Talent Seems Thin in the McCain Campaign...
McCain's own personal handlers parachute into Palin's operation. Monica Langley reports:
Game Plan for Palin Is Retooled Ahead of Debate: Top McCain Aides Oversee Preparation After Recent Flubs: The McCain campaign moved its top officials inside Gov. Sarah Palin's operation Sunday.... Additionally... Gov. Palin will leave late Monday for his Arizona ranch to prepare for the high-stakes debate.... McCain campaign manager Rick Davis and senior adviser Steve Schmidt are planning to coach the candidate.... [T]hese top officials plan to fly with her on Monday to Sen. McCain's ranch in Sedona, Ariz., which they hope she will find a comforting place to prep....
Mr. Palin has worried about the frequent separation of his wife from her family, friends and Alaska staff, an adviser said. Accordingly, her family will be with her in Sedona during this week. Also, a key Alaska staffer joined the Palin operation Sunday.... [T]he more experienced advisers assigned to her by the McCain campaign are accustomed to working with seasoned candidates, not someone "completely green on the national stage," one strategist said.
Several Republican backers have griped that the campaign has put the candidate in difficult situations... high-profile television interviews... meetings with foreign leaders... [who] made sexist remarks.... [Plus] Gov. Palin isn't getting media attention for her contributions. For example, with foreign leaders last week, she had detailed conversations about the national-security and global implications of the energy crisis, one adviser said....
Gov. Palin flubbed quasi-mock debates in New York City and Philadelphia, some operatives said. Finger-pointing began, and then intensified after her faltering interview with CBS anchorwoman Katie Couric.... Until the weekend, the highest levels of the McCain campaign were focused on Sen. McCain's response to the financial crisis and his own debate against Sen. Barack Obama.... The campaign is sending in Sen. McCain's debate coach, Brett O'Donnell, to help with her preparation, advisers said. Though he always was expected to help out after Sen. McCain's debate Friday in Oxford, Miss., Mr. O'Donnell now needs to "undo" much of her previous debate prep, which has resulted in occasional "rote" responses, one adviser said.
"We've got four days," another adviser said Sunday...
So does the McCain campaign really believe that it only has three competent people in it--Rick Davis, Steve Schmidt, and Brett O'Donnell?
The senior campaign staff are setting her up to be Dan Quayled: anything that goes wrong Thursday night is her fault; anything that goes right is to their credit.
If I were McCain, I'd fire all three for disloyalty right now...
