True, but that was just a further demoralization.
I think they were really demoralized sometime about Feb 5th, when it first looked like McCain would win the nomination. Or, earlier... when the MSM kept pushing Rudy McRomney as the GOPs only hope.
Come to think about it, I can take the demoralization of the base all the way back to 2004 when the RNC chose to headline with the primetime speaking spots three huge RINOs: McCain, Schwarzenegger, and Giuliani.
I was speaking to the fact that polls showed McCain a couple percentage points ahead of Obama going into that decision. He came out of it the loser. Up to that point, regardless of the despondency aired here and elsewhere about the choice of McCain, Sarah Palin breathed new life into the campaign and made people sit up and listen. While not always on a conservative bent, the grassroots was energized, evidenced by the turnout at rallys. I believe the final tally was close enough to believe that had McCain acted differently during the bailout crisis, the election could well have turned out differently. Thus, McCain killed his own chances.