I’m with you on that suspicion and I think he almost failed in his role. I think he chose Sarah because he thought conservatives would hate her, I think the people pulling the strings were shocked and then had to scurry to ruin her.
There is no doubt that McCain's people were absolutely jealous at the crowds, and the energy, that Sarah was generating.
Had there been anyone else in the VP slot, McCain would have lost in Mondaleian fashion. There was no energy, no theme, no reason to vote for McCain, other than as an anti-Obama vote...before Sarah.