Perhaps we should simply thank McCain for finally coming clean on the Confederate flag issue and telling us what he really believes — that the flag is a divisive symbol that should not fly above the South Carolina Statehouse. Perhaps we should simply acknowledge his candor and courage in speaking out now and hope that it will provide further impetus for South Carolina legislators to reach a compromise that will bring the flag down.

Perhaps we shouldn’t even be surprised, or certainly not disappointed, that a presidential candidate has admitted he told potential voters what he thought they wanted to hear, not what was truly in his heart.

Perhaps we should simply shrug it off, put it down to politics as usual and expect no better from any candidate in the future.

Perhaps we should, but we can’t — because John McCain was not merely another candidate. He was, after all, the pilot of the “Straight Talk Express.” He was a candidate who presented himself as someone who put honor and principle above political expediency. His campaign cornerstone was that he would not be beholden to special interests or politics as usual, but to the guiding light of conscience and personal conviction.

It would be naive to suggest that political compromise isn’t necessary, both to get elected and to get things done in office. But, as McCain himself noted, his subterfuge on the flag went beyond compromise or a subtle couching of words. He sacrificed “principle for personal ambition.”

In doing so, McCain provided more reason for a disillusioned and weary electorate to doubt the sincerity of those who would govern us. He also lost the chance to provide courageous leadership on a divisive issue that has had more than its share of political pandering and demagoguery.

This is not to trivialize or dismiss McCain’s apology, or to doubt the sincerity of his remorse and regret. There seems little motivation for his candor now, other than the urging of conscience. Still, the cynic may ask: Why trust him now?