King of the Mountain:
Part 4


Lynn Jepsen


Sam slept on the couch last night. Now, for the record, let me state, I
did not order, ask, or force him to - he just assumed. Allow me to clear
up a few things. Yes, my husband once fell into bed with a call girl, and
yes, he spent a weekend with one of Josh's groupies, who appear to have
abandoned Washington for the sunny skies in California. However, Sam is
still too honorable for his own good, as evidenced by the fact that he
slept on the couch last night because he didn't want to bother me.

That's almost sweet. Almost.

Diana and I are meeting with Leigh to coordinate our theme. In case you
haven't heard, I am now using theme are a four letter word. Sam hates it.
Sticking to a theme makes him feel like he's being handled. We tried that
in '04. It took us six months to agree on a theme that would encompass
all of California. How are we supposed to agree on a theme for the
nation? Anyway, Diana is supposed to handle the administration viewpoint,
and Leigh has the campaign. Me? I've got Sam's best interests. Josh is
referring to us as Sam's Angels. He even found Charlie's Angel's music to
play last night. Once CJ gets here, we're going to have to gang up on him
and inflict some pain.

Walking through the corridor, I don't bother to hide the grin as I catch
a glimpse of Josh's outer office. Rachel is setting herself up at the
desk - her desk. Glancing at my watch, I realize I still have a few
minutes to spare. "Rae, good morning. How's it going?" She doesn't
answer, just furrows her brow a little more and gets this look that
reminds me of Sam. Or maybe it reminds me of Michael. No, nothing like
her father's courtroom glare, it's definitely Sam's 'worried face'. "Aunt
Lisa, how should I arrange Josh's schedule?" She glances up then, because
I can't control the giggles. Arrange it however you want, because Josh
won't go near it. The only people that will ever see it are you, and
maybe, just maybe, Margaret.

Josh bellows then, and Rachel scoots her chair backwards until she can
peek into his office. That was weird. For a second there, I expected her
to tell him not to shout. Cool it, Mary Elizabeth, she's not channeling
Donna. She's sixteen - she doesn't even remember Donna. While her back is
turned, I grab Josh's schedule and pencil in a block of time on Friday
night. I'm convinced Sarah was flirting, and although I'm not one for
playing matchmaker, I've decided Josh just can't do the job himself.

*

"No! There's no way that will play in a campaign. We'll alienate the
Unions, the Corporations, the..." "We get the picture, Leigh." Diana puts
her head in her hands, and glares at me. True, I haven't been mediating
this the way she thought I would, but this also isn't my area of
expertise. It's already been hours, and I'm starting to realize how hard
this whole campaign is going to be. If even the little things trip us
up... "Look, Lisa, you agree with me here. The theme needs to be benign
and universal." Leigh, I'm not sure that I do agree with you. I know you
did that ad campaign for Neilsen, but that's not exactly a stellar
resume. "Benign and universal."

"That's just a stupid idea." The voice booms through the office. I swivel
in my chair and stare in shock. Toby? What did he do, hop on the Concorde
to get here? "The theme better have some teeth, or it's just a stupid
idea." Toby to the rescue. I jump up and hug him, and he stands there for
a second before patting me lightly across the shoulders. "You do realize
we just saw each other a few days ago, right?" Yeah, but I didn't think
you were coming here. "CJ's having a reunion with Carol. Go harass them
so I can bludgeon your Communications staff."

When I leave them, I'm confidant Diana will hold her own. Leigh might be
road kill by lunch, but que sera sera. "CJ!" Josh would say we squealed.
I say it's just an enthusiastic greeting. Okay, before anyone - like Toby
- points out we saw each other a few dayys ago, I'm going to stress the
significance of everyone being together for a campaign. That hasn't
happened since... Well, since President Bartlet was killed. It feels good
to have the family back together.

*

The staff meeting lacks rhythm.

Josh is pacing in front of Sam's desk, and Rachel is leaning against a
wall in case he needs anything. Beyond that, there are clusters. Toby,
CJ, and Carol are sitting on the couch, talking quietly about this race
compared to the last one. They all scrunch together when Margaret creeps
in and I wonder what they're all thinking - are any of them as scared by
this idea as I am? Leigh and Paul are heading the campaign people -
actually, Leigh and Paul are the campaign people for now. Leigh Hunter
ran the DNC Communications office for the 2006 race. Of course, since
Frank Neilsen lost, that's not a guarantee of talent, but Josh says she
came recommended. Plus, since Toby didn't kill her, she must have
redeeming virtues. Paul Strobe always runs our state offices. Two
gubernatorial races and he still manages to keep both Josh and Sam happy
with his work. That's talent.

Sam's staff is camped out on chairs dragged in from the conference room.
William is staring at Toby and CJ like he had no idea we've been in the
White House before, and I'm almost afraid he'll ask for their autographs
or something. Ramon Perez and Diana Reed have worked for us since Day 1
in the Governor's Mansion and they've got our confidence. Diana is an
excellent speechwriter, she's just a bad tactician. Ramon will be Josh in
twenty years, I can feel it.

Lily Mays straggles in a minute or two late. I'm still surprised she's
here. Lily and Sam have never quite seen eye-to-eye, especially after
that incident with the First Lady, but she is still here, and she pinch
hits for Joshua better than I could have imagined. Lily Mays, Assistant
Chief of Staff to a two term governor. Somehow, I imagine it's a let down
from her time with Abby Bartlet.

We're all assembled now, and when Sam stands up, Josh stops pacing and
grabs a spot of floor in front of the couch. "Let's not drag this out too
much." Sam, it's going to last until November - no matter what, it's
getting dragged out. "My niece, Meghan, and my nephew, Evan have been
debating the best name for our campaign. Now, they've built a compelling
case for something simple - Seaborn in 2010, but I think that's boring."
Toby and CJ are nodding and Diana sighs. She knows she's lost that
argument. "So we've decided on Seaborn for America."

There are murmurs around the room as the they begin to realize he's
stolen it from the Bartlet campaign. Then he makes a strategic error. He
turns the meeting over to Josh. "We're going to operate as two related
units. One will take care of state business and one will run the
campaign. We'll consult on anything public." There are nods. We knew it
would have to work like this. California is too big and too difficult to
be neglected for a year.

"So.... Toby, CJ, Leigh, Paul, and Ramon are the election staff." No one
looks surprised at that, except, maybe Ramon. "Lily, Diana, Carol, and
William are in charge of this office. I'll be at the top of both food
chains." Carol smiles faintly. From what I heard, she was planning to
resuming her job as CJ's assistant. Being her peer and counterpart is a
lot higher in the pecking order than she imagined. She deserves it though
- especially after the way she handled tthe thing with Josh and Mandy last
fall.

Josh escapes then to his office, knowing that the family will be joining
him there - well, with the exception of Sam, but he does have matters of
state to attend to. The rest of the staff scatters, alternating between
jubilation at their new responsibility and solemnity at their new
burdens.

King of the Mountain: Part 5

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