As Barack Obama's campaign gained momentum, Rush Limbaugh launched Operation Chaos. Talk-radio's premier scholar urged faithful listeners to vote for Hillary Clinton in Democratic primaries -- not because he wants her to become president but because Clinton victories would prolong the Democratic contest, thereby dividing the party to the benefit of John McCain (the candidate Limbaugh previously failed to stop in the GOP primaries).

Limbaugh has mastered the art of taking credit. His voice struts. He now says his legions have affected results in several states. Obama agrees. The all-but-certain Democratic nominee suspects Operation Chaos explains Clinton's narrow win in Indiana. Obama apparently believes he would have won if only loyal Democrats had voted. Perhaps.

So-called strategic voting is not new. Partisans in the past have participated in their opponents' primaries to promote the nomination of the weakest candidate. In 1977, for instance, Republicans whispered about voting for Henry Howell in the Virginia Democratic gubernatorial primary in which Howell defeated Andrew Miller by 3 points. Miller had been considered the front-runner, and, to many, rated as the favorite for November. Our sense is that while Republicans may have padded his lead, Howell would have won anyway. Political reporters noted growing enthusiasm for Howell as the primary drew near. Howell lost the general election to Republican John Dalton.

Strategic voting presumably isn't illegal, although parties sometimes require loyalty oaths -- which, of course, would be violated by those who vote only to roil the other side. And while dittoheads may have had an impact in Indiana (and Texas), turnout trends in certain states suggest Republicans and independents have voted for Obama, not to create chaos, but because they like him. Virginia may serve as an example of a pro-Obama tide.

Limbaugh remains one of his genre's master entertainers, and he no doubt will continue to push Operation Chaos. His exhortations seem unlikely to note, however, that -- let's be frank -- every chaotic ballot is, at heart, a lie.