Rolling Stone has a cover article by Tim Dickenson called "Make Believe Maverick."

http://www.rollingstone.com/news/coverstory/make_believe_maverick_the_real_john_mccain

It points out how much of the media and public persona of McCain is pure fiction and that, much as with the current president, his reputation as a "straight shooter" is built on quicksand. Have a read. Will any of this seep into a new debate over personal character? Obama's biography, even if presented as a cartoonish smear ala Fox News, would stand up quite well in comparison, the Weatherman and the Pastor notwithstanding.

Ben