Prediction: John McCain will NOT be the Republican Nominee

[democrat2thecore]

Mark it down. On July 12th, 2008, Democrat2TheCore became absolutely convinced that John McCain will not be the Republican nominee for President of the United States. And I'm not rejoicing.

Republicans are shaking their heads wondering what they have done. Republicans all across the country are watching their presumptive nominee disintegrate as a legitimate candidate in front of millions of televisions and computer screens. They see a man wholly unable to run a credible campaign for president - much less actually hold the office. They see a man saying and doing things that simply don't make sense - not only in a political way, but in a, "what's wrong with John?" kind of way. They see him freeze when caught in the camera lights with one of his times of "misremembrance." They can see in the eyes a man who is thinking, "This is not going to work - how do I get out? What do I do?"

In all honesty, it's a little sad and here's what I think: I believe Senator McCain may be having issues related to dementia, which may have been brought on by the stress of the campaign or other medical issues. I really don't think he's trying to pull the rug over a lot of eyes with the continual missteps as much as he simply can't put the pieces of the puzzle together. You can see this - and yes, anybody who has watched a family member decline due to dementia knows it's a sad thing. I honestly think this is what we are watching.

I've been seeing things that didn't add up for a few weeks; as we've wrapped up our nomination race and he's been in the spotlight more, there have just been too many things. But the incident in Pittsburgh was the final straw in my certain belief that Senator McCain will not be the nominee. I honestly don't believe McCain was pandering to the Steeler fans. How could you do that and think you could get away with it when his story has been told with Green Bay being the source of the names for 30+ years? It was in his book! It was depicted in the movie based on his book! A close friend of McCain says he's told the story probably hundreds of times on platforms all across the country and it's always been the Green Bay Packers. Yet, McCain looked perfectly comfortable and natural telling the story with the Steelers as the substitute. I am convinced: he was confused.

And then his uncomfortable impromptu press conference when he had to explain the votes against the pill being covered by Medicare. The look on his face and his actions --- he was lost. He was searching back in his mind. He was frustrated. He. was. confused.

A key: anyone who has had a family member have these "bad days" when dementia starts to take hold is well-acquainted with the feeling of wanting to finish their sentences for them, or help them along. The body language involved in this, and it's hard to explain in writing, is a kind of leaning forward and turning the head slightly in an attempt to somehow cheer them on and help them 'get it out.' I have watched the tapes carefully. I see this with Cindy and several others. They know. They are, in their minds, saying, "Come on John - you can do it - you can say it - come on, you remember - John? John?"

The inner circles of the Republican Party are scrambling. They know. How do they resolve this truly unprecedented turn of events? Who do they broach the subject with? Who is it 'okay' to discuss it with? Who can go to the candidate for answers? Who can look the senator in the eye and ask him, "Sir, are you slipping? Are you having days when it's just not all fitting together? Is this going to work?

However the Republicans decide to resolve the problem, and I am now 100% convinced they do have a problem that they will have to resolve, it will be something that nobody will know where to start, how to start it, who gets the ball rolling and how you go about denying the nomination to someone who thinks on the 'good days' that they will be the next president? I'm so shocked by this, as it's become clear to me what is happening, that I haven't thought through the political ramifications. I was serious and meant it when I said it's sad. It's something that nobody could have foreseen. What happens from here will not be pretty and none of us should delight in its occurrence. Imagine what John McCain must think and feel as he lie in a hotel room knowing that something is terribly wrong and knowing that the party is counting on him to lead them to victory; knowing that the 'bad days' have been more frequent and the 'misremembering' is happening way too often. How must he feel? Really? Maybe he and Cindy can talk and he can gracefully bow out and be completely honest about what's going on. After Pittsburgh, and the look on his face, I have no question he knows that talk should probably come very soon.

[MonkeyFunk]

1. I disagree

it's not like they have some obviously better choice just waiting in the wings.

[democrat2thecore]

2. Did you read what I wrote? I don't believe it will be a matter of CHOICE -nt

[MonkeyFunk]

4. I did

I just don't put a lot of stock in remote diagnoses.

[Blarch]

15. I said the same exact thing to my wife yesterday.

I think McCain has a problem ...and it's not Obama.

[roguevalley]

90. I agree with you a bit here. He is confused and stumbling. Its painful

to watch anyone do this. The abuse during the war aged him a decade or two and he will never recover that loss. statistically, POW's die much younger than their peers.

[jasmine621]

93. They only need a slightly better, coherent choice.

It can and wil be done at the convention when the roll is called. A name will be put forth and the delegates will vote for the next choice. It will take all of us by surprise, Newt will be the VP and the Dems will be thrown off balance for a few weeks but will get themselves together in time for November...and it will be a dog race. I said this as early as the first month after McCain was the only one left standing. There is no written law anywhere that says a party can't switch nominees at their convention. It there is one, post it please.

[Political Heretic]

3. My Prediction as well, but I think that hail-mary move will only make it a landslide.

I think McCains numbers will be so bad before their convention that in desperation, they try someone else.

However, the only way this will work is of Obama's unfavorables go through the roof -- i.e. if America is saying "we don't like Obama at all, but we like McCain even less!" DU dumbasses (yeah I said it) may be saying that, but "America" is saying just the opposite of that, and it seems unlikely (having had their chance for a year and a half) that this is going to change.

If it did though, then a "new" Republican candidate would capture all the media attention and be the "new thing" and could move Americans who didn't like either other choice.

But look folks, that's just not going to happen.

Obama will be in a strong position so that if the Republicans tried to make this desperate move, people on the fence would just flock to Obama. And it would certainly look like the Republican Party was in flames. And the new candidate would have next to zero time to market himself (or on some incredibly off chance for the GOP, herself) and the GOP would have no time to vet (vette? vett?) the new guy, even if it was a primary challenger like Romney or something.

And after all of that, it still remains that they have zero promising candidates this year - none. So while I think they may try this hail-mary if McCains numbers are bad enough, it will only be good for us.

[democrat2thecore]

5. I'm still wondering if anybody has actually READ the post

I know it's a little long. But we're the intelligent ones! It's not that long and what was said has nothing to do with sliding poll numbers, nobody being in the wings or anything else. It's about something that's never happened before - a candidate of a major party, before the convention, realizing that something is wrong with him. Things aren't 'right.'

If you didn't read the post, take a minute. I think this is what's happening and as anyone who has had a family member start to 'slip' with dementia - it ain't pretty.

[Divine Discontent]

6. yes, we read it, well, I did

it is noteworthy to, well, note, that Gov't employees are forced to retire at a younger age than McCain is now, and he wouldn't even start his 4 year term for another 6 months on top of his already advancing age.

I could only see him not being their guy if he has more than just continuous bumbling of facts, and instead has a serious scary confused moment where he forgets what he's doing.

I believe this is why McCain wanted the debates to start weeks ago, to get them over with, and wanted relaxed public forums and not the two podiums under the lights - he could literally freeze... For the first time in my life, I will not be watching the debates. I believe in my gut Obama has this in the bag (of course, I will keep on doing the things I do to help get him elected) but I don't want to watch McCain's painful answers to questions, or worse...

Good post!

[Estel]

21. Government employees are NOT

forced to retire at any age. Look to Supreme Court for proof.

[MonkeyFunk]

41. There is no federal mandatory retirement age

except for those in certain positions, such as law enforcement, air traffic control, and other jobs related to public safety.

[intheflow]

100. Yeah, wouldn't it be nice if those public safety standards

applied to the Commander In Chief? If anyone has fucked up our public safety, it's been the clusterf*ck known as Bush/Cheney.

[tblue37]

65. And keep in mind that the MSM (his base) will

continue covering up the evidence of his fumbles.

[Youphemism]

8. I don't know that I agree, but...

...I have to admit, the football thing is pretty strange. Beside telling that story so many times, he also, when the story was new, had to *remember* the names of all those players.

It's very strange misrembering something you not only told so many times, but something you had to remember in detail in the first place. And it doesn't make sense that he'd think he could get away with changing the name of the team after telling the story so many times.

Campaigning is a demanding job that often leaves even young people sleep-deprived to the point of babbling. There's no way this one issue, even with a bunch of more minor ones around it, would sink him. But if he makes two or three more goofs of that size, it will become an issue. And even if it's not a true medical problem, there might be those from his own party who would consider trying to use almost any issue to replace him. But I don't know that anyone would dare unless it became painfully obvious.

If what you're suggesting is actually happening, the most likely time for the problem to surface would be during a debate.

Like I said, I don't think there's enough evidence yet to support your suggestion -- but I have to admit the football team error made no sense to me as a deliberate thing and as an accident, it sure is a whopper.

[windbreeze]

36. I read the whole post....and

I agree, to a point, they may replace him....but...I disagree with one part...that they didn't know...I think they did...or at least someone high up did...John McCain has been a thorn in the side of the rep's for some time now, regarding his desire to be president...I said a long, long time ago, that they are letting him run, in order to get rid of him, permanently...is anyone going to tell me, that they wouldn't have access to his medical records??..sure it may be against the law for them to look at those records, but the law hasn't stopped them in regards to anything else they've done in the last 8 years.. he may have even turned them over to someone to be read to prove he was capable....

However, they didn't waste any time trashing him in 2000, so * won the nomination...now all of a sudden they are his best friends??? uh uh...they ARE using him....personally, I think it's detestable and a sad thing to watch...remember...OUR CONVENTION is before theirs, and I figure they could do one of two things...IF they actually allow him to take the nomination, it will be for him to lose...that way they get rid of him, and they figure they can blame the dems for everything that's gone wrong for the last 8 years and until, 2012...or they will replace him due to medical reasons...with Jeb? Romney? Huckabee?...sure is gonna be interesting to watch...sadly, I believe there are voters out there who would prefer Jeb to just about anyone else...in spite of what jr has done to this country, since 2000..

We should never underestimate our opponent...and that is not John McCain, the individual..it is the whole of the Rep. heirarchy...wb

[PerpetuallyDazed]

89. I still don't think John McCain was ever supposed to be the nominee...

From the beginning he was behind, financially AND in popularity... yet somehow his campaign had a seemingly magic turn-around despite the significant lack of support from his own base. It never made any sense to me.

[John Q. Citizen]

37. I know why you say that. Everybody to this point has spoken politically not medic-ly.

It's as if you wrote, 'The giant tumor on McCain's face will kill him before the convention' and people replied,

'Only if Obama's negatives go up high enough...'


Well, I will say that we shall see. I don't watch much TV and it's only broadcast so I haven't been watching McCain hardly at all.

If you are right, the party will have to replace him.

[ray of light]

75. I read the post and I agree with you. It looks like early dementia and confusion!

[depakid]

7. You can also see it in his speech patterns and pronunciation

particularly when he appears fatigued.

I called it lazy speech, and it's often accompanied by some of the other non-vernals you noticed. This, along with what seems to me to be impaired mental acuity and memory at times leads me to believe (as I've said before) that he's probably in the first stages of some form of dementia.

For folks who haven't been seen it first hand, I'd suggest finding some of McCain older speeches and interviews and doing a compare & contrast. I think you'll notice the difference.

Whether the Republicans find a way to gracefully edge him out- I don't know about. There's no precident for it, and I'm not sure what their rules say if he's unable to continue. My guess is that it would have to be decided at the convention and that Romney would be the most likely replacement.

That would sure throw a monkey wrench into the equation.

[Youphemism]

10. But those things can be fatigue...

...the football team error could also be fatigue, but it sure would be a big one, considering how many times he's talked about it and the fact he was so familiar with the team at the time that he could name the entire defensive line. Getting the team wrong by accident means he had to forget all the previous tellings of the story, and every player he originally named. And deliberately replacing the team name and thinking nobody would notice would be just as significant of an error.

McCain was never a terribly bright guy, and he's always been pretty grumpy and stodgy -- so his personality provides natural cover for age-related conditions.

[depakid]

40. Looks more like sundowners

when you view his behavior and demeanor as a whole.

[bbgrunt]

107. but, but, but....he's the perfectly controllable candidate--

just like W. They just need to give him the right vp--Is there any law against vp running for a third term?

[Bobbie Jo]

9. Awww man... Damn it!!! I wish I wouldn't have read this post

Shit! Shit! Shit!

WTF? I just reading along and all of a sudden I caught myself thinking, oh, how sad, and felt bad for making fun of him. Then it kinda pissed me off.. Now when I hear him say something batshit crazy, I'll be thinking SICK OLD MAN.

You just sucked the fun out of the rest of the campaign. Shit!! :-(

What I really mean, is that I hate to see anyone suffer through something like that, and if that's what is happening it really is sad to watch.

[npincus]

20. LOL... so glad I lack your compassion!

Wake up, Sleepyhead!

[Skidmore]

11. The Rs are stupid enough to think that if they could prop up Reagan and

* for so long, that they can wing it with McCain too. That party certainly has a history of putting people into the office who require management from others.

[Muttocracy]

69. Reagan came to mind for me - though I guess his decline started after in office.nt

[no_hypocrisy]

12. Theoretically, you may be right, but a couple of things make me wonder.

1. A little dementia and stupidity didn't stop Ronald Reagan.

2. Someone like McCain in the WH would be easy to manipulate, like Reagan and *. All he would have to be is a figurehead while "the organization" takes over and runs the world via the corporations and the military. McCain would say and do whatever he would be told and without the stress of having to work.

3. If * declares martial law before he leaves the WH, then nobody gets to replace him (notice how I avoided using the word "succeeding" as * and "success" are mutually exclusive).

[uponit7771]

31. yeap, my mom says Raygun spent most of his time in la la land

[longship]

108. Nope on item 3

There is no Constitutional way that the President can suspend or cancel an election. There are absolutely no provisions for any such thing in the Constitution.

If he attempted such a thing it could plunge the country into a very real crisis. People would take to the streets in droves. I think that even these knuckleheads would know that.

[Douglas Carpenter]

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Frankly, I think to make a change at this time would doom the GOP even more so than they are already. Also, they simply do not have ANYONE who would be a stronger candidate

Also, many Republicans realize that winning in 2008 may not even be good for them. The problems; domestic and international, largely created by the Bush Administration are so deep and so insolvable, Republican control of the White House for another four years, following the past disastrous eight years,would make it completely impossible to dissociate themselves. No amount of spin in the Universe could pull that one off. Imagine what that would mean in the 2010 midterm election and the future of the Republican Party.

[Dissent Is Patriotic]

14. It's not dementia. He's just not prepared....he's never been tested

except for when he was a POW maybe...and we know how that played out. (I know, inappropriate.) Anyhoo, this guy thought he could coast on his "maverickism" but he can't. Simply put we are seeing someone who just can't hold up under a little scrutiny period. I'm sick of people giving all these guys a pass...Oh Bush is stupid...Oh McCain has dementia...These guys are stupid/crazy like foxes. Stop making excuses for them.

[fasttense]

16. I agree with you that McCain may have the beginnings of dementia but

I think the republicans would keep him as a candidate no matter how bad that dementia gets.

Raygun had the beginnings of dementia and the repukes with the help of the corporate media managed to hide it from the voters. People were suspicious but no one called the republicans and the media out on their hiding Raygun's dementia.

The current idiot in the White House also had very numerous dumb moments throughout the two campaigns and the media helped hide those moments too.

No, the repukes and the media have a long standing tradition of hiding the republican candidates' flaws. They will continue to hide them and think they have conned the American voters yet again.

[npincus]

17. agree w/your diagnosis but not your conclusion

The trajectory of McCain's ambition, determination, and ego lead to only one place.

[elfin]

18. I don't think it is clinical dementia - just a geezer

trying to keep a schedule more suited to the young'uns. He will not choose to drop out of his last chance to be Pres. And if the polls keep showing he does have a shot and if the RNC money machine keeps on keeping on -- the Bush cabal will keep him in as well. They will exact a price -- no investigations of any kind if they successfully steal it for him. He will go for it even though it means letting surrogates go blatantly racist and having a fake terror alert to use the fake national security bludgeon.

[wisteria]

19. I won't get into if he will or if he won't but John Kerry has pegged him correctly.

On FAce the Nation last week, John Kerry made these remarks when asked about McCain,

"John McCain has changed in profound and fundamental ways that I find personally really surprising, and frankly upsetting," the Democratic Senator from Massachusetts said on CBS' Face The Nation.

"This is a different John McCain. This is not the Senator John McCain; this is want-to-be president John McCain.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/07/06/ftn/main4235258.shtml

[TexanDem]

77. Totally agree there's a BIG problem. Can't help but wonder why is Cindy ALWAYS one step away! >>

If he didn't have Cindy close at hand, he had Leiberman. It's like he needs a caretaker. It's scary!! I'm not so sympathetic though. This didn't just happen and the Republicans knew it when they made him their nominee. He was thrown out there -- all of a sudden -- McCain was it. Bush has been their puppet and McCain will be a nice substitute.

[TexanDem]

86. oops - misplaced. response should be to OP

[nradisic]

22. Alzheimers...

I said it in posts here months ago. It was visible to me and very obvious months ago. McCain has either dementia or Alzheimers. Karma is a bitch and the Republicans deserve whatever comes their way.

[nancyr]

23. You've explained it perfectly.

This is what I've see, too. The man is so confused and incoherent that I wonder why it is that they allow him to continue. The expression on his wife's face says volumnes: she watches him like a hawk, waiting to step in and prop him up. I agree that the man is suffering with dementia. No, even if by some fluke he were elected, he will not act as President. He would be removed and their original choice would take over. I suspect Romney, but who knows. God, it could be another Bush.

[Milo_Bloom]

24. Ready to see the big picture?

That inner circle probably does know what is happening and doesn't care.

McCain is nothing more than a sacrificial lamb... in more ways than one.

For most who don't pay attention, McCain is still the moderate maverick and represents the concept that the GOP should move away from the right wing mania of the past 8 years... what better way to kill that concept for 2012 then to allow it to be represented by a addled dinosaur of a politician who is losing it?

2 birds... one demented stone.

First, they hand Obama a situation that very likely cannot be fixed in 4 short years... They spend the next 2 years blaming Obama and the democrats for the mess the country is in and ask why they haven't be able to do anything. Obama will have a very limited window to get something working right before the public throws its hands in the air and declares Obama a failure... It almost went that way with Clinton... I just think that bush II has done more damage than Reagan/Bush combined and thus it will take longer to fix.

Second, they use the 2008 McCain experiment as the reason not to nominate another "moderate" and in 2012 we wind up with another neo con nut ball agaisnt Obama.

So, yeah, they probably see the same thing you do... in fact... I think they are counting on it.

[CrispyQ]

50. You are spot on about one thing:

If Obama doesn't fix every fucking mess in the 30 year shit pile the repubs have created, he will be a one term president.

Personally, I don't know why any dem would want this job.

[A Simple Game]

96. I agree with you completely.

I would just add that the Republicans truly want to lose this election.

They know that you can only poke a sleeping bear with a stick for so long, then it will wake up and bite you.

They also know they will only lose a very small percentage of their gains from the last eight years.

I also doubt that they expected Bush to get reelected because his goals were so ambitious, that was a bonus that should have come close to destroying the Republican party. I doubt they expected the Democrats to be so complicit.

[Phx_Dem]

25. I've been wonder the same things

It's pretty clear that, at the very least, McCain has a serious memory problem. He has run a horrendous campaign -- this week would have done him in if the media weren't so in love with him. The Republican party has got to be wetting their pants.

That said. I'm not sure they could wrestle the nomination from him unless he agreed to step down, and it's hard to imagine that he would do that after all the years of being shit on by the party.

If he did agree, or they were able to take the nomination from him, I think it would be a disaster for their party. Sure, the media would be having mulitple orgasms over the unprecedented ouster, and would talk about nothing else for weeks. But the Repug Convention isn't until September and I don't think that would be enough time to bring the party around to their new candidate. The republicans who hate McCain would be thrilled, but alot of them would feel sorry for McCain and might be really pissed. The party threw the war hero off the bus and then ran over his body. It could be really ugly. The public would see the Republican party as being extremely disorganized and really, really mean to an old man war hero who was nominated by their party.

I hope it doesn't happen. McCain is a horrible candidate so I'd like to keep him in the race.

(Mrs Phx_Dem)

[KurtNYC]

26. McCain is the pick BECAUSE of his dementia--not in spite of it

644 guys graduated Annapolis ahead of him so why weren't any of them picked? Because the boss doesn't like employees who are smart enough to do HIS job and in this case the boss is Corporate America. Look at the problems that Kennedy caused for the boss. They aren't going to let that happen again. McCain will rely on them for everything, especially financial policy. He is perfect for the opening they want to fill, the one created by Bush's retirement.

[SmileyRose]

34. I agree with you to a point

I agree McCain was chosen because, while reasonably brave, he's not very intelligent and on top of that has already proven he'll sell out for his ambitions. But IMHO the R's didn't pick him so they could have a compliant POTUS, they picked him as a sure loser so they could drop the coming economic shitstorm in the lap of the D's.

[Connonym]

46. or in a best case scenario (for them)

his running mate gets a gimme when McCain has to resign for medical reasons. God only knows what kind of hideous creature they are going to have as their VP candidate. They're going to have to throw a bone at the fundies in order to get them to bother voting. We may end up with President Huckabee :puke:

[momster]

27. I believe

that he will leave the campaign the week of the Democratic Convention in order to pull media attention away from our party's display of unity. He will announce that his 'health' (leaving it open whether it is physical or mental) will not permit him to continue and throw his support to whichever of his former rivals had the best numbers in the states they need to win. (It *won't* be Guiliani...) They will trot McCain out at the Republican Convention but he will not speak for long. There will be tons of media attention as they try to gin up a new horse race but Obama's 'machine' will triumph in the end.

[Mira]

74. That's exactly how I feel about it. I do not think he will remain the nominee

I don't think the war they will start with Iran will help McCain gain tracks because we as a populace will not be afraid all over again, and vote for him to find solace.
I think anything they try will backfire, because they STILL are abysmally incompetent in everything they do.
I also think that they feel by hook or crook or bombing or lying or stealing they MUST regain the White House, so Bush can be pardoned.
We have a weasel in there now, who is running more and more scared.

[mcatherton]

28. no way Mclame gives this up

It's his chance to be in the sun.

[Kool Kitty]

94. That's just where he should be-outside, lying in the sun,

enjoying his retirement. He should not be running for President.

[Not the Only One]

29. Almost no one pays attention to the missteps we notice here

It's the summer. Only big stories like the Rev. Wright "scandal" get any notice in a summer environment. People are paying more attention to issues like high gas prices, high food prices, bank closures, etc. and trying to find out what the candidates will do about those things.

[paparush]

54. Exactly! Are the talking heads on Fox and CNN analyzing McCain in this manner?

Are they making this argument?

No. Probably not.

In that case, Joe and Mary Jane 6 Pack just see McCain the Maverick, McCain the war "hero" - the package that Fox and CNN shove down their throats.

[uponit7771]

30. This puts his 'lies' in perspective, he doesn't remember from day to day what he's saying

[democrat2thecore]

42. EXACTLY -nt

[still_one]

32. There is absolutely no indication that the republicans are going to do what you suggest

in fact just the opposite

Significantly more money is coming into the mccain campaign

You imply that mccain is sufferring from severe mental issues, I submit to you, that is the republican party today. It has been taken over by people who are less than stable

Whether we are talking about phil graham, carley fiorenia(sic), or joe lieberman, I think they represent the republicans and mccain as to who they really are

[democrat2thecore]

43. I only suggested McCain will have no CHOICE

I honestly believe he knows he is having 'bad days' and it can't go on like this for long. Yes, he still has 'good days' where he is reasonably on top of things. But these stretches of his "misremembering" and the looks on his face - and those around him - show faces of concern and worry. Almost looks of pity.

It's not a matter of Republicans deciding anything. (Though they might certainly have to intervene - there is an entire congress and a 1/3 of the senate on the ballot with him.) I am thinking more along the lines of McCain realizing that something is horribly wrong; especially when those 'bad days' start to add up.

[Laura PourMeADrink]

59. Very interesting. And, I know exactly what you mean about the loved

ones around someone - since my dad has been slowly losing his mind for the last 13 yrs. How
happy we all are when he does remember something.

Do you have any clips saved - that you noticed this?

[onenote]

33. i predict your prediction is wrong

One of us will be right, one wrong. Time will tell.

[TwilightGardener]

35. He will be. They're throwing the game this time around. He's the sacrifical Dole.

They'll try to destroy Obama and get McCain into office, but they don't really expect to succeed. They don't even fucking LIKE the guy.

[JoFerret]

113. "The sacrificial Dole"

That's good.

And I hope you are right.

[newmajority]

38. This theory has been going around for a while now

And I certainly wouldn't put it past the Repukes to pull a bait and switch if they knew they were going to get their asses handed to them. But I don't believe it's happening this time, for two reasons:

1) The Whore Media has been giving McCain a free pass on damn near everything. If he was merely the "stalking horse" for an as-yet-unnamed "real" Republican nominee, the corporate media would be in on the scam (as they were when the DLC targeted Howard Dean) and they would be trashing him mercilessly, helping to destroy his image, so the GOP would have "no choice" but to replace him.

2) The entire 12 years of Reagan/Poppy and 8 years of Chimpy were about raiding the public treasury and transferring wealth to the rich and power to the corporations. In that respect, Chimpy could stand under a banner saying "Mission Accomplished" and be telling the absolute truth. Now that there's no money left to steal, they need the economy fixed so they can ruin it all over again. And even the Repukes know that Grandpa McLoon ain't going to be the one to do that.

Nope. Gramps is the candidate. And I don't think the Repukes even really want him to win.

[cliffordu]

39. I completely agree he will NOT be on the ballot in November.

I have no idea who it will be - it'll be the October Surprise everyone talks about.

[agentS]

114. Can he even make it to September?

These bad days have been adding up since January.
The clock's ticking, folks. Bob Barr smells blood in the water and the GOP hyenas are screeching.

[LeftishBrit]

44. Even if so, Reagan had early dementia by his 1984 re-election, if not in 1980...

and Bush simply lacks the intelligence to be president.

It didn't stop either of them!

[democrat2thecore]

45. Reagan was fully engaged until, at the earliest, 1986

He may have had 'moments' after the shooting, but nearly every historian I have read believes his decline didn't begin until 1986-88 and even then it was fairly mild. What we are seeing with McCain is the opposite of the Reagan campaigns. Even in 1984 and he was sluggish in that first debate, he came back strong in the second debate. Remember, all of his meetings with Gorbachev were AFTER his re-election. Gorbachev has said he never saw anything that made him think he was 'slipping'. He said there was one incident late in his presidency - but other than that he was (according to Gorbachev) very coherent and had command of his faculties.

This thing with McCain is totally different. It's becoming obvious.

[JustAnotherGen]

47. Funny

A dear friend of mine that lives out in Long Island and I spoke briefly this morning. . . She's a 'core' conservative - not a Republican of the Neocon variety.

She's disgusted with this candidate. He's playing from the same old playbook (look up his recent ads to woo hispanic/latino voters in the South West) - but doesn't realize or rather doesn't care that the rules have changed.

[CrispyQ]

48. I saw a clip of him last night where he was talking about how we have to

explore for oil off our shores & he said "We have to exploit these area." The crowd was silent as he realized what he said. You could see him searching for the right word & he tried to recover by saying "We have to explore and exploit these options." He put emphasis on the word 'and' so that it wouldn't seem so apparent that he'd forgotten what he wanted to say. The crowd reacted with some nervous chuckles, but mostly silence. (I shouldn't be using quotes as I'm not exactly certain of all his words, but he did use exploit when he meant explore.)

I don't think your scenario is completely unlikely. Cheney didn't amass so much power in the executive to risk losing it to a dem presidency.

It's going to be an interesting fall, that's for sure.

[democrat2thecore]

49. Your post is a perfect example

This kind of thing is happening over and over. The thing I have been noticing is McCain's own reaction to himself. You can actually see the pain in his face. This is very typical of dementia. The person knows something is wrong and they feel embarrassed, humiliated and confused by why they can't get something out like they always had been able to before. An ABC reporter the other day said McCain has had a "perplexed" look on his face when asked to explain some misstatements lately. To me, that was just another clue as to what's going on. Anybody who has spent time around an older person with this KNOWS that 'perplexed' look. Again, it's not pretty and it's nothing I rejoice about. But I really believe we're watching it unfold before our eyes. Your post was a perfect example of what we're all seeing.

[CrispyQ]

53. There's some fun reading here:

http://www.realitysandwich.com/the_cosmically_stressed_election_2008

Including speculation that we won't end up with the candidates that are currently in the race.

:hi:

[Eyes_wide_ open]

91. Interesting read

thanks for the link

[Laura PourMeADrink]

60. You kno what else, I just thought about from my dad, is that he

over the years, got more silent. I assume because he was afraid to say
anything wrong. When I call, he very quickly passes the phone to my mom -
I think maybe because he is afraid I will ask him something he doesn't know.

But, have you also noticed that McCain seems much quieter than usual? Long
ago, he seemed much more lively and excitable.

Living through this, constantly trying to remember, is very exhausting. I
know he's older, but he used to say he could keep up with those half
his age. Now he takes weekends off

[Faygo Kid]

51. "Cheney didn't amass so much power in the executive to risk losing it to a dem presidency."

Whatever else might be said about this issue, THAT remains the truth.

It's why I fear what may be coming our way. This crew isn't going to just give up power without doing everything - and yes, I mean everything - that it may take to assure that they continue to run things, even if behind the scenes.

[mythyc]

110. yeah there's two clips of that. i went looking for the one with the "exploit" slip on youtube

and it wasn't there so i found the original on Raw Story and uploaded it to my youtube account. anyone interested can check the clip here: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=385x157274

[CK_John]

52. I've been posting for months that Cheney will bring in Roberts or Jindal. n/t

[papapi]

55. The repugnantcans are hoping the 'compassionate' voters . . .

will feel sorry for poor old johnny boy and vote him into the Oval Office. Who on earth ever thought gwbushco would become President? He was soooooooooo lame in the debates against both Gore and Kerry that I was absolutely amazed when the SC plowed him into the White House.

Now the repugnants are hoping sympathy votes will get mclame close enough to winning that they can rig the election and stick him in there too.

McCain/Cheney 2008 my not be as ridiculous as it sounds.

Lordy I hope not!!!

[CTyankee]

105. We have to stop thinking anything gets decided because of the debates.

People don't watch them, even if they say they do. They don't decide anything. If they did, Bush would never go to win the election after that first debate where he was so clueless he couldn't even talk, much less debate John Kerry. So, of course, conveniently the MSM "framed" the debates for us, saying who won and who lost.

[World Citizen]

56. And it may have been planned that way all along

It has its strategic upside. All this time we have spent exposing THEIR candidate will be lost. Thats a lot of ground to recover.

Folks, it's not Cheney running the show. He is a handler, and an expediter and sometimes THEY listen to his advise. He is NOT a stategist.

[AZBlue]

57. I don't think they really care.

They can't win in 2008, no matter who they run. They're giving this one to McCain because he feels he deserves it and some of them probably do too. It reminds me of Dole in 1996.

[nxylas]

58. Since when are mental health problems an obstacle to getting Republican votes?

They were in denial about Reagan's Alzheimer's for years (still are, in fact) and have managed to persuade themselves that Junior is smarter than he looks, despite the lack of any evidence to back up that theory.

[quakerboy]

61. I disagree on technical grounds

I work regularly with people with a range of issues, including Alzheimer's and Dementia. And McCain tracks what I see from PTSD more closely than Dementia.

Aside from that technical difference, I agree that we are seeing stress, age, and a mental disorder combine to create the difficulties we see McCain having these days.

That said, I doubt there will be any conversation with McCain on the topic. The Republican party is a hive of criminality and collusion. As long as he is anywhere close to where they can steal the election for him, they will just slap a Cheney style VP on him and hope to have it that much easier because a senile(used nontechnically) fall guy will sign whatever they tell him to if they control his world the right way. The only way we will see him forced out is if he nosedives down and has absolutely no chance in November. And even then, it will likely not be a cordial conversation where he is asked anything, but rather a setup that forces the issue. Quiet and tasteful is not the Republican way.

[glitch]

67. Agreed. It's more interesting to speculate on the VP candidate.

With such a weak candidate as McCain you'd think there would be more focus on who that will be, if only to bolster McCain's chances.

I still think they're going to somehow maneuver Jeb into that position, you can call me crazy.

[Time for change]

62. When your whole campaign is based on a pack of lies

it's tremendously difficult to keep things straight in your mind -- at any age. How can one come up with an answer as to why they voted to against having birth control in insurance plans, other than to claim that they don't remember voting against it? I don't feel sorry for him. He has the task of defending an indefensible record. That would cause anyone a great deal of stress -- but it's his record, and now he has to reap the consequences.

I don't see how the Republicans can get rid of him at this point. He has the delegates. I can see how they'd want to get rid of him, but I can't see how they'd do it.

[LiberalAndProud]

63. Although I agree that there is something wrong with McCain,

I don't believe he will be replaced. Reagan was suffering the early stages of Alzheimers while still in office, and I think those around him knew there was something wrong even as he campaigned for reelection. I recall the Iran-Contra hearings when his answer was always, "I don't remember." The thing is, I absolutely believe he was telling the God's honest truth. He did not remember.

It's my belief that McCain will be the nominee. It's my fear that he will be pResident (after the votes are 'counted').

[opihimoimoi]

64. Awwwww Whatsamattah??? The GOP Fucked? No Answers from the Answer Dept? But They always telling us

what to do? or see? or read?

Now they stuck with a LOSER and they know WE KNOW...thus their desperation/confusion....Poor widdle things...Big Head but tiny Ideas that often FAIL....

And they wonder WHY they behind in the polls?

Their Party has turned all SUCKY and too many peeps have seen it.....

Voting RED is like shooting your foot,,,,

[tinrobot]

66. He's not the nominee until the convention is over...

For some reason, similar thoughts have been running through my head. I've been thinking, with all these gaffes and missteps by McCain as well as his advisers, that he might face a revolt at the convention, whether from the ground up or dictated from above.

[NorthCarolina]

68. I've had this same feeling for several weeks now

McCain is way to weak of a candidate. Either he will not ultimately be the nominee, or he is simply a sacrificial cow for an election cycle that the GOP knows it has no chance of winning. Better to give an old coot near the end of his career a grand send off by letting him carry the nomination than to waste someone they feel "might" yet have a political future ahead of them in an election year where the GOP is in the shitter from the get go.

[smoogatz]

70. Nah. Look at the last three Republican presidents.

They were all suffering from one form of dementia or another. The media politely pretended not to notice, just as they are now. And even now, Reagan (who is the ONLY president known to have been suffering from Alzheimer's while in office), is universally revered by your corporate media fluff-heads. It doesn't matter what McCain's mental state actually is. What matters is what the TeeVee says it is.

[POAS]

71. The most disturbing sign to me

was his reaction when asked about Fiorino's comments about viagra and birth control being covered drugs. He was totally lost. His eyes wandered as if looking around in his mind for and answer and his hands fidgeted as he tried to compose an coherant answer.

My thought was, how much longer can they hang on with McCain? Reagan was never this bad while in office and yet the signs were clear at the end that he was slipping away.

[democrat2thecore]

76. You are right - Reagan was NEVER this bad in office

This isn't like Reagan. As I said in an earlier post, historians generally believe he showed mild signs of the disease '86-'88. But, it was AFTER his 1984 re-election that he sat down for hours on end with Gorbachev. Gorbachev is on record as saying he never saw any problems until one incident very late in his presidency.

The difference here is that McCain is campaigning for president with (possibly) something wrong. Reagan began to decline in his latter years in office but honestly - I think McCain is worse now than Reagan was when he left office.

[unblock]

72. since when is dementia a disqualifier for republicans?

or senility, sociopathology, criminality, infidelity, corruptness, etc.?

disqualifier for a democrat, sure. but republicans merely need to be greedy motherf*ckers.

[McCamy Taylor]

73. I agree. Everyday my "McCain will be replaced meter" goes up a few points.

He has left side parietal brain damage. Maybe it is from that invasive melanoma which he lied about way back in 2000, when he claimed that it was noninvasive. You know, the one on his temple, that the NYTs recently read his records and discovered had local spread---that means it had invaded his lymphatics. In 2000, he said he got no radiation therapy or chemotherapy, but he could have lied about that, too. A presidential hopeful with a minimally invasive temple melanoma would want to do everything possible and that includes dissecting all those nodes and chemo and xray therapy.

The problem with Xray therapy at the temple is that it could damage the brain over an area that controls memory--especially short term memory---and speech. Notice that ever since his facial melanoma surgery he has not been the old straight talker. He mixes up words. He can not remember things from day to day. He keeps asking "Did I really say that?" and telling reporters "I'll get back to you."

There is also the possibility of a stroke during surgery, too. Or just a garden variety stroke.

Whatever the cause, the man has brain damage. It is only going to become more obvious as November approaches. People like Phil Gramm, who had to quit politics because of his criminal behavior with Enron have latched onto McCain, because they know that they can get him to do anything / McCain has not judgment. How can you judge when you have no memory?

The man would be a danger as president. The Republicans are traitors for running him. He is like Ronald second term without Nancy or Bush Sr.

[DemExpat]

78. I've thought all along that John looks like someone thinking he's in way over his head....

but I also remember thinking the same thoughts about the Chimp throughout his 8 glorious years.

No idea WTF is going on anymore!

DemEx

[bonito]

79. They backed a chimp remember

No offense to primates.

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

80. Mental incapacity almost seems to be a Republican prerequisite

Bush, Quayle, McCain, Nixon, Reagan all seemed to have some form of mental problem. Ford didn't seem too mentally sharp, either. And what about Bob Dole always referring to himself in the 3rd person?

[crankychatter]

81. could be TIA, (transient ischemic attacks) reduced oxygen to the brain at times

maybe he'll just have a big old cardiac arrest and spare himself the embarrassment...

it sucks to be him

I mean that in the kindest possible way

[Spider Jerusalem]

82. Armchair diagnosis is a fool's game.

And it's absurd to expect that McCain will NOT be the nominee; the GOP has no chance this year, and they know it. McCain is an elderly time-serving hack who's getting his chance at the Presidency and playing the role of sacrificial lamb; he's the 2008 version of Bob Dole. When the GOP lose the election, and lose they will, they can blame it on McCain, the weak candidate, rather than on the glaring and obvious failures of their party. McCain is old and tired and never was very bright, and probably has just enough character to not be entirely comfortable with the pandering he's engaging in (I see this as a more likely reason for his fumbles and odd moments than senility, to be honest). I really don't think that there's a Republican who could win this year (Schwarzenegger, maybe, but he's ineligible).

[Orsino]

83. There's not time to amend the Constitution for an Arnie presidency.

So they're toast. Obama is going to be handed the keys to many of the * family secrets (whatever they can't steal as presidential records). The skeletons will be poking through the closet keyhole, just waiting for a Democrat of courage to haul them out.

[RNdaSilva]

84. Hillary Clinton, like her father, began her political life...

as a Republican. That is a fact. Don't believe it? No documentation here...you've always got Google. Do your own research.

Just prior to the Democratic Convention Hillary will announce that she's a born again Republican. She'll be accepted into the fold and an announcement will be forthcoming that Hillary will be replacing McCain as the RNC presidential candidate. This will come about after a Psychiatric evaluation of McCain determines that he's unfit to continue on in his campaign. Clinton's must win...anything to salvage the Clinton legacy.

End of fantasy...there will be no surprises except for the possibility of Bush declaring martial law...after the bombing of Iran.

Barack Obama will be the Democratic nominee.

John McCain will be the Republican nominee.

Obama will be elected President of the United States and we can return to normalcy. Whatever that means.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CILIBlQ2D0Q

[democrat2thecore]

85. God, you scared the hell outa me for a minute.

I was thinking, "Are they serious?" But, yep, you're right. She was not only a Republican she was a "Goldwater Girl" back before Goldwater turned into a hated moderate (hated by those who once loved him).

[Hun Joro]

87. Since when does dementia disquality a Republican from serving as president?

I mean, it wouldn't be the first time....

[Froward69]

88. The republicans won with a demented

Clown before. (bushy) They know he will be merely a puppet like bush is to cheney. If they do throw mcSame over for some other like romney or huckabee, we still win.

[Eyes_wide_ open]

92. I can't disagree

I too, have had a nagging gut feeling that I've been reluctant to muse upon because the results could be just too horrifying.

I just don't see the neo-cons giving it up this easily. And it's getting glaringly obvious something is seriously wrong with McCain. I don't see him making it to November without coming unglued. I just don't see it. :shrug:

[LVjinx]

95. The media has been hasty in calling nominees, but I doubt there will be surprises for either side

[rosesaylavee]

97. I agree that McCain has a problem

but we are talking about the republicants here. They are masters at self-deception. Remember, they are the party of family values and smaller government and fiscal responsibility. If they deny such obvious falsehoods, how could we ever expect them to actually realize their candidate is too ill to serve?

Or, this is what they are hoping for and the trojan horse will be whoever is selected by the party to serve as VP. Come January or February, if elected, McCain's diagnosis would be made public and the VP would become the executive by March. This may be what the scoundrels are hoping for. A bait and switch. I smell the bush regime behind this one too.

[The Liberal Thinker]

98. That would be suicide.

John McCain is, believe it or not, their strongest candidate. The others are just far too right wing.

[democrat2thecore]

104. Suicide or not - if you read my post - it may not be a matter of choice... -nt

[The Liberal Thinker]

111. I know, but McCain's image is perhaps the only thing the party has going for it right now.

You know, the "Maverick". Without him, the GOP is fated to lose.

[truth2power]

99. McCain is a placeholder...

Every time I hear him speak, that thought comes to mind. "God-almighty, he's a placeholder". How in holy hell is he ever going to hold his own in any debate against Obama?

And, yes, I saw on YouTube that incident where he was asked why the pill is not covered, but Viagra is. It was painful to watch. If he doesn't have a ready response for something as uncomplicated as that, how can he ever begin to understand the complexities of the ME situation?

One caveat is that maybe enough Americans (within the percentages available for another stolen election) really ARE that stupid, and the bar really HAS been set that low, that ANYONE could see him as a viable candidate.


* * * * *

A question: If the nominee for POTUS bows out before the election, does the nominee for VP automatically become the candidate for President? If so, then there's your answer. Watch very closely who he picks for VP. Perhaps it'll be Jeb.

[Imagevision]

101. Dimentia-Bingo! McCain one would think with his so much more experience would be leading Obama but

as weeks go by he clearly demonstrates that perhaps there should be a cap on presidential age for a requirement.
In Florida they make those over a certain age to retake their drivers license test to keep on driving.

[madmom]

102. Makes me think we need to watch really close who his cheney/puppet master will be.

[Imagevision]

103. Mccain's VP. knows he/she will be taking over much sooner then is expected

[QueenOfCalifornia]

106. Since we are playing MAKE A PREDICTION:

McCain will run and the neocon agenda is keeping him because:

When they steal the next election AGAIN McCain will be the next sock puppet who will carry on and STAY THE COURSE. He is easily manipulated... He probably has the telemeter implanted as we speak.

[democrat2thecore]

109. One of the last things McCain said on Friday.....

"I'm not going to change the way our campaign is."

??????

As usual, the AP in their "Presidential Candidates On The Trail" event column:


DEMOCRATS: Barack Obama addresses the National Council of La Raza in San Diego.

REPUBLICANS: John McCain has no scheduled events.

(McCain speaks tomorrow)

Even Reagan campaigned on weekends. I mean, it's a presidential campaign! Though, I wish both candidates would agree to not schedule events on Sunday and have an agreed upon "day of rest." The campaign grind is hard and the 24/7 spotlight is grueling.

[Blondiegrrl]

112. Johnny needs his naptime or he gets grumpy.

:evilgrin: