The West Wing: 10 Greatest Ever Moments
5. "Crime, Boy, I Don't Know" - Posse Comitatus
One of the show’s most tragic moments came in this season 3 episode, when Secret Service Agent Simon Donovan was killed in the process of stopping a robbery. He’d spent several episodes protecting CJ from a crazed stalker, and the two had a clear spark that could have been acted upon now the stalker was in custody. The incident takes on added poignancy after we see our beloved CJ bereft and crying her eyes out in Times Square upon receiving the news.
Meanwhile, with the forthcoming election looming ever closer, the President is at a Broadway play wrestling with the decision to take out Abdul Shareef. As he finds a quiet room to enjoy an illicit cigarette, he is joined unexpectedly by his rival candidate, Republican Governor Bob Ritchie. The pair are cordial at first but when the President lets Ritchie know of Donovan’s passing, his rival simply offers the limp reply, “Crime. Boy, I don’t know.”
Their conversation becomes slightly frostier from that point onwards, with the President not hiding his displeasure at Ritchie's lack of empathy. When he finally wraps up their conversation, Jed turns to his rival and delivers a true mic-drop of a line: "In the future, if you’re wondering: ‘crime. Boy, I don’t know,’ is when I decided to kick your ass."
It's another example of Bartlet not suffering fools gladly and with the election looming, it becomes clear that he really means business. Just in case you needed another reason to support good old Jed, this scene really rammed home exactly what set him apart from the rest.