Stacy, what George Will did wasn’t petty score settling. It was a slam-down of an out-of-control bully who had lost his temper, his judgment, and whatever principles he claimed to have. John McCain had spent all week fulminating (fulmination being something he’s good at) against greed and corruption, and then he recommended to head the SEC a guy whose own policies at HUD greased the path for all the shenanigans McCain called “greed and corruption,” and who also used HUD corruptly himself to try to bolster his race for governor by giving grants to New York. Then again, McCain doesn’t care about consistency, or about political philosophy, or about treating decent people decently; he just wants a scapegoat and a demagogic applause line. He doesn’t know the facts or even care to know them, he offers no logic, and he gives evidence of everything BUT a calm head in a crisis. As Will said, aptly, McCain substitutes vehemence for coherence. In doing so, he sacrifices his vaunted honor as well.
