For those who stand with John McCain -- Republicans especially -- the Democrat campaign becomes curioser & curioser. During the past six weeks or so, as Barack Obama's "politics of hope" has crashed and burned, to be replaced by the politics of doubt, more and more endorsements have come his way. Those who one would think would be saying "I don't THINK so!" to him are saying "yes I can." What exactly is going on here? The more the candidate stumbles, and looks untouchable, the more endorsements he gets. Strange indeed. Very strange.

Of course it might be, as Dan Henninger hints in todays WSJ, that Barack Obama's daily new friends really aren't ftriends at all, that their "endorsement" is nothing more serious than a pat on the back, a kind of political one-night stand rather than a marrage. This might be the case. After all, again as Henninger says, today they are running away from Hillary; tomorrow they might run away from Mr. Obama.

It's an odd way to present a campaign. Do the Democrat politicians really want to tell the American people that their "commitments" are good for one ride only? Are no more permanent than one of Bill Clinton's womanizings? Without trying to relive or re-accuse that cycle, let's remember that in politics the candidate sets the tone. Bill Clinton set an example, in sexual matters, that seems to have carried over into political ones: that a promise of support is good only for the moment. Strange indeed. I doybt that America's voters will choose to vote for such momentary I do's.

Or, it may be that the De,ocrat politicians see Mr. Obama falling like a stone and want to try to prop him up, to give him "moral support," to ease his fall, as if to say "see? it wasn't racism that is sinking you, we support you, you have a future in our party" even as they notice, and do not mind seeing, Hillary Clinton move close to being nominated. That way, they think, they can keep Black voters from staying home -- or voting for John McCain - on election day because Hillary is the Democrat nominee. "See, Black America?" they might be signalling, "when the going got tough for the first serious Black candidate for President, "we stood tall. It is not our fault. We are and always will be the party of Black America!"

It might work. Myself, I find it sad and I think it tremendously devious. We who support John McCain have perhaps the most honorable, un-devious candidate for President in modern times. With John McCain, what you is almost always what you get. He is who he is. You can depend on John McCain. You know John McCain. Politics in a de,ocracy may have attributes in it of contradiction, of shape-shifting, of contingency. But there is no place in a democracy, if it is to work well for people, for infinite deviousnes. For promises good only for an instant. For conning your most loyal supporters. With the De,ocrats, it's always Elmer Gantry time; and Elmer Gantry was a fool.