The stars are aligning for the Democratic National Convention as celebrities and top musicians come out of the woodwork to take the stage in Charlotte, N.C., but the GOP gathering last week got nowhere near as much celeb love. 

Eva Longoria, Scarlett Johansson, Kerry Washington. Foo Fighters, Mary J. Blige, Earth Wind & Fire, James Taylor. This lineup sounds like the Oscars meets the Grammys, but it's actually just a partial list of the docket for the DNC.

Clint Eastwood. One of Ted Nugent's bandmates. Chris Christie. That was about it for the Republican National Convention's list of celebs.

It's a stark contrast given that both parties are looking to connect with voters on the biggest political nights of the year, and that star power is a likely way to impress the ADD-addled, fickle public.

The Democrats have the added stress of having to contend Thursday night -- the biggest night of the DNC, featuring speeches by top Dems including President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden -- with the MTV Video Music Awards, aka VMAs. Can't be any more star-studded than that event.

But still, the RNC basically had just one stodgy old actor-director who carried on an incoherent conversation with an empty chair. That's it as far as any stars anyone cares about. Meanwhile, the Dems were like a Hollywood Hills house party.

It's not that surprising, given that Hollywood is notoriously liberal, meaning the pool of potential celebrity guests was much deeper for the blue team. But the GOP has a fair number of stars under its wing as well, from Sylvester Stallone and Adam Sandler to Jessica Simpson and Buffy the Vampire Slayer herself, Sarah Michelle Gellar.

Almost none of them came out, and if they did they didn't speak. It's hard to pin down exactly why this is, but some irresponsible, mostly uninformed theories and hypotheses can be drawn.

First of all, Obama is a star in his own right in a way that Mitt Romney likely never will be. He has fundraisers at Sarah Jessica Parker's house in NYC and all over Hollywood. An Obama appearance can seem much like a U2 concert. It's only natural that he'd have the glitterati speaking at his big night.

Secondly, the Republicans had freakin' Clint Eastwood at their big evening. And he bombed so badly his remarks overshadowed the biggest speech of Romney's life. So the Democrats may have made the calculation that it was worth it to bring out some big guns who have the ability to speak proper English and show that their camp is the sane one.

Either way, the celebs on hand at the DNC are at least making it more interesting than the RNC. And there's something to be said for that.

To contact the editor, e-mail: