Primary democracy

Whether or not John McCain can win the GOP nomination - and Americans, regardless of political stripe, should hope for this - George Packer makes a good observation that McCain's campaign events aren't your typical manufactured press ops that the other candidates indulge in.

McCain takes questions for about an hour and a half. Many of them - about the deficit, taxes, jobs, Iraq - are implicitly or explicitly critical. As Rick Hertzberg wrote about another McCain event, "It's impossible to imagine any of the other Republicans engaging in this kind of extended conversation with a citizen." I didn't see anything quite like it at the two Democratic events I attended this week, either. McCain encourages follow-ups, he addresses the questioner in a direct and personal way, he seems to relish what he calls "open and honest disagreement" and emphasizes that he will sometimes tell people what they don't want to hear. But he doesn't give an inch.

It can't be said enough that in a democracy, this is how a politician should act. A presidential candidate, any candidate for that matter, should be able to stand in the face of aggressive questioning and give their stance without grumbling or obscuration.

McCain does this to his credit. He may be a Republican but he acts like a democrat, note the small "d".