But it turns out that Bush himself has not spoken to McCain since May, when the two met briefly for 14 seconds on a tarmac. And before that, not since March, when the two walked out onto the colonnade of the White House to announce the president's endorsement.

That's because, according to this coming Sunday's New York Times, the two sides have "a relationship fraught with bitter resentment, grudging respect and mutual dependence." In short, the two need each other.

Bush, smarting over McCain's criticisms of his handling of the federal response to Hurricane Katrina, needs a McCain victory to validate his legacy, says author Peter Baker.

And McCain, who hasn't forgotten how the Bush forces pelted him with negative ads in the South Carolina primary in 2000, needs the president's core supporters to go to the polls. Without them, the 72-year-old McCain has an uphill battle to beat a 47-year-old Democrat with lots of money and star power who is running against an unpopular president in what looks to be a Democratic year.

Of course if McCain does pull this off, he and Bush will likely talk again. On Inauguration Day.

-- Johanna Neuman (LAT)