That's what I remember as well. When McCain first got the nomination he actually looked like he was trying to win, but as you said he started doing inexplicable things. What I am trying to say is that when we had the primaries during the nomination process, McCain LOOKED like the best candidate. Sure, the others might have fought harder (but to no avail in my opinion) but at the time we were choosing, we thought McCain would fight harder too. He was a disappointment.
It looks like what happened is this. McCain actually did want to win at first. Then he selected Palin as his running mate. He saw that he drew smallish, lackluster crowds, and Palin drew huge, riotously enthused crowds. His pathological need to be loved [note his continual sucking up to the MSM, which often took the form of backstabbing conservative GOPers] took a hit, and he threw in the towel. Better to lose w ‘honor’ than to endure four yrs of being overshadowed by a true conservative who doesn't know the meaning of ‘reach across the aisle’, and who doesn't begin ea sentence w the simpering trademark words, ‘my friends’.
That is as good an explanation for what happened as anything else I have heard. I would also point out the backstabbing of Palin by his campaign staff. Without the damage they caused by their duplicity and incompetence, Palin might have pulled out a win anyways.
I do agree w you about his staff backstabbing Palin. However, even if they hadn't McCain could only have won by hitting Obama on his vulnerable points—and that McCain just would never do. He was terrified the MSM would call him a racist, and there may have been other factors as well.
Bottom-line: McCain was a loser from the start, and somehow or other we have GOT to stop the GOPe from selecting our candidates.