Fake news by Andy Borowitz

WASHINGTON — With just a month remaining until the crucial midterm elections, worried Democrats have decided to reach out to the man who played Barack Obama during the 2008 campaign, Democratic Party officials confirmed today.

“We were sitting around thinking of who we could put out there on the campaign trail to get people energized again,” said Democratic National Chairman Tim Kaine. “And then I was like, what about that guy who played Obama in ’08? He was amazing!”

Though Democratic incumbents have been shying away from appearing with President Obama at rallies in recent weeks, they are “totally jazzed” about making joint appearances with the man who portrayed Obama in 2008, Kaine said.

“When we put the word out that we were reaching out to the guy who used to play Obama, the reaction was phenomenal,” he said. “People were like, ‘I loved that guy.’ “

Sen. Russ Feingold of Wisconsin echoed the sentiment of many Democratic officeholders when he heard that the man who played Obama during the 2008 race might be hitting the road again soon: “I was leery about appearing with the president onstage, but that other guy, come on, he was unbelievable.”

According to preliminary plans, the guy who played Obama in 2008 will be used to fire up huge crowds in key races, while the actual President Obama will remain behind in Washington giving boring speeches about electronic medical records.

Fox News offered scant coverage of the Democrats’ plans, other than to report that neither President Obama nor the man who played him in 2008 was born in the U.S.

Award-winning humorist, television personality and film actor Andy Borowitz is author of the book “The Republican Playbook.”