McSane?

All of the sudden, John McCain sounds almost half-rational again.

"There are not many times in history," he said, "that a president has come to office with as many challenges as the president-elect does and that's incumbent then upon all of us to try and do all we can to work with him."

Appearing on Fox News for one of the few times since losing the election, McCain offered a supportive assessments of the president-elect's agenda. He acknowledged the need to pass a stimulus, but said he would reserve judgment until he saw the final package.

"All I can say to you is that I want to see the stimulus package I want to see what it does, I want to see what kind of provision it has in it," he told Neil Cavuto. "I think the president-elect is going to marshal public opinion. Right now his approval ratings and hopes of the American people are very high," he later added.

He also called Obama's national security team "excellent," and saved special praise for CIA Director nominee Leon Panetta.

"I think that Leon Panetta is highly qualified, and in all due respect I think it is not bad from time to time to have somebody from outside of the intelligence community but with strong managerial experience as Chief of Staff of the White House, to be head of one of these agencies. I think there is some good balance there."

McCain said he talked with Obama since the election about foreign policy and domestic matters. Calling those conversations "very cordial," he added, "I want to help the president succeed."

Until he cemented his decision to run for president in 2008, this is how John McCain always sounded. Not like a bold, decisive leader or anything...just a fairly rational guy. This is what made him appealing to independents and Democrats.

Most Republicans sound completely insane.

Cheney also said during an interview Thursday with The Associated Press that he has no qualms about the reliability of intelligence obtained from terrorism suspects through waterboarding, a technique simulating drowning. The vice president said waterboarding has been used with "great discrimination by people who know what they're doing" and produced much valuable information.

They say things that rational people can only puzzle over, baffled.

A candidate for the Republican National Committee chairmanship said Friday the CD he sent committee members for Christmas -- which included a song titled "Barack the Magic Negro" -- was clearly intended as a joke.

"I think most people recognize political satire when they see it," Tennessee Republican Chip Saltsman told CNN. "I think RNC members understand that."

When one of them starts making ANY SENSE AT ALL, it's a huge relief. And that, to me, was always the explanation for McCain's appeal. He's still behaving like a Republican, but I can listen to him speak for more than a minute without feeling like I've plunged into some kind of Carroll-esque alternate universe, with everyone speaking in silly puzzles.

I mean, you could replace Rudy Giuliani's stump speech with dialogue from Prince Caspian and it'd have about the same level of relevance to everyday life in as it is lived in America.

Bear in mind, I don't think this bodes well for John McCain's character or integrity. This means that he's clued in enough to know better. He might not really believe in all the insane things he said and did during his presidential run...but he said and did them anyway. That's how much he wants to be president. Enough to potentially leave us with President Palin. Enough to pander to bigots. Enough to blatantly lie about stupid nonsense just to win over a few more ignorant yokels.

At least you get the feeling Rudy's genuinely crazy, and perhaps even sinister, by nature. He doesn't know any better. He thinks constantly boasting about and exploiting 9/11 makes him a hero. Because he's a nutcase. McCain hoped to fake being a nutcase in order to profit by it. That's worse!