Newspapers don't like to be totally out of step. If this race were truly close they would endorse McBride. If McBride won they could take credit and demand influence in a McBride governorship. If he lost they almost elected him.
If McBride were going to win bet the farm they would endorse him in glowing terms.
But if bush is going to win a substantial victory, and they know it they will not go the other way. If theses papers opposed Bush, and he won in a land slide, it would l not make other politicians in future races fear these papers wrath.
The one time that papers like these will get on the wrong side of a landslide is when they are sure they can say I told you so. A paper being able to crow, "You didn't listen to us and look what a fine mess you have made" is good for the paper's influence too.
Hell didn't freeze over. This just says teh paper thinks Bush is going to get an easy win and going to do well after elected.
It is hard to retain the reputation as a molder of public opinion when you can't mold public opinion. When opinion is firmly molded the only option is to pretend to mold it by agreeing with it.