her power", Ainsley replies that she sees it differently:... I think you think I'm made out of candy glass, Celia. If somebody says something that offends you, tell them, but all women don't have to think alike... I like it when the guys tease me. It's an inadvertent show of respect—that I'm on the team and I don't mind when it gets sexual. And you know what? I like sex! ... I don't think that whatever sexuality I may have diminishes my power. I think it enhances it. In a review of the episode, Steve Heisler criticized this scene as "vaguely defensive", speculating that it was Aaron Sorkin's response to possible hate mail about his portrayal of women, or a comment he himself might have made. Patrick Webster criticized the fact that Sorkin, as a "masculine voice", had written the scene at all; he also questioned whether a woman would really react the way Ainsley did when faced with a comment about her sexual appeal. Reception and legacy Reception for Ainsley has ranged from mixed to positive. In a 2014 list of 144 characters on The West Wing, The Atlantic ranked Ainsley 14th, writing that she had lots of potential as a new major character before Procter left for CSI: Miami. The article refers to "And It's Surely to Their Credit" as Ainsley's "signature episode". In a 2012 list of 38 characters created by Aaron Sorkin, Margaret Lyons with Vulture ranks Ainsley as 26th; Lyons compliments her ability to foil Sam and her strength of character, but criticizes the scene in which she "tearfully stood up for her co-workers and insisted to her GOP pals that they were, sob, 'patriots'. Oy." Steve Heisler comments in "And It's Surely to Their Credit" that he was not convinced that Ainsley's character would be a positive addition. A few weeks later, he wrote that "Bartlet's Third State of the Union" reversed his opinion on Ainsley, complimenting the character's slapstick wit and charm. In the 2020 production of A West Wing Special to Benefit When We All Vote, Procter returned to read stage directions, despite not appearing in the episode itself. The role was intended to be split among several other actors on the show, including John Amos, Tim Matheson, and Timothy Busfield, but restrictions imposed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic meant that Procter introduced every scene over the three-day taping. References