Are You Ready For Some... Politicians?

The political conventions have been deemed newsworthy again — sort of — by ABC, which has decided that simply having Dennis Miller in the booth was not enough reason to relegate its convention coverage to halftime of two preseason telecasts of "Monday Night Football." The new plan, with an OK from the NFL: Start the games at 7 p.m. instead of 8, and whatever's still on in Philly and L.A. after the game will have the network's undivided attention.

Thus will the six or seven football fans passionate about this year's presidential election between George W. Bush and Al Gore will get to watch... Colin Powell and Bill Clinton. That high-powered pair — one who'd probably love to run again but can't and one who'd probably win but won't run — are the marquee names for their respective conventions' opening nights, which should tell you something right there. Powell and Clinton will then recede into the mists so that their respective substitutes, Bush and Gore, can dominate the subsequent coverage.

Anyone for Tuesday Night Football?