A Third Way

Old friends of Chiles, former Florida governor Bob Graham and former Georgia U.S. Senator Sam Nunn, joined other distinguished guests at a bipartisan political forum today held at University of Oklahoma.

The transcript is found here.

One of the most interesting--and challenging--aspects of a politician's life is his or her retirement. If often a great glimpse into someone's values. It's great to see Nunn and Graham still in the policy debate. In the case of Chiles, he never really retired formally--except for the brief interregnum between the U.S. Senate and governor years. As Governor MacKay said, Chiles didn't like to talk legacy because there were always "miles to go."

I especially like Nunn's comments. One of his barbs was replayed on CNN today. It's the sort of wordplay the political South is known for. Paraphrasing: a preacher once said that lots of leaders think they're on track but if you look behind you, and nobody's following...well you're just taking a walk.