I thought the really interesting exchange is the last one with Hayes where, as I heard it, Hayes basically conceded McCain was lying about suspending his campaign, but said that it was no different from Obama saying the financial rescue should be handled in a nonpolitical manner.

How can McCain instruct television stations to begin re-airing the ads starting tomorrow, when he hasn't instructed them to stop airing them?

His ads were running in my neck of the woods last evening.

Slightly OT, but I wonder if McCain and the far right house repubs are purposely letting the market have a bad day, (plus the fear that the WaMu deal will inspire), and then scream that the everyone MUST cave in on their extreme proposals or no deal. If the market falls, they might figure they have leverage.People will panic and want a deal, any deal. A horrible way to negotiate, but I guess I wouldn't put it past them

Leave John McCain ALOOOOOONE!

Just mindlessly repeat what they feed you!

What I don't understand is why McCain believes that pulling the ads is conducive to negotiations on the bailout. This is just piles of nonsense.

Shorter Toobin: "Don't shit on my plate and call it a steak."

What does "pain has trickled up" mean?

Slogans do not solve problems.

McCain ads ran all day on Thursday--from morning through the late night shows--on the stations in my area (Iowa). The claim that ads were stopped is bogus.

Obama ought to joke about this during the debate: "So, John, is your campaign active or not? I really can't tell."

I recall Toobin as being a typical 'balance' style pundit not that long ago. As time has gone on, he's become far less shy about calling bullsh*t. He might actually be the founding member of the 'Enough Club'

Ya know, as an outside observer, there have been many times I've shook my head in amazement at the...the...eccentricities of the American election process.

But I swear to god, these last two days have been beyond surreal. Honestly, forget Kansas, what is wrong with America??*

*excepting of course the fine people here, and Benen, and Olbermann, and Maddow (especially Maddow - I have just about the biggest intellectual crush on her a boy can have :)

"Surreal" is the right word! Aside from a handfull of cable tv and talk radio shills, this has been a disaster for John McCain, and one I doubt he can recover from. There seems to be an almost disbelief and sence of unease. Its like people have realized he's unhinged. Coupled with Palin's disastrous public appearances, this is probably the week that decided the election. Even just hearing people at work, the gym, etc. who normally don't talk about politics are saying he's crazy.

This horrible economic situation is taking a toll on people, and they will be taking this election very seriously. My guess is we will see a steady collapse of John McCain in these finals weeks.

The difference is that when the campaign was suspended McCain owned the news cycle - when it is not he is flailing and defending himself in the news cycle.

I got news for you. Blowing up the bail out deal a la McCain and the House rep is popular on Main Street. Main Street doesn't think there is a crisis anywhere the hedge funs of the fat cats on Wall Street and Bush' "base" in the super rich. McCain and the House Reps are in touch with the angry, vengeful populist mood of a majority of voters. Bush's endorsement of the plan kills it. Look at his approval rating. McCain may have judged and is now playing to the desire for revenge against Wall Street and "irresponsible" citizens (there's a racial component to this). The mood I hear is: "Fuck 'em. Let's hang a few from lamp posts." Oh my, look what 8 years of Bush/Cheney/Rove have created...Bush is now paying the price. The Reagan revolution is eating itself (and maybe the country too). Next, a Committee of Public Safety?

I just figured McCain wanted a time out on advertising in order to save money.

On a related note, the McCain campaign has reportedly instructed television stations to begin re-airing its ads starting tomorrow, regardless of whether a bailout plan has been completed or not.

I was about to suggest that this was an indicator that they were going make sure something got pushed through on Friday, because if the ads started running again on Saturday they would have to acknowledge that the campaign wasn't suspended. Then I remembered that they are shameless liars who would have no compunction about going on CNN and claiming that John McCain has selflessly suspended his campaign even as his ads run during the commercial breaks. If nothing happens today, I think tomorrow the line will be McCain's no show at the debate is evidence that his campaign is suspended. That would be awesome to watch.

Come on! The difference between an active campaign and a supended campaign is that the latter is much more mavericky.

I got news for you. Blowing up the bail out deal a la McCain and the House rep is popular on Main Street...McCain and the House Reps are in touch with the angry, vengeful populist mood of a majority of voters...McCain may have judged and is now playing to the desire for revenge against Wall Street and "irresponsible" citizens (there's a racial component to this).

Think this is dead on, and we ignore it at our peril. McCain is setting himself up to be the hero of the beleaguered taxpayers (the very same ones who voted for the people who fucked this up), mavericking away against his own party--thus he makes no public commitment to any plan. Pelosi may actually get this, as evidenced by her vow to bring no bill to the floor without bipartisan support.

No, it's the Suspension of Disbelief campaign.

Republican propaganda shill "Eric Blair" wrote: Slogans do not solve problems.

My irony meter just melted.

Think this is dead on, and we ignore it at our peril. -shortstop

On the other hand, he's positioning himself against the corporatists, so he may find friendly media harder and harder to find.

Think this is dead on, and we ignore it at our peril. McCain is setting himself up to be the hero of the beleaguered taxpayers

We also ignore shortstop's commentary at our peril. Though just as Pelosi seems to smell a rat, I think that the transparent nature of McCain's stunt is getting noticed. And even if low information voters don't pick it up from the news media, they probably noticed when David Letterman let the cat out of the bag with his disgusted and righteous rant.

On the other hand, he's positioning himself against the corporatists, so he may find friendly media harder and harder to find.

Yes, good point. He's got himself a sticky situation.

I had to laugh out loud at Wolf Blitzer's intro line: "Whether or not you agree with what Senator John McCain did and is doing, there's general agreement on this: it could help or hurt his presidential hopes."

A. J. Liebling would have loved this.

I've been a fan of Toobin since reading The Nine.