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Christmas draws near as an increasingly unstable Josh (Bradley Whitford) begins exhibiting bizarre behaviour that has everyone concerned; behaviour that finally crosses the line when he explodes at the President (Martin Sheen) in the Oval Office. Josh is ordered by Leo (John Spencer) to consult with a doctor who specializes in analyzing trauma victims named Stanley Keyworth (Adam Arkin). What's particularly telling is Josh's identification with a dead fighter pilot who recently took his own life by deliberately crashing his jet -- a man who coincidentally shared his birthday and experienced emotional trauma after being shot down over Bosnia.
Elsewhere: the President wants to personally sign all of his Christmas cards -- which total hundreds of thousands; Sam (Rob Lowe) confronts a representative of the Energy Secretary who publicly advocates release of federal oil reserves; C.J. (Allison Janney) gets personally involved when a foreign White House tourist becomes extremely agitated at the sight of a painting donated by the French government.
As Josh confronts his trauma and his suicidal tendancies, he is shocked to learn that he has post-traumatic stress disorder, and that one of his triggers for attacks is music, which to his brain equals sirens. He and Donna (Janel Moloney) leave the White House and stop to listen to carolers. But Josh is not cured, and on his face we see fear and uncertainty at the sound of the music.
Summary
Cast
Starring
- Rob Lowe as Sam Seaborn
- Dulé Hill as Charlie Young
- Allison Janney as C.J. Cregg
- Janel Moloney as Donna Moss
- Richard Schiff as Toby Ziegler
- John Spencer as Leo McGarry
- Bradley Whitford as Josh Lyman
- and Martin Sheen as Jed Bartlet
Special Guest Star
- Adam Arkin as Dr. Stanley Keyworth
Guest Starring
- Paxton Whitehead as Bernard Thatch
- Gregalan Williams as Robbie Mosley
- Gary Cervantes as Bobby
- Daniel von Bargen as Ken
Special Appearance By
- Yo-Yo Ma as Himself
Co-Starring
- Melissa Fitzgerald as Carol Fitzpatrick
- Kris Murphy as Katie Witt
- Purva Bedi as Kaytha Trask
- Jana Lee Hamblin as Reporter Bobbi
- Timothy Davis-Reed as Reporter Mark
- Robert Noble as Valet
- Deborah Snipes as Staffer
- Eric A. Payne as Secret Service Agent
- Greg Wrangler as Secret Service Agent
- Michael Crider as David Housman
- Etyl Leder as Rebecca Housman
Trivia
Goofs
Quotes
"If this is because of what I said in there, I wasn't at my best..."- Josh Lyman
"Josh, I'm not sure you were fully concious while you were saying it."- Leo McGarry
And later, Leo tells Josh a story that comes round to this:
"Long as I got a job, you got a job, you understand?"- Leo McGarry
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