McCain, Romney, and Rudy

AmSpec’s Jim Antle said:

I don’t understand the McCain camp’s insistence on focusing on the candidate behind them in most polls [Romney] rather than the candidate ahead of them in most polls [Giuliani].

The NYT’s Caucus blog has speculated on this too:

The feud between Senator John McCain and former Gov. Mitt Romney is heating up, but it seems the McCain-Giuliani Mutual Admiration Society is as strong as ever. While Rudolph W. Giuliani and Mr. McCain share a reputation for tough talk, they only seem to have the kindest of words for one another

I think that this is clearer than it sounds. There are three separate issues.

First, it is hard for candidates to attack Rudy GIuliani. He has so much stature. Voters just won’t buy it from other politicians. The people who are going to attack Giuliani are going to be the interest groups. As I pointed out earlier, this has started, according to one evangelical leader:

As a matter of fact, he told me point blank, "Rudy must be stopped" and there is a conversation underway on how to do that.

Second, as Hotline points out, it could be that there is a race to be the anti-Rudy.

And, third, every time that McCain takes a pot-shot at Romney, all the stories get retold. And Romney’s numbers are rising. And the press is bored reporting about Romney. So…