It's clear that Barack Obama has captured the spirit of civic engagement that awakened in millions of Americans, aided by netroots techonology, and propted by the Iraq War and Hurricane Katrina, two of many disasters that have resulted from 8 years of partisan politics without effective governance.
But it may be that the most important changes are taking place within the Republican Party. That is why I enjoy reading columns by conservative Republican authors like David Broder, who are telling the story of the transformation of the Republican party from the inside out.
Anyone interested in American government should read this.