Has John McCain acknowledged reality and all but thrown in the towel on his run for the Republican presidential nomination? An editorial in today's Boston Globe might make you think so. In McCain's fighting stance, an ode to McCain's position on immigration, the Globe mentions that "McCain, an Arizona Republican, spoke about the immigration bill's chances in a meeting with Globe editors on Monday."
For the record, the Globe editorial predictably praises McCain for his "principled stand" against "an ugly nativist streak in his own party."
Let's think about that. Massachusetts is not the site of a significant Republican primary. And no Republican, including McCain, stands any chance of carrying the super-blue Bay State in the general election. So why would someone ostensibly seeking the Republican nomination make the pilgrimmage to the land of Ted Kennedy to curry favor and support for his amnesty-based immigration bill? In GOP circles, the Globe's imprimatur is but one more nail in the coffin of his already-moribund candidacy.
Could it be that McCain has taken a long, hard look at the polls -- and at his dwindling campaign coffers -- and decided that his run is effectively over? Is his démarche to Massachusetts a victory lap among liberal friends in a race he realizes he can't win? Has McCain decided that, rather than the presidency, this wrong-headed immigration bill will be his final legacy?
Contact Mark at mark@gunhill.net
