Last night, Cathy told me three contestants on the American game show Jeopardy could not identify the president of the Republic of the Philippines. (The person in power, by the way, is Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, but whether she is the rightful president is another story.) When three intelligent Americans have no idea who we are, despite our significant presence in the US, well, we should take a step back and reconsider America’s relationship with us.

We’ve considered ourselves one of the United States’ strongest allies, with a history of walking hand-in-hand with Uncle Sam towards an uncertain future, but where exactly lies the Philippines in America’s long-term plans is anybody’s guess. Can we say the Philippines has much to benefit from its virtually unrequited love affair with the Stars and Stripes?

The recent Iowa caucuses - a glorified survey, really - come as a pleasant surprise, one I welcome, actually, because it shows America seems to be thinking twice about keeping Dubya and everything he stands for in the driver’s seat for much longer.

1. America seems to want change, which is good because that’s what Filipinos want, too. This election can be a crucial one in America’s history for the candidate choices it affords voters. The Iowan Democrats propelled Barack Obama to an early and substantial lead, sending erstwhile Democrat frontrunner Hilary Rodham Clinton into a spiral for third, a few points behind John Edwards. The most likely cause? Clinton’s campaign for experience seems to have backfired on her, with more Democrat voters intent on ‘change’ vs. ‘experience.’

This desire for change seems to be so great that independents are flocking to Obama’s camp (a magnetism that Republican John McCain held in 2004 but may find difficult to recapture four years later) on his platform of hope and new politics. Rubbing salt into the former American first lady’s wounds? Obama soundly beat her in crucial young voters’ and women’s votes.

Here in the Philippines, where democracy is, quite frankly, the longest-running joke ever foisted on an Asian country, old politics continues to hold sway. The same family dynasties are running politics and the economy, the same social ills plague us as in years gone by, and, most frustrating of all, the new politics that America seems to be ready to finally embrace, cannot prosper simply because we’re too concerned about putting food on the table.

The economy is so bad and the situation so dire that people will sell their conscience, their ethics, and their votes for a few dollars. Who looms in the not-so-distant horizon to lift us up out of this quagmire? We don’t have an Obama.

2. America wants to vote for the candidate who says what s/he believes. Clinton is in extreme danger if only for this crucial point. Over on the Republican side, Mike Huckabee edged erstwhile frontrunner Mitt Romney because voters felt the latter didn’t say what he believes (this, despite Ann Coulter’s fiery tirade on Huckabee’s inconsistencies).

George W. Bush is the perfect example of someone who does not say what he believes, or practices what he preaches. When Gloria Arroyo pulled out Filipino troops from Iraq to save one of our citizens who was taken hostage by Iraqi militants, Bush glowered at us like we were crazy. (Credit, however, to current American Ambassador to the Philippines Kristie Kenney, who is doing a spectacular job of healing Filipino-American relations.)

How in eight years did this Christian president manage to turn America’s image from relatively respected international superpower to massive bully and self-proclaimed guardian of the international peace? It still boggles this Filipino blogger’s mind that a Christian would call for an invasive attack on another country in the guise of international peace. I thought international peacekeeping was the United Nations’ job. *wink wink*

Of course, who am I to speak? Our current president is the only president in our history to have virtually admitted cheating in the general elections and yet finish her term.

3. America needs a polarizing president. This election brings to the table something no previous election has ever done: bring up two viable presidential candidates with shockingly high polarizing value: Hilary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama. One bidding to become the first American female president; the other, the first Afro-American president. Boy, America sure takes its ‘change’ agenda seriously, eh?

I had a talk a few months back with an astute American colleague, who opined that Clinton was the only Democrat candidate who stood a chance of winning the general election. However, he said, Clinton is so polarizing - either you love her, or you hate her - that if more people could be swayed to hate her, well, then, there’s the election for you.

Obama can be just as polarizing, and not half as threatening, although good luck winning the ‘white states,’ Senator. It appears that most people take him to task for his color and relative inexperience (What, and former American President Ronald Reagan was senator for decades?). While I don’t think America will ever truly be able to transcend its bias for race and social status (just like the Philippines), I think we need to take ‘inexperience’ with a grain of salt, because America seems to be tiring of old politics - the kind, unfortunately, that Clinton is forever tied to, thanks to the connection between her and husband Bill - and is seeking a fresh new perspective.

This perspective, unfortunately or fortunately, depending on one’s political camp, is represented solely by Barack Obama. America is hurting from their unnecessary ownership of the Iraq rehabilitation (which is costing them billions of dollars) and their own falling economy. Who is talking about uniting the nation, about healing? Who can represent change? Not Edwards (forever tied to the 2004 loss with Kerry), McCain (another also-ran), Huckabee (flipflopper like Kerry, eerily evangelical like Bush, and is it me or does he look eerily like Kevin Spacey?), Romney (as flavorful as paper), Guiliani (I like him, though), or Thompson (who?). The white female and the black man. The polarizers. And it will be the polarizers who will get apathetic America out of their seats to vote.

In the Philippines, who are the polarizers? Who in government service inspires the average Juan dela Cruz to get up and motivate him to do something - anything - to improve his country? At this point, there is no one. This explains why politicians need to hire movie stars, dancers, and whatever gimmickry they can wrangle up to drag people to their rallies. And a good reason why so many celebrities and entertainers in this country actually get elected; sila lang ang kilala, e (they’re the only ones the voters know).

Ah, America. Even with this race, you’re still light years better off than we are. I wonder where - if ever! - our new politics will come from.

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