Angela hauls a big pile of files into the Roosevelt Room, where Leo, Toby, and Josh are. Title card: "White House War Room." How I wish I were kidding. This is a show that once credited viewers with being able to handle an unsubtitled Latin rant. Now we're at the point where I wonder if they'll need to tattoo "POTUS" on Martin Sheen's forehead, just so we don't accidentally mix him up with Charlie. Maybe everyone could wear team shirts or something so we can follow what's going on. They yatter about a bunch of meetings and so forth that were supposed to take place tomorrow. Leo tells Josh not to cancel the NAACP address tomorrow, because Angela thinks they'll still come to an agreement tonight. Angela thinks Haffley would have settled on 2\%: "It's probably still available." Leo: "And tomorrow?" Angela says it depends on how it plays in the morning papers. Will's there now. Josh bursts out, "We have to call Haffley out for what he is really doing. It's a coup. He's trying to defund every Bartlet initiative we've passed in the last two years." Leo says that POTUS has a full schedule tomorrow, and asks Josh to go make sure everyone knows he intends to keep to it. Josh makes a weird face I can't quite read, but he looks sort of chastised. Leo asks Toby, "Can we downplay this to the press?" Toby says that's what Haffley wants: "Nine hundred and forty thousand federal employees out of work, but we say, 'No worries. Doesn't matter.'"

Josh leaves, and the camera follows him into the hall as Will says, "I may be having some kind of mental logjam, but why did the President snap?" Leo explains, "Angela had the thing wired, and Haffley tried to roll us. It was a mugging." Will replies, "But it's also a negotiation. You don't shoot a duck for quacking." That depends. Am I trying to sleep? The camera starts following C.J. instead of Josh as Leo asks Will, "Are you speaking for the Vice-President?" Will: "The quacking thing kind of gives it away, doesn't it?" C.J. enters the War Room -- that's the White House War Room, remember, which is the Democrats and the Bartlet Administration, in case you got confused or nodded off or something -- and says, "Help." Leo tells her not to go out there again until morning. C.J.: "Okay, but the enemy's advancing and you better give me more than a squirt gun before the sun comes up." Will says, "We need some coffee. Anybody know where we can get coffee?" Toby points out that the Mess is closed. C.J. tells Will that Starbucks is closed, and suggests that he try someplace called Swing's or Swain's or something. Will trots off. C.J. mentions some big state dinner in honour of the British Prime Minister's upcoming visit. It's not for four days, but obviously it requires a fair bit of work and planning in advance. Leo says that Josh can handle it. Toby says that they can put together a strategy, but that there's not much else they can do until a deal's signed. Angela says to Leo, "You have to talk the President down off the ledge tonight. If I go back and hammer out a deal at two percent, he has to sign it." Leo says nothing; he just looks pained. I guess it would be painful to have aliens inhabiting your body. What the hell happened to the Leo McGarry who used to be the power behind the Presidency?