Plain Honest Abe

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David Brooks writes about the fast approaching campaign season. He says that he likes to keep Abraham Lincoln in mind, to be held up as a sort of gold standard. He makes the interesting observation, though, that a Lincoln probably could not even be considered a candidate in present-day America: "We will not get a Lincoln. A person with his face could not survive the TV age. A person with his capacity for introspection could not survive the 24/7 self-branding campaign environment." When Americans are more interested in reality-TV shows and pretty people than in reality itself and serious people, you have to have pretty modest expectations. In fact, it is probably a good idea to brace yourself for the worst. We could get Sarah Palin!

[Source: David Brooks at The New York Times]