There is a general rule in political races that you save your last, best, most desperate cheap shot for the final moments of the campaign. The object is to unload a vicious accusation on your opponent in such a fashion that he/she won’t have time to respond and/or refute the charge before the voters go to the polls. This strategy is based upon the concept that the cheap shot is the last thing the voters will hear before they enter the booth, and with the slanderous allegation ringing in their ears they will vote against the target of the cheap shot rather and in favor of the guy who threw the cheap shot.

To hear John McCain’s tale of the 2000 election drama, Bush surrogates used just such a strategy in South Carolina. McCain’s presidential aspirations died a quick death after Bush thumped him in that primary, and McCain has never quite gotten over it. What McCain has done, however, is adopt the same strategy in his quest to derail Mitt’s Oval Office run.

The economy is turning out to be more of an issue than McCain is prepared to deal with. Economics isn’t McCain’s strong suit. Mitt owns that space and McCain has yet to make a play for it. McCain’s space is the Iraq War, so in his search to hunt up a hammer to throw at Mitt on this issue, he came up with this.

There’s only one problem with McCain’s accusation. It’s false. Baseless. There’s no other way to describe it other than it’s an outright lie. So much for Straight Talk.

At this hour the polls are open in the Sunshine State and they’re all over the map. That RCP average has McCain up by a whopping half percent. In simple terms, it’s a tight race. Mitt and McCain have spent the weekend throwing hammers at each other.

Meanwhile, the LA Times goes to new heights (or depths) of silliness in reporting Mitt’s visit to a KFC. Huck heard about this and parlayed in into yet another piece of unearned media attention.

The New York Times found two Mormons who disagree on Mitt’s impact on the presidential field. The “Paper of Record” keeps finding new ways to flog this dead horse.

Finally today - on a personal and religious note – a comment on the passing of LDS Church President Gordon B. Hinckley.

President Hinckley spent his life in the service of his faith. From the time he was a missionary in England until his death he held a variety of positions in the LDS Church – starting in what would become the Church PR office and ending at the age of 97 as the President.

For me he was the face of the Church for as long as I can remember. To the best of my knowledge he never missed a session of General Conference. He oft times addressed difficult issues in difficult times, but he always managed to do so with well developed sense of humor which cracked even the most hardened journalist – personified by CBS News’ Mike Wallace. President Hinckley did not shy away from those who were conspicuously curious about the Church which he led. He was married to his beloved wife for nearly 70 years. He took the Church to places it had not before been and kept a schedule well into his 90’s that made even the most vigorous younger men tired.

Mitt’s comments on President Hinckely’s passing can be found here and here. As for me, all I can say is he’ll be missed. Godspeed, Gordon. Welcome home.