Body Politic: The Senate's New Soap Opera

By Paul Bedard, Washington Whispers

What with senators switching parties, one caught in an airport bathroom scandal, and another admitting affection for hookers, the chamber sometimes has a soap-opera feel. But now, if the CW buys it, the Senate will be the subject of a real TV soap opera called Body Politic. Actress Gabrielle Union tells Whispers that she and a cast that includes Tim Matheson of Animal House have completed a pilot that's winning rave reviews in Hollywood. She plays a snubbed Democratic aide who switches to work for Matheson, a top GOP senator. "It's a soap opera in the best way possible," she gushes. The pilot was shot in Richmond at the state capital. "We had full access. It was a great place to film," she says.