After all of McCain's dramatics about (not really) "suspending" his campaign, he might not even show up for the bailout vote. Check out this little nugget:
Asked if McCain would return to Washington for the vote, "It’s impossible to know until the vote has been announced," Tucker Bounds, a McCain spokesman, told Politico.
http://www.politico.com/...
If you've lost track of Mr. Straight-Talk's flip-flops and detours, here's just a brief, brief outline of McCain’s "Katrina-like" response to the economy over the last 2 weeks, which happens to coincide with his slip in the polls. I've included the Gallup 3-day poll at the beginning of each day, to show how Obama has solidified his lead (I hope I lined up the little dots and dates the right way!)
Please add to this list, which, sadly enough for McCain, isn't even comprehensive!
Monday, 9/15
McCain: "the fundamentals of our economy are strong."
Gallup 3-Day: 47-47 tie
Tuesday, 9/16
McCain: 9/11-style commission to study markets
Fiorina: McCain and Palin not qualified to run Hewlett-Packard (as if Fiorina was?)
Holtz-Eakin: "He invented this" – you know, McCain invented the Blackberry, which he probably can’t use
Gallup 3-day: 47 O-45 M
Thursday, 9/18
McCain: Fire SEC chair Chris Cox – which the President can’t do
Gallup 3-day: 49 O-44 M
Saturday, 9/20
McCain: Reported in actuarial magazine that he wants to deregulate healthcare, since deregulating Wall Street was so successful. Or, wait, McCain means he thinks regaulation and oversight are necessary?
Gallup 3-day: 49 O-45 M
Sunday, 9/21
Obama: "No blank check" for bailout
Gallup 3-day: 48 O-44 M
Monday, 9/22
Obama: Reiterate principles for any compromise, protecting taxpayers and capping CEO compensation
Schmidt: It’s the New York Times’s fault
Gallup 3-day: 47 O-44 M
Tuesday, 9/23
McCain: Hadn't read Paulson's 3-page proposal (h/t: Real STE)
Wednesday, 9/24
McCain: "Suspend" the campaign – Won’t debate without a bailout complete!
Obama: Let’s debate – Can’t we multitask and keep tabs using, you know, modern technology
Gallup 3-day: 47 O-44 M
Thursday, 9/25
McCain: Parachutes in, muddles everything up, silent when asked at White House meeting about his opinion about the untenable House Republican insurance plan
Obama: Takes over White House meeting and is the one to actually sound out Boehner and Paulson
http://www.washingtonpost.com/...
Gallup 3-day: 46-46 Tie
Friday, 9/26
McCain: Caves into Obama, loses by blinking and having to show up to the debate
Obama: Clears Commander-in-Chief threshold with ease, wins debate by public perception
Gallup 3-day: 48 O-45 M
Saturday, 9/27
McCain: Returns to DC, but doesn’t go to Capitol Hill. Realizes that this modern invention called the telephone can keep him up-to-date on what is happening
Gallup 3-day: 49-44
Sunday, 9/28/08
McCain: Might not show up to vote on bailout compromise – you know, the very thing he "suspends" his campaign for
Gallup 3-day: 50-42
Scorecard
Obama
Steady
Multi-tasking
Looking presidential
Winning the debate
Rising in the polls
McCain
Confused/flip-flopping about the economy
Firing people he can’t
Can’t run H-P
A career deregulator who became a regulator
Suspended campaign
Dragged out bailout negotiations he was supposed to resolve
Giving into Obama by showing up to the debate
May not show up to a bailout vote he staked his whole campaign on
And that’s leaving Sarah Palin out of this whole timeline.