Chapter 21
“Read the statement again, Fred.” Josh insisted.
“Senator Taylor will be unable to participate in the final debate due to a cold that’s affecting his
voice. If time allows, we will reschedule this event.” Billy read off the fax.
“You have got to be fucking kidding me!” Josh exploded.
“Josh…” Peyton admonished him. “You’re going to scare the children.”
“Who are you referring to as ‘children’?” Billy asked.
“Can we set up an alternate date this late in the game?” Sam asked.
“The election is only 8 days away and our schedule is packed. I don’t see how we can- Shit.”
Josh paced his office tossing a squishy ball from hand to hand.
“We’re still up by 4.” Billy reminded everyone.
“Yeah, but the plus/minus is 3 points.” Peyton pointed out. “That means we’re in a statistical tie.
Taylor doesn’t want to stand side by side with Sam. The last direct comparison hurt him. It doesn’
t matter if we reschedule, he won’t be able to make it. I guarantee it.”
Josh persisted in his pacing.
“We should go ahead with the debate.” Billy laughed. “I could stand in for Taylor.”
Josh stopped in his tracks. “Say that again!”
“We should go ahead-“
“No, the other part.”
“I was just joking about standing in for Taylor. Sorry, I know this is serious.” Billy apologized.
“That’s exactly what we’ll do!” Josh clapped Billy on the shoulder.
“You’re not concerned about the fact that Billy looks nothing like Taylor?” Sam asked.
“Fred’s much too handsome and smart to be mistaken for Taylor, right Jenny?” Josh tossed the
question to the young woman who’d been working with Billy. Josh had noticed soulful glances
and lingering touches between the two and took this opportunity to give his tacit permission and,
of course, to give Billy a hard time.
Jenny turned red but nodded her head in agreement. Billy shook his head ruefully.
“Listen to me, young Jedi. You find a woman as smart and accomplished as our Jenny here, you’
d do well to try and take her to dinner or something classy before it’s too late and someone
beats you to it.”
“Excuse me, Dear Abby?” Toby broke in. “Could you get back to the debate and the brilliant
brainstorm you had that you neglected to share with the rest of us.”
“We’ll get a substitute for Taylor in the debate.” Josh smiled and looked around the room, but
everyone was looking back at him blankly. “We can’t get Taylor, so we’ll use a substitute; in fact
we’ll use several. We start running ads, using local radio and newspapers, asking for Taylor
supporters to come to the debate site and debate with Sam. They could even use Taylor’s own
words if they want to.”
“And you think Taylor’s camp is going to be okay with this?” Peyton asked.
“They’re going to HATE it.” Josh’s dimples popped out. “Fortunately for me, Taylor is unable to
speak due to his delicate medical condition. It’s not his fault. As people get older, their bodies
have more difficulty fighting off infections. But meanwhile, we’re ready for a debate, we’ve got the
auditorium rented; why not use it?”
“TV isn’t going to cover it.” Toby mentioned.
“Not the whole thing, no. But you can bet your ass they’ll be playing highlights. In fact, I’ll put a
hundred down that the national media will cover it, which they weren’t going to do before now.”
Josh offered. There was silence for a good minute.
“I’ll get in touch with the media to place the ads.” Billy announced.
“We’re going to need to change your style for this. Debating average citizens requires a different
tone than debating a seasoned politician. Do we have anything on the schedule we can scratch
to make room for another run through?” C.J. asked.
“We’re pretty strapped.” Peyton looked over the schedule. “If we travel with him to the event
tonight, we’ll have an hour each way to work.”
“Let’s do it.” C.J. decided. “Josh, you get to call Danny and tell him he’s on his own with Tommy
tonight. He’ll be delighted, I’m sure.”
“Why am I being punished?” Josh called out to her.
“Sometimes, it’s just fun for me to watch.” C.J. explained and went out the door.
“This just isn’t fair.” Josh muttered.
“I could make the call for you.” Jenny offered shyly. Josh looked over at her and smiled.
“That would be great. Thanks, Jenny.”
“No…thank you.” She answered cheekily and winked at him before going to make ‘the call’.
********************************************
“I’m saying, that he’s going to have to give short answers so it doesn’t feel like he’s filibustering
the other speakers.” Donna reiterated.
“Yeah, C.J. and Peyton are on it. They’re going to practice a more relaxed style with him tonight.
How are the kids?” Josh asked.
“You saw them just a few hours ago. You’re trying to distract me.” Donna accused him.
“Didn’t work, huh?” Josh teased. “I have better luck distracting you in person.”
“Well, sure. Then you can use all your considerable…skills.” Donna purred in to the phone.
“What Dad?...It’s on the top shelf.”
“Donna…tell me your father isn’t standing right next to you while we’re talking about sex.”
“We have two children, Joshua. In fact, Dad’s holding one of them right now. I’m pretty sure he’s
figured out we’ve had sex.” Donna laughed.
“Donna!...Please, God, will you stop? I mean I just got on a decent footing with your father and
now you’re…just stop!” Josh begged, but Donna kept laughing.
“Dad, you know I have sex with my husband, right?” Donna asked.
“Please, Donna. No Father wants to hear that.” Tom Moss replied.
“See?!!” Josh felt vindicated.
“Donna, stop teasing your father.” Anna Moss instructed.
“Actually, I was teasing Josh, Mom.”
“Well, that’s different then. Go ahead.” Anna gave her approval.
“Hey! I thought your mom liked me!” Josh protested.
“She does. But there’s this thing called ‘The Sisterhood-“
“Sisterhood.” Josh said at the same time. “I’m switching topics now. What do you think of having
some graphics on the big screen showing where each candidate stands on key issues during the
debate?”
“We’ll need to pull them from a neutral site.” Donna replied.
“Why? If Taylor wants neutral, he should show up.”
“Josh…Let me look up the League of Women Voters stats. Nobody can complain about bias if we
pull them directly from there and note the source on the screen.”
“Fine. Have it your way.”
“I usually do.” Donna noted. “I’ll put it together. Are you vetting any of these volunteers for the
debate?”
“Fred’s running it, but just for basic information, to make sure they are who they say they are.”
“When he gets the info, have him forward it to me. We can put that info up on the screen too, so
people can see who these people are. I’m thinking maybe we should change the stage set up
too. Podiums are awfully intimidating for the average Joe. Maybe have a Meet the Press type set
with a round table kind of feel. Have you found someone to moderate it yet?”
“We don’t really need a moderator anymore, do we?”
“Josh!” Donna shouted into the phone. “Of course you do! Who is going to introduce each
participant and give at least the appearance of impartiality?”
“Well, Bob Barker retired so…”
“Honestly. I’ll get on this. It’s tomorrow at 7, Joshua!”
“I’m so lucky to have you, Donnatella.”
“That bit of misdirection isn’t going to work either. Tell BILLY to send me the data.”
“I love you, Donna.” Josh threw in before she hung up.
“I love you too, idiot.”
*****************************************
“You’re the campaign manager. Why don’t you know who is moderating the debate?” Sam asked.
“I delegated.” Josh smiled. “Donna’s on it Sam. Has Donna EVER let us down?”
“No, but we’re already flying by the seat of our pants on this one and I’d just like to know who-“
“There she is now.” Josh beamed at the sight of his wife with their baby girl in her arms. He was
so enthralled by the image that he didn’t even notice who she was talking to right away.
“Ummm…Josh? Isn’t that Bill Maher?” Sam asked.
“Holy shit. It is Bill Maher.” Josh’s smile grew wider. “I love that guy, even though he gives equal
time to Republicans. Let’s go say ‘hi’.” Josh climbed down from the stage and walked directly to
his wife in order to steal his daughter. She was wide awake and looking all around her.
“Hey, Princess. Did you come to see Daddy?” Josh crooned.
“This is the pit bull?” Bill asked Donna in disbelief.
“No, this is the doting Father. The pit bull comes out later.” Donna assured him. “Bill Maher this is
my husband Josh Lyman.”
The men shook hands. “I’m a big fan.” Josh admitted.
“Then why couldn’t my producers ever get you on my show?” Bill asked.
“Until very recently I’ve been employed by the President. It’s hard to do the President’s business
and do guest shots on entertainment shows, even the good ones that are centered around
politics and social commentary.”
“Does that mean you’d be open to come on now?” Bill asked pointedly.
“Call me after the election. I’d be happy to do your show.” Josh promised. “This is Sam Seaborn.”
“You’ve really been shaking things up around here.” Bill said as he shook Sam’s hand.
“Is that good or bad?” Sam responded.
“I think it’s good, but then it’s my vocation in life to shake things up.”
“I’ve noticed.” Sam answered. “It’s an unexpected surprise to have you here. I’m assuming, that
Donna being her ever efficient self, gave you a run down on the change in our plans here?”
“She did. Who do you think is advising Taylor to dodge the debate?” Maher inquired.
“Somebody who’s going to have a tough time finding a job after this.” Josh noted. “The change in
the format and the obvious absence of the Republican nominee is generating far more press
than it would if he’d just shown up like he’d promised. CNN is covering part of the debate live
tonight. The rest they’re going to post on their website. So far, the only response from the Taylor
contingent has been that they are trying to work out a date and time to reschedule.”
“They also noted that this debate was a sham and a publicity stunt.” Sam noted.
“Okay, so walk me through where you want me.” Bill requested and Donna led him on stage
pointing out where he would be seated and showing him where the various participants would be
coming onstage to join him and Sam.
Sam plucked Allison Joan out of Josh’s arms. “You forget how small they start out. Hey, Ally. Do
want to come up on stage with me? The cameras would love you!”
Josh took her back. “No cameras for this one.” Josh accepted that he and Donna were part of
the public domain, but they both went to great lengths not to include the children in that
environment. Virginia White Pride might be waning in influence, but there were plenty of other
crackpots to take their place. The more anonymous his kids were, the happier he was. “Get up
there and run through a few things with Bill and the other participants.
Sam obeyed and moved onstage. Several of the people who would be debating with him had
arrived nervous about this event. Josh watched Sam do his magic and easily relax them with his
comfortable conversational style. By the time he was done with them, they looked far more in
awe of Bill Maher than Sam Seaborn.
Donna came back to him and stroked Ally’s arm. “Thanks for bringing her with you. I’ve only seen
her asleep in the last couple days.”
“I know. Just one more week and we’ll be off the Merry Go Round for awhile.” Donna told him.
“What should we do with our free time once we’re done here?”
“I was under the impression that 2 weeks of our free time would be spent in Wisconsin.” Josh
muttered.
“About that….I was thinking that my parents hardly ever get alone time with Ben. Maybe he could
stay with them while we have some alone time..somewhere else? We’d have to keep Ally with us,
since I’m still nursing, but-“
“I like the way you think, Donnatella.” Josh gave his wife a lingering kiss.
“If you can tear yourself away from your beautiful women for minute, we have a question for
you!” Sam shouted.
Donna could feel Josh’s lips form a smile against hers, but continued kissing her.
“Josh?!” Sam called again.
Josh finally broke off the kiss. “There are more important things than elections, Samuel.” But he
vaulted onstage without use of the stairs. “Now, what do you need?”
**********************************
“…I just don’t get why you Democrats are always cutting off our military at the knees.” Steve from
Sacramento said emphatically from his chair across from Sam and next to Bill Maher.
“On the contrary, Steve, we most certainly see the value in a well trained military force that is
given the best materials to work with. Where we typically diverge from the Republican platform is
in our urgency to send our military force off like Rambo.”
“But Sam you have to concede that the military seems to lose power and funding under
Democratic leadership as opposed to your Republican counterparts.” Bill intervened as he had
all evening when he felt the issue needed more discussion.
“I will concede that Democratic leaders prefer to find other ways to handle our disputes other
than by military force. But that doesn’t mean when push comes to shove we don’t want a well
armed, well trained military to step in. Steve, I’ve had the privilege of meeting many of the brave
men and women who work on the bases all over California. What concerns me most is that many
of them joined the military in a last ditch effort to get an education that they otherwise couldn’t
access.”
“But that’s good.” Steve argued. “This way they can get an education and serve their country.”
“In theory, yes. But what happens when we find that the military is made up of a disproportionate
number of our country’s impoverished citizens? Why is it that the people who have no other
options end up being sent far from home to make sacrifices for the part of the population who
make the decisions to send the military? In other words, Congress and the President, largely
made up of white, upper class, men send the children of our nations’ poorest families to fight. I
don’t think that’s fair.”
“Does that answer your question, Steve?” Bill confirmed.
“Yeah, but I don’t know how we’d do things any different.” Steve admitted. “It’s worked for us so
far.”
“But that doesn’t mean there isn’t a better way. Boats got us across the Pacific, but I’d much
prefer to take a plane, wouldn’t you?” Sam replied and Steve laughed.
“I guess so. Thanks for your time, Mr. Seaborn.” Steve shook Sam’s hand and the last
participant was introduced.
“Sam, this is Alex, she’s a junior studying biology, and this is her fist vote in a Gubernatorial
election. She told us she hasn’t made a decision about who she’s going to vote for yet, but her
family all lean Republican.”
“Hi, Alex. It’s nice to meet you. You don’t happen to live in Orange County, do you?” Sam
quipped, but Alex looked lost by the reference. “Never mind. What are you and I debating about?”
“I’ve never voted for Governor before, but I may not vote at all because I don’t know what the
difference is between the candidates. A lot of my peers feel the same way. So the issue I’d like to
debate with you is whether or not young adults should vote or not.”
“Okay. Let me ask you this; what issues are you concerned about, what gets your blood
pressure boiling or makes you want to participate in the system?”
“I don’t know. I mean, I guess there isn’t any one thing. And from what I see it doesn’t really
matter who sits in the Governor’s seat. Politicians make promises when they’re running but
nothing really changes.”
“If nothing really changes, it’s because citizens don’t hold politicians accountable. Elected
officials can only get away with what we let them get away with.” Sam opined.
“Are you saying that the President’s you worked for always kept their campaign promises?” Alex
asked.
“I can’t say that, Alex, but I can say they did their best to keep those promises and if they failed
they told the people why. These are very difficult jobs, if you do them right. There were days I left
the White House walking on clouds because we’d gotten something important done. Other days,
I wanted to crawl into bed and never got back to the White House again. But you know what? I
did. You need to find a leader who will persevere even against unbelievable odds.”
“Even if we did get involved in the system, nobody listens to college students.” Alex complained.
“That’s because statistically, your age group is the least likely to vote or protest about any issue.
You said it yourself; you don’t know what issues are really important to you. Until you do, my free
advice is not to vote.” Sam concluded.
“You’re telling this young woman to stay away from the voting booth?” Bill laughed. “Ladies and
Gentlemen, Democracy in action.”
“No, I’m telling her not to vote until she knows what issues are important to her and which
candidate best reflects those views. People who listen to debates and research the candidates,
don’t deserve to have their vote cancelled out because someone else cast a vote based on who
their family members are voting for, or who the best looking candidate is. The election process
takes time and effort, but more than anything it needs the respect of the participants.”
“So I shouldn’t vote this time?” Alex asked.
“You’ve still got a week to make some choices. The list of issues and candidates positions on
those issues that have been displayed on our screen off and on all night, have also been printed
out on hard copies. They are at every exit of this auditorium and posted on the League of
Women Voters website; which is a non-partisan group. Read through the information and check
off the positions you agree with. Put a little thought into it and debate the issues with friends and
family. When you feel you know why you’re voting for the candidate, then you should go vote.”
Sam advised.
“But don’t you want to try to convince me to vote for you?” Alex laughed. “I thought that was the
point of this thing tonight.”
“No, the point of ‘this thing’ tonight was to give people a chance to talk about issues that are
important to them and hear where I stand on those issues. I can’t, and shouldn’t, change my
views in order to get more votes. If you vote for me for Governor, you get what you see here.”
“That’s a strange sales pitch.” Bill noted.
“Democracy only works when people show up and make informed decisions. I want to be
Governor. I know I’d do a good job for the State of California. But Alex, and her friends, need to
decide that for themselves.”
“Thanks Alex.” Bill Maher dismissed the college student. “That wraps it up for us at this most
unusual debate. I hope you’ve learned some valuable information on issues that are important to
you and got a clearer picture of where each candidate stands. You heard the man. There’s one
week left until the election. Get informed and then go vote. Good night.”
Josh clapped along with the rest of the audience. They’d gone over the time allotted but since
they didn’t have to contend with television coverage timelines, it really didn’t matter. Sam had
been disarming, charming, and eloquent. CNN had covered the first ½ hour live as promised,
and then they devoted the next hour to a round table discussion of this unusual event and the
Governor’s race in California. Taylor had to be suffering a coronary by now. His name had hardly
been mentioned.
He had received several calls from Kevin Kahn before and during the debate, but had sent them
all to voice mail. Billy had brought a phone to him that supposedly had Kevin on the other end,
but Josh simply mouthed, ‘you can’t find me right now’ and Billy passed that message along. Now
it was time to return the call.
“Fred? Get Kevin Kahn for me will you?” Josh asked. Josh was perfectly able to make a phone
call on his own, but one thing he’d learned from Leo was that you were only as important as you
appeared to be. Important, powerful men rarely placed their own calls, especially to people they
considered to be unworthy of their effort; Kevin surely fit in that category.
When Billy brought him the phone, he took it from him with a wink.
“Josh Lyman.” He answered with a characteristic smirk.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing over there Lyman? Why didn’t you return any of the 6
calls I made to you?” Kevin demanded.
“Six calls? That’s a lot. My assistant must be falling down on the job. Although I’m not sure it’s
really her fault either. We’ve been so busy with adapting the debate tonight. Anyway, what’s the
problem Kevin?” Josh asked affably, while Billy had trouble holding the laughter in. Josh put the
phone on speaker so Billy could share in the fun.
“You know damn well what the problem is. CNN covered 30 minutes of that circus you produced
over there. That’s an equal time issue. We’re going to court and file a grievance.”
“Sounds like you might have a grievance against CNN, but we had nothing to do with their
decision to air part of the debate. How’s Taylor’s throat? I’ve got some great lozenges over here.
I could messenger them over to you.”
“Screw you, Lyman. This publicity stunt has your fingerprints all over it.” Kevin sneered/
“And faking an illness to get out of debating an opponent has your fingerprints all over it. Looks
like that little piece of advice backfired on you buddy.” Josh shot back. “You should see the
press gathered here tonight. Oh, wait, one of the cameras has MSNBC on it. I bet if you turn on
your TV you can get a live shot.”
“Sam is going to be hit with campaign law violations. I am personally going to take him out. It’s
ethics all the way with the Bartlet boys, isn’t it.” Kevin stated.
“You can’t even spell ethics, Kahn. And while we’re being up front with one another, if you
threaten the Democratic candidate for Governor again, you’ll be sitting in a holding cell while you
wait for bail. Jesus, did you think I’ve never run a campaign before? We’re well within the limits of
campaign law.”
“We offered to reschedule!” Kevin ignored most of Josh’s statement.
“And that was very sweet, but we don’t have time in our schedule anywhere else. It was a very
interesting debate. You should log onto our website and watch the whole thing. Some of the
Taylor supporters were more articulate than their standard bearer.”
“We’re not done with this.” Kevin threatened.
“Not yet, no, but there’s only a few more days and our lead is growing.” Josh noted. Billy raised
his eyebrows at that statement, wondering if it was true or not. Josh shrugged his shoulders as if
to say ‘it could be…who knows?’. Billy shook his head at Josh’s bravado.
“Good luck with that court thing, Kevin. And let me know if you change your mind about the
lozenges.” Josh flipped the phone shut.
“That man is wigging out.” Billy shared his expert opinion.
“That’s bad for him, right?” Josh asked as he draped his arm over Billy’s shoulder. “I’m too old to
keep track of the latest lingo. We’re just about done here. It looks like Jenny is hungry. You
should probably feed that woman before she faints.”
“What is with you and the matchmaking lately?” Billy demanded.
“I’m feeling all powerful, Fred. I’ve got the Midas touch right now. Everything I touch turns to gold.”
“Ah-kay.” Billy replied.
“Didn’t my idea for the debate tonight reap huge rewards?” Josh asked.
“Actually, I think it was my idea originally.” Billy corrected smiling.
“Don’t ever correct your boss, Fred; bad career move.” Josh said in a low tone. “The kernel of
the idea may have been yours, due to the extensive time you’ve been spending at my side, but
the final product and the execution were all mine….Look at this scene, Fred; nothing but sweet
victory. I drink from the keg of glory. Bring me the finest muffins and bagels in all the land.”
“For God’s sakes, Joshua, leave the poor boy alone. Run Billy. Run far and fast.” Donna advised
and Billy obligingly slipped out from under Josh’s arm and made a beeline for Jenny.
“The finest muffins and bagels in all the land?” Donna questioned.
“It was an homage to the old days. I thought you’d appreciate it.” Josh pulled her into his arms.
“The old days weren’t that golden and glorious to me.” Donna replied.
“They were too.” Josh disputed. “I looked forward to coming into work every day, well most every
day, just to see your smiling face.”
“You are SO full of shit.” Donna laughed.
“Way to talk in front of our daughter, Donna. Wait! Where IS our daughter?” Josh looked around.
“The shoe drops.” Donna deadpanned. “Ainsley has her.”
“Well make her give Ally back. She has her own baby daughter.” Josh sounded like a petulant
child. “Hey Ainsley, bring that child back here.” He shouted but Ainsley just smiled and turned
away from him.
“She’s ignoring me.”
“That’s almost hard to believe.” Donna drawled. “So what victory were you celebrating with Billy?”
“Just a little conversation with Kevin Kahn. He is SO pissed, Donna. He’s filing grievances in
court, and starting a media frenzy, yadda, yadda, yadda. He was quite rude.”
“Honestly.” Donna shook her head.
“I know! And that was after I offered to messenger over some lozenges.” Josh agreed.
“What? No German nurse?”
“No German nurse. Neither Taylor nor Kahn deserve one.” Josh decreed.
“Did he really think he could intimidate you into calling off the debate?”
“I think he did. So when I didn’t return his call until after the debate, he was quite vexed.”
“It went really well tonight. It was a brilliant idea.” Donna told him.
“Does this mean you’ll bring me muffins and bagels?” Josh asked.
“Have I ever done that before?”
“No, much to my disappointment.”
“Then I wouldn’t expect anything to change now.” Donna advised him. “Go get our daughter so
we can go home.”
Josh hurried to comply and after a short tussle, got Ally back from Ainsley.
“Hey Donna, the powerpoint you made for tonight was fabulous.” Peyton complimented her.
“Thanks. You and C.J. had Sam looking relaxed and in control. He’s going to get another bump
from this and that will seal the deal.” Donna predicted.
“You can feel it too, can’t you?” Peyton asked quietly. “The gathering momentum?”
Donna didn’t answer verbally but simply nodded her head while she watched the next Governor
of California tickle her daughter. “He’s come a long way, our Sam.”