American Idol performances were a nice break from the presidential elections. At least AI promises a winner next week. In honor of the primaries-that-never-end I'll compare each contestant to a presidential candidate.

David Archuleta (Paula's choice: "And So It Goes" by Billy Joel; his choice: "With You" by Chris Brown; producer's choice "Longer" by Dan Fogelberg) David is the John McCain of the competition: A shoe-in from the beginning and well-loved by a specific demographic. Happily for David that demographic is screeching teeny-bopper girls, rather than gun-toting, beer drinking, flag waving, Bush-loving Republicans. Unfortunately, David hit a new low tonight. If you mixed up his songs and replayed them, you'd probably have no idea which was which. That's how very, very similar these songs sounded. During "With You" David attempted some dance moves which showed that he is definitely not boy-band material. But he has enough of a following that, like McCain, he will sail into the next round and may even win the competition.

Syesha Mercado (Randy's choice: "If I Ain't Got You" by Alicia Keys; her choice: "Fever" by Peggy Lee; producer's choice: "Hit Me Up" by Gia Farrell) Syesha is the Hillary Clinton of the competition: She just won't go away. I keep thinking she'll be voted off, and she just keeps coming back for more. Tonight Syesha had an all-around sucky night. She began with a copy-cat version of "If I Ain't Got You" then totally flubbed what should have been a really sexy rendition of "Fever." The poor girl ended the night with a forgettable, blasé mix of "Hit Me Up." Ho-hum. The AI train is leaving and Syesha is definitely still at the station.

David Cook (Simon's Choice: "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" by Roberta Flack;
his choice: "Dare You To Move" by Switchfoot; producer's choice: "I Don't Wanna Miss a Thing" by Aerosmith ) David Cook is the Barrack Obama of the competition. He started out as a bit of a maverick, but once people realized how damn good he was, he started getting the votes and is now the clear frontrunner. Tonight David Cook saved the day with his raw, gravelly voice and ingenious interpretations of popular songs. He is the proverbial breath of fresh air in this competition and may go onto win.

If all is right with the universe, Syesha will go home tomorrow, leaving little David Archuleta to battle it out with scruffy David Cook. Unknowingly, Simon described the impending competition to a T: it will be a bit like a Chihuahua taking on a tiger.