Nobody could have predicted...

...that if you put microphones in the hands of narrow-minded, bigoted morons, they might start to say stupid shit you'd want to run far, far away from:

First, there was the angry man who told John McCain to hit Barack Obama “where it hurts.”

Then came the woman who called the Democratic nominee “an Arab.”

And don’t forget the man who stood up before a packed crowd and said he was “scared” of an Obama presidency — nevermind the racially tinged cat calls and rounds of boos from McCain’s other gymnasium crowds.

The town hall format was supposed be the Republican nominee’s favorite campaign forum, highlighting his shoot-from-the-hip style, his broad knowledge on a slew of issues and his irreverent wit. He loved it so much that he challenged Obama to a string of town hall debates.

I'll just point out that in the one clown-hall style debate, when the format wasn't having a stake driven into its heart by Tom Brokaw's Gigantic Ego^TM, McCain came out looking second best. Just sayin'.

“The town hall format proved to be a little embarrassing for the campaign, and it built a negative picture about what this campaign is all about,” said Julian Zelizer, a professor of history and public affairs at Princeton University, adding that the encounters were “too costly.”

Too costly, in the sense that McCain's lame clown college of advisors were getting real tired of explaining away just how nasty his, and particularly Palin's supporters are.

(h/t AmericaBlog)

Tom Brokaw's Gigantic Ego is a trademark of RatTracks.