More Risible AnalysisIf I didn't know better, I'd swear
this piece was put together by John McCain's staff:
John McCain's Obama- esque remarks about our "wasted" resources in Iraq weren't the only comments that landed him in hot water after a recent appearance on Late Night with David Letterman. Many of his staff were blindsided by his campaign announcement. And several aides were so outraged that they've quit, say Republican insiders.
"They're imploding—he had a game plan that had him announcing much later in the year," one top Republican aide tells Radar, adding that the campaign is "in serious trouble ... Romney's plan and Rudy's jump in the polls caused him to scrap his plans completely. When you do that, and you're not prepared for it, the staff goes crazy. Some of his coordinators in different states were pulling their hair out!"
Romney's "plan"? Is that the plan to get about
8-10% in polling?
Another insider, a guru to the conservative movement, says that McCain himself is growing increasingly desperate in the wake of his downward slide in the polls—a slip hastened by his steadfast support of the very man who savaged him and his family during the 2000 election, George W. Bush, and the president's unpopular plan for troop surge in Iraq. "One of the top aides to the Republican leadership told me that McCain has lost so much support, he's simply beside himself. He's wringing his hands. Things are sinking fast—in two or three weeks, we'll know if there is any recovery."
Snicker, chortle. A "guru" to the conservative movement thinks that McCain's support of the president is hurting him in the polls? Certainly not in the primaries, which are the only polls that will matter prior to the middle of next year.
And the idea that McCain's announcement on Letterman was unscripted is naive. It was not a formal announcement; rather it was an announcement of an intent to announce. But it was widely speculated that McCain would announce on the show.
Kevin Drum
buys into the story, albeit with some reservations:
Very juicy. I love it. But is it true? Did McCain really make the Letterman announcement on the fly? Would McCain's aides really have gone bananas over this? (It's not like everyone in the world didn't already know he was running, after all.) Did "several aides" really quit recently? And who is the "top Republican aide" who was Radar's source for this? Somebody close to McCain or somebody close to another candidate?
Just asking. But it sure sounds true. Though that's more because it tickles me to think so than because there's any real evidence for it.
Donklephant should know better,
but doesn't.
In any event, what this should tell us is McCain is unfocused. That’s a BIG problem. It’s okay if he goes off the script every now and again, but to not tell your staff that you’re going to announce something on national television…that’s crazy. So yeah, McCain deserves to sweat a little bit.
I wonder what, if anything, can put him back on track…
Oh, you know, little things like social conservatives suddenly realizing they have more in common with John McCain than with Rudy Giuliani or Mitt Romney?
Hat Tip:
Memeorandum.
Labels: 2008 Candidates, John McCain
