Yesterday was a very big news day. In fact, it may be remembered as the day John McCain lost the election. But I might be getting ahead of myself... Here's a quick recap of the major events:
1. Campaign "Suspended" - As you probably already know, McCain has "suspended his campaign" in order to go back to Washington to deal with the economic crisis. I pointed out yesterday, McCain's reason is more likely because his poll numbers were dropping, and he wanted to drive attention away from his faults in causing this mess, and maybe even avoid debating Obama for a while (some think McCain's goal is to cancel the VP debate altogether).
2. Letterman Strikes Back - Yesterday, many people awoke to the news of McCain cancelling his appearance on Letterman so he could rush back to DC during this crisis, only to be caught lying so he could appear on Katie Couric's show!
3. Politics First - McCain did not rush back after his appearance with Couric. Instead, he spent the night in New York, and appeared at Clinton's Global Initiative in the morning.
4. Deal On Track Without McCain - After 26 years in Congress, McCain should know that there is very little he could do to help the process, since he is not on either Congressional committee that would write the bill to resolve this crisis. In fact, they seemed to have things under control without John McCain. Even before John McCain landed in DC, there was progress reported on the deal.
5. Enter Political Circus - Barack Obama and Congressional Democrats had warned that bringing presidential politics into delicate negotiations would probably do more damage than good. But McCain needs to look like a hero right now, or else his campaign is pretty much over. So McCain's misplaced motives caused quite a circus in Washington yesterday...
6. White House Photo Op - The plot thickens... Bush called a pointless photo op meeting yesterday in the White House with McCain and Obama... Since the leaders in Congress were already close to a deal, all seemed to be be going well, until...
7. McCain Derails the Deal! - McCain came up with a completely ridiculous counter-proposal out of nowhere, demanding a 2 year moratorium on corporate taxes and LESS regulation! Needless to say, this threw everything into chaos.
8. House Republicans Refuse to Participate - Leaders Wrangle Over Bailout: Treasury's $700 Billion Plan in Disarray; Republicans Push Alternative Plan
9. Day Ends Without Resolution - Bailout Plan Stalls After Day of Talks; Paulson Heads Back to Capitol Hill
10. McCain's Campaign Not Really "Supsended" - McCain Campaign Still Active Across The Country
11. Palin's Embarassing Interview - McCain's VP pick Sarah Palin gave a very embarassing interview that was mocked on all the major news channels yesterday.
12. Fox News Turns Up the Propoganda - The media doesn't seem to be falling for McCain's political stunt, except Fox News, which calls it a "brilliant move" by McCain. In fact, while discussing the "suspension", Fox News cuts off a guest for talking about McCain's role in the Keating Five Scandal.
13. Obama Calls It Like It Is - Obama Blasts McCain's "Political Stunt"
14. Obama Says Debate Still On, With or Without McCain - Obama Will Make Debate A Townhall If McCain Doesn't Show
15. Public Demanding Debate - Polls show the public very strongly wants the debate to continue as scheduled. There is a petition being passed around demanding that McCain appear for the scheduled debate.
There are political motives hidden under EVERY little thing McCain and the Republicans are doing right now. Bush and the Congressional Republicans seem to be placing their political circus ahead of the country's interests, even though they claim the situation is dire. It's an election season, Obama's up in the polls, and there are only a few weeks left... Trust me, there's more to come. Beware the political stunts!