One plus one equals nothing very much

Cheney resignation rumors fly.

Ooer... Interesting. [Tinfoil hat on] What are the chances that suggestions of Condoleeza Rice suceeding Cheney should he resign should be floated a few episodes in to the new Commander-in-Chief TV series? Has an idea been planted into public consciousness? [Tinfoil hat off]

Speaking of which, if The West Wing is a liberal's wet-dream, is Commander-in-Chief a feminist's? I've only seen bits of two episodes, and the focus seems to be less on the workings of the White House or Presidency, and more on the difficulties faced by the first female president.

It also seems to me that the producers did not think the American viewing public was ready for a woman winning a Presidential election outright (probably true in this country), and introduced a deus ex machina of the incumbent dying, thus allowing the female VP to step up. For reasons as yet undisclosed (political leanings/ability/gender), there is great objection to Mackenzie Allen (asexual name) taking the post, and Machiavellian machinations ensue.

I haven't seen enough to be hooked yet, but the idea behind the series is appealing. And the timing is pretty good too, with speculation about Hillary Clinton being spouted every so often. In a country that's so big, with geography determining political culture, perhaps the best place to stimulate debate and raise issues is a fictional TV series. (Then again, The West Wing has been running for donkey seasons (into it's 7th, methinks), and look where this country's at...)

There's a spoof political blog on the series, but it doesn't seem to be updated regularly.