At work tonight, I suggested funnyman Steve Martin to play the Republican presidential nominee in any film version of the 2008 election. But I was wrong, and co-worker JW soon corrected my error. The only choice for the role is TV actor Michael Hogan. Why? Because. . . Colonel Saul Tigh is John McCain.

Turns out my co-worker was not the first person to arrive at this conclusion, which is as it should be. The similarities are just so striking, and not just the uncanny physical resemblance between the actor and the Arizona senator. Could Battlestar Galactica character Saul Tigh possibly be based on the life of John McCain?

Naval aviator? Check.

Member of a military family? Check.

Held in captivity by the enemy? Check.

Tortured? Physically disfigured by the ordeal? Double check.

Favors hawkish military policies? Check.

Reputation as a carouser, rabble rouser and ladies’ man? Check.

Married to a blonde? Check.

Married to a blonde with ties to alcohol? Check

Also — this is the clincher — Tigh has a secretary named Kennedy, and McCain has a secretary named Lincoln.

Seriously, though, this is pretty amazing all around. I’ll try not to write about the election in this space again — but only if the election tries harder to not freak me out with its staggering likeness to Battlestar Galactica.