Back to the future for McCain…

John McCain had to be at least a bit sentimental today as he went back out on the ol’ ‘08 campaign trail for one more go as the biggest surrogate GOP Senator Saxby Chambliss could get for his runoff reelection bid. The Senator from Georgia is locked in a runoff election set for December 2 with Democrat Jim Martin, feeling the heat from his failure to win a majority on November 4 and potentially losing ground as a victim of Barack Obama’a sweep into the comfy position of president-elect.

While Obama has refrained from going to Georgia personally - aides still confirm that their are no plans for Obama to campaign with or for Martin - instead sending money, strategists and a team of campaign staffers to help, McCain immediately responded to a call for assistance from GOPer Chambliss. Perhaps McCain sees it as a final chance to save a shred of his legacy from the depths of the failure of his presidential bid.

Today’s trail events featuring McCain stumping alongside Chambliss did present sort of an odd contrast to their long distance relationship back in 2002. That was when Chambliss ran the infamous TV ad against Democrat incumbent Max Clelenad, using images of Saddam and Osama to slime the Vietnam vet and multiple amputee as soft on terror and not a true “patriot.” What was McCain’s response to the controversial ad? He called it “…worse than disgraceful” and  “reprehensible.”

Nothing as acrimonious as that from McCain at a Chambliss trail stop today, where Mac urged Georgia voters to “send Saxby back” to Washington and mused about the quick turnaround he has pulled in getting back on the trail so soon after defeat.

McCain said that Chambliss, and the state’s other Senator, who was not up for re-election this cycle, need to stay together as a team.

“We can’t break up this combination, my friends,” McCain said, talking about the two’s work together for Georgia and the United States. “We just can’t do that.”

McCain praised Chambliss’s work on agriculture, national security, and working to reduce spending.

“We’ve got to send Saxby back for that and many of these other reasons,” McCain said.

McCain joked that “I didn’t think I would be back on the campaign trail quite this early,” after his loss last week to Barack Obama, but said that there was a lot at stake. He said that he knew personally how well Democrats could turn out the vote, and asked for the supporters in the room to work hard until the special election on Dec. 2. 

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