It was a very brief glimpse into what might be…

Today, Mr. McCain slammed into the wall that is his base. At a rally, conservative talk-radio host Bill Cunningham was revving up the Republican crowd for McCain when he began to use Barack Obama’s middle name, Hussein, in an implication-filled hate-mongering sort of way. And what did McCain do immediately after learning of the incident? Did he let it go? Did he encourage it? Neither. He apologized for it. And he didn’t stop there. He had a “buck stops here” moment by taking complete responsibility for something he probably had no control over. The guy held a press conference over the thing, and here’s a quote…

It’s my understanding that before I came in here a person who was on the program before I spoke made some disparaging remarks about my two colleagues in the Senate, Senator Obama and Senator Clinton. I have repeatedly stated my respect for Senator Obama and Senator Clinton, that I will treat them with respect. I will call them Senator. We will have a respectful debate, as I have said on hundreds of occasions. I regret any comments that may have been made about these two individuals who are honorable Americans.”

Now the extracon talk-radio host Mr. Cunningham is furious with Mr. McCain, threatening to vote for Ralph Nader instead. And he’s left scratching his head, wondering why he just got lambasted by the top guy for what he’s been doing for years without repudiation. Is it me, or is Mr. McCain having difficulty with his new campaign allies in the Republican Party? You know… the Bush base.

The gravity that McCain brought with his response to the incident reveals a couple of things about his candidacy. First, his uncomfortable partnership with his party’s powerful vocal minority is extremely fragile, which may prove to be a damaging reality for his chances. But offsetting that is McCain’s inescapable quality, and his strongest asset… his honor. But make no mistake, it’s a gutsy quality to stake your political future on. To plant your campaign flag in the word “honor” forces you to live up to a very high standard if it’s to be believed. It forces you to stand up to your own party’s establishment from time to time, risking loss of support and damnation in the talk-radio world. Not many politicians would have done what he did. Most would have played dumb and looked the other way. Some would have tried to weasel out of it somehow. But very few politicians have the courage to draw a line in the sand with their presidential campaign on one side, and their party’s base on the other. And to my complete amazement, McCain’s doing just that. No matter who the Democratic candidate turns out to be, I think McCain will be a very strong opponent in a general election, especially in an election year where the middle of the road is obviously a good place to be.

Finally, the sensible climate of the political center is warming. And for people interested in honest debate about this country’s countless challenges, all of this should come as welcome news.

This election is fascinating on so many levels. Let’s begin with the Republican side. A widely-respected moderate named John McCain is strolling to the nomination, and his own party isn’t happy about it. After thinking about that peculiar fact for a bit, I guess it doesn’t surprise me. The base of the Republican party has been spoiled rotten with GW, and they understandably want the party, in all senses of the word, to continue another several years. But the rest of the Republicans, maybe the fiscal conservatives for the most part, have spoken. On a strategic level, this has to send a clear message to the evangelical base; the country has changed.

And that’s only fitting, isn’t it? After all, this is the election of “change”. The word is all the rage. So I’m going to apply it to Bill Clinton, or more specifically… his legacy.

Did anyone else question the state of the Democratic universe when the party told its favorite son to shut up in South Carolina? People were highly critical of the former president after his campaign remarks directed at Barack Obama. I personally didn’t see anything too shocking about his stump myself. He was aggressively campaigning for his talented wife, but he too didn’t realize this year’s most important fact; the country has changed. And more importantly, his own party has changed. Bill Clinton unwittingly walked right into Barack Obama’s “politics as usual” argument, and did Obama the favor of proving his point for him. For whatever reason (and I’m sure there are a lot of them) Democrats want a fully vetted electoral process this time around. And there’s no doubt that they’re being treated to a one-of-a-kind race that’s worth the long primary process. Again, it’s an election that’s fascinating on so many levels. And the people involved should give that fact the utmost respect when forming strategies. It seems that the younger candidate understands that. But Hillary’s campaign amazingly didn’t grasp it soon enough.

But back to Bill. Seeing the reaction of his own party to his passionate campaign antics reminded me of the most beautiful rule of politics; fluidity. It’s what keeps things interesting. And when people look back at this historic time, which Bill Clinton will they remember? Will he be the president who lead the country through unequaled peace and prosperity? Or will he be remembered as his wife’s spoiler, on more than one occasion? The answer is impossible to know, but fun as hell to think about.

Primary season is a unique time in the political process, with candidates courting their bases with radicalized ideas on the Republican side like rounding up the Mexicans, and abolishing the IRS. Democrats are making sure to hit all the right chords with their base as well, although talk of abortion rights seem pretty absent this cycle. But what interests me is that the candidates still standing are all much more moderate. Obama often talks about his ability to broker legislation by bringing people together from all sides. Clinton, although most right-wingers stick her with the liberal-commie brand, is moderate-left at best who has worked with none other than McCain on legislation. But the topper is McCain, who is so loathed by his base that they don’t even regard him as a conservative or Republican. ConRadio is stomping their feet like babies, demanding attention from their own party. To me, a backlash of this type is truly a Republican phenomenon. They would rather see their own party destroyed in the upcoming election than to see a moderate Republican candidate win. They’re too self-righteously bullheaded to realize that in a Republican White House they at least get a seat at the table. In a Democratic White House, they’re not invited in at all.

There’s an elephant in the hollowed halls of the Old Guard Republican war room. It’s an extra-large elephant because nobody in the party wants to look at it, or even admit its existence. And the elephant’s name is Reality.