1. And Sometimes It's Almost Too Close
It could be that Willimon has some sort of insight into the way that the US government works, or just that he and his cadre of writers pay attention and are very smart. Which is also very likely. Not only does House Of Cards serve as a wry commentary and theatrical satire of the machinations of American politicians, but it frequently
copies incidents and infamous images from modern US administrations. The amount of plot points that appear in House Of Cards that they carbon-copied from real life would surprise you. There have been those quick to point out the many ways the series doesn't resemble how actual politics works, but there are almost as many examples of times where the art begins to imitate life a little too closely. There are scenes based on famous photos, with President Garrett Walker signing an education bill in a shot designed to mimic an image of John F Kennedy the signing the Equal Pay Act in 1963. The photo of Frank checking out Zoe's rear in the first season is a shout-out to an image of Obama doing the same with Nicolas Sarkozy approving. Then there's the multiple eerie parallels between the rise and fall of Peter Russo and seemingly countless apparently squeaky clean politicians who have a few risqué skeletons in their closets...
