Taking a cue from the ladies on The View, I guess, David Letterman used last night’s show to ask John McCain some really tough questions.

Or rather, he asked some really tough questions about John McCain, since the senator cancelled a scheduled appearance, saying he needed to go back to Washington to handle the economy. (The photo up there is from an earlier broadcast.) 

A clip of Letterman’s comments (and some thoughts on them) after the jump…

First, it’s nice that Letterman praised McCain as a hero. It kept his later arguments from seeming like mere sour grapes. I’m also impressed by how engaged Letterman seems, since he often comes across as sarcastically detached. His open, conversational attitude makes it easier to consider his statements, and not just laugh at them. 

And speaking of Letterman’s statements… If McCain really can’t do two things at once right now, if he really can’t run his campaign and address the economy, then why isn’t his running mate stepping in to take his place? 

I can’t say for sure. It’s possible that Sarah Palin isn’t subbing for McCain because she’s busy with important things. But with no one there to contradict him, Letterman is free to suggest she’s absent because she’s incompetent.

Of course, her recent Katie Couric interview supports that argument, but why leave Letterman so free to make the point again? What kind of leadership and organization is that? 

And I’m not saying Letterman is the most important person ever, but he is a major national figure whose program reaches millions of people. McCain even announced his candidacy on Letterman’s show, so to blow Letterman off and not send Palin–or anyone else–in his stead doesn’t make McCain look dutiful. It makes him look deceptive, especially since he didn’t race to Washington like he said, but instead went down the block to Couric’s studio for an interview. 

And to let Sarah Palin stay so invisible to the press–and then be so unprepared and poorly spoken when she does grant interviews–makes her seem like the lightweight all the comedians say she is. 

Again, this is only how it appears after being filtered through the media. Maybe McCain and Palin are capable of making strong, clear-headed decisions. But part of being a good leader is being able to inspire confidence in the people you lead, and this kind of public behavior doesn’t create confidence. It creates a void–a void that people like David Letterman are almost obligated to fill in.

Watching that void open up, I have to wonder: If McCain and his people are this unaware of how to present a good face to the public, then are there other important things they don’t know how to do?