George Will has some harsh words for John McCain today. "The more one sees of his impulsive, intensely personal reactions to people and events," says Will, "the less confidence one has that he would select judges by calm reflection and clear principles, having neither patience nor aptitude for either." I'd modify the statement a bit: The more one sees of McCain's impulsive tendency to understand events through people, the less confidence he inspires. McCain is, at heart, a relentless personalizer. His attitude towards Russia, as John Judis has detailed at some length, is largely a bunch of Great Power rhetoric pasted atop a primal dislike of Vladimir Putin. His take on the financial crisis was a desperate and slightly comic search for good guys and bad guys. He found, in the "evil' column, Chris Cox and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. But he's been unable to explain why any of those players deserve more opprobrium than everyone else. Alan Greenspan, for instance, refused to regulate the subprime market, even after his underlings brought the problems to his attention and begged action from him. Fannie and Freddie were compromised institutions, but no dirtier than dozens of other major investment banks or lenders. And Andrew Cuomo, who McCain has decided is a "good guy" in the crisis, was the government official who, as HUD Secretary had the power to regulate Fannie and Freddie in the 90s. Not only did he abdicate that responsibility, but he made a series of decisions that hastened their entry into the subprime market. Of course, McCain's tendency to sort the world into good and evil has held him in good stead till now. It's why reporters love him: A politician willing to trash other politicians makes for a great quote. A candidate willing to enter into bitter feuds with everyone from Grover Norquist to Barack Obama makes for vibrant copy. If you're evaluating the politican-as-narrative-vessel, a tendency to personalize conflict is a tremendous virtue. The problem comes now that McCain is being asked to seriously understand world events and crises, and the public is looking for more than a good quote or an angry denunciation. They're looking for a compelling explanation. And McCain doesn't have any of those.
