Actions

Work Header

everybody talks (it started with a whisper)

Summary:

Being the White House Press Secretary, Josh realizes, is one of the toughest jobs in the administration to begin with. But with her co-workers' propensity for going viral, CJ certainly deserves a raise.

 

(The West Wing, set 20 years later.)

Chapter 1: Prologue

Notes:

Hi everyone! I know there's lots of stuff I need to catch up on, and I haven't forgotten any of my other work... let's just say it's been a time. As you may have seen, I met up with some other writers in fandom and happened to badly injure my ankle on the streets of Washington D.C. -- a Donna Moss move, if I do say so myself. Anyway! I'm finally on the mend and ready to dive back into writing. In honor of AU Fest, have the prologue of what will be a fun thought experiment that answers the question: how would these ding dongs (affectionate) manage if the internet/social media was as big as it is now? What if this show was set 20 years later?

DISCLAIMER: While you may see some familiar news outlets/publications/entities in here, this is obviously very fake. These usernames came from generators or off the top of my head, so please, if they're actually real people or entities (other than the obvious news outlets/publications), know that it's purely coincidence.

I hope you enjoy!

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

@JedBartletNH: I announced my bid for the Presidency today in my home state of New Hampshire. Never doubt that a group of thoughtful and committed citizens can change the world. I hope you’ll join me in doing just that.

– Twitter, May 2017


@MSNBC: Secretary of Labor Leo McGarry to join Bartlet Campaign as General Chairman.

– Twitter, May 2017


Joshua Lyman, Rep. Earl Brennan’s right-hand man, is the only politician on our list who was appointed rather than elected. But he’s earned his place on our list for a few great reasons – two of which are those dimples! The congressional Chief of Staff’s recent viral takedown of ultra-conservative Congressman James Holman makes him a great addition to our list. You’ll have some competition, though, since Lyman’s meteoric rise to internet stardom has made him D.C.’s most eligible bachelor. Want proof? Just look at the @LemonLyman Twitter account dedicated to ‘all things Josh’, which has gained 160K followers in the last week.

– Excerpt, 20 Super Hot Politicians For You to Feel Good About Objectifying: Buzzfeed, June 2017


After graduating law school, Sam Seaborn was at a crossroads. He spent a year as a congressional aide in Washington D.C., then spent a summer back home in Orange County. But on a visit to New York for what was actually an entirely different job interview, Seaborn met the founders of mental wellness company Solstice (you may have heard their ads on your favorite podcast). Now, Seaborn is the head of the legal department for Solstice, which has over 5 million users.

– Excerpt, 30 Under 30, Forbes, August 2017


@PremiereMag: Shakeup at Triton-Day: Roger Becker’s grip on the movie industry may be loosening as Becker drops 6 spots on the list of Hollywood’s Most Powerful People.

– Twitter, October 2017


SAM: So I had just been named to Forbes’ thirty under thirty list, which was… an incredible honor, and things were picking up. The idea for running ads on podcasts was the kicker, because Solstice was growing. And it was growing fast. There were some choices that had to be made to meet demand, and… let me be clear, this is all my personal opinion. I felt that some of those choices didn’t align with my understanding of what the original mission and vision of the company were. And then Josh Lyman stopped by my office… [laughs] he was actually soaking wet, it had been raining that day. That’s when I knew it was time for me to make my next move.

– Partial Video Transcript, Why I Left Solstice: Sam Seaborn on YouTube, December 2017

COMMENTS:

joshlymanss: it’s fine bestie, i’d leave my whole life behind for those dimples too

helloitshaley: i too would drop everything and start over for a soaking wet josh lyman


maddieaquarius

sooo I asked them

ladylyman69

wait what happened?

halluxalex

her parents went to the bartlet rally the other day

ladylyman69

omfg i forgot

tell us!!

maddieaquarius

they told me a lot about bartlet’s stump speech but my mom noticed that “my man” had a young blonde assistant

she basically implied that it was super cringe

LymanMeringue

i simply will not believe it

like i refuse to accept that josh is one of those people

plus isn’t he dating mandy hampton?

joshuaslyman

Doesn’t mean he can’t have an affair with his assistant even if he’s dating Mandy

maddieaquarius

i asked my mom what he did and she didn’t really say he actually did anything so

halluxalex

OH MY GOD NO WAIT I JUST GOOGLED

SHE WAS AT MY RALLY IN AUSTIN

JOSH’S ASSISTANT GAVE ME AN ADVIL SKFHDKHFDKJFHFJFGHSDFJDGF

LymanMeringue

oh my god??!?!

halluxalex

her name is donna

she was a literal angel i owe her my life

katiedidnt456

I’m going to the rally in Nashville tomorrow… maybe I’ll suddenly have a really bad cramp? LOL

– #gossip-and-rumors channel, LemonLyman Discord server, March 2018


@voguemagazine: Thoracic Surgeon and First Lady of New Hampshire Dr. Abigail Bartlet opens up about motherhood, campaign life, and what the future holds for women in a potential Bartlet presidency.

– Twitter, May 2018


@POLITICO: Bartlet Media Director Mandy Hampton has left her position in search of greener pastures, say sources inside the campaign.

– Twitter, July 2018


katiedidnt456

Anyone see the news?

Mandy’s out.

Anna_Banana

What??!!!!!

joshuaslyman

Think it had anything to do with his assistant?

Peachespresso

omg i wonder

when i saw them it was all pretty innocent but they had heart eyes

– #gossip-and-rumors channel, LemonLyman Discord server, July 2018


@CNN: BREAKING: New Hampshire Governor Josiah Bartlet wins Democratic Nomination for President.

– Twitter, July 2018


BARTLET: You see, my staff over there won’t even listen to me anymore. They’re distracted. [laughs] It’s a good thing the camera is on me right now, or Josh would one-up me.

JOSH LYMAN (O.S.): No, no, focus on the Governor, ask him about his education policy!

BARTLET: No, no, let’s give the people what they want. [Bartlet waves his hand]

[camera pans to Josh Lyman, holding a puppy like a football in his right hand. The puppy is chewing on his fingers.]

JOSH LYMAN: Ouch! [laughs]

[Josh’s assistant, a young blonde woman, is standing beside him, scratching the puppy’s head and laughing.]

BARTLET (O.S.): Find Donna a puppy, don’t let Josh have all the fun! She can have one of mine! [Bartlet wanders into frame and hands Donna a puppy]

DONNA: [surprised] Oh! Hi! [laughs]

[The puppy in Josh’s hand is still gnawing on his fingers, but Josh is watching Donna talk to the puppy in her arms.]

– Partial Video Transcript, Governor Jed Bartlet Puppy Interview: Buzzfeed, September 2018


@FiveThirtyEight: Our Latest Forecast of the 2018 Presidential Election between Josiah Bartlet and Franklin Gallagher

– Twitter, October 2018


@AP: GOVERNOR JOSIAH BARTLET DEFEATS FRANKLIN GALLAGHER

The Associated Press declares New Hampshire Governor Josiah Bartlet the winner of the 2018 Presidential Election.

– Twitter, November 2018


DONNA (V.O.): My name is Donna Moss, and as of noon eastern time today, January twentieth, I work at the White House.

[Donna stands in front of the White House, bouncing excitedly]

DONNA (V.O.): I’m an assistant to the White House Deputy Chief of Staff. I don’t quite know what that means yet, considering he doesn’t even have a desk in his office at the moment, but I’m sure I’ll learn quickly.

[Josh and Donna sit with their backs against the wall of an empty office with Chinese food containers between them, Josh holding the container in his hand away from her as she reaches for it. They’re both laughing.]

DONNA (V.O.): I wanted to make this TikTok account to document what the next four years – or eight, if we’re lucky – are like for me.

[Donna films in the bathroom mirror, showing off her new staff badge that hangs on a lanyard from her neck.]

DONNA (V.O.): If you’d have told me when I joined the campaign that this is where we’d end up… well, I wish I could say I would be surprised or something, because I’m not.

[CJ is putting on makeup and sticks her tongue out at whoever is filming behind the camera.]

DONNA (V.O.): I work with some incredibly passionate and talented people.

[Donna ties Josh’s bow tie.]

DONNA (V.O.): And I’m lucky enough to call them my friends.

[Sam twirls Donna in the White House lobby.]

DONNA (V.O.): I’m hoping that I’ll be able to look back when my time in the White House is up and be proud of the work we’ve done.

[Donna and Toby clink glasses at an inaugural ball.]

DONNA (V.O.): In the words of one of my favorite people, the brand-new President of the United States… what’s next?

[Donna and Josh are dancing at the end of the night. Josh’s bow tie is falling apart and Donna’s hair is no longer perfectly pinned. They are both smiling at each other.]

Video Transcript, My White House Journey: @urwhitehousebestie on TikTok, January 2019


@LimitlessUSA: Blog Post: 2019’s 365 in Media Names Released. Get your prayers ready!

– Twitter, January 2019


Sent via form submission from Anon DC

Subject: Congresswoman and (maybe now ex?) husband at dinner

Pseudonyms, Please: Political Foodie

Email: [email protected]

Message: Andy Wyatt and her husband (I think he works for Pres. Bartlet) were out to dinner at Filomena tonight. They were sort of whisper-arguing and looking around the table a lot. Both of them looked uncomfortable.

– Submission, AnonDC: Instagram, February 2019


16. Claudia Jean (CJ) Cregg

White House Press Secretary CJ Cregg doesn’t just make our list because she used to work for us. She’s one of the most visible women in the country right now, and she has the ear of President Josiah Bartlet. As a senior counselor to the President, and the master of quippy comebacks in the Press Room, she earns her spot at #16 on our list.

– Excerpt, 25 Most Powerful Women in Politics: EMILY’s List, March 2019


DONNA: I’m not going to talk politics on my account. I’m not an official representative of my employer, I don’t speak for the President, and there are tons of official channels you can use to interact with your elected officials or even the President. Plus, why would you listen to me when you could watch CJ Cregg do a briefing? [laughs]

[reaches for a bag on the side of the couch]

DONNA: Okay, since my roommate isn’t home tonight, I’ll show you what I bought at Target. We’ll do a little Target haul, and then we’ll…

[loud banging on door, Donna jumps, startled]

JOSH (O.S.): [muffled] DONNA!

[Donna runs out of frame, phone slides and is filming the ceiling]

DONNA (O.S.): Josh! What are you doing here?

JOSH (O.S.): [unintelligible, muffled speech] … damn cats!

DONNA (O.S.): [groans] Go sit on the couch. I’ll find you some food.

JOSH (O.S.): I’m not hungry.

[Cat paw comes into frame, cat bats phone around for about ten seconds]

JOSH (O.S.): Get away from that! Go!

[Phone is knocked face down for about fifteen seconds, then Donna appears on screen again]

DONNA: [out of breath] Sorry about that, I’ve gotta end the live. [reading a comment out loud] ‘Do we need to call 911?’ No, it’s fine, he’s my bo – my friend. I’ll let everyone know when I’m going live again. Talk soon!

– Partial Video Transcript, TikTok Live: @urwhitehousebestie on TikTok, March 2019


Anonymous: A friend of mine works at a flower shop their aunt owns and Josh Lyman came in to buy flowers this morning. He was kind of clueless about what to buy but was really nice to my friend.

AnonDC: Did he mention who they were for? He and Mandy Hampton broke up last summer.

Anonymous: No but apparently it was an anniversary? When my friend asked how long they’d been together, he said a year, then sort of backtracked and said it was more than a year, and that they weren’t together-together, it was different.

AnonDC: Sounds like his assistant since she started working for him a little over a year ago.

Anonymous: My friend said Josh seemed really into her because he got all weird and awkward when he talked about her.

– Message, AnonDC: Instagram, April 2019


@nytimes: REPORT CARD: A look back at Bartlet’s first 100 days in office.

– Twitter, April 2019


DONNA [V.O.]: Some stuff happened this morning, so I was basically running around the White House until lunchtime. But things calmed down later on, so Josh and I went to lunch.

[Josh is sitting at a table looking at a menu. He’s talking, though we can’t hear what he is saying over the background music, and stops mid-sentence when he looks up and grins at the camera.]

– Partial Video Transcript, A Day in My Life: @urwhitehousebestie on TikTok, July 2019

COMMENTS:

graciejo4345: i am no better than a man

hotdoghannah: THE WAY HE LOOKS AT YOU OMG

oodleofpoodles: girl find a new job so you can hit that

hgb439726: that smile, pls i am unwell


@ABCNews: BREAKING: President Bartlet sustains minor ankle injury in bicycle accident in Jackson Hole, WY.

– Twitter, September 2019

Notes:

Did you catch some of the pre-series references in there? It's fun to play around with how 20 years changes our favorite found family. I'm hoping to have chapter 1 up soon -- this is the prologue, so the entire story won't be told solely in these little snippets. We're gonna have a plot and everything! (We'll still have more of these little asides though, so stay tuned for those.) This is just a little taste to orient you to the world and give you the vibes. I really, really hope you're enjoying it!

Be sure to check out the other fics in this fest! I know I will. Come say hi on Twitter or Tumblr... I'm @jessbakescakes on both!