I woke up this morning to the BBC reporting on Putin's allegation that there were American "operatives" in the combat zone in Georgia. 

I couldn't help but wonder whether the Bush/McCain coalition wasn't trying to pull a "Reagan" in this election cycle;e.g. influencing US public opinion by manipulating a foreign incident a la the Iranian hostage release that was secretly delayed to make Carter look weak.  It certainly worked then, and since they have no new ideas why not try an old one again?

Regardless of anyone's opinion of Putin and his motives, he has proven to be a shrewd and cunning leader.  Why would he make such a public allegation if there was no evidence to back it up? 

Certainly the republicans will say that Putin wants Obama elected because he will be weaker than McCain.  Even though that is a load of rubbish, that will likely be the spin. 

Still, the layers of intrigue are thicker than a "Jason Bourne" storyline, but one of the enticing tidbits of the intrigue is the link that the McCain campaign has to the Georgian government via his lobbyist cum advisor, Randy Scheunemann.

It is certainly possible that Putin may just be stirring the pot, e.g. meddling in our election as we have done in states that border Russia (Georgia/Ukraine).  But the pot is certainly full of covert motive on the Bush/McCain side, and what's in the pot stinks. 

If it is true, I hope that Putin reveals the proof next Wednesday night...wouldn't that spice up the republican convention stew?