I'm open to a section on Cults of Personality in Democracies, but it has to be devoid of Original research and it has to be even-handed. If you want to use the Krugman link, keep in mind it says Obama is in danger of becoming one, while saying Bush was one. It is also an opinion piece. Depending on how far one wants to stretch the definition of CoP, we could include most of the examples listed above, as well as Reagan and potentially GWB (before his approval ratings tanked). Hell, we could even mention Martin Luther King. But there is an enormous difference between them and Kim Jung Il or Fidel Castro. 

There is no doubt Obama has some over-zealous fans. Many do, including Ron Paul and Sarah Palin, though admittedly some of Obamas are substantially more so. What is useless to the article is anecdotal evidence such as a group of kids singing a song or some guy who made some Obama votives. As for singing, one should keep in mind that for many years candidates would have campaign songs written about them, naming them specifically, so a song about Obama is really nothing new. (Recently the trend has been to adopt pop songs from the 60s and 70s, but that isn't a rule.) Most importantly, he distinction must be made between what happens during a regime and what happens during a campaign. In any presidential campaign emotions are running high, and both sides are actively promoting themselves as much as possible, with signs and images everywhere. Campaigns have become bigger, more expensive, more promotional, and more partisan over the last couple decades. This is not necessarily indicative of the situation when the campaign is over. There is a difference between charisma or popularity and a cult of personality. -