What Last Night's Debate Performance By McCain Told Me

[THUNDER HANDS]

Basically I watched McCain's debate performance last night and was surprised, but not shocked, at what I saw. I saw him go after Obama on Ayers and his tax plan, which wasn't shocking to anyone who has followed the race closely the last week or so.

Then I saw him attack Obama on some other issues that raised a few red flags with me, like abortion and offshore drilling and his passionate defense of the nutcases at his rallies.

By doing that, McCain told me that he knows he lost the election. He went so hard-right on those issues he HAD to have known that it would upset swing voters and women voters - two groups he needed to reassure if he had any chance of a comeback.

But he didn't. He took the Rush Limbaugh debate approach, only he didn't do it as eloquently as Limbaugh could have, which made his attacks simultaneously offensive and ineffective.

But last night before I went to bed I had a thought that's stuck with me until now - what if McCain knows he lost the election and was now doing damage control - not for him, but for the Republican's senate hopes.

Why else would he go so hard right in his last debate, if not to rouse the base and send them to the polls where they might otherwise sit out. Because if the base of the GOP sits home on election day, not only does that hurt McCain, but it hurts every Republican senator that's running in a state that's competitive, which is something like 10 or 12 states right now.

He's basically tossing the red meat to keep the Senate is somewhat manageable hands, not necessarily to help him convince anyone to vote for him.

I think it's being brought down on him by the national higher ups in the GOP that McCain has to do something to help the ship, if he can't help himself.

They know he's going to lose, they've started to pull their money that was going to his campaign to put it in senate races. Elected officials across the country, starting in Florida with Charlie Christ, are saying they're not going to campaign for him.

McCain is on his own, and I think he was told in no uncertain terms, get the base to the polls to help us hold the senate or don't even bother showing your face around here November 5th because all the blame is going to get dumped on you for this loss.

So McCain went out there and gave a classic Republican argument that could have been made in any presidential election since 1960 - low taxes, no abortions, health care just for those who can afford it, blah blah blah.

Bring the base to the polls, even if you have to give up on your election hopes in the process.

McCain, being the good soldier that he is, went out there and followed orders, sinking his own ship in the process.

[islandmkl]

1. "...and by the way, johnny....

if you pull something out of your ass and get this race a little closer...

we might...MIGHT...be able to steal this sonofabitch, too...