White-Hot McPhee To Visit White House

Put your worries to rest, Mr. President. Katharine McPhee is well enough to make her Oval Office appointment.

The "American Idol" runner-up has recovered from a nasty bout of bronchitis and laryngitis just in time for her audience with President Bush on Friday, says Eric Green, a publicist with the Fox network program.

McPhee, champion Taylor Hicks and the rest of last season's Top 10 are the first contestants from the hit show to be invited to the White House.

Sure, dignitaries from Iraq, Romania, Britain, Sudan and Saudi Arabia also got an invite to the Oval Office this week. They may have had issues of war and peace to discuss, but how many of them survived the challenge of performing a Stevie Wonder tune on live TV?

It's unclear how familiar Mr. Bush is with their talents. Asked whether he had ever seen the show, the White House responded that he was "aware" of it.

Their tour and photo opportunity with Mr. Bush — with still cameras only, no reporters allowed — comes during a one-day visit to Washington for their American Idols Live tour. McPhee rejoined the group Thursday in Pittsburgh after missing a string of recent performances.