I had thought John McCain had the potential to be the kind of transforming figure in politics that I've yearned for. I was a huge fan. But I'm an objective person, too. And McCain's continual petty and usually baseless attacks on Obama (amplified joyfully by Rush and FoxNews) convince me that he's just more of the same. Deeply disappointing.

I believe Obama, too, has the potential to be a transforming political figure, despite his youth and inexperience, and he has done nothing to turn me away. I desperately long for someone who can, as much as possible, transcend normal politics. It may be decades before another such person comes along.

The Washington Post ran a thorough article about the flap over visiting the troops in Germany, debunking the (disappointing) lies and innuendoes thrown around by McCain & Co.