Jim Talent turns down Fox News - is he insane?

According to most leading pollsters, the U.S. Senate races are all decided at this hour, except for two: Virginia and Missouri. If the Democrats win them both, they take the Senate.

"Fox News Sunday" invited the two Missouri candidates in a statistical tie, Claire McCaskill and the Republican incumbent, Jim Talent, to appear on Sunday's show. But when the interview aired live (here's the transcript), it was all Claire. The senator, Chris Wallace explained, "was not available" to appear on live TV.  (The Star reported today that Talent "declined.")

Apparently Talent's people prefer to pay for their television time.

What's really bizarre about Talent's decision is the fact that Kansas City is one of the only, perhaps THE only, television market in the nation where "Fox News Sunday" wins its time slot. Talent had no problem making time for Tim Russert a few weeks ago on "Meet the Press," yet that program airs on a relatively weak NBC outlet serving western Missouri. On both ends of the state, Fox airs on a strong VHF signal.

If it were me, I'd fire the advance guy who made that call ... but then, they're all going to be out of jobs on Tuesday. (No, that's not a partisan statement; that's when the campaigns, all campaigns, praise the Lord, are over.)