Standoffish McCain

Earlier it was about the anger. This clip, though, via Steve Benen, reveals an intensely standoffish John McCain. After refuting "the principle" of a question about Sarah Palin's preparedness to serve as president should the need arise, and then muddling through a list of Palin credentials that included two mentions of her mayorship and also her service in the PTA, John McCain entered into a nasty monologue detailing the "overwhelming" American approval of Sarah Palin. Confronted with a comment that even conservatives have concerns about Palin, McCain rebutted with what could only be interpreted as arching sarcasm. "Really? I haven't detected that." He caught himself and settled down a little before going on, but the close picture and quiet room belie the palpable tension of the moment. "I haven't detected that in the polls, I haven't detected that amongst the base."

It's really incredible. Think about George W. Bush at his worst in front of the cameras and you still don't approach the level of disdain that McCain exudes now almost daily. Monday it was his dismissal of Couric and "gotcha journalism," Tuesday this insulting tone with the Des Moines Register. With the VP debate looming and a startling new Quinnipiac poll putting Obama up by plenty in Florida and Pennsylvania, what will today hold?