President-elect Barack Obama, praising former presidential rival Sen. John McCain for bucking the trend of party politics, said Monday that America’s business isn’t about being Democratic or Republican.  “I could stand here and recite the long list of John’s bipartisan accomplishments …” Obama said at the traditional bipartisan inaugural dinner. “Campaign finance reform. Immigration. The Patients’ Bill of Rights. All those times he has crossed the aisle and risked the ire of his party for the good of his country. And yet, what makes John such a rare and courageous public servant is not the accomplishments themselves, but the true motivation behind them.” Now, Obama continued, it’s time to let Monday’s event kick off a new era in American politics. “We will not always agree on everything in the months to come, and we will have our share of arguments and debates,” Obama said. “But let us strive always to find that common ground, and to defend together those common ideals, for it is the only way we can meet the very big and very serious challenges that we face right now.” Showing his comedic side, Obama said, “I’m here tonight to say a few words about an American hero I have come to know very well and admire very much – Sen. John McCain,” Obama said as he opened his speech. “And then, according to the rules agreed to by both parties, John will have approximately 30 seconds to make a rebuttal.”