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This week's show primarily involves controversy surrounding the President's Surgeon General and her statements about marijuna, the President's oldest daughter Ellie, who has a distant and strained relationship with her father, and the flap over a decision by the President's Aide not to screen a controversial movie at the White House. While these topics are interesting, the show was more interesting from an insider's perspective for the several real-life portrayals (or attempts at real life) of what it is like to work in the real West Wing.

The show opens with Josh and Donna preparing to leave work at the West Wing at 9:00 p.m. on a Wednesday night. This timing is significant because the President is in Japan. The show implies that 9:00 p.m. is an early departure time because the President is out-of-town, so the staff is enjoying more freedoms like leaving work "early". While the White House staff is generally known for keeping long hours, the hours are never as consistently long as the television show implies. Also, in real life, when the President travels, the White House is generally quiet and the staff is generally never there late. The people that are most busy while the President is away are the White House's physical plant staff that performs material maintenance jobs such as painting or carpet cleaning on his rooms.

In the scene where Josh meets with C.J. in the Roosevelt Room to discuss the controversy regarding the Surgeon General, there is a shot of an open doorway behind him. Anybody that has worked in the West Wing can confirm that this shot was very accurately portrayed because of what could be seen through that open doorway- a door with a red rope and uniformed secret service agent standing next to it. That door is one of the entrances to the Oval Office, and in real life, if one were standing in the Roosevelt Room, that is the exact scenario that would be visible if the President were away. (Of course, the door is closed if the President is in the Oval Office.)

The primary political subject in this week's show are issues arising from the Surgeon General's frank statements regarding marijuana, and the implication that it be decriminalized. The Surgeon asserted that marijuana did not raise any more health issues than nicotine and was, in fact, less addictive. As a result of the statements, the President's staff works to fight the storm of criticism from right-wing conservative groups. The Surgeon General is asked for her resignation, and she takes the position that she should be fired instead. This episode involving the Surgeon General is similar to the real life controversy surrounding one of President Clinton's Surgeon Generals that made statements regarding the healthy aspects of masturbation. In real life that Surgeon General finally resigned. In the television show, the Surgeon General turns out to be a close friend of the President, as well as the godmother of one of his daughters. In the end, she presents her resignation, but the President does not accept it.

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In the scene where the President's daughter Ellie is waiting for her father outside of the Oval Office, a Secret Service agent walks past and says (to nobody in particular) that, "the Eagle is moving." In real life, although the Secret Service does have code names for the President, they are not generally so publicly stated. However, it is something that staff working in the real West Wing do experience on occasion. Also, in the next scene, Ellie concludes the meeting with her father in the Oval Office by asking which door she should exit from. That was a very cute addition by the writers. There are four doors to the Oval office - one to the hall, one to the secretary's area, one to the Rose Garden, and one to the President's study. It is very likely that people meeting with the President who are not accompanied by staff would have such an experience and not know which door to exit from.

The flap over the movie that the President's Aide determined would not be screened at the White House was most interesting, because it informed viewers that there is a movie theater in the White House. There is in fact a movie theater in the real White House and the scenes that took place in the theater were very accurate. The theater looks very much like it is portrayed in the show. It is a long, narrow room with large comfortable seats for the President in the front row. The theater is located along the narrow building that connects the East Wing and the White House. Most tourists pass by its exterior wall when they enter the White House, but are unaware that the theatre is on the other side. During official events at the White House, such as state dinners, the theater is the room where guests check their coats before entering the White House.

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