Spin Cycle

There's a fair amount of talk that shake-ups in the McCain campaign may not be over, that in addition to installing Rove-trained Steve Schmidt as the operational manager of his campaign the (presumptive) GOP nominee may also want to bring in Mike Murphy as his chief strategist.

The turmoil, the Times says, is typical of McCain: "After a period of relative calm on that score, it is becoming clear that his campaign is once again a swirl of competing spheres of influence, clusters of friends, consultants and media advisers who represent a matrix of clashing ambitions and festering feuds."

Murphy goes way back with McCain. He masterminded the insurgent campaign against Bush in 2000 that first, and favorably, introduced the Arizonan to a national audience. After that, he latched on to the late-starting campaign of Long Island's Rick Lazio, who had replaced Rudy Giuliani as Hillary Clinton's adversary in the NY Senate race.

Those who remember that campaign may be slightly puzzled by Murphy's reputation as a political genius. It had plenty of money, fueled by a national anti-Hillary fundraising effort. But the campaign itself always seemed one dimensional -- presenting Lazio as a nice fellow, and Hillary as a carpetbagger who was Hillary, as if that was enough. It wasn't.

Afterwards, most of the blame went to Lazio, who just didn't measure up as a candidate. But there were also persistent stories about disagreements between Lazio and Murphy, who at times went his own way, and some grumbling that Murphy never quite had the passion and commitment that measured up to the money he made.

Since then, he's had plenty of successes, including most recently a big role in Schwarzenegger's re-election -- and now, perhaps, a lead role in a bid for the White House. So, maybe you just chalk Lazio up to wrong place, wrong time, wrong candidate, wrong opponent.