If you’d told me a year ago that John McCain would (a) be the Republican presidential nominee and (b) be holding a campaign rally here the day before the election, I’d have keeled over on the spot.

And yet, today we find out that Sen. McMavericky will be here on Monday in an attempt to put a few last-ditch points on the board.

Every single poll has shown that Indiana, redder than red for the past four decades, is in play — with things all tied up. This shouldn’t be happening, but it is, and it’s happening because Barack Obama didn’t take us for granted.

So, here’s the question: Will it be enough, or will it be too little too late?

I’ve said for a month now that Obama wins Indiana by a couple points. I’m sticking with that, even if McAllOverTheFearAndLoathingTalkingPoints shows up a few hours before the polls open.

We can debate ’til the cows come home how things might have been if he’d connected on the economy and not picked an empty Dolce suit as his running mate, but he made the choices he made, and how he has to have to come to fly-over country to defend those choices in order to avoid complete embarrassment when the Magic Map lights up on election night.