Democratic Senator John D. Rockefeller IV of West Virginia has now apologize for comments made early in the week that seemed to disparage Sen. John McCain’s Vietnam War record. According to a story in today’s New York Times.

On Monday, Rockefeller …

… told The Charleston Gazette that Mr. McCain, the presumptive Republican nominee, could not relate to the everyday concerns of people on issues like health care.

According to the article, Mr. Rockefeller said: “McCain was a fighter pilot, who dropped laser-guided missiles from 35,000 feet. He was long gone when they hit. What happened when they get to the ground? He doesn’t know. You have to care about the lives of people. McCain never gets into those issues.”

The day after this interview, the McCain campaign demanded an apology from Rockefeller and Sen. Barack Obama, whom Rockefeller has endorsed. These apologies came quickly and sincerely.

Later in the day, Mr. Rockefeller’s office issued an updated statement, saying Mr. McCain had graciously accepted the apology and the two had sat together privately during a vote in the Senate in the afternoon.

It’s fascinating watching how politicians mess up and then move on. Some do it better than others. In this case, it seems like all three senators have following the collegial traditions of their chamber, and made nice.