They didn't try, the "try" was a lie. Really trying implies a possibility of success, there was no possibility, the "try" was all a show. It was all just to make people forget how the GOP senate rolled over on amnesty.
It shoed nothing, except their willingness to throw up distractions to take bad headlines that might cost them votes off the frontpage and replace them good headlines that might get them votes.
McCain is a politian, he knows he needs to pander, and his weakest score is among hard conservatives, so he panders to the religious right because that's where most of the hard conservatives are. But when push comes to shove he knows his real base is on the left, thus this lefty vote.
His vote today didn't hurt him at all. Anybody that is going to vote against him because of this vote was already going to vote against him because of McCain-Feingold and numerous other issues.
Don't believe so. As I said earlier, the Senators vote all the time on legislation they know will not pass.
Often it takes many "tries" before they have success. Over time, it gets the process rolling and eventually the thing gets done.
I know there is a cynical faction out there that believes the vote was ONLY to get national attention off negative news. True, it achieves this purpose, but it's essential to move on other issues besides immigration. The marriage issue is also an essential issue IMO.