John Kerry

It also shows why a man as talented and eloquent as he is did not have an easy path to leadership. Instead, it is remarkable that he got the nomination, nearly became President, and is the leader he now is.

It is ironic that he has the values that people say they look for - independence and willingness to put principle above easy gain, when his path would actually have been much easier if he had the flexible moral and political core of a Romney or a Clinton. Yet that very integrity and commitment to principles is probably the most basic reason all of us have been here at DU JK for 7 years - and some Mass people have supported him for nearly 30 years.

This may be the real heart of the "would you want to have a beer with him" argument, rather than just that he is not an extrovert. He is most definitely not someone who will take whatever position someone wants him to have just to make others happy. He is comfortable standing alone if it means living up to what he thinks right. That is rare anywhere, but likely rarer still in politics.