John McCain's Liberty University commencement address

Though I question McCain's decision to give the 2006 commencement address at Liberty University, he brought grace, humility, and a deep respect for American values to the students there on Saturday. An excerpt:

We are not a perfect nation. Our history has had its moments of shame and profound regret. But what we have achieved in our brief history is irrefutable proof that a nation conceived in liberty will prove stronger, more decent and more enduring than any nation ordered to exalt the few at the expense of the many or made from a common race or culture or to preserve traditions that have no greater attribute than longevity.

As blessed as we are, no nation complacent in its greatness can long sustain it. We, too, must prove, as those who came before us proved, that a people free to act in their own interests, will perceive those interests in an enlightened way, will live as one nation, in a kinship of ideals, and make of our power and wealth a civilization for the ages, a civilization in which all people share in the promise and responsibilities of freedom.

UPDATE: The New York Times has published a new article related to my recent posts on both the Federal Marriage Amendment and James Dobson's Focus on the Family organization.