The West Wing ...

Hi Julian,

I recall several reviews of "The West Wing" that included comments from former White House staff members that stated that they have done a decent job of capturing the essence of how events may transpire.

I'm sure that the more conservative peers will chime in on how overtly liberal Martin Sheen and his character are.

IMHO, the show is attempting to capture a dynamic Democrat in the White House. It is perhaps their view of what it would be like if JFK was President in this day and age.

Chas

were Democrat or Republican, this should not alter the general way in which the White House functions, including the distribution of particular duties and reponsibilities to various staff. Would that be a fair statement?

For example, there would still have to be a Toby to sweat over using just the right words to convey to the press/public precisely the message which the president wanted to present.

Here are some of the people who served those roles in the real-life capacity.

White House Press Secretary:

C J Craig - The West Wing.

Scott McClellan - George W. Bush (current). (Barr McClellan, Scott's father, by the way, has claimed in a new book that LBJ was behind the Kennedy assassination.)

Ari Fleischer - George W. Bush (resigned recently).

DeeDee Myers - Bill Clinton (first term).
Mike McCurry - Bill Clinton (sometime).
Joe Lockhart - Bill Clinton (second term).

Marlin Fitzwater - George H W Bush.

Marlin Fitzwater - Ronald Reagan.
David Gergen - Ronald Reagan.

Jody Powell - Jimmy Carter.
Hodding Carter - Jimmy Carter (no relation).

Ron Nessen - Gerald Ford

Ron Ziegler - Richard Nixon.

Bill Moyers - Lyndon Johnson (yes, the PBS Bill Moyers).

Pierre Salinger - John F. Kennedy.

James Hagerty - Dwight Eisenhower.

Clark Clifford - Harry S Truman.

Jonathan Daniels - Franklin Roosevelt.

George Akerson - Herbert Hoover (He was the first "formal" Press Secretary to the President. He was appointed in 1929 and served until 1931.)

Not listed for these 5 Presidents

George Cortelyou - William McKinley's (served as the first true press secretary).

There are others, I'm sure, who served under those Presidents, but I can't remember (or find) them all.

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Chief of Staff:

The White House Chief of Staff is the highest-ranking member of the Executive Office of the President of the United States.

Leo McGarry - The West Wing

Andrew H. Card - George W. Bush

Thomas McLarty - Bill Clinton (1st)
Leon Panetta - Bill Clinton (2nd)
Erskine Bowles - Bill Clinton (3rd)
John Podesta - Bill Clinton (4th)

James Baker - George H. W. Bush

Howard Baker - Ronald Reagan
Donald Regan - Ronald Reagan
James Baker - Ronald Reagan
John Sununu - Ronald Reagan

Hamilton Jordan - Jimmy Carter

Donald Rumsfeld - Gerald Ford (yes, the same Donald Rumsfeld)
Dick Cheney - Gerald Ford (yes, the same Dick Cheney)

H R Halderman - Richard Nixon
Alexander (I am in-charge) Haig - Richard Nixon

More on Chief-of-Staff:

It can be a very powerful position, and the Chief of Staff is sometimes even dubbed "The Most Powerful Man in Washington." Some have even suggested that a powerful Chief of Staff dealing with a "hands off" president who decides not to become involved in the minuti? of government, can become a quasi-prime minister. Such prime ministers exist in some presidential systems, with the Prime Minister de facto running the system of government and the President standing back and setting broad policy agendas. James Baker and Donald Regan were seen as prime ministerial-style Chiefs of Staff during the Reagan presidency. Howard Baker, who succeeded Regan, was critical of this system and what is sometimes called the Imperial Presidency.

By contrast, Andrew Card, the Chief of Staff within the administration of George W. Bush is not regarded as a very powerful figure, in large part because Bush appears to deal directly with his Cabinet secretaries.

The duties of the position can vary greatly from administration to administration, but generally the Chief of Staff is responsible overseeing the actions of other members of White House staff, managing the president's timetable, and controlling outsiders' access to the president. This last duty has often earned the Chief of Staff the nickname of the "Gatekeeper."

Informally, the Chief of Staff is often one of the President's closest political advisors, and a close friend.

Not every President has had a formal Chief of Staff. Presidents Kennedy and Johnson never did, nor did President Carter until the very end of his term.

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Advisors, writers, etc.....

Karl Rove - George W. Bush

David Gergen (Clinton and Bush 1), George Snuffleupagus - okay, Stephanopoulos and Paul Begala (both Clinton), too many to list....

Too many to list.

I think they have captured or try to capture the true essence of what it is like to be in such a stressful environment. Like last nights episode where Josh who has been outcasted for a couple of weeks episodes is now back in the war-room advising the prez. on the money matters, just because the prez's wife shows up and ask's him wheres Josh. I think that because of the opinions people have and their convictions they have make for a whirlwind of emotions stirring in one house.

I like the show and like the interactions they show between the staff. I think that they get to speak their mind a little bit more than lets say you and I in our workplace.

Also I find it very Humorous how they take current issues and then swap the words democrat and republican and make it seem oppiste of how it is actually playing out.

Rad

for confirming my suspicion that the West Wing is indeed a realistic portrayal of life in the real White House.

And thanks especially to Maxwell, for describing the real-life role of the Chief of Staff.

I have noticed that the program closely mirrors real events and, Democrat or Republican, illustrates the complexity of forces and issues which a president much face in coming to a decision on any matter.

.
And I make it a point to watch it - just after Star Trek Enterprise. Those are about the only two TV shows I regularly watch. (Are they both science fiction, or one sci-fi and one more reality?)

I think the show displays a left wing bias, but I'm sure a lot of that is because of perspective. Martin Sheen is about as far left of center as I am right of center (If there is such a thing as "center"), so, of course, we'd see things a bit differently. But the show has had its moments when it made Democrats look as ridiculous as it does Republicans, although it does shed more of a negative light on Republicans. For the most part, however, I overlook the left leaning bias and enjoy the political drama.

(I think Stockard Channing's role as first lady is the worst. It seems to me that they're trying to mix Hillary Clinton with Barbra Bush - and it just doesn't work.)