McCain And Palin: Stevens Must Go

Last night, Sarah Palin nudged onetime pal Ted Stevens toward the exit — today John McCain booted him out the door.

Which will raise the inevitable question: Are they on the same page, Ted-wise?

UPDATE: OK, they're on the same page. Palin, who's with McCain in Hershey, Pa., today, is now calling for Stevens to quit, CNBC reports.

McCain's statement:

"Yesterday, Sen. Ted Stevens was found guilty of corruption. It is a sign of the health of our democracy that the people continue to hold their representatives to account for improper or illegal conduct, but this verdict is also a sign of the corruption and insider-dealing that has become so pervasive in our nation's capital.

"It is clear that Sen. Stevens has broken his trust with the people and that he should now step down. I hope that my colleagues in the Senate will be spurred by these events to redouble their efforts to end this kind of corruption once and for all."

Last night, in a statement issued before Stevens vowed to keep running, Palin stopped short of calling on Stevens to step aside, asking the 84-year-old Stevens to “do what’s right for the people of Alaska.”

Speaking earlier on MSNBC, a McCain/Palin spokesman emphasized their uni-ticket reponse: "They've been quite clear in their contempt for his behavior. I don't expect that they would cast their ballot for Ted Stevens if they were Alaska voters."