LEADERS SET AN EXAMPLE FOR ALL THE WORLD TO NOTE

The past week has been a remarkable one. For the first time in 12 years, a challenger swept a sitting president out of the White House. For the first time in that same dozen years, a Democrat will assume the presidency. The nation and its government will spend the coming months in transition, awaiting the inauguration of the new president and the assembly of the new administration. Our hope is that transition will be absent the acrimony of the campaign that led to it, and early indications are that will be the case.

Certainly, our nation is well-represented on the global stage with the grace displayed by both President Bush and President-elect Clinton in the aftermath of Tuesday's vote. Following a campaign where rancor was too often the norm and negative advertising seemed ready to choke our national will, both of these gentlemen are setting an example of decorum and American unity with their deportment during this awkward period of power shifting.

Regardless of political leanings, one couldn't help but admire the heart of President Bush in his concession speech Tuesday night. To stand before the nation one he's stewarded through successful times and favorable global events and acknowledge the rejection of its citizens must have been a difficult and painful chore. Still, his countenance was not downcast and his message was hopeful. It was a class act all the way.

Gov. Clinton was just as dignified in accepting America's vote. On Wednesday, he held at arm's length the attempt by some to dish him power too quickly. He clearly defined the transition process for the world: "The greatest gesture of goodwill that any nation can make toward me during this period is to continue full cooperation with our one president, George Bush. The greatest mistake any adversary could make would be to doubt America's resolve during this transition."

The United States, at 216 years of age a relative pup in the long history of mankind, remains a unique experiment in government. Our republic has seen 40 presidents, soon to see one more, and not all transitions have been smooth. Nothing in the law compels civility between victor and vanquished in a political race, especially one of such high stakes. But President Bush and Gov. Clinton are providing us a lesson we should gratefully heed: While we may disagree on what is best for this nation, we are all Americans. We owe this country nothing less than the reverence being paid to the system now by these two leaders.