McCain is a risk-taker. When he supported sending additional troops to Iraq for the so-called surge, public support for the war was at its lowest point and the military situation in the country looked dire. But, he said that he would rather lose an election than lose a war.
Obama thinks the election is the only war that counts, and he aims to win it. As for risk-taking, he'll do nothing that he thinks might stop his juggernaut from capturing the White House, which is why he insisted that Friday's first presidential debate go on as scheduled, financial crisis be damned. If Obama had agreed to McCain's proposal to hold 10 town hall meetings, then Friday's debate could easily have been postponed while both men stayed where they belonged, in Washington. Instead, Obama made it clear that he would be in Oxford, Miss., and McCain had no choice but to return to the campaign trail.
These two candidates have been campaigning for months, but the American people have never had a clearer look into what drives them than they had this week. One man's ambition is to become president. The other man's ambition is to get things done.
In the vagaries of a presidential election, it is never possible to predict how voters will react to events. But character often trumps party affiliation or even specific policy concerns when it comes to determining which candidate will prevail. And when it comes to character, John McCain once again proved this week that he has the edge.