Classic Midwest Isolationism- McCain was the original NeoCon. Also keep in mind that Obama lagged Reagan's 1980 margin running for an open seat under even worse economic conditions. 2008 isn't really all that impressive when you stack it up against other elections held right in the middle of an economic crisis: 1932, 1980, and the midterms in 1894 and 1874. The surprising thing about 2008 is that Obama didn't win by 15 nationwide and by 20 in Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, etc.
The weird part of this is that you can't attribute it to Obama being a weak candidate because he beat economic expectations handily in 2012. I think you have to conclude that McCain was actually uniquely strong.
It's simply attributable to partisanship having solidified in that time.
