John McCain Rally-19, originally uploaded by Michael J Metts.

Few people disliked John McCain more than I did back in May and June, when immigration dominated the headlines and the senator’s support for comprehensive reform nearly sunk his presidential campaign. It’s strange how a few months and a new issue can change one’s perspective. Today I can’t think of a presidential candidate I admire more than McCain for his principled stand against pork-barrel spending, particularly in the wake of the earmark-filled omnibus spending bill.

I’ve come to accept that I will always have a love-hate relationship with McCain. With the first votes of 2008 about to be cast, I’m surprised shocked to see McCain so competitive considering he was left for dead six months ago. I’ve personally gone from wanting McCain out of the race — gloating over his campaign layoffs and rumors of his demise — to valuing his presence perhaps more than any other candidate.

I’m not endorsing any candidate in either party, but I feel comfortable saying that the Republican race wouldn’t be complete without McCain. Take the issues of fiscal restraint and national security, for example. It’s no surprise Rudy and Romney trumpeted their fiscally conservative credentials after passage of the bloated omnibus; McCain has railed against earmarks for years, long before other candidates uttered a word about them. And on foreign policy, there’s no stronger voice than McCain’s. As events of the last week illustrated, McCain’s knowledge and experience give him an advantage over everyone else in the race. His support of the surge in Iraq was a huge gamble, but his principled stand might turn out to be his biggest asset.

While there are issues in McCain’s past that continue to trouble me — campaign finance reform and his mixed record on taxes being two big hurdles — I cannot help but wonder if he’s learned from such mistakes. I certainly don’t expect him to reverse course entirely from previous policy positions, but his response in the aftermath of the immigration debacle gives me hope. Rather than continuing to tout a failed plan, McCain recognized his mistake and endorsed the idea of an enforcement-first approach. Some may call that flip-flopping, but I call it political reality and an attempt to tackle a serious public policy issue.

Putting policy aside, there’s another reason I’ve grown to like John McCain: He’s made himself accessible. Whether it’s at public town hall meetings or through conversations with bloggers by telephone or on his bus, McCain recognizes the importance of relating to ordinary Americans. (Yes, I consider myself one.) At a time when other candidates talk only to elite reporters or packed auditoriums — heck, Mike Huckabee is charging people to hear him speak — McCain seems genuinely interested in people rather than a political script. He’ll give you straight talk anytime or anywhere.

Realistically, I’m not sure McCain stands a chance, even if he does perform well in Iowa and wins New Hampshire. But there’s no question he’s a battle-tested warrior who is going to fight until the end. For that I give him credit.

UPDATE — 10:32 p.m.: Patrick Ruffini e-mails this post, which features an article from Jonathan Chait of The New Republic that was written in 2002.