Trama

Elle Woods heads to Washington, D.C. to join the staff of a Representative in order to pass a bill to ban animal testing.

Sassy postgrad Elle Woods (Reese Witherspoon) is all about animal rights. In fact, she puts her nuptial plans on hold to head to Washington, D.C. to get an anti-animal testing bill passed. Her building's doorman quickly shows her the ways and workings of our nation's capital.

The movie begins as Elle Woods (Reese Witherspoon) is planning her wedding to Emmett (Luke Wilson). Elle's best friends Paulette (Jennifer Coolidge), Margot (Jessica Cauffiel) and Serena (Alanna Ubach) are right by her side. Elle knows that Fenway Park is Emmett's favorite place in the whole world, and she books it for the wedding. Elle realizes one minor detail is missing on her guest list, her dog Bruiser's biological mother. Elle found Bruiser abandoned many years ago. Elle is now working at a famous law firm and is well liked by everyone. Her boss is Blaine (Stanley Anderson) and her colleague is Kevin (Sam Pancake).

She hires a private investigator Finchley (Jack McGee) to search for her in time to invite her to the wedding. It turns out that she is in a V.E.R.S.A.C.E (Veterinary Experimentation Research Science And Critter Exploitation) headquarters (or a makeup - animal testing facility). Elle finds Bruiser's mother locked in a lab, with all sorts of cosmetics being tested on her. The facility is owned by the C'Est Magnifique corporation. Elle presents her case to the partners of her law firm to take on this company. After being mocked and laughed at as her law firm represents this company, she decides she cannot work for a law firm like this.

After realizing she's been fired, Elle determines that she needs to change the law to get Brusier's mom freed. She calls one of her intern connections from Harvard, her old friend U.S. Rep. Victoria Rudd (Sally Field). She gets the job to assist Rep. Rudd to draft new laws to present to the committees. Rudd's staff includes Grace Rossiter (Regina King), Timothy McGinn (J Barton) and Reena Giuliani (Mary Lynn Rajskub).

Elle has several struggles however with some of the other co-workers and her blonde manners. She is nick named "Capitol Barbie". She does not seem to fit in once again and tries to convince people that animal testing is cruelty. Grace sets up Elle, by taking her to a Committee hearing on Energy & Commerce headed by Libby Hauser and getting her to make an impromptu speech. Elle is not prepared and talks about animal rights, and hosting a party, and ends up earning Libby's ire. Frustrated by being set back by the congressional progress, she meets a very helpful doorman Sid Post (Bob Newhart) who knows some inside tips. Grace continues to be a hindrance and won't allow Elle to talk to other Congressmen or their aides to educate them about her bill. Reena wants to draft a bill to cover changes to Pharmaceuticals, but Grace pushes back and wants Reena to follow protocol get the lawyers to write the bill. Sid tells Elle that Hauser responds to facts and figures and not the humanitarian angle.

Realizing that she needs to do things the Elle Woods way, she begins her campaigning to some of the Senators in the committee. Elle discovers that Bruiser is gay, after she is paged by "The Paws That Refreshes: A Doggy Day Spa", where Bruiser was left for the day and has been affectionate with Leslie, a Rottweiller owned by Congressman Stan Marks (Bruce McGill), the Chairman of the Committee on Energy and Commerce which has jurisdiction over Bruiser's Bill. Elle also finds that Congresswoman Libby Hauser (Dana Ivey), the Ranking Member of the same committee, was a member of Elle's sorority Delta Nu. Elle tells that 125,468 people in her district have dog licenses who would care about this issue. As a result, both Marks and Hauser warm to Elle and eventually come to support Bruiser's Bill.

Elle's bill is in, and she moves for the bill to be passed to the house of Representatives when all of a sudden, the bill's supporter Rep. Rudd decides she does not want to back up this proposition any longer, and the bill is dropped. What Rudd didn't tell Elle is that her biggest financial supporter has stock in this company and if she continues with this bill, they will stop all financial reinforcements. Rudd tells Elle that Grace made a play for her Homeowner's bill and Rudd had to choose.

Discouraged by the politics of it all, Elle decides to go back home. Her co-workers (Timothy and Reena), however, do not give up on her. They quit their jobs and make it a personal campaign to get her bill passed. They are amazed at her accomplishments so far seeing as they have never come that far. They can still pull the bill out by presenting it to the floor and getting 218 signatures to her bill.

She calls in all her Delta Nu sisters Margo and Serena and they set up a call out system. Paulette starts giving out free haircuts to all Congressmen who would support Bruiser's Bill. Elle speaks to Grace and asks her to let Bruiser's bill to have a fair chance. Grace says that she never backed the Homeowners bill, and that Rudd was lying to Elle. She finally confronts Rep. Rudd before her interview with the news and she confesses to her plot against Elle. Rudd did not know that their conversation was being recorded by a tape recorder left in her room for testing, in preparation for Rudd's interview with a journalist.

Elle tells her to do the right thing and will not blackmail her congresswoman. Just as all hope was gone, Grace had overheard their conversation and stolen the tape from the news with her confession. Elle and her team create a million-dog march in protest of no such law that protects animals, and also some pretty wild ideas to getting these signatures. On the last day, they get pretty desperate with still one hundred signatures left. Seeing as only speeches are given on the last day, she tells Elle that she will be addressing the committee that night. Instead of her planned Bruiser's Bill speech, she decides to give them a guilt trip speech. Everything from the corrupted system to animals can't speak for themselves.

The bill barely passes to the last vote coming from Rep. Rudd and all the animals are set free. Elle has her wedding and Bruiser is reunited with his mother. Elle and Emmett get married in a park in D.C., albeit not at Fenway Park as they had planned, but standing on the home plate which has been delivered to D.C. by Paulette's husband. Emmett asks Elle where she wants to live since they are now a married couple, and he goes on to suggest the cities of Boston, Beverly Hills, and Washington DC. Elle glances at the White House, winking at the camera as the movie ends.