Like the song from Nickelback says “We all just want to be a big rock star” and politicians are certainly no different. Seems our elected officials love the celebrity of it all regardless of their singing ability. They dig the camera, the microphones, the headlines, the podium and the press corps; they are more performers than politicians these days.

I blame the Politicians.

They love the pomp and circumstance, the “unfortunate” side effect of “public service” so they’ll tell you. They crave the public spotlight as they hit their marks, regurgitate their talking points and party lines. It doesn’t take long for political newbies to learn to use the cameras for coercion. Ever watch them box each other out to get to the center of the podium at a press conference? Watch Harry Reid and Chris Dodd at their next media event. NBA players waiting for a rebound have nothing on these guys.

I blame the Press.

I grew up believing the sole (soul) function of the Press was to keep the electorate informed and the government honest; the people would know and the politicians would know that we knew. Keeping bureaucracy in balance by reporting the truth, keeping the authorities authentic and honorable was the main task of the media. Reporters would root-out corruption and dishonesty thus holding elected officials accountable. Ha! Most reporters are now celebrity reporters. Many today are more likely to report on the wardrobe of First Lady, what the President did on his summer vacation or the useless machinations of Congressional members and the Capitol Hill retirement community, acting more like entertainment reporters then those charged with keeping our elected officials in check.

I also blame the People.

We tune in like lemmings to 24 hour cable news broadcasts and hang on the every word of our politicians or perhaps just waiting to catch a glimpse of President Obama waving as he boards Marine One. “Oh, I’m damn glad the cameras were rolling for that.” Hopefully we’ll learn how is jump shot is going or if he has managed to quit smoking yet. “The wait is killing me.” Maybe we get to see some b-roll of former President Bush riding his tractor on his Texas ranch. If only.

Truth is, they act like rock stars because we treat them like rock stars. We rock-round-the-clock with our remotes, the media sells commercial space because we do and the politicians pander and clamor for the glamour of bright lights and sound bites. It’s a made for TV movie, literally. Just look at the swagger, the arrogance, the aloofness and the overall demeanor (in some cases criminal) of the politicians we elected, that we hired to do a job.

As childish as it sounds, might we all be better off remembering that our elected officials to work for us?

What happens to a human mind when the love of celebrity takes over? What happens when we roll out the red carpet for those we have hired to help administer our government? What happens when we habitually treat our politicians like pop stars or cast them in soap operas or sit-coms?

AC/DC has a great answer…We’re on the Highway to Hell.

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