The WGA writer's strike has really effected my best friend, T.V. VanTube. Since my favorite prime time shows had to grind production to a halt, I've been spending a lot of time watching "American Gladiators", "Judge Judy", and a whole mountain of other inane shows. Some people suggest that if I hate it so much, I should turn it off, but those people are obviously obtuse.

I've found myself watching two things more than ever before: Game shows and political debates. And then it occurred to me... why not combine the two?

PROPOSAL: Put America's leading presidential hopefuls on today's most popular game shows.

Education has always been a big issue when looking at a candidate's past. What was George W. Bush's GPA at Harvard? How did it compare to John Kerry's grades? I, not a huge proponent of ivy league education, am not so interested in what cash fueled fop fest the president went to. I just want to know if the guy (or gal) we put into office knows the basics on geography, history, math, and science as well as literature and art. This is why I suggest an appearance on "Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader?" could help me decide. Does this joker even know whether beetles have wings or what the capitol of Kansas is? Do they know the power of the executive branch of the government? Do they know what continent Zimbabwe is on? Are they even smart enough to know which kid to copy answers from?

And before we go back to Fox, let's take a respite to NBC and put our political pollsters on "1 Vs 100" just to see how they will react when faced with a sea of various opinions and backgrounds. Will they crack under the pressure when their approval rating is so low? When everyone they're facing wants them to fail, because they feel like they'll benefit from the defeat. How will they react when faced with special interest groups that are lobbying them? Will they bend under pressure? Will they crack while looking at the confident expressions on their opponents' faces? Will they blank when so close in proximity to Bob Saget? I need to know before they get my vote.

So how will these Kennedy and Clinton hopefuls react when faced with a different kind of group? Twenty six beautiful girls all holding cases of money. I'm sure you're just as curious as I am. But the real reason to put our future commander-in-chief on "Deal or No Deal" is to see how they will act when faced with a negotiation with foreign leaders in life or death situations. Or ones dealing with oil money, at least. It's a great way to train for another Bay of Pigs situation. Another way to learn when to say "deal" and when to say "no deal" between dropping the one on Hiroshima and the one on Nagasaki. Could a deal have been brokered between "Little Boy" and "Fat Man"? Only Howie Mandel can tell us.

Returning to Fox, we will put our candidates on the final and most important show for our purposes. Most people should never go on this show, as it is the lowest of the low when pandering for cash, but I believe that it suits our public officers quite well. We have to put these folks on "Moment of Truth". Find out if our candidates are going to disgrace us with extra marital affairs. Find out if they have a DUI or a history with hookers. We can also, I suppose find out other things too. Like if they'll live up to any of their campaign promises or have plans to get us into a war without an exit strategy. But let's be honest, that won't get ratings. So let's focus on questions involving more "intimate" affairs, shall we?

Maybe doing this won't help us decide who would make the best president, but it will certainly improve the current system. I'd even petition to make the entire system more like "American Idol" and to also utilize shows like "Don’t Forget the Lyrics" where we can find out if they know the actual words of The National Anthem and "Help Me Rhonda", but maybe I'm taking things a bit too far. I think most of us would agree, however, that "Jeopardy", "Wheel of Fortune", and "Weakest Link" would be a far better way than going to special interest groups when putting together their campaign funds.