Job Hunt

I didn't start this blog to talk politics, and I won't much, but something has been bothering me, and I'm wondering if it's bothering you, too.
The next Presidential election is in November of 2008. From today, that's about seventeen months, or nearly a year-and-a-half away. Even the primaries (which I feel are still a bit early) aren't going to happen for at least another seven months. Most of the current candidates, regardless of party affiliation, have been campaigning for three or four months already. Most of these candidates also have their job titles as part of their names: Senator Whatsisname, Governor Whosit, Congressman Soandso. These titles were given to them by their employers (the American voting public) when they were elected to fill a position and perform a job function. However, for somewhere between 17 and 22 months, these employees of ours are putting their principle focus not into doing their appointed jobs, but into getting themselves "hired" for another job.
Am I the only one who thinks that this is a little ridiculous? How long would you last at your current job if you spent half of your time trying to get a new job?
I don't like where this trend is now, but I really don't like where it could go. Can you imagine Presidential campaigning for 2012 that begins immediately after the votes have been counted in 2008? When are any of our elected officials going to get any actual work done?
If it were up to me, I'd hold the all the primaries within a one-month period for three months before the November elections, and I'd allow two months of campaigning prior to that, and that's it. In this technological age of the internet, podcasting, instant news coverage, etc., six months is more than enough time to get to know your candidates, make an informed choice, and vote for the millionaire that you think is less crooked than the others.
Now that's democracy!