Spin City

Charlie tries out for a minor league baseball team, trying to relive his high school glory days. Caitlin encourages the pitcher to go easy on him. The mayor receives a death threat so he gets a bodyguard. After discovering that his job requires him to come into contact with the mayor so often, Paul receives a bodyguard also. Rags spends a day at the office.

Stuart is hired to write a porno movie. Charlie and Caitlin compete for a donation from a wealthy male chauvinist. After Paul poses as the Mayor's son for a golf tournament, he becomes confused when the Mayor actually begins paying attention to him.

The mayor's daughter Meg returns and inspires Caitlin to be more spontaneous and free. Paul, Stuart and Carter give Charlie advice about compromising with Julia. This leads to Charlie deciding he's ready to commit, while Julia decides she's not.

Julia's having a hard time dealing with her kiss with Charlie, so he asks her out. Their first date is a nightmare. Meanwhile, the mayor and his staff take the subway to prove that the mayor is in touch with the people. The train gets stuck in a tunnel, screwing up Charlie's plans for a second date. Meanwhile, Paul tells an exclusive cafe that Carter is Cuba Gooding Jr. to get reservations.

Carter discovers an old love letter written by Stuart. He decides to set Stuart up with the addressee of the letter, a woman who turns out to be Stuart's ex-wife. The woman quickly manages to set a whipped Stuart into his old rut. Meanwhile, Caitlin hires an image consultant when the mayor's approval ratings go down. The consultant discovers that the mayor has a problem with women, causing Charlie to make himself over. And also, Paul worries that he's unrecognizable.

When a supermodel sues the mayor, Charlie hires his old college friend to defend him. Charlie finds himself torn between two friends after Scott hits on Caitlin. Meanwhile, Paul and Stuart compete for the same woman.

Paul, Stuart and Carter rope reformed gambler Charlie into their poker night, and are responsible for his subsequent gambling bender. Caitlin tries to teach the mayor to be more self-sufficient.

Caitlin sets the mayor up with her neighbor, Judith, who becomes way too much of an influence on the mayor. Carter helps Stuart prepare for a million dollar shot at a Rangers' game. Paul thinks he's Canadian.

In an attempt to get over Claudia, Paul decides to move into a college dorm. Caitlin tries dating, after ending her relationship with Mike--but doesn't have much luck. The Mayor builds an access ramp after he gets caught parking in a handicapped parking space.

Paul struggles to find the best joke for the mayor's Christmas card. Carter convinces Caitlin to volunteer with him at a retirement community. The mayor's attempt to be more involved in the office process goes awry.

Mike has been in Zimbabwe for three weeks, so Paul teaches Caitlin about celibacy. Stuart convinces Angie that he's a biker guy. War on unemployment forces the mayor to work at a burger joint.

An overworked Charlie causes problems after beating the mayor at racquetball. Paul's annual request for a raise is approved by the mayor after his loss of self esteem. Stuart hires an actor to go out with Carter.

Caitlin and Charlie fight the attention of Caitlin's new friend. Carter, Stuart and Paul compete for a trip to New Orleans with the mayor.

Paul convinces his mother that he is dating Caitlin, so she won't be upset that Claudia left him. Charlie tries to prove to Caitlin that his girlfriend isn't dumb. A quickly made balloon for the Thanksgiving parade goes awry in New York.

Caitlin goes out of her way to prove that she's fun after a blind man won't date her because she's not. Charlie accidentally talks Claudia into becoming a nun; she leaves Paul. The mayor researches religion.

Caitlin auditions for the job of co-host on ""Live with Regis."" Stuart and Paul work together supervising after bones are discovered under the Westside Highway. The mayor has an audio/visual link connected to the office while he is on vacation.

Caitlin causes a misunderstanding when she believes that Charlie is taking a Spanish class to improve relations with the Latin American community. Paul and the mayor struggle to create office water-cooler talk. Stuart becomes jealous of the time Carter has been spending with Caitlin.

Charlie tries to get the mayor to a dentist before an important photo shoot. Caitlin hires a new male assistant only because he's attractive. Carter and Stuart deal with someone who keeps parking a bike in their parking space.

Charlie Crawford is late for his first press conference as the new deputy mayor. He later runs into trouble trying to settle a tollbooth workers strike when their lawyer is an ex-flame of his.

While Michael and Caitlin fly to San Francisco, Stuart joins Carter for a protest and the mayor tries to have a light bulb changed.

The mayor prepares for a three-day trip across New York on his new campaign bus. Paul and James grow mustaches when they think that Carter's gets him the best assignments. Nikki becomes a female version of Stuart when she consults him for dating advice. After Mike discovers that Trevor has asked Caitlin to marry him again, he accidentally hits him with the bus. Mike and Caitlin kiss but their session is interrupted when Mike reveals he was deliberately aiming for Trevor.

With the President coming to visit City Hall, Mike is upset when Caitlin gets to meet him instead until plans change. The rest of the staff gathers at the bar, where Caitlin joins them. Nikki and Carter bet on who can pick up more women. Stuart tries to get Caitlin drunk; he succeeds and she leaves a drunken message for Mike. Paul tries to get James to help take his picture with the President.

Mike helps the mayor deal with his feelings when his father unexpectedly dies. James thinks Caitlin has a crush on him. Paul's magic eight ball proves helpful to the staff.

Mike has a meeting with a tomato stand owner who refuses to move his stand so that the city can build a new performing arts center. He ultimately enlists James to compete against the man in a ""pig-off"" to decide whether the stand will stay or move. The mayor befriends a rapper who sampled one of his speeches in a song. Paul and Deirdre have memories of having sex at a concert 20 years before, driving Stuart jealous.

While a reporter visits City Hall to do a story on Paul, the mayor thinks she's really there for him. Mike thinks Carter's boyfriend is hitting on him. The staff looks for good samaritans for a dinner. Stuart tries to convince James that he's getting fat.

To quell a protest by senior citizens, Mike plans to get the city's first woman voter to vote for the mayor. When Mike finds out that Trevor isn't really British, he must decide whether to tell Caitlin or not. Carter protests anti-gay discrimination in an apartment building. James and Paul fight over a ""hey guy.""

After eating some of Rags' dog food, Paul develops a rash before he appears on ""The View."" Nikki helps him discover the wonders of makeup, though. Stuart tries to convince James that he's gay. Mike hires a hotshot director to film the mayor's Senate commercial, unaware that Trevor is Caitlin's ex-husband. After the commercial turns out to be a flop and Mike fires Trevor, Caitlin accuses him of being jealous. When a talk with Nikki persuades Mike to express his feelings for Caitlin, he sees her and Trevor in a heated embrace.

Paul's cheap dentist puts braces on James instead of removing his infected tooth, causing problems in James' date with the new mail girl. The city's raffle to raise money for the Big Buddy program is screwed up when Paul skimps on the raffle tickets. Stuart and Carter blackmail Caitlin to decrease their workload.

The mayor struggles to find a date for a mayor's conference. Mike goes out with Caitlin's sister, making Caitlin jealous. Stuart tries to join Nikki, James and Janelle's art class to see nude women. Paul is upset that Carter makes more money than him.

Mike invites Caitlin to his Christmas party as his only guest but his plans at romance are spoiled when she arrives with a date. Paul finds John McEnroe's headband in the City Hall clothing drive box. James finds a second job as a suicide hotline operator. Stuart installs a chin-up bar in the mayor's office, which the mayor promptly injures himself on.

Mike celebrates his five-year anniversary working for the mayor by taking Caitlin and going on a joyride with the mayor's '66 Mustang. Nikki and Carter accuse each other of being vain when City Hall ID photos are taken. The mayor wants to rekindle his romance with Janelle. Caitlin's busy schedule forces James back to speechwriting; he hires Deidre to be Mike's new secretary.

Paul has invested in a politically themed restaurant. Mike struggles to run the city while the mayor is out of town. Deidre is stalking Caitlin a la ""Single White Female.""

A newly rich Paul thinks Caitlin is hitting on him. The mayor wants a senator's endorsement and invites him, along with his staff, to Gracie Mansion for Thanksgiving. The senator thinks that Mike and Caitlin are a couple so they must share a room. Stuart and Deidre are back together.

Mike and Caitlin agree to share the mayor on odd/even days. On Caitlin's day, Mike ""borrows"" the mayor to visit a kid who fell in a well. Unfortunately, they're 20 minutes late and the mayor falls in the now vacant well. Carter puts Rags in doggie day care. Paul appears on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire and wins $1,000,000. Stuart negotiates with firemen.

Claudia's mother kicks Paul out of his house so he moves in with Stuart and Carter. Nikki dates the office's new young male intern. And Mike courts a wealthy socialite to donate money when the mayor's campaign runs out.

The mayor considers quitting the senatorial race, teaming Mike and Caitlin to stop him. Carter becomes a kept man, and Paul and James scheme to play a good practical joke on Stuart.

Carter is named Activist of the Year. Stuart has a new paperweight that looks like a breast. Mike's continued jealousy of Caitlin causes him to make remarks to a gay magazine, which is misinterpreted, outing himself and the mayor. Paul is banned from the bathroom after insulting the new attendant.

Mike tricks Nikki into seeing a couples counselor. The mayor takes an eighth grade test after being challenged by junior-high students. Stuart attempts to join Carter's gay gym to meet women.

Caitlin implants secret background checks on all City Hall employees. Mike, Stuart and Carter break into her office to see the files. Caitlin goes to Nikki and Janelle's girls' night out. The mayor is offered a part in a movie filming in New York.

James struggles to write an important speech to keep himself from being fired by Caitlin. Meanwhile, Paul is worried that Caitlin wants his office; she ends up moving into Mike's. And Nikki breaks up with Mike.

When Mike says: ""Let's not get so dramatic, okay? This is not some cheesy soap opera."" he refers to Heather Locklear's long-time role as Amanda Woodward in the soap ""Melrose Place"".

A feuding Carter and Stuart become friends with the other's ex, just for spite.

Mike agrees to donate sperm for Paul and Claudia, not realizing what Paul forgot to tell him. A City Hall tour guide is harassing Stacy. James has been commissioned to write a piece for "Sassy".

Mike makes the staff work on Oscar Sunday due to a screw-up of Paul's. The staff reminisces about their favorite movie moments to pass the time. ("Clip show" filler episode)

Nikki wants to make her relationship public knowledge. The mayor prepares to appear on "Politically Incorrect". Carter is dating a gay boxer. Paul becomes addicted to Stacy's aunt's meatball subs. The mayor accidentally outs his relationship with Janelle while on TV. Nikki and Mike fight after he's not ready to expose their relationship yet.

Mike's political mentor is preparing to visit with the mayor preparing to appoint him head of the city's millennium project. Marie is still in town and messing around with James. The mayor and Janelle plan a get-together. Owen has changed a little over the years and believes he is the Messiah. After Carter puts Rags in Paul's care, Paul accidentally kills the ailing dog. Owen brings Rags back to life with a touch.

Mike and Nikki decide to keep their relationship a secret. Stacy's Aunt Marie visits. Deidre files sexual harassment charges against Stuart after he dumps her. Carter is talking about himself in the third person. Marie tries to seduce James. Stuart is close to being fired. Deidre offers to drop the charges for sex, immediately, with Mike. Thanks to the building's new security cameras, Deidre is exposed. The mayor finds himself growing attracted to Janelle, and the two kiss while discussing the sexual harassment case.

Mike and Nikki struggle with taking their relationship to the next level, i.e. sex. Stacy runs a phony psychic hotline on Paul. And the rest of the staff participates in a stakeout to demonstrate the city's new police technology.

When the mayor starts to worry about becoming the object of a violent attack, a videotape showing Mike apparently leaving him in the line of "gunfire" damages their relationship. Meanwhile, Nikki sees Mike in an entirely different light after her viewing of the same video reveals he was trying to protect her. And, Arthur wants to propose to Nikki, but puts his relationship with her at risk by confiding in Stuart.

The mayor submits a personal ad in a newspaper as the rest of the office men prepare for the mayor's annual male bachelor charity auction. Mike chooses to spend some extra city money on a futuristic new bathroom for City Hall. The new bathroom is insensitive to overweight people. The mayor asks Paul for advice on how to approach a woman. Stacy teaches James how to model so that he can garner more money than Mike in the big auction. Mike puts on a fat suit to appease the head of the overweight person's commission. Stuart's sister is in town but no one has seen her.

Mike can't stop thinking about Nikki. Nikki is ready to take the next step with Arthur, but Mike is worried about that. Paul unwittingly has an affair because Stuart needs him to. Stacy dates a job-obsessed cabbie just because he looks good. James inadvertently causes a taxi driver strike, which interferes with Arthur getting to the airport. You see, if Arthur misses a plane, he and Nikki will have sex.

Carter and Stuart plan to spend Christmas together. Mike must baby-sit a smart monkey that will be given to the city zoo as a gift from Ghana. The staff prepares the City Hall greeting card. Carter and Stuart meet two old men from their building who mirror themselves in 30 years.

The staff prepares for the Mayor's costume ball. Stuart tries to break up with Deidre. And after Mike sets Stacy up with a councilman to get his vote, she likes the set-up as the councilman plays the hero.

The Mayor is disturbed by a campaign commercial by his opponent, starring his ex-wife. Mike plans the City Hall Thanksgiving, scheduled to be televised live throughout New York City, with the Mayor's father scheduled to attend. At the dinner, the Mayor blows up at his father on live TV. Meanwhile, Stacy mistakes Stuart for her boyfriend in the dark and lays a big wet one on him, making her think twice about her feelings for him.

Stacy's staying with Carter and Stuart while her apartment is fumigated. Her partying cramps their style. Trying to outdo NASCAR driver Jeff Gordon and NBA player Jayson Williams, the Mayor promises his kidney to a young boy, Derek. Unfortunately, his doesn't match--but Mike's does. Meanwhile, Mike's playing the jealousy game with Nikki and promises to donate his kidney to the boy in hopes that she'll break up with Arthur for him. But when she offers him a chance to speak up about his feelings, he's anesthetized for his surgery and can't say anything.

Paul has moved to Harlem and is annoying Carter and Janelle because he thinks that he's black. The Mayor is preparing to run the Olympic torch around City Hall, but can't because the Nigerian speed walker supposed to deliver the torch to him has disappeared, lost in the city. Mike struggles with the fact that he can't live without his job, while trying to take a vacation. Nikki finds a ringer to pose as her boyfriend, for them to have dinner with Mike. Stacy spills the beans to Mike about Nikki's feelings for him.

Mike discovers that his childhood pal, Nate Scott, has more in common with Carter than meets the eye, and finds it difficult to deal with this revelation. Meanwhile, Paul instructs Stacy in the finer art of being a cheapskate.

After the Mayor is photographed throwing a baseball ""like a girl,"" Mike tries to give him a more macho image. But when a teenage girl mugs the mayor, Mike and Paul; Mike's got more damage control than even he can handle. Meanwhile, Stuart loses his heart to Deirdre, a woman who's just as detestable as he is.

The Mayor brings an abandoned baby to City Hall. Mike's old girlfriends voice opinions about him. The Mayor sends James to see a psychiatrist for him, concerning his sexual problems. Mike wants to adopt the baby. The Mayor takes Viagra to help him out. Mike's interview with the social worker doesn't go very well. Nikki prepares to tell Mike about her crush on him, but can't quite get the words out.

Carter, Nikki and Mike go deer hunting in a fundraising attempt. While Mike is gone, Stuart becomes Stacy's boss for the day. And, with Claudia's help, Paul campaigns for a raise.

Mike prepares to have sex with Heidi Klum for the first time. After "it", Heidi asks Mike to keep their relationship a secret. James receives his Aunt Sarah's ashes in the post; his Aunt Sarah was a cow. Mike daydreams while making a statement to the press and accidentally reveals his relationship with Heidi; she breaks up with him. Paul's new fan creates problems for Aunt Sarah (take a wild guess).

After Mike's picture with model Heidi Klum is in the tabloids, people assume he's dating her. But, he soon is after she asks him out. As a result, Nikki reveals to Carter that she has a secret crush on Mike. And The Mayor can't stop laughing at VERY inappropriate times.

The staff prepares for the mayor's bid for re-election announcement. Mike becomes a hero when he saves a runaway perambulator, but the reality of the situation isn't what it seems. Carter adopts his family's 19-year-old dog. And, Paul teaches Stacy how to get a sick day without being sick.

The Pope is visiting New York City, leading to spiritual revitalizations for Mike and the mayor. Carter fixes Nikki up with a friend of his. And Paul's turtle is loose in City Hall.

Mike suggests the staff undergo drug testing to demonstrate the mayor's new anti-drug campaign. But after he accidentally gets high while visiting some Native Americans, he risks failing the drug test that he initiated.

When Laurie accepts Mike's proposal, he begins to worry that they are too different. Meanwhile, Paul struggles to get the courage to propose to Claudia, and various staff members fantasize about what their life would be like if they married Mike.

Faced with the prospect of spending Valentine's Day alone for the first time in eighteen years, Mike is thrilled when old flame Laurie steps back into his life. But he doesn't know what to do when she discovers a ring Mike was holding for Paul, and assumes it's for her. Meanwhile, Paul plans to propose to Claudia.

Stacey's grandmother puts a curse on Mike after he convinces her to move out, into Manhattan. The Mayor is concerned he's losing his hearing. And there's a void in Stuart's life after he is moved upstairs and is not allowed to make sarcastic comments anymore.

Mike tries to dissuade the Mayor from joining a club for males only. Stuart joins the City Hall all-female reading group. Paul schools James in playing three-card monty.

The usually indomitable Mike can't cope at the office because of upsetting news he's unwilling to share--his doctor suspects Mike has prostate cancer. The timing couldn't be worse, since the Mayor needs Mike to help write his newest book, so Mike brings in best-selling author Donald Trump to advise the Mayor on writing. Meanwhile, a chair-snatching bureaucrat is terrorizing the staffers. (Warning: Donald Trump is in this episode.)

A champagne filled New Year's celebration at the Mayor's mansion gets out of control, resulting in more than a little embarrassment the next day, especially for Mike and Nikki. On the big night, Nikki's date, Jay, two-times her and a protective Mike not only gets even--he gets Nikki. Meanwhile, Stuart is undone over the death of his family cat and Stacy makes James question his own virility.

Mike struggles to make the children of New York believe again after the Mayor tells them that there is no Santa.

The Mayor's free-thinking daughter, Meg, with whom he has a somewhat strained relationship, puts the ""bare"" in bareback when she disrupts a rally with hansom-carriage drivers in Central Park to draw attention to her animal rights stance--and not coincidentally, herself. Meantime, the gang tries to reunite a needy Paul with ex-girlfriend Claudia, but he's smitten with his new pen-pal.

Mike must choose between protecting his mom, Macy, and protecting the Mayor, when he tries to spin the Mayor out of a new scandal--His Honor's alibi would reveal that he spent the night with Macy instead of a prostitute. Meanwhile, Paul is sued and goes to The People's Court to defend his case.

Mike's mom, Macy, is visiting for a week and she and the Mayor hit it off better than Mike ever imagined, or feared. Meanwhile, Nikki dates Steve, a ventriloquist whose dummy, Mr. Bungle, is more romantic (and talkative) than Steve. And Stacy and Stuart scheme to get Hank, an elderly security guard, his job back after he accidentally shoots Paul.

When Mike begins dating Lisa, a writer from the soap opera "All My Children", he starts to see their dating life echoed on episodes of the popular serial: A new hunk named Mick Flannery joins "All My Children" and woos the resident vixen, Gillian - until she reveals their bedroom secrets to Edmund. Meanwhile, Stuart "plays gay" in order to get dates with beautiful women.

As Mike's 30th birthday approaches, he is reminded of a promise he made to his high-school sweetheart, Renee Miller, long ago: If they were both still single by the time Mike turned 30, they'd reunite at the top of the Empire State Building on his birthday. Both of them keep their promise, with surprising results. Meanwhile, the Mayor wonders if his nephew is gay.

The Mayor agrees to a mock election with a popular disc jockey. Meanwhile, the women in the office compete for the affections of the water delivery man.

While jogging in the park to support the Mayor's fitness initiative, Carter is apprehended by the police, who mistake him for a mugger. To Carter's chagrin, Michael wants to downplay the incident for political reasons, while Carter wants to publicize his own outrage. Meanwhile, Paul becomes paranoid that he himself is a racist; and James struggles to pull off a successful date with the new supply girl, Katie.

Michael tries to dissuade the Mayor from a relationship with Jennifer, a much younger woman. However, as Mike deals with his own relationship troubles, Jennifer makes a pass at him. Meanwhile, Paul is acting as Michael's assistant, and enjoying it so much that he can't bring himself to hire the best candidate for the job, Stacy Paterno.

Mike finds out that his new girlfriend, Laurie, isn't looking for commitment, which he thinks is great-- at first. Meanwhile, James has a mysterious new hobby, which Stuart and Carter are determined to uncover. And Janelle asks for a raise with surprising results.

When Mike's new girlfriend, Laurie, bonds with Nikki, Mike must compete with his own staffer for Laurie's attention and free time. Meanwhile, Paul's bombshell mom dazzles his coworkers when she visits the office, and the Mayor is in a mess over an X-rated video.

While acting as the Mayor's divorce lawyer, Michael is attracted to his opponent, Laurie Parres. Meanwhile, the press thinks Paul has suffered a nervous breakdown, so Michael enlists a psychiatrist, Dr. Benjamin, to pronounce Paul sane. But his plans go awry when Dr. Benjamin unexpectedly commits Paul to an institution.

It's damage control time when the Mayor's inept new sign-language interpreter inadvertently offends the deaf community, and Michael rushes to appease one of its leaders, Sarah Edelman. Meantime, Paul is worried that Claudia wants to move in permanently.

Michael discovers that his new girlfriend, Gayley, is paying for law school by moonlighting as a stripper. Meantime, Claudia catches Paul in a lie, and Nikki plays mind games with Stuart.

A major snowstorm hits Manhattan, causing a chain reaction of mishaps at City Hall. Mike desperately tries to meet his longtime crush on her last night in the city; Paul accidentally offends the Mayor on the radio; Carter and Stuart are locked in the boiler room; and a nudist is on the loose in the Mayor's office.

For the Mayor's 50th birthday, Paul is determined to get his ""old friend"" George Stephanopoulos to attend the event; as Michael arranges for birthday wishes from David Letterman, Patrick Ewing, Al Michaels, Dan Dierdorf, Frank Gifford, Rosie O'Donnell, Larry King, and the cast of Rent. But in the midst of the planning, a scandal swirls about the Mayor's presumed affair with a staffer from the Governor's office.

It's Valentine's Day, and Carter's old flame Spence wants to meet with him. Meantime, Mike goes on a date from hell with a beautiful friend of Nikki's, and Paul's romantic evening with Claudia becomes unforgettable for all the wrong reasons.

Mike butts heads with a hard-nosed new chief of staff appointee, Gabby Sanchez, who is unmoved by his best efforts to win her over. Meanwhile, Paul ponders taking his relationship with Claudia to the next level.

Michael is uncomfortable with his newly single status when he realizes he's actually on a date with new assistant district attorney Danielle Brinkman. Meantime, Paul meets the president of his fan club, Claudia Sacks, who has arranged the group's first meeting. And Carter and Stuart have a little too much to drink and end up in an awkward situation.

The office rallies to lift Mike's spirits after his break-up with Ashley, but he resists their best efforts. That is, until he decides he needs a friend and reaches out to Nikki in the middle of her date with the perfect man. And Paul sets a New Year's resolution to be less gullible.

Michael substitutes for the Mayor on a political talk show, facing off against Ashley on a hot-button issue. Meanwhile, Paul plays City Hall Santa while battling a terrible bout of the flu that is sweeping the office. And everyone finds themselves going to Carter for romantic advice.

Mike tries to appease the disgruntled Police Commissioner by honoring a beloved police dog who has recently died. But things go awry on the way to the funeral when Paul and Carter lose the canine's body. And Mike buys an air hockey table for the staff proving Stuart a very big talker.

When the Mayor's office competes against City Council in an annual Thanksgiving contest, the stakes are high, since the losers must croon a show tune in front of the press. James has trouble breaking up with a longtime girlfriend visiting from Wisconsin.

An opinionated school janitor becomes ""Mayor for a Day"" when he wins an essay contest intended for schoolchildren. Meanwhile, the Mayor wants to change his image.

Michael needs a favor from famed real estate developer Dan Donaldson, but the price Mike has to pay may not be worth it. In the meantime, Paul finds it hard to crow about the city's lowered crime rate, since he's just become a victim of a robbery-again. And Mike and Ashley can't agree on what show to watch when they're in bed.

Carter and Nikki plan a fake wedding to make a point about the mayor's stance on same-sex marriages. Meanwhile, Paul is a transformed man when the eye patch he wears after a minor injury gives him unprecedented self-confidence and sex appeal. And an unsatisfied Ashley considers leaving her new TV show for the newspaper again.

When Mayor Winston's nominee for the Public Schools Chancellor proves an embarrassment to the administration, James urges Mike to stick with the controversial candidate. In the meantime, Ashley considers a career in television on a roundtable show.

The former Mayor of New York is a constant critic of the current administration, and a plan to appease him has tragic consequences. Meanwhile, Michael and Ashley try to avoid their annoying new neighbors. And Nikki holds a contest among the men in the office to prove that none of them could ever be fathers.

Michael allows a TV crew into the office for a profile on himself, and one of his quotes lands him in hot water with Ashley. In the meantime, Carter goes behind Michael's back to get the Mayor to green-light a controversial project.

Michael and the Mayor work around the clock to negotiate an end to the garbage strike, which leaves Stuart in charge of the office, to everyone's dismay. And, though they just moved into a new apartment, life is so hectic that Ashley and Michael never get to see each other.

When Mike is named Sexiest Man in New York by ""Manhattan"" magazine, he has difficulty living up to the notoriety at home. In the meantime, the staff must deal with Mayor Winston's problematic wife during an important dinner.

Michael Flaherty and his team grapple with a garbage strike and a political gaffe by the Mayor who accidentally insults gays. In addition, Ashley questions Mike's commitment to their relationship when is nervous about moving in together.