OT - Fictional Michigan Alumni

West Wing nut checking in: According to wikia entertainment, the University of Michigan connection is "strongly suggested by a conversation between the President and Leo." I think "strongly" is a bit strong. The conversation being referenced is from the Season 2 episode "The Portland Trip," in which the president is using the present metaphor of flying to break free from conventional thinking. The actual exchange concerns the president's Notre Dame fandom, during the week that the Irish play Michigan -- Leo makes a comment in support of Michigan, suggesting that Notre Dame would get creamed by the Wolverines.* This doesn't at all suggest that Leo actually attended M, only that he favors Michigan in the game. He could be a Michigan alum, a Michigan fan, or he might just be baiting the president. The fictional campaign website (since taken down by NBC) that correlated with the 2006 West Wing presidential election included a biography of (then Democratic VP candidate) McGarry. IIRC, his college was unlisted. I think the character's backstory was that he skipped college for Vietnam, and then made a career in the military and his fortune in the defense business. As for Leo's favoring of Michigan over Notre Dame, I would guess it stems from a childhood partisanship toward Boston College, which is another ND rival. However, a Wolverine does appear in The West Wing in the Season 3 episode "Indians in the Lobby," in which two Native American leaders (one a young female Michigan alum) stage a silent protest in the White House lobby while [White House Press Secretary] C.J. Cregg, et al. are trying to shut down for Thanksgiving. At one point, C.J. tells a colleague that she could "take a Wolverine," but in the end, she is persuaded by the Native Americans, letting them choose to have their media moment at the expense of the president's public image, or reschedule their appointment through her office so that it won't be ignored. As a side note, this was filmed shortly after the big Michigamua protest by M's Native American student group. I had a French class at the time (and was post-class smoking buddies) with a female leader of that organization who very much resembled, in looks and intelligence, the West Wing character. Probably a coincidence, but I wonder where the real student group leader is today -- she really was one of those minds of a generation who end up doing something important. * This takes place in the early fall of 2000 in the West Wing universe. Michigan and Notre Dame did not actually play in 2000. When that episode was filmed, the last meeting had been in 1999, when Michigan triumphed in Ann Arbor, 26-22.