Maureen Dowd has an amusing take on Obama’s sojourn:

The media behemoth slouching after the senator is scouring his every word, expression, bead of sweat, basketball shot and accessory — are those hiking boots too Bremer? Are the sunglasses too rapper? …

The One, as McCain aides sardonically call Obama, glided through Afghanistan, Iraq and Jordan, girding his messianic loins for the inevitable kvetching he would face in Israel as skeptical Jews “try to get a better sense of what’s in Obama’s kishkes.” …

The king of Jordan personally drove the prince of Chicago from the palace to the airport on Tuesday night …

Call it Obama’s audition. Isn’t it?

If you’re going to be the Leader of the Free World (trademark), you gotta get along with the other kids on the playground.

And so Obama visits Europe and the Middle East and they all get a chance to meet He who would be King.

And is this such a bad idea?

Shouldn’t McCain be doing this?

After all, McCain is auditioning for the same role, right? Isn’t is pretty important for him to be out there pressing the international flesh as well?

If the President is like a CEO, shouldn’t he be hired as a CEO might? Do you think potential successors to the corporate throne make a point of good relations with the customers?

Ah, but it’s not about that.

Isn’t it?

Instead of making the rounds, Obama should have been doing… what, exactly? Didn’t McCain, you know, basically dare him to go to the Mideast, at least?

The Obama hype may be overblown, but Europe and the Mideast are pretty important to this country’s future. It’s pretty important what they think, and one hopes McCain understands that.

After all, the customer’s always right.

If you want to keep them as customers.