Time Out?

It was either a burst of bipartisanship or a self-serving political tactic.

By grandly announcing yesterday that he is putting his campaign on hold, John McCain could be said to have put his country first by trying to join with Barack Obama to push through a federal package to rescue the economy.

Well, maybe. But he's really just campaigning by other means. Six weeks before Election Day, nothing a candidate does is nonpolitical.

The Wall Street meltdown is a tough issue for McCain, a career deregulator and a frequent supporter of the administration that presided over this debacle. It is probably a major factor in Obama's rise in the polls over the last week. The president of his party was about to give a prime-time address on how screwed up the economy is to make the case for the $700-billion-or-more bailout. Joining hands with Obama takes the edge off.

It was Obama who opened the door by calling his rival yesterday morning and suggesting a joint approach. The fact is, the two senators are now crucial to how Capitol Hill resolves this crisis. The Republicans are not going to support a hugely expensive plan that their presidential nominee is opposing, and the Democrats, with an eye on Obama, aren't going to pass a Bush package unless the GOP provides the necessary votes.

Why would McCain also try to delay Friday's debate in Mississippi--especially one that was to focus on foreign policy? (A stupid rule, by the way, that should now be dropped with both sides' consent.) Because he'd rather be seen as a hard-working lawmaker than stand on a Mississippi stage with his opponent for 90 minutes? Is this such a financial 9/11 that Congress can't hammer out a bill without John McCain's presence?

Mac has a knack for resetting the clock. He shook things up by picking Palin. He canceled the first night of his convention--the Bush/Cheney night--because of a hurricane. Now he says he's suspending his campaign.

Now it's a game of chicken. Will Obama really go to Ole Miss if McCain continues to boycott? Would Jim Lehrer participate in a one-candidate debate? Should I cancel my flights?

By the way, I did not think the president gave a very strong presentation last night. He looked tired and read the thing, line by line. But if he's now talking about the need for oversight and to rein in CEO pay, how much is left to fight about with the Democrats?

NYT: "After weeks of increasingly aggressive attacks on Mr. Obama -- and no doubt aware of a series of polls suggesting an erosion in his support -- Mr. McCain cast himself as willing to set aside partisan politics to do what was right for the country, and challenged Mr. Obama to do the same. But he now also faces the task of rallying support from his own party, which is divided over the rescue and has long viewed him with a degree of wariness."

Washington Times: "Less than a month after he canceled the first night of the Republican National Convention, Mr. McCain again flashed his signature maverick style, declaring President Bush's proposed $700 billion bailout dead and, as he's done so often in the past, said he could help broker a bipartisan deal to cut through the political clutter."

WP: "What he risks, if things don't go as he hopes, is a judgment by voters that his move was a reckless act by an impetuous and struggling politician that hardened partisan lines in Washington at just the wrong moment and complicated efforts to deal with the biggest financial crisis in more than half a century."