It’s part idealism, it’s part humanity. Those characters are really flawed. If Toby Ziegler was really in charge of Communications and he was having breakdowns and fits of idealism, it would be a very dysfunctional office. But maybe realistic, I don’t know, I’m not there. You hope that the people in that building are having those kinds of idealistic debates. You hope that that’s what’s going on in the highest halls of power. That they’re actually talking about what’s best for the world, and they fall short, and they lose votes, but they’re aiming for the best of us. Sorkin captured it in a really brilliant way. It’s in a style like your smartest friends talking on their best day.

Autumn seemed to arrive suddenly that year. The morning of the first September was crisp and golden as an apple.