The Glamour Factor

John McCain hit the trail for Ahnold.

He made noises about the $200 million being spent on the November special election and the latter's Bush-like fondness for faux, by invitation-only "town hall meetings" that lacked credibility. Yet GOP party man McCain didn't seem bothered by these things enough -- not to mention Ahnold's power grab attempts and cozy relationship with special interests -- not to stump for the Govehnuh, anyway.

That alone speaks volumes about his credibility. Then again, this is the same man who enthusiastically campaigned for Bush last year.

This excerpt also gives us a peek into McCain's line of thinking:

But despite the partisan pounding Schwarzenegger is taking in California, his Hollywood star power is undiminished in the rest of the nation, McCain said.

"There's the glamour factor,'' the senator said. "I don't know of one Republican in Congress or the Senate who wouldn't die to have him come campaign for them ... He's pumped some life into our Republican Party."

Meanwhile, Ahnold himself shows a tad more political savvy by avoiding the toxic Bush:

Sacramento -- Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said Tuesday he wants President Bush to delay a planned October fundraising visit to California because the governor fears it will siphon off donations he needs to help his Nov. 8 special election measures.

[...]

National party officials say Schwarzenegger appears to be keeping the president at arm's length while Bush is unpopular in California.

Too bad for him, Californians aren't buying it.

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