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And what, after all, is the purpose of his international tour? John McCormick of the Chicago Tribune called it an "effort to look presidential on the world stage," while CNN said it was "aimed at bolstering his foreign policy credentials." Furthermore, many in Europe have apparently succumbed to Obamamania, and the Democrat's campaign team clearly hopes that televised scenes of cheering foreign crowds will convey the idea that their candidate can restore U.S. prestige abroad.

CAN A POLITICIAN'S "foreign policy credentials" be boosted by a single week of travel? Will the sight of a Democrat surrounded by adoring Europeans automatically translate into increased popularity among American voters? This seems to be the belief of Obama's handlers.

If they're right, this week's excursion will finally create a decisive shift in public opinion toward Obama, ending the stagnant period of narrow- to-nonexistent leads he's shown in recent national polls.

On the other hand, if his media-saturated sojourn produces no definite and enduring gain in the polls, Team Obama may look back on this trip as a costly waste of time, money and effort that might better have been expended campaigning back home.

In the worst-case scenario -- a gaffe or blunder that exposes the Democrat to criticism or ridicule -- this overseas odyssey could go down in history as Obama's equivalent of that fateful 1988 tank ride by Michael Dukakis.

While Obama has far more charm than Dukakis, what made the image of Dukakis in that tank so potent was that it showed the Democrat straining to seem what he so obviously was not -- a credible candidate for Commander-in-Chief. It was the transparent phoniness of the gesture that hurt.

Often described as a political "rock star," Obama has benefited thus far from the kind of celebrity treatment more becoming a pop-culture sensation than a mere politician.

Pop fads have a way of suddenly fading, however, even in their moment of triumph. Fonzie cleared the shark tank, after all. Obama might not be so lucky.

topics:
Foreign Policy, John McCain, Barack Obama, Russia, Oil