National Perspective: It’s been 128 years since we’ve seen an election like this

On one side is a lifetime politician who has spent almost a half-century in elected office; on the other side is a relative political newcomer who disdains the political experience that his rival has accumulated. On one side is a leader who has respect for the conventional practices of politics; on the other is a leader whose entire identity is wrapped up in destroying the conventional. On one side is an elderly man who believes that past practices are adaptable to contemporary circumstances; on the other is an elderly man whose campaign is based on defiance of past practices. On one side is a political veteran who by virtue of longevity and, now, inclination, is an establishment figure; on the other is an outsider who has contempt for the inside game.

Not for a century and a quarter has the United States seen a presidential election remotely like this one.