Is McCain making his move?

Some of you may have noticed that I'm partial to John McCain. Though I lean to the left on many issues, at a point when America is sorely divided into red and blue, the only person I see as a uniter is the Senator from Arizona. He is undoubtedly a war hero (until the POWs for Truth start raising their heads), he has gobs of integrity, he is a reformer that can reach across the aisle. He has the respect of his colleagues and the respect of the people. There is also the matter of his candor, something that this article discusses:
http://www.slate.com/id/2130132/?nav=tap3

I personally was very disappointed when McCain campaigned for Bush last year and I somehow got the feeling that someone was holding a gun to his head. I can't see him willingly campaigning for Bush, who despite deploying the most soldiers since Vietnam has consistently lower veteran's benefits, which I consider particularly foul. Maybe I'm just being an apologist for McCain, but that’s not the point.

I supported McCain over Bush in 2000 and I hope that he runs again in 2008. In order to gain credibility, however, he needs to distance himself from the current administration as much as possible.

My question is whether this calling out of Bush to admit mistakes and speak the truth about the war is his first step in moving away. For one, his record of credibility, accountability and honesty is something that Bush cannot match right now. At the same time, there is little to suggest that Bush will actually admit any mistakes, which could therefore put further distance between McCain and the administration without hurting the senator as Bush's capital shrinks and gradually washes away. This then opens more space for McCain to criticize the administration, leading to him throwing his hat in the ring for 2008 and pulling out the big guns against Bush.

McCain has a huge advantage over any of his possible rivals in that he is willing to admit he made a mistake. He also has said something very important: the job in Iraq must be done. I was against the war from the beginning, but once a country as volatile as Iraq is broke, you gotta fix it. The price for failure in Iraq is more that the United States and the rest of the world can afford. Bush has shown he doesn't know what to do with the problem, but McCain could, especially because he's not afraid to bring in experts from all spheres and political orientations to simply get the job done. In short, McCain looks for experts while Bush brings in the cronies.

I'm hoping that this call for honesty, which in effect is attacking Bush where it hurts the most right now, is the first step towards McCain making a run for the presidency. Personally, I'd much rather see him in the post than any other of the possible candidates, on the right (Frist) or the left (Hillary).