Josh Marshall summarizes perfectly what McCain just tried to pull:

[Shakespeare]

09.24.08 -- 3:19PM

Wait ... Wait
What's changed today in the financial crisis other than John McCain's poll numbers tanking? Isn't this the campaign equivalent of faking an injury when you're down late in the 4th quarter? Note too that McCain was in the midst of debate prep when he made this decision.

Look at what appears to have happened. Obama reached out to McCain privately to agree to a shared set of bailout principles. McCain went off the handle again and tried to use the crisis as a way to call off the debates.

--Josh Marshall

[AtomicKitten]

1. Yahtzee! It's important that the truth not be muddled.

[Doityourself]

2. Bingo!

[TwilightGardener]

3. Yep--he's lying on the field, groaning and wincing.

[marew]

4. You got it! n/t

[WI_DEM]

5. Once again McCain proves to be not competent to serve as president.

[underpants]

6. This is what he did to win the Repub nomination

the field is not nearly as weak now

Technology makes this move seem OLD

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

7. More sudden snap decisions by McCain out of the blue

No compromise, no offer to move the debate to the week-end, no flexibility in debating in Washington, D.C. after the Senate concludes its work for the day.

[Shakespeare]

8. Another desperate shock move to try and distract.

Low poll numbers, campaign manager's ties to Fannie Mae, Sarah's Excellent Field Trip to the UN....

What a fucking coward.