Let the Backstabbing Begin

Ever want a sign that things are really going poorly? Just look for then when the finger-pointing and backstabbing really begins in earnest:

With 10 days to go until election day, long brewing tension between Sarah Palin and key aides to John McCain has become so intense, it is spilling out into the public.

Several McCain advisers have suggested to CNN they have become increasingly frustrated with what one aide described as Palin “going rogue” recently, while a Palin associate says she is simply trying to “bust free” of what she believes was a mishandled roll-out that damaged her.

McCain sources point to several incidents where Palin has gone off message, and privately wonder if they were deliberate. For example: labeling robo calls “irritating,” even as the campaign was defending the use of them and telling reporters she disagreed with the campaigns controversial decision to pull out of Michigan.

A second McCain source tells CNN she appears to now be looking out for herself more than the McCain campaign.

Losing sucks. It does, especially on a long campaign where you've been working 80+ hours a week for months on end, seven days a week, dealing with many annoying, stupid people. I know, I've been there, and there's nothing worse than being on a losing campaign. But this kind of finger-pointing stands out. There is always going to be tension between camaps on campaigns. Most everyone has a huge ego, and thinks they are making the engine run. This even exists, I am sure, between the top nominee's people and the staff of the veep. That being said, there is sniping, and there is clear, out-in-the-open bomb-throwing and back-stabbing. This stuff fits into the latter category.

I am not going to spend this post lambasting Sarah Palin. I do that more than enough (and I will continue to do it, in all likelihood). No, I just wanted to highlight this story to demonstrate what a finished campaign really looks like. Now that things are truly in the toilet and the clock is about to hit midnight, we are beginning to see some really acriminous finger-pointing. What kind of campaign goes at direct war with itself? Answer: a campaign that's on the verge of death. This is a sad state of affairs for the McCain, and to be honest, I kind of feel sorry for many of the people there who have dedicated their lives to the campaign for the last year.