I'm Pete du Pont with the National Center for Policy Analysis. Pundits have offered a variety of reasons why John McCain is giving George W. Bush a stronger race than many (including me) predicted he would.
Well, I've given it some thought.
More than any of the other viable candidates, McCain is, or is perceived to be, not Bill Clinton.
He has, or appears to have, a specific agenda about which he cares. He isn't a true believer, a visionary, like Ronald Reagan. But he's committed to a plan, not committed to the last person he talked to. He is more concerned with being respected than with being loved. He has personal integrity and standards, not a relativistic world view fueling runaway appetites. He served his country and didn't whine about it.
It doesn't automatically mean McCain's the best man for the job. But it could mean that after eight years of Clinton exhaustion, he's in the best position of any candidate to profit from our collective White House disgust.
Those are my ideas, and at the NCPA we know ideas can change the world. I'm Pete du Pont. Next time, regulation killers.