I don't know what qualifies Germany or Germans as the world's experts on American politics, but that seems to be one of the dominant memes these days.

In a piece titled "Obama Mia" in the Wall Street Journal, I read about a loopy German musical glorifying President Obama, and promoting the personality cult surrounding him:

Frankfurt

'HOPE--The Obama Musical Story" premiered here Sunday evening. One is tempted to end the review right there. Seriously, aren't the oeuvre's title and premature timing commentary enough? Sure, the U.S. president has been (favorably) compared to God but even Jesus Christ had to wait nearly 2,000 years before he became a Superstar.

With polls showing that most Americans now realize that they are being (mis)led by a mere mortal, it is no coincidence that this production had its debut in Germany. Here the president's messiah status (remember the 200,000 worshipers at his 2008 Berlin speech?) is still accepted dogma and helped fill the Jahrhunderthalle, a 2,000-seat venue.

"In no way does Hope show Obama as a saint," the musical's organizers say on their Web site. And truly, as the mostly American cast tells, through song and dance, the story of Mr. Obama's rise from a Chicago community organizer to the White House, we learn of the president's human imperfections--or at least one: "He's an idealist," Mrs. Obama's character says with a hint of disapproval. Despite this serious character flaw, the ensemble sings upon his election: "Celebrate! Celebrate! Around the world every nation celebrate."

Sen. Harry Reid will probably be pleased to learn that the actor playing Mr. Obama is sufficiently "light-skinned" to portray the president and did not sing with any discernable "Negro accent." And, always a plus for an actor as well as a president, he was able to perform without a teleprompter. He got to sing numbers like "Yes We Can," and "Look Without Hands," which I first thought was a commentary on the president's foreign and economic policies but turned out to be a eulogy to his grandmother.

Except those Germans can be so damned, er, fickle! In less than a week's time, it seems that the Ubermessiah of Hope's reign has come to a dramatic end.

In a piece titled "The World Bids Farewell to Obama" Der Speigel summarizes German reaction to Tuesday's Massachusetts rout:

US President Barack Obama suffered a painful defeat in Massachusetts on Tuesday. With mid-term elections looming, it means that Obama will have to fundamentally re-think his political course. German commentators say it is the end of hope.

The hope of the Germans?

Huh?

I realize that they have lots of experience with having their hopes raised and shattered, but honestly. Surely no rational person would argue that our hope belongs to the Germans to "own."

Or would they?

I'm sure everyone has seen this video that Glenn Reynolds and Ann Althouse both linked, but it seemed to belong here:

It's very touching, but if hope is not ours to own, I think it ain't over till the Norwegians sing...

(Yeah, it would have been nice to embed Ronald Reagan's favorite version of the song, but I'm afraid of the DMCA.)