What this conservative columnist in Texas is hearing is ominous, but not surprising:

I had a long, bleak lunch today with a group of Dallas friends and acquaintances. All conservative men, 35 and older. Everyone a serious Christian (I think I was the only non-Evangelical there, but I could be wrong). Everyone is expecting a wipeout. One of the guys at the table is well-connected in Washington GOP circles, and the news he brought from his RNC contacts was about as bad as you can imagine. McCain is done for; it’s all about saving as many Republican senators as they can now.

The anger at Bush was palpable. “Let’s face it, we went with the wrong guy in 2000,” one GOP activist said. Several of the men at the table were disgusted by the Sarah Palin pick, and what it revealed about McCain’s judgment. Another guy — one of the most serious and thoughtful religious conservatives I know — said he was going to vote for Obama. “The country needs to have someone stable and serious in the White House,” he said, “And I used to think that was McCain. But it turns out that Obama’s the one.” He went on to explain that he thinks Obama will be a better decision-maker than McCain.

I’m hearing similar sentiments from more and more observant Catholics up here in New York.