In yet another sign that John McCain is working to win over social and religious leaders he disdained when he was playing the role of "moderate" Presidential candidate in 2000, McCain has now turned for campaign help to a top official from Liberty University, whose chancellor is the Rev. Jerry Falwell. The Associated Press reports that Liberty debate coach Brett O'Donnell has signed on as an adviser for McCain's presidential exploratory committee.

Though Falwell tells the AP that the hire shouldn't be construed as an endorsement, it's clear that the move is intended to help McCain craft a message that will better appeal to the GOP's Falwell wing. Think Progress' Judd Legum, who first noted the hiring yesterday, also reminds readers that McCain's hire of the Liberty University official comes six years after McCain described Falwell as an "agent of intolerance" in 2000 while running for President.