Michael Kelly's death is tragic. NRO and Powerline call him a conservative, but he was truly a rarity, a principled liberal. He despised Clinton & Gore for their betrayal of liberalism, and was contemptuous of the hollowing-out of the morals and ethics of the Democratic Party. He admired Bush for his principles. Read his pre-9/11 stuff to see this. On a political level, a man like Michael Kelly showed how radical the Democratic party had become. Journalistically, we've lost someone we can point to as the embodiment of loyal opposition.
Some favorite columns:
February 2002, The Atlantic
May 23, 2001 Washington Post
May 30, 2001 Washington Post
This wasn't the first time Powell let himself get blindsided by our "allies."
April 18, 2001 Washington Post
November 7, 2001 Washington Post
Wishing for a responsible Left.
September 5, 2001 Washington Post
Kelly's outstanding characteristic was his integrity. It allowed him to see phonies like the Clintons and Gore for what they are, to wish the best for a President (Bush) whom he might not have seen eye-to-eye on, and to write what he thought even though it cost him his job, and not to complain about faux "censorship," when it happened. The courage to criticize your own is hard to come by, especially when the country keeps electing presidents with less than 50% of the vote. But it was the kind of courage that wins and keeps readers, and keeps administrations honest.
