The Statesman or the Politician?

The question keeps coming back to me: what do we want for a president: a statesman, or a politician? In the debate last week McCain came across as every bit the politician, with not an ounce of statesmanship in him, persisting with his nasty slurs about Romney's positions on Iraq withdrawal and sneering unpleasantly most of the time while Romney was speaking. And then there's the "I Hate Mitt Romney" Club I posted about previously, and more sleaziness like this trick McCain pulled on Sunday and Monday. Apparently keener to "get into Romney's head" than to lead, he again reinforced the perception (at least in my mind) that he's more politician than statesman.

Contrast this with Romney, who remained above the fray and pretty much unflappable during that debate and has been polite and dignified throughout the process. I know which qualities I prefer in a president, and I imagine others do too.