S5E13 · The Warfare of Genghis Khan

An unlikely party comes to the aid of the administration as it seeks to discover the party responsible for nuclear testing in the Indian Ocean; Will is unhappy, but his boss doesn't seem to mind, when a request to beef up the Vice President's issue profile results in Toby's handing him boring, low-level minutae; Josh dismisses a NASA proposal for a manned Mars mission until an agency staffer shows him the error of his ways; a conservative talk show host makes a pathetic attempt to bait C.J. into appearing on his show.

Plot summary and ending

Spoilers ahead. Coverage follows the scope labeled below.

Complete story — includes the ending

When the flash of a secret nuclear detonation is detected over the Indian Ocean, President Bartlet calls upon his staff to investigate which nation now has an atomic bomb. As conventional thinking favors Iran, the President orders bombers into the air to destroy the country's most likely uranium-enriched targets. Meanwhile, Josh chides NASA personnel on the future of space exploration, until he is introduced to an attractive female administrator. C.J. fumes when a combative television talk-show host, Taylor Reid, denigrates her on the air, and Will discloses to Vice President Russell that Russell is considered a buffoon by the White House staff. However, it is Russell who manages to dissuade the President from bombing Iran.

Sources and content license

Source and revision history · Adapted from Wikipedia contributors, The West Wing season 5. HTML formatting and reference markers removed. · Content license