Lugar's Epic Goodbye

Republican Richard Lugar sent a goodbye letter following his state's primary, in which he, the incumbent, was defeated, and it was quite a doozy. I don't know too much about the guy or his politics, his policies or his record, but from a few excerpts of his letter, we seem to share a similar disguist about how partisan politics have become. It's no longer acceptable to be moderate anything and it's literally pushing voters to protest and heckle instead of engaging discussion and working toward compromise. From the letter...

I don't remember a time when so many topics have become politically unmentionable in one party or the other. Republicans cannot admit to any nuance in policy on climate change. Republican members are now expected to take pledges against any tax increases. For two consecutive Presidential nomination cycles, GOP candidates competed with one another to express the most strident anti-immigration view, even at the risk of alienating a huge voting bloc. Similarly, most Democrats are constrained when talking about such issues as entitlement cuts, tort reform, and trade agreements. Our political system is losing its ability to even explore alternatives. If fealty to these pledges continues to expand, legislators may pledge their way into irrelevance. Voters will be electing a slate of inflexible positions rather than a leader.

Again...I'm not saying this guy should have been re-elected, that we should like him or that his policies and affiliations followed this mindset. I don't know if he acted in the same ways that he writes. I don't know if this is just a last-gasp plea to the public in hopes of saving face...BUT his overall outlook on politics these days seems spot on and even if he's not the guy who actually worked toward bipartisanship with his actions, we still need more politicians to admit this problem, realize it, and try to work back toward moderation.
http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/05/08/11605668-lugars-goodbye?lite