John McCain Watch: McCain to Pull Out of Presidential Race By Labor Day?

Republican presidential hopeful Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., answers questions at the Florida Association of Broadcasters, Wednesday, June 20, 2007, in Palm Beach, Fla.

McCain could pull out of race by autumn

Presidential hopeful drops campaign staff as Republican consultants predict he’ll be gone by September

THE former presidential front-runner, John McCain, may drop out of the 2008 race by September if his fundraising dries up and his poll ratings continue to drop, according to Republican insiders.

The speculation, vigorously denied by McCain’s camp, is sweeping Republican circles after a disastrous few weeks in which the principled Arizona senator has clashed with the party’s conservative base on immigration and also alienated independent voters by backing President George W Bush’s troop surge in Iraq.

Dan Schnur, McCain’s communications director during the 2000 presidential campaign, said it was “possible” that he could drop out: “There are all sorts of challenges McCain is facing, from fundraising to Fred Thompson and the Iraq war, but the biggest single boulder in his path is the immigration issue.”

One veteran Republican consultant put the odds of McCain remaining in the race beyond the autumn at 3-1 against. “He’ll be gone by September,” predicted Tom Edmonds, who is not affiliated with any campaign.

The McCain campaign is already DONE. Put a Fork in McCain.

The Senator is NOT leading in ANY polls national or statewise and his fundraising is lagging.

Why bother to campaign if there is NO support?

The GOP campaign will boil down to Rudy Vs. Fred with Romney hanging on with his money raised from his Mormon constituencies.

Captain Ed says NO – But, he ignores the precipitous drop of McCain in the polls and the concomitant failure of his fundraising operation. Ed, you can’t run those campaign ads if you got no money.

Robert Bluey points to the fact that conservatives in his home state of Arizona have taken up a petition calling on him to withdraw from the presidential race.

 Michelle Malkin – Better late than never, I guess.