Centerfield

A Sign of the Times

A week ago, the voters of Iowa said they want a positive campaign, and punished both Dean and Gephardt for pummeling each other in the waning days of that contest.

Today, I suspect the voters of New Hampshire will do the same -- presenting Dean with a double-digit loss and pretty much finishing the one candidate most closely associated with the politics of anger.

I think there's something more going on here than maneuverings in a Democratic primary. I sense a certain underlying, perhaps subconscious, feeling ... something that will affect both parties and fundamentally shape the year to come.

We're in an unnatural place, politically speaking. The natural reaction of any nation following a devastating attack such as 9/11 is to pull together. You saw it in good ol' boys from Texas packing up and going to New York to lend a hand. There was a moment two years ago when everybody felt like a New Yorker, or, perhaps, people sensed that New Yorkers were reflecting our American values in the most extraordinary ways.

The natural reaction of the world, meanwhile, was deepest sympathy. Thousands of American civilians had perished in an unprovoked attack. The world understood that we were all targets -- terrorism was a challenge to civilization as a whole.

In the meantime -- the two years since -- our economy has stagnated. We've had more economic uncertainty in the past three years than in the previous decade. That uncertainty affects people more than our fears about terrorism, by a long shot.

Americans want a president who helps us regain that native American sense of optimism. We've been trying to figure out how to believe again, and haven't quite managed it. We would love to feel like we're coming together, not shouting at one another across a political fence.

The leader who can do this successfully will balance realism with hope -- being frank about the security challenges we face, the steps we need to take to deal with them, and the fact that we can never be 100% sure of preventing the next attack.

It's possible for Americans to accept the risk, while going forward with a strong sense of hope and optimism about our future. The leader of the moment will be the one who finds that balance -- realistic, grounded ... but unifying and optimistic.