Dr. Jekyll and Mr. McCain

This is genuinely creepy. Barack Obama seems to be having a dust-up with Senator John McCain. Two guys who seem pretty amiable, right? Maybe McCain's prostate is just acting up. But this letter, couple with his recent pandering to the far-right in anticipation of a 2008 presidential bid (like showing up for a announcement on lobbying reform with Rick Santorum, the de facto head of the notorious K-Street Project), really makes me wonder about the man once hailed as 'Mr. Integrity.'

Sen. John McCain unleashed an unusually biting and blunt broadside Monday against Democratic Sen. Barack Obama, accusing him of backtracking on a previous commitment to help develop a bipartisan proposal for lobbying and ethics reform.

"I'm embarrassed to admit that after all these years in politics, I failed to interpret your previous assurances as typical rhetorical gloss routinely used in politics to make self-interested partisan posturing appear more noble," the Arizona Republican said in a letter to Obama.

"Please be assured I won't make the same mistake again."

McCain also told the Illinois Democrat that "I understand how important the opportunity to lead your party's efforts to exploit this issue must seem to a freshman senator, and I hold no hard feelings over your earlier disingenuousness."

"I have been around long enough to appreciate that in politics, the public interest isn't always a priority for every one of us," McCain wrote. "Good luck to you, senator."

In response, Obama sent a letter back to McCain, saying he was "puzzled" by McCain's reaction and insisting he still supported a bipartisan approach to ethics reform.

"The fact that you have now questioned my sincerity and my desire to put aside politics for the public interest is regrettable but does not in any way diminish my deep respect for you, nor my willingness to find a bipartisan solution to this problem," Obama wrote.

Recommended reading.