In times of global trauma one tends to wonder who President George W. Bush turns to.

Colin Powell is one answer.

Dick Cheney is another.

And now, Oprah Winfrey is a person that has appeared on that list of important people.

Oprah has turned down an invitation from Bush to join a U.S. delegation to tour Afghanistan’s schools.

Can you believe it?

Oprah turned down this golden opportunity to help the youth of Afghanistan.

But Oprah is just too busy.

A spokeswoman for Winfrey’s company, Harpo Productions, said she declined because of responsibilities to her show.

Winfrey’s responsibilities would take a lot of time.

It takes time to plan her Oprah Book Club picks, talking with celebrities promoting their latest movies and reuniting long-lost families.

That’s a lot for a million-dollar woman’s plate.

But there is still time.

The idea for Oprah’s first visit to Afghanistan came from first lady Laura Bush talking before Congress about plans to send a U.S. delegation to Afghanistan to mark the first day of school for girls on March 25.

But now the trip has been postponed, so Oprah may still have a chance to go.

She would ride along with Bush adviser Karen Hughes and National Security adviser Condoleezza Rice.

You know, the important women who actually work with the Bush administration.

So what is the purpose of this U.S. celebrity education trip?

Bush officials said the trip was intended to highlight positive results of the war against terrorism and to counter talk of bombing and fighting.

Talk of bombing, death and destruction can get to people after a while, I agree. But focusing on girls returning to schools doesn’t seem like something major news services will focus on for very long.

One day of photos of Oprah with Afghan girls clutching textbooks, the next day back to death and destruction – the stuff journalists really care about.

I’m not denying there are people who care about Oprah’s trip to Afghanistan.

It’s the same 22 million television viewers who watch Oprah’s show in 107 countries, read O magazine and watch “The Color Purple” for the hundredth time.

They are the people who care about her anti-beef comment.

They are people who want to see makeover after makeover on her show.

And they want to see the same interaction that happened between Oprah and Bush when the president was interviewed on her show.

On that show, the television audience learned that Bush’s favorite sandwich is peanut butter and jelly on white bread, his favorite take-out food is a taco and his favorite tune is “Wake up Little Susie.” (This is more than I ever wanted to know about our president.)

That was the first time Bush and Oprah met, but it shouldn’t be the last.

So Oprah better clear her calendar quick.

This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to convince the next generation of Afghanistan that her show is the only talk show to watch on afternoons.

Think if Rosie O’Donnell was picked instead.

Or Jerry Springer.

I can picture small poor children living outside of Kabul chanting “Jerry! Jerry!” Springer could do guest appearances from Afghanistan featuring Taliban members fighting over power. Chairs would be flying.

Oprah shouldn’t pass up this opportunity.

Today Afghanistan.

Tomorrow the world.

Michelle Kann is a senior in journalism and mass communication from Garnavillo. She is newsroom managing editor of the Daily.