The Deafening Silence of John McCain

I'm disgusted that the Republican Presidential campaign has chosen to go out with backstabbing, blame assignment, and media leaks, not to mention a very clean clock.

I was utterly disappointed with the way that McCain ran his campaign in the last week (refusal to hammer the judgment of Obama's radical associations; refusal to hammer the Democrats with the CRA, ACORN, Fannie/Freddie and the economic disaster; obsession with campaigning in Pennsylvania at the expense of Red states).

I'm especially disgusted with his deafening silence on behalf of Sarah Palin - his vice presidential selection - and the fact that he is allowing his staff to anonymously have their way with her reputation in the media.

The buzz is that allegedly senior staffers (and possibly McCain himself?) are motivated to ensure that Governor Palin cannot possibly run for President in 2012. I guess we'll see about that in 2012, but the big question for me is, where is John McCain's formidable honor now?  Why isn't he speaking out and emphatically insisting that the responsibility for the failure of his campaign is his alone, as well as a perfect storm in favor of all Democratic candidates?  As the Palin rumors grow legs, it appears more and more likely that he'd rather lose an election and blame it on his Vice Presidential partner than remind his staffers that discretion is the better part of valor.

Palin needs to stand accountable for her petulance regarding the Couric interview.  That's the only unprofessional public event I know of in her disfavor, however.  And even that faux pas pales in comparison to Biden's blacklisting the TV anchors in Florida and Pennsylvania, for which of course he receives a pass and an "atta boy!".  Regardless of how challenged she may or may not have been intellectually, regardless of what happened behind closed doors, Governor Palin's public persona was extremely optimistic, professional and appropriate at all times (as were her political instincts about how to run against her opposition).

With failed leadership like this, I'm completely depressed that I contributed so many hours and dollars to a victory effort on McCain's behalf.  Now that the whole sordid story has unfolded, I can see how wrong I was to support the candidate I thought could successfully win instead of the candidate who most closely represented my conservative/libertarian values.  I've been in denial, I've made excuses about McCain-Feingold, McCain-Lieberman, and McCain-Kennedy. I've been sick about it all week.  I've learned how important it is to vote my conscience instead of my interpretation of probability.  Lesson learned and duly noted. 

Now, onward.