What do Politicians in Washington, D.C., Think of “House of Cards”?
Generally politicians enjoy House of Cards (2013) for the same reasons that non-politicos do: the high camp and Kevin Spacey. House of Cards is a hit even with President Obama. who tweeted “no spoilers” on the eve of the second season. Kevin Spacey is such a popular figure in Washington that he did the Opening skit as Frank Underwood for the 2013 White House Correspondence Dinner. Needless to say, the show’s a hit in our nation’s capital.
Despite House of Cards’ popularity in congressional circles, the show is not considered entirely accurate. Some politicians, like Senator Claire McCaskill, enjoy it as high fiction while pointing to a few major discrepancies in the proceedings (like reporters having sex with members of the leadership). In closing, she cautions viewers to not believe everything on screen.
Notwithstanding Senator McCaskill’s claims, some politicians do find that House of Cards realistically captures Washington D.C. as portrayed on the show. According to Kevin Spacey, former President Bill Clinton told him that the show was 99% accurate. Former President Bill Clinton has yet to speak out on the matter, but Hillary Clinton has claimed that the pair loves the show. To many Clinton detractors, this makes perfect sense. Other politicians say that the lust and drive for power portrayed on the show is real amongst those who populate the halls of Congress, but most Americans didn’t need a television show to tell them that.