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“The Portland Trip”
The West Wing episode
Episode no.	Season 2 Episode 29
Guest stars	Timothy Busfield Emily Procter Charley Lang David Graf NiCole Robinson Michael Tomlinson Gregg Daniel
Written by	Aaron Sorkin (teleplay) Paul Redford (story)
Directed by	Paris Barclay
Production no.	226207
Original airdate
Season 2 episodes
In the Shadow of Two Gunmen, Part I In the Shadow of Two Gunmen, Part II The Midterms In This White House And It's Surely To Their Credit The Lame Duck Congress The Portland Trip Shibboleth Galileo Noël The Leadership Breakfast The Drop-In Bartlet's Third State of the Union The War at Home Ellie Somebody's Going to Emergency, Somebody's Going to Jail The Stackhouse Filibuster 17 People Bad Moon Rising The Fall's Gonna Kill You 18th and Potomac Two Cathedrals
List of The West Wing episodes

"The Portland Trip" is the 29th episode of The West Wing.

Contents 1 Plot 2 Trivia 3 Quotes 4 External link

The President is taking a red-eye to Portland, Ore., to deliver an education address, and Sam must go with him because he can't get the speech right. Toby must also go, to help Sam, and C.J. has to go, too, because she's being punished for making disparaging remarks about the President's alma mater, Notre Dame. Back at the White House, Josh spars with a gay Republican congressman over a bill on homosexual marriage, and Leo monitors a minor crisis in the Persian Gulf involving an oil tanker.

The actor playing Congressman Skinner had spoken with Aaron Sorkin about the issue of gay Republicans after his work on the No on Knight campaign, which was rallying against The Knight Initiative, which became law in 2001, prohibiting same sex marriages. He was called by show asking if he was interested in doing another episode and read in the script much of what he and Aaron discussed.

CJ: I'm not being punished, I'm going on the trip.
Danny: If the whole bus goes off the record, will you tell us why you're going on the trip?
CJ: I made fun of Notre Dame. I usually get away with it.
Reporter: They're playing Michigan tomorrow.
CJ: I know that now.
Danny: You can't bring that when they're playing Michigan.

Bartlet: I thought you said, 'Michigan sucks'
Leo: No sir, we're standing close to the engines so it may have sounded like I said, 'Notre Dame is going to get the ass-kicking they so richly deserve.'

Congressman Skinner: You let Donna out?
Josh: Temporarily. She's having dinner.
Congressman Skinner: Oh? With who?
Josh: Oh, a guy she has no future with.
Congressman Skinner: Why no future?
Josh: Because I say so.

Sam: Oratory should blow the doors off the place.

Congressman Skinner: I never understand why you gun-control people don't all join the NRA. They've got two million members. You bring three million to the next meeting and call a vote.

• The West Wing Episode Guide