There is only one reason McCain went to Washington this week. He needed to pick up the shiv he'll stick in Obama's back at Ole Miss tonight.

Now, as McCain announces he'll attend tonight's debate, the nature of that crude blade becomes clear. It's the economy, stupid.

McCain's been saying all along that Obama is just another tax-and-spend liberal who plans to bloat government spending. Now, as the public eye has clearly focused on McCain's charge into Washington and the Oval Office the past two days, he has clearly damaged hope for a quick bailout plan. And that is what he wanted to be seen doing.

By sticking up for the House minority plan, McCain has put himself in the position to say tonight that he's for the little guy, that Paulson's plan is too expensive and risky and that Obama supports Paulson's basic approach to the detriment of taxpayers everywhere.

The devil for McCain is not in the details of the plan he supports or the one he has sided against. We have seen that McCain does not recognize the devil, or he would see in the mirror the visage of a destructive charlatan.

McCain is betting on the deep-seated anger of those blue-collar whites who still regard Obama as suspiciously tolerant of arugula. McCain wants to whip them into a frenzy tonight, and he very likely will if Obama doesn't come up with a crisp, startling stumper for those noradrenaline-intoxicated minds in TV land.

Country First went out the window with McCain's platform, his choice of Palin and the conduct of his campaign. The right thing to do has no bearing on the Arizona senator's strategy nor applies any brake on his cynicism. If the right to do had played any part in his decision-making, he would not have have suspended his campaign to purposely inject politics into the most pressing crisis of the months to come.

Instead, Mr. Shiv went to Washington. Tonight, he'll be in Mississippi next to Barack Obama.