Obi Wan Kenobi got away with it. Coming into town on the land speeder with Luke, C3PO and R2D2, and when confronted by Imperial Storm Troopers, he simply used the force to control their feeble minds. I’m sure you all remember the scene . . . “These aren’t the ‘droids you’re looking for . . . . move along.”

I watched Barack Obama yesterday try his best to use The Force on us, and on reporters. Same for his wife, Michelle. Obama has helped himself immeasurably this week by not only distancing himself from his now former pastor, but also by cutting those ties pretty convincingly and very publicly. Their message yesterday: ” . . move along, there’s nothing to see here anymore.”

Time will tell whether they did it sufficiently in advance of the Indiana primary next week to improve his chances against Hillary Clinton. Time will tell, too, whether he’s a political Jedi master, and whether we are feeble-minded enough to be controlled. I doubt very much Hillary Clinton, or the Republican party, are that feeble-minded. They are not likely to move along either in the short or the longer term, as the issue is still too hot in all of its complexity. The Reverend doesn’t seem likely to disappear any time soon, either, especially if he does have a book deal in his pocket.

We’re reminded today, also, of another who tried to play Jedi mind games with us. Remember that scene on the aircraft carrier and the banner behind Mr. Happy when he declared “Mission Accomplished” in 1993? I’m not so sure he would have qualified as a Jedi “youngling,” let alone a master, and that feeble attempt at a mind trick hasn’t played out well in the intervening five years except on himself. Several thousand military deaths in Iraq later, it’s pretty clear he was clueless back then, too, every bit as much as he appears oblivious to our declining economic condition out here in the real world.

Contrast all of this with what Hillary Clinton did yesterday. With her light saber hanging securely against her “obi,” she confidently sat with Storm Trooper Bill O’Reilly and gave no quarter. She used brute “Force,” if you will, and held her ground with one of her harshest critics. Oh, he tried to push her around, but she was clearly the master in that room. There are times when mind tricks work; there are other times when only a light saber will do.

The president was no Obi Wan Kenobi five years ago with his “Mission Accomplished” dog and pony show. It’s too early to tell whether Obama’s “move along” mind trick will have his desired result. While The Force is not something to be underestimated, he may not be enough of a master to use it effectively on the Wright issue. As for Hillary, if I find myself squared off with a storm trooper, I choose her for my team.