappearance — a folkloric reference that dramatizes the implausibility and theatricality of Danny's alleged theory.
The Press Briefing Room is evoked as the public face of the administration — the place where optics (snowmen photo) and communications are staged; it's the venue that will be compromised if the Bermuda/Rangers story goes public.
Organizations Involved
Institutional presence and influence
The Press Office, led by C.J.'s operation, is the active institutional actor driving the immediate response: supplying staff props, managing reporter relationships, and deciding whether to preempt or respond to Danny's allegation.
The U.S. Army Rangers are the alleged operational actors in Danny's story — their supposed presence at the Bermuda airstrip makes the military an implicit subject of civilian oversight and potential scandal.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
"Danny's revelation about the Bermuda airstrip investigation is later confirmed by C.J. to Josh, advancing the potential scandal plotline."
"Danny's revelation about the Bermuda airstrip investigation is later confirmed by C.J. to Josh, advancing the potential scandal plotline."
Key Dialogue
"C.J.: "He's chasing a story that says the day Shareef's plane went down, there was an airstrip in Bermuda that was secured by Rangers.""
"JOSH: "Danny thinks w-we somehow got a Gulfstream to land in Bermuda, assassinated Sharef, then disassembled the plane and distributed the pieces throughout the Bermuda Triangle?""
"C.J.: "If it is true, we need to say so before Danny does. We've been here before.""