Don't Be Chicken, Senator McCain

The former Navy pilot must have lost his nerve somewhere along the line.

John McCain says he won't debate Barack Obama Friday night because he has to go to Washington to fix the economic crisis.

But before he actually flew in to supposedly save the economy, he gave a speech in New York, taped an interview with Katie Couric and met with a rich and attractive supporter, Lady Lynn Forester de Rothschild.

Face it. He's chicken.

He's flailed about for two weeks now, trying to say something consistent and intelligible about the credit meltdown. His poll numbers are sinking. He's obviously afraid of Obama, and that's why he's weaseling out of the debate.

He's afraid of David Letterman, too. McCain cancelled his appearance on the show Wednesday night because he said he was flying to Washington. Big mistake to lie to Dave. Letterman showed a feed of McCain as he was getting made up for his interview with Katie Couric -- and then asked McCain if he needed a ride to the airport.

McCain seems most afraid of letting his vice presidential candidate debate my good friend Joe Biden. He's suggesting that the first debate with Obama be canceled and replace the vice presidential debate. I can't blame him for that.

We've seen this movie before. The last time his poll numbers were in a swan dive was right before the Republican convention. And what did McCain do? He canceled part of the convention in Minnesota because Hurricane Gustav was hitting Louisiana.

Can you imagine him in the White House? If John McCain can't go eyeball to eyeball with a fellow American in a moderated debate, how will he face down Vladimir Putin or Mahmoud Ahmadinejad?

Barack Obama is exactly right -- we need a President that can handle more than one crisis at a time.