That should seal the conservative vote right. And think of the field day the Obama campaign will have. The guy who can’t remember how many houses he owns endorsing the mega-millionaire investor. Over/under for number of mentions of 1% in the DNC’s first email: Five.

Arizona Sen. John McCain, the GOP presidential nominee in 2008, is moving toward endorsing a candidate for 2012.

Republican sources familiar with his thinking say he will probably endorse his onetime political enemy, Mitt Romney.

McCain, of course, was last seen wooing the conservatives Romney needs by calling them “hobbits” for opposing the supercommittee, which you’ll recall utterly failed last month. As conservatives had predicted.

Why the, er, timely endorsement? Romney helped McCain fight off a conservative challenger in the last primary. And Romney acted as a surrogate for McCain in 2008. So they’re good buddies.

“He went wherever and whenever he was asked,” said a source familiar with Romney’s contribution to the campaign after the former Massachusetts governor dropped out of contention.

Romney also backed McCain in his 2010 primary against former Rep. J.D. Hayworth, traveling to Arizona to stump for the senator.

After a roar of maniacal laughter was detected coming from Newt Gingrich’s campaign headquarters, McCain came out with a statement saying he won’t be announcing his endorsement of anyone for months. We’ll see if that holds. I doubt it.