You know, I think this character Aaron Sorkin, creator and producer of the television series "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" may have some kind of political agenda. His previous work has been pretty uncontroversial, including the sports satire "Sports Night" and " The West Wing," which I'm told is about some Natucket airport. On "Studio 60" in between the characters' razor- sharp dialogue and complicated relationships, I believe there is some subtle commentary on the current state of our nation. Here, I'll come out and say it: Aaron Sorkin should do a show about the American Government.

I’m not a Hollywood producer, but I think he has the talent and the passion to do it. Judging by the subtle discussion of gay marriage on the last show, and the constant bickering with a Christian cast member on the show, I’d guess that he’s not a Republican. So maybe, and this is part of the magic of fantasy, he could do a show on a Democratic-led government. Maybe an upper-level congressional figure or heck, even the President! He can call it something really long and esoteric, like his current show. I’m thinking “Pennsylvania Ave” (because that’s where the President lives and it’s more subtle than just saying “The White House.”) Or possibly “Aaron Sorkin’s caricature of modern government.” For now, let’s just call it “Untitled Liberal Wet Dream.”

So in this untitled show, I don’t want Aaron to take too many risks. It would be a lot to take on the discussion of controversial topics as racism, homophobia, the religious right’s influence on media and the government, etc. I wouldn’t want him to do it with actors he’s never worked with before.

He could get some of the current actors to lay on the next show, and just put them in suits and call them some fancy administrative stuff and bam! You’ve got yourself smart, funny actors playing not so-smart, not so-funny real life government types. Sometimes, fiction is more entertaining than reality. All he needs is an outspoken liberal actor to play the government person. Alec Baldwin seems like a good fit; I wonder if he can be talked into leaving that other show that is supposed to be about Saturday Night Live.

Sorkin might be really into this idea. He seems to like this whole “meta” thing he’s got going on — a TV show within a TV show. Maybe instead of portraying a television show that’s not supposed to be funny about a television show that’s supposed to be funny but isn’t, he can depict gross distortions of the media’s perception of politics on a show that is itself a gross distortion of the media’s perception of politics. That might work.

The other real appeal of Sorkin’s work is the snappy dialogue and the complicated relationships that occur on a high-stakes, intelligent and controversial television show. A show about the government would only heighten the tension. Imagine what would happen if somebody was sleeping with someone of the opposite party! That’s gotta add some points to the ratings. It may, however, be a bit much to ask for viewer’s to suspend their belief and accept a show hinging on the premise that high-powered Congressmen and Executive Branch members, the leaders of the free world have...lots and lots of sex. Sex in Washington? Oh, it’s fun to imagine!

Surely, this new government show would be expensive. Some people may object that constructing a model Capital Hill or hiring thousands of white balding male extras to play congressmen would prove expensive. But NBC is already cutting costs by combining all existing TV shows with the Law and Order franchise. Law and Order: Office Edition. Law and Order: Outrageous Moments. Law and Order: My Name is Earl, District Attorney. Also, to save money, they’ve clearly already fired all the writers on “Medium.”

Anyway, back to Studio 60. Right now, I think the allusions to politics are pretty subtle. It would be really inappropriate if one were to reference a real life event, like this past week’s elections that saw several states ban gay marriages. It would be like cramming a wolverine in your kid’s ski boot. Your kid will get mauled and need a rabies shot while the wolverine will suffocate and the fucking ski boot will stink like something awful. Take this last week’s episode, for example. Upon careful perusal, I was unable to find any direct references to the election this past week intermingled in the show’s dialogue about sex, relationships, gay marriage, limousine liberals who need to be taken down a notch, the right wing agenda and general intolerance. I never knew Saturday Night Live was so dramatic. Most of all, I’m just glad that Aaron Sorkin isn’t trying to cram his political agenda in a show that has a great deal of promise without being heavily laden with these issues.

So NBC executives, I humbly submit to you my proposal. This whole “comedy within a comedy” idea is great, but I really think that Sorkin character of yours has the beginnings of a political agenda. Maybe you can get him to talk about it more openly, because honestly, I think it is high time that people in the media weighed in on what they thought this country should be doing. Otherwise, how about a show satirizing SportsCenter?

Chris thinks Sorkin should make up his damn mind about what this show is supposed to be. Send complaints to cholt@stanford.edu