Well, of course it can't be an "imitation" since it came first, but yes, one would hope that the reality would be more impressive than the fiction (though hopefully not as crisis-laden).
On the contrary, it was a surprising choice. President Obama ran on the platform of bipartisan unity and pragmatism, and Emanuel's reputation is as an aggressive partisan hothead. Some saw his appointment as casting Obama's bipartisan sincerity in doubt, though I figured it was more of that "team of rivals" thinking -- he knew he needed someone to balance him out, to be the bad cop when necessary.
Huh? Santos was the young, ethnic charmer.
Strong support for nuclear power is one thing Vinick and McCain definitely have in common. And it's the one area where I agreed with them the most.
Of course nobody's proposing there's some kind of magic at work here, that they predicted things nobody could've anticipated. But remember, hindsight is 20/20. It's easy to look back at a solid bit of extrapolation and say "Aww, anyone coulda seen that," but usually most people didn't see it.
It wasn't coincidence either. The reason the writers were able to construct a fictional election that corresponded so closely to the real one is because the show's writers, producers, and consultants included people with real experience in politics and government, familiar with the people and trends involved, and thus able to engage in speculation that may end up fairly close to what actually happens. It's the same principle that allows science fiction writers who are knowledgeable about science and technology to come up with speculations that are then echoed by real discoveries and advances. Not because they knew it would happen, of course, but because they had the expertise to know what was plausible, to see the patterns and trends and project them forward.
So essentially TWW was a work of political science fiction; it was fiction based on informed scientific extrapolation, with the science in question being political science. And due to the expertise of the people involved, it was a work of hard SF. Therefore, its speculations about the future were based on a good understanding of the patterns, personalities, and trends involved, which explains why it proved so similar to subsequent reality. But just because it's not magic doesn't mean that good, solid, informed speculative work should be devalued.
Its smart, funny and interesting. One of those shows that everything seems to click on its place..everything from the writing and acting to set desing
