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November 27, 2002
NBC opens a 'West Wing' in Orange County
Democratic character's run for Congress offers a look at O.C. that seems more reel than real.
By MARTIN WISCKOL
The Orange County Register
The chief speechwriter for America's favorite prime-time president is headed for Orange County.
Tonight, Sam Seaborn will leave NBC's "The West Wing" to begin a run for election in a congressional district that includes Newport Beach and Laguna Beach.
One result of the story line is that the country gets a glimpse of Orange County to follow up on what it saw during the World Series.
"I don't think anybody has fully portrayed Orange County – not 'West Wing' or elsewhere," said Rep. Loretta Sanchez, D-Santa Ana, whose 1996 upset of Republican incumbent Robert Dornan is echoed in the show's plot. "I still believe that people don't fully understand Orange County."
Indeed, the show – an inside look at the lives of staff members in the West Wing of the White House – plays on the county's reputation as a bastion of white Republicanism, but the stereotype is growing increasingly inappropriate. In nine of the county's 34 cities, the majority is no longer white. And Hispanics will make up the majority of the county's population by 2020, according to projections. Following up Sanchez's 1996 win, county Democrats also won seats in the state Senate and Assembly – although the county remains overwhelmingly Republican.
When it comes to the congressional district depicted in "The West Wing," the differences are even more perplexing. It is called the 47th District, which is Sanchez's landlocked district, but focuses on Laguna Beach and Newport Beach, which are in GOP Rep. Christopher Cox's 48th District. And the six-term incumbent is modeled after Dornan.
| County's new colors Orange County long has had a reputation as a conservative, white bastion and is generally portrayed that way in the television series "The West Wing." Some facts belie that image:
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The plot began unfolding last month when Democratic character Horton Wilde, who was challenging the fiery Republican incumbent, Chuck Webb, died. Thinking a Democratic victory unlikely, Seaborn promised Wilde's widow that if the deceased won, he would run in the subsequent special election.
Of course, Wilde pulled an upset.
Dead candidates do indeed win. Among them, Missouri Gov. Mel Carnahan won a 2000 U.S. Senate bid three weeks after dying, and Rep. Patsy Mink, D-Hawaii, was re-elected after dying this year. But a Democrat winning in a coastal Orange County district? It must be fiction.
"I think they're just having a little fun with reality," said John Graham, a real-life Democratic challenger in Cox's district and a management professor at the University of California, Irvine. Cox received 68.5 percent of the vote to Graham's 28.4 percent.
Republican voters outnumber Democratic voters by a 5-to-3 margin, making it one of the most GOP districts in the country.
On one hand, the plot device provides NBC with a graceful way to phase out Rob Lowe, who is expected to leave the show in the spring because of a pay dispute. Rather than be killed or jailed, Democratic President Joshua Bartlet's chief speechwriter can simply disappear to Orange County.
On the other hand, it gives Democratic-leaning Aaron Sorkin, the show's creator, a chance to poke the Republican stronghold of Orange County in the ribs and offer a reminder of the controversial Dornan.
"The Republican Party does occasionally field questionable candidates," said Mark Chapin Johnson, a co-founder of the New Majority, which is trying to bring more moderate positions to the GOP. "But Chris Cox is certainly not one of them. He is greatly beloved in the district and will be there for as long as he wants to be."
Johnson, a Newport Beach resident, was prepared to run for Cox's seat when it looked like the incumbent might receive a federal judicial appointment. But Cox then said he preferred to remain in Congress. Johnson is, however, keeping an eye on "The West Wing" version of the race.
"The show is humorous, intriguing, very entertaining – and bears no relation to reality," he said.
Indeed, the Orange County scenes have been shot in Los Angeles, although the show scouted locations at the Orange County Performing Arts Center and the fairgrounds, said the county film commission's Janis Arrington.
John Hanna, former chairman of the Democratic Party of Orange County, agreed that a Democrat is not likely to unseat Cox. But he is content with the show's portrayal of the county.
"The people we have in office now are hardworking, less flamboyant," Hanna said. "We're more cosmopolitan, and it's nice to see us not be the butt of jokes. There's a certain amount of pride to see our county on national TV."
Wylie Aitken, president of the Democratic Foundation of Orange County, joked that perhaps life could imitate art.
"Maybe if (Lowe) wins, we can convince him to run for real," he said.
Posted by MorganG at November 27, 2002 06:05 PM