Becker (1998–2004)

Henry Gibson: Deputy Secretary

Quotes 

• Dr. John Becker : Look, someone in your department shut down a residential care facility in my neighborhood and threw everyone out into the street. Now I'm here because I want something done about it!

  Deputy Secretary : Wow. You sound pretty upset.

  Dr. John Becker : Well, I am. You know, I've been on the phone all afternoon calling every city agency I can think of, and all I got was the typical beureaucratic runaround.

  Deputy Secretary : Well that's terrible, you shouldn't have been treated like that.

  Dr. John Becker : At least you see that.

  Deputy Secretary : Well of course I do!

  Dr. John Becker : Then you'll help me?

  Deputy Secretary : Oh dear no.

  Dr. John Becker : ...Well, maybe you didn't understand me...

  Deputy Secretary : No, I understood you perfectly. You've discovered a social injustice, and as a concerned citizen you've come to your government to demand some action.

  Dr. John Becker : Exactly!

  Deputy Secretary : It's not gonna happen. But that look on your face, oh, that took me back! What was that, righteous indignation? I used to feel like that when I first started working here forty-two years ago.

  Dr. John Becker : Yeah, well - you've been in this office forty-two years?

  Deputy Secretary : Yeah. Same desk, same fake plant, same window. Doesn't open. None of them do. Otherwise we'd all jump out. But you were saying?

  Dr. John Becker : Look, I told you! Either reopen the facility, or make some arrangements to take care of these people!

  Deputy Secretary : And I told you, I can't help.

  Dr. John Becker : But you're the deputy secretary of social services!

  Deputy Secretary : It's just a title.

  Dr. John Becker : Dammit! Look, listen - you're in charge here, you're responsible, you work for the city!

  Deputy Secretary : You're not listening! I can't help. Nobody can help. That facility is not going to reopen, and I'll tell you why: there is no money! There's no money because the federal government cut taxes, which is all anybody seems to care about anymore. That means less money for the state, which means less money for the city, which means we had to cut services, which means fewer cops, fewer firemen, bad air, bad water and crappy schools which will turn out another generation of voters too stupid and greedy to care about anything else besides cutting taxes! So don't you come in here and tell me to fix your problem, because there's not a DAMN THING I CAN DO ABOUT IT!... Where did that come from?