New Variations of the Plan?

After an exciting convention like the one we just saw in Minneapolis, it's only natural to be exhausted. Who could blame somebody if they just wanted to go home, rest, and bone up on the major issues of the day. I'll bet that any number of delegates are on their way home to just take it easy for a couple of weeks. I have to admit, though, that I wasn't expecting the vice presidential nominee to be one of them.

If reports are to be believed, Sarah Palin is withdrawing from the campaign trail just after she's been introduced. This takes Jay Carney's exchange (which I linked to last night), when the idea that Palin would have any reason to talk the press was held in contempt, even further. For Palin, this really is becoming the "No Talk Express." As far as I'm aware, this is unprecedented, and it only underscores the recklessness of McCain's attempt to snatch her from obscurity to goose his ticket. Although she's proven herself a good performer with a teleprompter, are McCain's handlers beginning to wonder if she is, indeed, ready for prime time? Of course, on the positive side for the Obama campaign, the more Palin disappears, the less she can shore up McCain among the base.

Of course, the McCain campaign has been more and more at odds with the press, so it's impossible to know if this is merely playing them one more time. McCain and Palin made appearances in Wisconsin and Michigan today, and the AP reports that Palin is returning to Alaska for as quickly as a day or two.