It's important to remember that, first and foremost, if not only, this is entertainment. 'The West Wing' isn't meant to be good for you.

Just to clarify the division of labor on the show, I write the show and Alan [Poul] does everything else.

Film doesn't have to worry. Movies are awesome. There's no war going on, theaters aren't going to lose.

Socializing on the internet is to socializing what reality TV is to reality.

A friend is somebody who says the same things to your face that they would say if you're not in the room.

Pretty much up until The West Wing, our leaders had always been portrayed in popular culture as either Machiavellian or dolts. But I thought, "What if we show a group of people who are highly competent, they're going to lose as much as they win, but we're going to understand that they wake up every morning wanting to do good?" That was really the spirit behind The West Wing.

Government should be a place where people can come together, and no one gets left behind. No one…gets left behind. An instrument of good.