I (heart) Andrew Sullivan

For writing paragraphs like this one:

Two further impressions. At a couple of points in his speech, he used the phrase: "This is not who we are." I was struck by the power of those words. He was reasserting that America is much more than George W. Bush and Dick Cheney and Gitmo and Abu Ghraib and Katrina and fear and obstinacy and isolation. And so he makes an argument for change in the language of restoration. The temperamental conservatives in America hear a form of patriotism; and the ideological liberals hear a note of radicalism. It's a powerful, unifying theme. He'd be smart to deepen and broaden it.


(Disclaimer: My Dad has long been a fan of Sullivan's; his sweet blend of mild social liberalism, Catholic tradition, intellectual integrity, anachronistic Toryism, and gay wit always appealed to him. Naturally, I took the opposite stance, and saw little in his writing I couldn't get from any other Beltway Clintonite Third Wayer. Then the war came, and as with so much else it served as a crucible to separate out the elements of pundit thought. And Sullivan came off well, especially in comparison to, oh, ninety per cent of the rest of the Gang of 500. Now, our mutual devotion to Barack Obama, in particular in terms of what his rhetoric and persona can do for the left, has sealed the deal. Andrew Sullivan, you just moved up a notch in my book.)