I missed the first 30 minutes; I was at a Globetrotters thing.

The Doctor was on West Wing. Robert Picardo was interviewed for a seat on the Supreme Court. He didn't get it. I guess they were afraid he might start fading out during a hearing.

I liked this episode quite a bit. I especially liked how the story of Donna's parents and their cats inspired Josh's idea. I would imagine that many of the world's brilliant plans strted out that way.

Glenn Close! I wish they'd tapped her to play the VP...

I kept looking for Diana Ross.

So the little weasel screws up again, and then he turns out to be a little bit useful.

What did you guys think about Mulready?

I thought he was a well-done character, not a dumb redneck, but an intellectual who could give the liberals a good argument. I say that as one whose bias is liberal.
By the way, I try to put the apostrophe in my name in correct Vulcan form, but the computer keeps taking it out.

Try using a backtick ` instead of a straight quote '.

Let's see if it works. Yes it does. Thanks.

If Picardo's character had been nominated, would he have started sessions with "Please state the nature of the legal emergency"?

I liked the way that everyone went ballistic -- including Bartlett -- when Mulready's name was first broached, but when they met him and had a chance to talk to him, they warmed up and realized that he could bring something to the court, even though his political views were diametrically opposite to the Administration's.

This was on Bravo last night.

I'd forgotten how much I liked Mulready! Loved the scene where Bartlett and Mulready are talking, and uber-conservative Mulready is telling Bartlett to use Lang.

Great line from Mulready "... [if one of the centrist justices dies] the center will be well defended" (or something to that effect).

Sadly, the state of affairs in the real world is often as Mulready told Bartlett: "Your job is to nominate somebody who won't offend anyone"

Yeah, this was great. I *love* Glenn Close.

Now I'm watching "Access" (again).

Here is a REALLY tiny nit that I'm debating posting, for fear it may make me look like a musical snob. When Toby enters the Oval to tell Bartlet that the Republicans have named Christopher Mulready as their pick, Bartlet explodes. Acting completely unfazed, Deborah Fitterer (?) just turns up her music and keeps working. The piece she listens to is movement one (allegro) from Antonio Vivaldi's Mandolin Concerto in C Major. This 3-movement concerto just happens to be on a CD that I've had since I was, oh, maybe ten years old, entitled "Baroque Favorites," featuring Raymond Leppard and the English Chamber Orchestra (Sony 38482). I bring up the length of time I've had it to emphasize that I know the works on this CD forwards and backwards (I'm almost 28 now).

So, I'm listening to the music, and all the sudden it hits me: the key is wrong. The movement ends in C Major, but the WW's version is a half-step too low (it's in B Major). I run it back a few times and confirm it. Then, holding the note in my head (I'm humming it), I run out to my keyboard and start replaying it. Sure enough, the WW's version is in B Major. I wonder if they used a rearranged version or if it was caused by technical issues?

Just a small nit, at the end when Bartlet announces Judge Lang, he introduces her as the nominee for 'Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court.' In fact the Chief Justice's full title is simply the 'Chief Justice of the United States.'

Synopsis for this episode:

The Bartlett administration is put into a frenzy when it finds it needs to replace a Supreme Court justice- the solution comes from an unlikely source leading to an even more unlikely outcome.