If politics is the battle between parties, what is the battle within a party?

On Tuesday, Senator John McCain made the following comments, which may be the next step in driving him to be the V.P. choice on the Democratic ticket:

Lately more and more comment about how Republicans and Democrats can’t find any common ground and I myself have lamented on how nasty and partisan Washington has become. Well, I stand corrected, because there is one thing which unites Republicans and Democrats: Fiscal irresponsibility has become the great unifier of late, and for that we should all be ashamed.

I am a proud Republican. I’m a Barry Goldwater Republican. I revere Ronald Reagan and his party of limited government. Sadly, that party is no longer. The current version of the Republican party is engaged in an outrageous spending binge and they’re being steadied and encouraged by the Democrats. It used to be understood that no one ever voted for a Democrat to be a champion of fiscal responsibility. But at this point, is there a party to take up that worthy cause?

And...

My friends, we are at war. Throughout our history, wartime has been a time of sacrifice. At the beginning of the war I said it would be long and difficult, and would require a great deal of sacrifice on everyone’s part. But about the only sacrifice taking place is that by the brave men and women fighting to defend and protect the liberties we hold so dear, and that of their families.

It is time for others to step up and start sacrificing.

And...

The party that was long known to be the guardian of the treasury is now its routine raider.

I agree with him. We need to move past the idea of political party allegiance as the determiner of correct ideas. What Senator McCain is saying is that we need to rise above that. This isn't a call for rampant taxes, but a challenge to govern responsibly. It's a call for leadership.

In response to that, House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert made the following comment:

If you want to see sacrifice, John McCain ought to visit our young men and women at Walter Reed and Bethesda. There's the sacrifice in this country. We're trying to make sure that they have the ability to fight this war, that they have the wherewithal to be able to do it. And at the same time, we have to react to keep this country strong not only militarily but economically. We want to be able to have the flexibility to do it. That's my reply to John McCain.

The North Vietnamese held John McCain in a POW camp during the Vietnam War. I'm willing to give him a free pass on understanding sacrifice. I commend Senator McCain for his reply to Representative Hastert. He could've taken the bait to defend his military service, but he kept the debate on the true crux of the issue. Consider:

The speaker is correct in that nothing we are called upon to do comes close to matching the heroism of our troops. All we are called upon to do is to not spend our nation into bankruptcy while our soldiers risk their lives. I fondly remember a time when real Republicans stood for fiscal responsibility.

America needs leadership. We need someone who will stand up and take charge, someone willing to guide the national debate forward towards resolution. That resolution needs to be legitimate, real, and lasting. Instead, we have President Bush.

At a time when there is scandal and chaos, President Bush has been woefully absent from the public debate. He takes no public responsibility for the mistakes of his administration. He continues offering rhetoric on less important issues. He pretends that the world is fine amid a downward spiral of public opinion. None of this is leadership. What we get is a president who journeys to Capitol Hill to evoke the party line.

The hurriedly scheduled trip was designed to assuage the trepidation of lawmakers as they head back to their states and districts for the Memorial Day break.

"Our guys need this," a House Republican aide said. "They can go home and say, 'We met with the president. He has a vision. We know where he's going. We trust him. Don't believe what the media's telling you.'"

We shouldn't believe what the media tells us, but that's not because they're lying. We need to get past the "liberal bias" rhetoric that's incessant. The easiest way to do that is to think for ourselves. Unfortunately, we don't do that in America. It's too easy to see partisan lines and check our minds at the door of debate. Consider statements from House Majority Leader Tom DeLay about the acrimony over the current proposed budget for the 2005 fiscal year:

"I can't believe that those three or four senators are going to bring down one of the best budgets we've ever seen over an issue that makes it difficult for Republicans to get tax relief."

Massive deficits and tax cuts aren't consistent with "one of the best budgets we've ever seen". Fiscal irresponsibility is painful. Republicans need to acknowledge that. For his refusal to bow to pressure from Republican heavyweights on an issue of national importance, he earns my applause.