I know I’m not alone in wanting to help fundamentally change the political culture in this country. We’re tired of having to choose between two carefully crafted (and supposedly oppositional) ideologies. We crave meaningful dialogue. Hillary, on the other hand, has regretfully shown she wants no more than the proof she can win the game she’s spent her life playing. I know it doesn’t seem possible they could pull it off (after 2000, all bets are off), but were she to win, the status quo would prevail. Those with power would get to keep it, precisely by reaping the rewards of perpetuating the illusion of the polarization of American politics. It’s not surprising, then, that Bill Kristol compared Obama to Marx in the New York Times. Nor was I shocked when the “liberal” newspaper hired this “conservative” in the first place. Bill Kristol was Chief of Staff to William Bennett during the Reagan administration, and his brand of divisive politics would become irrelevant were we to succeed at fundamentally rethinking traditional ideological battles. Kristol needs Hillary to win. He’s not the only one who recognizes what they have to gain from another Clinton presidency. Ask another recent Clinton surrogate who’s been rather cozy in the current White House.

I don’t mean to suggest Obama’s words couldn’t have been better chosen. George Packer, for one, has offered a substantive critique, which Obama (and all of us pulling for him) would be wise to digest before moving on to the general election. But let’s get over this distraction, already! Don’t we want a president who talks to us like we’re adults? Don’t we want a president who talks about our real shared values — like equality? Don’t we desire a president who will not allow the political establishment to keep us divided? I think we do, but this week has shown us once again how hard they’ll work to keep us pitted against each other, and how much they have to gain from doing so.

Speak the truth and you risk offending someone. Then again, what’s the alternative? Senator Clinton, your pandering is duly noted. Until you stop fighting for the status quo, we have every right to be bitter.

Update: 4/16/08. The hypocrisy made clearer.

Update: 4/17/08. I added this link on the word “conservative” above. I used to think McCain the more respectable type of “conservative,” largely due to his work with Feingold on campaign finance reform, and to his noble weathering of attacks from the religious right in 2000. Like Hillary, however, he’s now proven he’ll say anything to win. I hope that, with the Bushes and the Clintons exiting the national political stage, McCain feels safer returning to his maverick roots, and we can embark on the real debate this country so obviously needs.

Oh, Hillary. It didn’t have to end this way.