John McCain lost the election, and he lost it quite well on his own. The Republican Party lost the election by nominating him, and the party leadership did quite well at it despite warnings from many "prominent people" and from many of us around here.
Sometimes I wonder if there isn't something to the conspiracy theory that says McCain was Soros' boy just as The Marxist is, and it was his job to lose. I don't know how this theory accounts for the ineptitude of the Republican party, but it's an ineptitude that speaks for itself, isn't it?
Those here at FR who chose not to support John McCain, as you and I did, were exercising their prerogative to not resort to futility and desparation to support a loser.
A self-serving, volatile, and marginally sane loser who ran an entire campaign that sounded like a concession speech.
Sorry, desparation s/b desperation.
I think McCain tried to win, and I think he probably played his hand as best he could. Even in 2007, it was pretty much expected that this would be a Dem year.
He ran out of money at the end though because he tied himself to matching funds, and that made a big difference.
Also, I think if he didn't support the bailout he would have won. Of course, he supported the bailout because he is a Washintonian.