Manchester (Part II) (Episode 302)
First Aired: Wednesday, October 17th, 2001
Writer: Aaron Sorkin
Director: Thomas Schlamme










Don't You Want To Find Out How It's Like Getting Kids To Eat Their Vegetables?
Josh's bedroom, Bartlet Family Farm, Manchester, New Hampshire. Donna knocks on the door, and enters to find Josh, wearing boxer shorts and a t-shirt, sitting in a chair and staring at the wall.

JOSH: Come in.
DONNA: You're supposed to be downstairs.
JOSH: Yeah.
DONNA: You're not ready yet?
JOSH: We're blowing this RU-486 thing!
DONNA: You've got to get in the shower!
JOSH: Among everything else, it's going to look like we're kicking off the campaign by pandering to women's groups.
DONNA: Josh--
JOSH: Yeah, no question about it, most voters are pro-choice, but the ones that aren't are going to devote their lives and their money to beating you. Guns don't kill people--Bartlet does. It's going to look like we screwed up the timing so the press is going to write about process and not about issues, and getting political reporters to write about issues in the first place is like getting kids to eat their vegetables.
DONNA: You've got to shave.
JOSH: Don't you want to find out how it's like getting kids to eat their vegetables?
DONNA: Shave and shower.
JOSH: It helps if there's nothing else on their plate.
DONNA: You couldn't sleep?
JOSH: No. I could stop this thing. One phone call--the President's not even involved! "Could you do us a favour? Could you hold off two weeks? We love your drug, but we don't want it folded into our news cycle!" I could have picked up the phone! I could have picked up the phone, I--
DONNA: Josh--
JOSH: (slams his hand against the wall) God!
DONNA: What's this about?
JOSH: (beat) I blew the tobacco thing. I could have helped us, I was ... (beat) It's going to be a very close election. (beat) I've got to take a shower.




Many thanks to The West Wing Collection for the wonderful screencaps!