McCain’s military heroism seems to have faded into the background — or even out of the picture altogether. And that was to be expected, I guess. Americans don’t much care — and I’m not even contending, for now, that they should. Bill Clinton was a draft-dodging self-justifying ’60s lib. And he ran against two outstanding WWII vets: Bush 41, who was the youngest pilot in the Navy, I believe — fibbed about his age to get in, at age 17; was shot down, etc.; and Bob Dole, “The Man from Po Valley,” they used to call him, who was shot up, bad, in the service of his country. Dole’s physical rehabilitation was an act of extraordinary grit.

Anyway, none of that mattered against Billy J., whom the voters wanted, by a lot. Military service seems to be a nothing in a campaign.

Except in 2004, when Kerry’s four months in Vietnam were talked about constantly — “reporting for duty!” — and GWB was denounced as a wuss, and a near-traitorous wuss, for having merely flown fighter jets in the Guard. Funny, how that worked out.