It looks like the wheels are flying off the Straight Talk Express as McCain calls his staffers "Incontinent" for excessive leaking and McCain aides call Sarah Palin a slow learning, rogue, diva who cares only about herself.
There are reports of infighting within the
McCain Campaign as we head into the final ten days before the election. CNN reports that McCain campaigns insiders are increasingly frustrated with
Sarah Palin going rogue and straying from
campaign talking points. Palin’s close supporters say that talk of the Alaskan Governor going rogue are nothing more than McCain campaign staffer’s trying to cast blame on her for their own failures. Whether the accusations of Palin going rogue and positioning herself for 2012 are true or not, this is not the way a campaign that believes it can still win behaves.
McCain Staffers Blaming Each Other
A campaign that thinks it is in the running for a
victory in the presidential election generally doesn’t start falling apart by finger pointing, casting blame and calling each other names during the final stretch of the campaign. Yet that is just what appears to be happening to the McCain- Palin campaign this week. A variety of accusations from “unnamed sources within the campaign” have been making headlines and stirring up even more infighting.
“Incontinent” Leakers and Rogue Running Mates
The Independent reported, that things within the McCain camp have gotten so out of control that John McCain himself, with what can only be termed an interesting choice of terms for the aging candidate, accused campaign staffers of being “incontinent” for allowing so many “leaks” to new organizations. The Independent cites an unnamed McCain friend as saying that the Senator engaged in heated arguments with member of his campaign staff who seemed to be resigned to defeat in the November 4th election.
“Diva” Palin Going Rogue
CNN cites several McCain staffers as questioning Palin’s motives in going off message on the campaign trail and wondering whether she is more concerned with her own image than that of the McCain- Palin ticket. One unnamed McCain insider had lashed out to CNN against a rogue Sarah Palin “She is a diva. She takes no advice from anyone. She does not have any relationships of trust with any of us, her family or anyone else. Also, she is playing for her own future and sees herself as the next leader of the party. Remember: Divas trust only unto themselves, as they see themselves as the beginning and end of all wisdom."
Palin a Slow Learner, Says McCain Aide
The Politico reported a Palin aide as saying “She was completely mishandled in the beginning. No one took the time to look at what her personal strengths and weaknesses are and developed a plan that made sense based on who she is as a candidate,” and that Palin blames the McCain handlers for her media image difficulties and that she would prefer to be even more of a rogue.
CNN reported that
Sarah Palin’s early handling was a matter of necessity.
“Her lack of fundamental understanding of some key issues was dramatic," said another McCain source with direct knowledge of the process to prepare Palin after she was picked. The source said it was probably the "hardest" to get her "up to speed than any candidate in history."
Too Many Mavericks Looking Out for Themselves
In the end, the divisions within the McCain- Palin camp can be attributed to the poll results which generally show a strong lead for Obama nationally and in key battleground states. If the McCain camp thought it was winning or had a reasonable chance to pull out a victory in the presidential election, there would be no “incontinent” leaking or talk of Sarah Palin as a rogue diva. With what looks like defeat in 2008, however, many within the campaign, perhaps including Sarah Palin, are looking to place the blame for the defeat somewhere else, and position themselves for the future.
