Two big races are grabbing all the headlines these days. There’s that pesky one that leads to the White House. Didn’t we do this four years ago?

The contest that has really gripped the nation is the one for this year’s “American Idol” crown. I will wait while the screaming stops.

The man with all the insight in “Idol” is Simon Cowell. And he is never at a loss for words.

Cowell is at the Langham Huntington Hotel to talk about the NBC summer series “America’s Got Talent.” That series debuts June 17. That means there is plenty of time later to talk about that show. A more pressing matter is “American Idol.” And as always Cowell pulls no punches when he talks about the Fox show. He does do a tap dance worthy of a spot on “America’s Got Talent” when it comes to fellow judge Paula Abdul’s on-screen meltdown last week.

It is easy to find Cowell at the fancy hotel in Pasadena. He is the one with the huge cloud of cigarette smoke hanging over his head. It is always weird to see anyone in Hollywood smoke. But it is hard to remember when anyone was puffing as much as the “American Idol” judge.

Cowell tries to explain Abdul’s odd behavior in last week’s judging with A.) the producers changed the show and B.) Abdul had seen a rehearsal and based her comments on that. His best answer is C.) “Paula is Paula.”

Of more interest is why “American Idol,” a ratings juggernaut in the past, has saw an erosion of viewers this year. Cowell blames the theme nights. He particularly hates the Andrew Lloyd Webber night from a few weeks ago. Please don’t go running to Webber and tell him Cowell hates him. The “Idol” judge hated the theme not the man.

“We are not trying to find the next Broadway star. I know Clay Aiken is on Broadway right now. Great for him. But That is not what we are trying to do,” Cowell says.

He is not happy with the recent Neil Diamond night. He doesn’t think the themes are interesting enough to draw an audience.

Cowell also blames the contestants. He says don’t buy into the story they all like each other. He says every contestant wants the other to crash and burn. Cowell hates this year’s crop of crooners have not shown killer instincts. That makes for good television.

“American Idol” is down to the final four. So it will be over soon. And then Cowell can concentrate on “America’s Got Talent,” where he is one of the producers. He can concentrate on that show if he doesn’t die from lung cancer before then.