Chances of McCain pulling out of Pa. 'remote,' RNC deputy chair says

A deputy RNC chairman told PolitickerPA.com Wednesday that the GOP remains optimistic John McCain can win Pennsylvania despite a barrage of polls showing him down by double-digits.

The chances of the Republican presidential nominee pulling out of Pennsylvania are "remote," according to Frank Donatelli.

"We're always re-evaluating where we put our resources," Donatelli said. "We do this on a daily basis ... as long as we have the resources and as long as we think we can be competitive in Pennsylvania, we're going to stay."

The past month's financial crisis has turned several states, such as Missouri and North Carolina, into battlegrounds for the two candidates, forcing McCain to play defense in areas once thought safe.

But the GOP has enough resources, including money and campaign infrastructure, to compete in all the battleground states, Donatelli said.

McCain's success in the Keystone State will depend on attracting cultural conservatives in the middle and western parts of the state while holding his own in the Philadelphia suburbs, Donatelli said -- the same blueprint that has been in place for the senator from Arizona since his nomination.

Although the deputy chair acknowledged the financial crisis has "changed the race pretty dramatically," he cautioned against thinking it will carry Barack Obama through Election Day.

"You know, there's been a lot of peaks and valleys in this campaign," he said. "Every time it appeared that Senator Obama was going to run away, people stopped and thought about (voting for him).

He thinks that will happen again.

"I think we still have a chance to win this election," Donatelli said, before correcting himself. "Let me restate that  -- we're going to win this election."