The bipartisan outpouring for Ted Kennedy, following his seizure, hospitalization, and diagnosis of brain cancer, underscores what a major figure in American politics he is.

More than that, it shows some of the peculiarities of Washington politics. Republicans have been using Kennedy's name as an epithet for years now, most recently when they accuse Barack Obama of having a voting record in the Senate that is "more liberal than Ted Kennedy," as if that should disqualify him as a candidate for President. Yet Kennedy has been remarkably effective in pushing legislation like health care coverage for children and increasing the minimum wage precisely because he has made common cause with Republicans, including President Bush.

He knows how to reach across the aisle and how to make pragmatic deals to reach principled goals.

"I have described Ted Kennedy as the last lion in the Senate. And I have held that view because he remains the single most effective member of the Senate," Republican Senator and Presidential candidate John McCain told CNN.

President Bush described him as a "friend" and "a man of tremendous courage, remarkable strength and powerful spirit."

Yet Kennedy embraces the term "liberal" and takes clear stands on ideological issues where other Democrats fear to speak up. For all the "friends" he has made on the other side, he also supports gay marriage and abortion rights without equivocation. As a member of the Judiciary Committee, he is an outspoken and eloquent critic of conservative appointees to the Court. He was an early opponent of the debacle in Iraq, and spoke forcefully against the "surge."

As an elder statesman--he is the second-longest-serving member of the Senate after Robert Byrd--Kennedy gets some deference even from his ideological rivals (and a long and weepy premature farewell from Byrd himself on the Senate floor). Decades later, the shame of Chappaquiddick has faded, as have the embarrassing stories of harassment and sexual escapades.

What remains is Kennedy's remarkable record in the Senate. And the example of someone for whom taking clear stands on the left side of the issues did not mean sacrificing credibility or concrete accomplishments. That's an example the Democrats would do well to follow.