"Democratic Idol" comes down to

the kind of convention political hacks

have dreamed about since we were

little nerds in the third grade

writing essays on the electoral college

It will be August with nothing

on television but “Big Brother XXXIII”

Pop Culture Politics

This country badly needs a decent president but what we've got is a Democratic Idol, a self-anointed preacher and successful manipulator of cheap cliches purportedly leading us to the Promised Land of hope and change.

Having gone through eight years of EST with Bill Clinton and almost that much of AA with George Bush, we should be burned out on psycho-therapeutics as opposed to physical reality.

But sadly many are taken in by Obama's covert message that if you trust in hope you don't have to worry about the details like pensions and health care.

Obama might turn out to be a winner but at the moment the evidence provides little support beyond factors that matter inordinately these days, such as that he is young, good-looking and half black.

This is the sort of thing music producers look for in boy bands. Choosing a president is supposed to involve some deeper concerns. Is it too naive in this age of image over substance?

Our politics have been subsumed by the values of television and so we continue to look for an American Idol instead of an American President.

Obama Still Strong in "Democratic Idol" but Race Isn't Over

Even if the writer's strike had caused an absence of reality TV this spring, America still would have had a Democratic Idol. His name: Barack Obama.

Whether you like him or not, there's no denying that this charismatic 46-year-old has swept the nation off its feet.

Setting fundraising records and stirring up expansive grass roots support, Obama has become more than a man -- he has become a movement.

He has engaged the youth, electrifying their voice and ripping apart their apathetic stereotype. And he has swayed many independent voters who are tired of candidates with a Washington stench.

One woman I met called him a "phenomenon." She was one among many of the Whacko Obama office volunteers who literally dropped what they were doing, hopped on a plane and came to Texas to support their beloved leader.

This example of dedication represents the way Obama's message has ignited a passionate rally cry for change, which has rippled throughout the land and captured the hopes of millions.

"He's making us realize that we can get involved in politics, and we can make a difference," one of the volunteers said. "When he's elected, it won't be that we're sitting back watching him do something different, but we're actually going to be in there doing something different with him."

He has promised interactive decision-making, saying he would involve the American public in the issues, an invigorating idea for those who feel stymied by Washington politics.

Obama's diverse background has also attracted the international community. ABC News did a feature on Obama's foreign support, quoting people from India, Kenya and Pakistan who say they would vote for Obama if they could.

"He's creating a new image for America," one man said from Dubai.

Things seem almost too good to be true, and the press recently came under scrutiny for not scrutinizing Obama. The ironic media twist has stimulated a debate among pundits and journalists over soft press for the presidential candidate.

But does this man deserve the esteemed attention he has been awarded throughout this campaign? With a young career and relatively clean slate, it's hard to argue against the man's integrity at this point.

But the night is young for the Illinois senator. He may have made it to the finals, but there's always room for mistakes.

Should he become the Democratic Idol winner, he has a long road ahead till November to keep the bar set high. In the spirit of competition, people will dig deep and search out anything that smells of scandal or incompetence.

While I did not vote for Obama, I pray this doesn't happen to him. I hope he maintains his integrity and positive campaigning.

Hillary Clinton also has an abundant fan base, but there's just something about the Obama crowd that speaks louder than numbers.

It is a movement of strength and unparalleled fame, of grass roots support and ambitious ideals, of fresh outlooks and hopeful optimism.

However, Obama still has another hurdle to jump before he can gear up for the the finals. Tuesday's edition of "Democratic Idol" prove that America hasn't written off Clinton and that a winning streak can't last forever.

Obama may still hold the lead, but his campaign has been dealt a blow this week. If his followers truly want to see him win the contest, now is the time, more than ever, for the Obama movement to push the pendulum swing of momentum even higher.

"Race for the White House"! Beats American Idol & Big Brother

It’s all up to Pennsylvania!

Yes folks, over the next seven weeks — the amount of time it takes a normal country to conduct an entire national election — we will be obsessing about the critical upcoming Pennsylvania primary. Harrisburg! Altoona! The Poconos!

Did you know that in the Poconos, some hotels have bathtubs shaped like hearts or Champagne glasses? We actually plan on bringing that up a lot.

Of all the things that went right for Hillary Clinton on Tuesday, the Ohio primary win was most impressive.

Although Ohioans politely tiptoed out of Hillary’s more boring round-table discussions, they came to believe she could be a president who would fix things, no matter how complicated or frustrating. The mere fact that she had the staying power to keep her eyes open, they felt, was a good sign.

In response, the Obama campaign has reportedly decided to do far fewer exciting rallies and lots more mind-numbing round-table discussions in Pennsylvania. I’m sure I speak for everyone when I say we are all really looking forward to that.

Ohio was great. I don’t know how anybody could not love a primary where the big scandal involves gossip about Nafta among Canadian diplomats.

And where, in a critical strategic move, Bill Clinton seemed to have been permanently reassigned to a lecture circuit in Chillicothe.

The Texas primary results were much closer. The white male vote, which keeps shifting, was split.

I’m beginning to suspect that the white males have realized that they’re either going to be accused of racism or sexism and have therefore made a secret pact to take turns.

Once the primary voting ended, there were caucuses to choose a third of the Texas delegates. Given the way the counting is going, we should have the results sometime in 2009.

But the Clinton campaign instantly issued complaints about rule-breaking. (“Numerous calls have shown that Obama supporters prematurely removed convention packets from polling places ...”).

That was truly unfair. People who never knew these caucuses existed before this week did the best they could under ridiculous circumstances, including an innovative rule that no one is in charge when the event begins.

“The secretary is the first precinct captain who manages to take a leadership role. It’s a little ambiguous to be totally honest,” said Alexander Baugh, a graduate student and an Obama captain at Mathews Elementary School in Austin.

Inside, hundreds and hundreds of voters were trying to squeeze into the caucus, which was held in a child-size cafeteria.

There was a great deal of time to contemplate a poster listing CAFETERIA EXPECTATIONS, which were so wise I feel compelled to share a couple with you:

• Eat your own food.

• Keep hands, feet and objects to yourself.

The Mathews Elementary voters got a temporary leader, May Schmidt, who actually seemed to understand the rules.

This is the only thing that spared them from the fate of the voters at a library outside of Houston, where it took two and a half hours for the would-be leaders to figure out how to open the door and let people inside.

Schmidt had made way more copies of the critical forms than she had been allotted, avoiding the fate of many, many caucuses that ran out. And she dispatched her daughter to negotiate with the janitorial staff.

“They’re opening up the gym. They don’t like it, but they’re opening,” she said. “Now if you’re Obama, hold up your hands.”

The vast majority of the room started waving, and making a hoot of victory that sounded very much like the one the Spartans used in “300.”

The Hillary people, looking a little deflated, trudged off to the gym, where they stood in line to register.

Meanwhile, they got a special chair for an 87-year-old woman who had made her way to the school to caucus for Clinton, carrying her cane and a big flashlight.

“I’m just about blind, so they have to help me. They’ve been real good about it,” she said cheerfully.

Am I wrong in thinking this is above and beyond the call of duty? Cheers to Obama, who is caucus king thanks to the way he has mobilized his ultra-enthusiastic supporters.

But if I were a super-delegate forced to choose between two attractive candidates, I’d look for the one who won the big primaries where people were actually encouraged to vote.

For now, it’s all up to Pennsylvania in April, until it’s all up to Indiana and North Carolina in May.

(This Saturday is the Wyoming caucus, but it’s not all up to Wyoming.) Finally on June 7, it will all be up to Puerto Rico, until it’s over and we discover that we’re right back where we are now.

Then comes the kind of convention political reporters have dreamed about since we were little nerds in the third grade writing essays on the electoral college. It will be August with nothing on television but “Big Brother XXXIII,” and you will have to listen to us.

Life is wonderful. Eat your own food.