Palin and the Commander in Chief

We all know the character of Matt Santos in seasons 6-7 of The West Wing was based on Barack Obama, and indeed the show has proved to be eerily accurate in how it predicted the look and character of the 2008 race.

Now, another fictional White House drama, the short-lived Commander in Chief, has been retrospectively credited with predicting the Sarah Palin phenomenon.

At the time of the show's debut in 2006, commentators agreed that it was softening the ground for Hillary's then-seemingly-inevitable entry to the White House.

But, in just another example of how Palin is apparently the new Hillary, the similiarities between Governor Palin's rise and that of Independent Congresswoman MacKenzie Allen (Geena Davis) are striking: a glamorous, inexperienced mother of a telegenic brood of kids is picked by ageing maverick to be his Veep, only to ascend to the Oval Office when said President dies suddenly from health complications. Read the reaction from the show's creator, Rod Lurie, here

On a similar note, I love this clip of Davis accepting a Golden Globe for the role. "A little girl told me she wants to be President because of me..."