John McCain has once again acted without thinking through the consequences of his actions. McCain’s little campaign “time out” stunt is utterly fake. McCain is still making TV appearances, and Governor Palin is still holding rallies — so how exactly has his campaign “suspended”? Moreover, he’s playing politics in the middle of a global economic meltdown. It’s Bush-esque, actually — McCain says he’s not playing politics, and then does something that is purely presidential campaigning — while at the White House, no less.

McCain’s behavior isn’t just dirty politics: it’s dangerous. The bailout plan sucks, but the compromise that came out of the Congress today looked not nearly as terrible as allowing the financial system to completely melt down. Rather than support the compromise, McCain has decided to play politics, thinking that it will help his presidential campaign. Dangerous. Reckless. John McCain.