The West Wing
S3E15
· Dead Irish Writers

Millgate's Stoic Farewell and Sam's Heartfelt Plea

After Enlow's defeat, Millgate crudely dismisses the senator and urges Sam to prioritize science. Sam calls out to reconcile with Enlow off-screen, resolving the hold and securing supercollider funding. As Millgate dons his coat for a late train, Sam desperately probes for hope—Sloane-Kettering?—against his terminal illness, but Millgate declines with quiet finality. They part in mutual respect, Millgate's parting quip affirming Sam's vital aid, anchoring Sam's crusade with profound personal stakes amid the night's chaos.

Plot Beats

The narrative micro-steps within this event

1

Millgate and Sam share a poignant farewell, underscored by Millgate's terminal illness and mutual respect.

defiance to acceptance

Who Was There

Characters present in this moment

3
Jack Enlow
primary

Frustrated anger softening to pragmatic resolution off-screen

Exits angrily after heated exchange; engaged off-screen in Sam's apologetic call resolving supercollider hold and funding sabotage threat.

Goals in this moment
  • • Uphold threats on Illinois pork-barrel projects initially
  • • Resolve standoff to avoid further confrontation
Active beliefs
  • • Political leverage via funding holds protects personal earmarks
  • • Direct appeals can override ideological pork-barrel defenses
Character traits
combative pragmatic amenable to reconciliation
Follow Jack Enlow's journey
Millgate
primary

Stoic resignation tempered by mutual respect and quiet gratitude

Dismisses Enlow crudely as 'Fruit Loops'; stands, dons coat refusing room or treatment; thanks Sam warmly; exits with wry quip praising his government support despite not suiting physicist role.

Goals in this moment
  • • Prioritize science over politics by dismissing Enlow's pettiness
  • • Depart decisively for late train without false hope or delay
Active beliefs
  • • Terminal illness precludes further medical interventions
  • • Sam's political maneuvering provides vital, if imperfect, aid to science
Character traits
stoic resigned wryly appreciative principled
Follow Millgate's journey
Sam Seaborn
primary

Determined optimism yielding to desperate hope and resigned empathy

Calls after departing Enlow off-screen to apologize and resolve funding hold; offers Millgate a room, desperately probes for medical hope via Sloane-Kettering, seeks personal validation as physicist, absorbs quiet rejection with grace.

Goals in this moment
  • • Secure supercollider funding by reconciling with Enlow
  • • Find any medical lifeline for Millgate's terminal illness
  • • Gain affirmation for his passion bridging politics and science
Active beliefs
  • • Elite medical intervention like Sloane-Kettering offers hope against cancer
  • • Government aid can meaningfully advance pure scientific discovery
Character traits
idealistic empathetic persistent self-reflective
Follow Sam Seaborn's journey

Organizations Involved

Institutional presence and influence

1
Sloane-Kettering

Invoked by Sam as a beacon of elite cancer care—top specialists from past Bartlet eradication efforts—offered desperately as last hope against Millgate's terminal Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma, highlighting clash of presidential medical legacy with personal finality.

Representation Referenced verbally as hoped-for treatment resource
Power Dynamics Positioned as aspirational savior challenged by Millgate's terminal reality and quiet refusal
Impact Underscores limits of institutional medicine against inevitable mortality, echoing Bartlet administration's health policy ambitions
Deliver cutting-edge cancer treatment and research Support high-profile patients through specialized expertise Elite medical resources and specialists Reputation from prior presidential anti-cancer initiatives

Narrative Connections

How this event relates to others in the story

What led here 2
Causal

"Sam inquiring about Jack Enlow's presence sets up their later confrontation where Sam forces Enlow to withdraw the supercollider hold, closing the narrative loop on this subplot."

Leo Tasks C.J. with Discreet Nolan Recusal Probe Amid Abbey's Birthday Shadow
S3E15 · Dead Irish Writers
Causal

"Sam inquiring about Jack Enlow's presence sets up their later confrontation where Sam forces Enlow to withdraw the supercollider hold, closing the narrative loop on this subplot."

Leo Tasks C.J. on Nolan Recusal; Sam and Leo Spar Over Supercollider and Abbey Intervention
S3E15 · Dead Irish Writers

Part of Larger Arcs

Sam Seaborn wrestles with raw vulnerability from his past romantic rejection by Lisa Sherborne and the painful deletion of his ambitious cancer-cure draft, revealing deeper regrets amid professional pressures.

Key Dialogue

"SAM: "God, Dalton, isn't there anything? Sloane-Kettering, or...?""
"MILLGATE: "No.""
"MILLGATE: "Thanks, Sam.""
"SAM: "Now you think I'd make a good physicist?""
"MILLGATE: "No. But you're not bad for government help.""