Obama suggests the two of them come up with a joint statement with which both can agree in order to reassure the American people and the world. Obama calls McCain.

McCain calls Obama, reassures him that the two sides are getting close on said statement.

Several minutes later McCain pulls his grandstanding announcement, which may be brilliant to some but for others is shallow. It's to hide from a debate, not resolve an issue. Both opinions can be true. It may have been smart, the way it was done was chickenshit.

And after the calls McCain owed it to Obama to tell him said statement was irrelevant.

Arf