If by some twist of fate John McCain wins the November elections (and I say twist of fate because this year more than any other is one where all the trends should favor the Democrats) you can tell all your friends that you saw it here first. Here’s my “conspiracy theory” for the 2008 elections – I’d like you to try it on for size.

Let’s start by making the following assumptions:

1. Hillary Clinton got nearly as many votes as Barack Obama.

2. If she really wanted to make a spectacle of the 2008 Democratic Convention in Denver, Hillary Clinton could have if she really wanted to.

3. She didn’t.

So let’s say you’re a Hillary Clinton voter. Your home phone number and e-mail address are both on the Democratic Party rolls and now you are getting calls from pollsters (Democrat-leaning and otherwise) asking who you’re voting for. Of course, you’re going to answer Barack Obama.

But then, come November 4 you find yourself all alone in a voting booth. You look at the ballot on the screen, or on the card or paper before you. And you start to weigh your options. You could: a) vote for Obama and in your own way increase the odds he will be President for the next eight years, thereby rendering your candidate’s presidential ambitions virtually remote in your lifetime, or b) vote for John McCain believing there’s at least a half-decent chance that in four years a truly elderly John McCain or (even better) Sarah Palin will be the Republican candidate for President.

What a choice! Hillary in 2012 vs. an even older John McCain or Sarah Palin, or 2016 against whomever on God’s green earth that year might bring. You look again at the ballot before you and you know this (because you’ve thought about it all along): if Obama loses in 2008 your candidate Hillary Clinton is far and away THE front-runner for the Democratic nomination in 2012. And that’s putting it mildly – if Obama loses this year there’s no way anyone else but Hillary gets the nod in 2012. Hell, you might as well give her the nomination right now. After all, Obama virtually stole it away from her in 2008, didn’t he? Surely no one in your party would ever allow that to happen again.

You gulp hard but you vote for John McCain. Even though you told all your friends and all those pollsters you were voting for Obama.

And you feel good about it as you leave the polling place. Heck, you even tell the pollster standing there you enthusiastically voted for Obama.

And you drive away with a smile on your face.

Don’t think this is possible? I’m telling you, there are A LOT of Hillary voters out there who believe that of all the candiates involved in this year’s election – for both Prez and VP – their candidate is the most qualified and suited for the office. And they might be right. One can’t help but wonder how Hillary would play the current economic crisis – especially if she had Obama as her VP candidate. Like The Anchoress, I can’t help but think what an unbeatable combo the Democrats could have had.

But then again, that’s why Democrats lose Presidential elections.

Maybe I’m all wrong on this, but I don’t think so.

And when the pollsters are surprised at the outpouring of McCain support on November 4 they’ll be left scratching their heads. But you won’t – after all, you heard it here first from The Great White Shank.

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BTW,

Perhaps McCain won’t need those Hillary voters after all – D.J. Drummond (who, trust me, is an absolute MUST read in your 2008 election coverage) explains why you can expect EVERY. SINGLE. POLL. between now and Election Day to be skewed towards the Democrats.

And if you find this post of his compelling, take a look at this post he wrote just days ago. D.J. – you are THE MAN!