There's no other explanation for his refusal of Secret Service protection. But Marc Ambinder points to excerpts from this week's Fox New Sunday in which McCain tells Wallace he will accept protection starting next week. Obviously there is something deeply admirable about McCain's reluctance to engage his own Praetorian Guard. And it's not hard to imagine the thinking behind it. The guy lost five aircraft and live to tell the tale, there probably isn't a lot that scares him. Which is not to say that Obama didn't do the right thing by requesting a detail so early on. I would have serious doubts about his judgment if he hadn't. He's got little kids to worry about. McCain's kids are mostly grown-up, two older girls, one son in Iraq, and another on the way. He refused protection in 2000 and all through the primaries, but as the presumptive nominee he's more than just another candidate. And yet he still seems to think of himself as an expendable soldier. It's really admirable, but it's a bit daft for him to talk of cutting back on presidential security. You want a president who's not afraid to face a political death.