Well, gee, John, thanks for agreeing to show up at tonight's debate, now that you've gotten the economy back on track. Oh, you haven't? Well, at least it's not your fault. According to you, John "the Maverick" McCain, the problem was that those damned DC insiders (i.e., your longstanding colleagues) were too busy playing the "blame game" to strike a deal.

But wait, isn't blaming the lack of progress on the folks who have actually been there the whole time trying to strike a deal a form of the blame game? Maybe we need to change games -- how about the "responsibility game," in which participants have to explain their actual records on issues like financial deregulation that have helped set the stage for the current crisis? If we're lucky, tonight's debate could play that role; if not, we all need to be asking these questions between now and the election -- without being intimidated by candidates who would rather whine about the "blame game" than take responsibility for their own actions.