The episode finishes in the same way as The Godfather (1972). Charlie is also seen earlier reading a biography of Francis Ford Coppola, the director of "The Godfather" trilogy.
According to Aaron Sorkin, the reason this is set entirely within the West Wing was due to financial reasons.
With only three actors in the Special Guest, Guest and Co-Starring credits, it has the smallest guest cast of any West Wing episode.
Allison Janney (C.J.) was originally in this episode but had to be written out when she had to fly to London, England to film extra scenes for The Hours.
While working on the speech for the White House Correspondents Dinner, Sam refers to Ainsley as Phyllis Schlafly. Schlafly was known for her staunchly conservative social and political views, her opposition to feminism, and her successful campaign against the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.