McCain campaign officials spilling to the press about strategy fights, which means they're already trying to salvage their reputations

From the beginning, the McCain campaign has been high drama. Internal fights, new campaign managers, bickering -- it all spilled into the media. The trouble starts at the top, of course. McCain is an erratic manager. However, when "McCain campaign officials" start spilling to the press with just 25 days to go til the election, it's not about strategy, it's about cover. (Yeah, CYA.) We'll start to see more of these "off-the-record" comments as top GOP operatives try to distance themselves from the impending disaster:

Top McCain campaign officials are grappling with how far to go with negative attacks on Sen. Barack Obama in the final weeks of what is turning into a come-from-behind effort.

Sen. John McCain has allowed a series of increasingly harsh broadsides in new campaign ads and in speeches by his wife, Cindy, and his running mate, Gov. Sarah Palin. But the Arizona Republican has rejected pleas from some advisers to launch attacks focusing on Sen. Obama's former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright.

Some McCain campaign officials are becoming concerned about the hostility that attacks against Sen. Obama are whipping up among Republican supporters. During an internal conference call Thursday, campaign officials discussed how the tenor of the crowds has turned on the media and on Sen. Obama.

Those "McCain campaign officials" are really more concerned about their careers and reputations at this point. Let them spill the dirty laundry. The more time they spending covering their butts, the less time they'll have to work on getting out the GOP vote.

Republican campaigns up and down the ticket are having the same kind of internal battles. They're fighting within the McCain campaign. Republican candidates are fighting the McCain campaign. It's all beautifully self-destructive.