Did John McCain know ahead of time what questions he’d be asked at Saturday’ Saddleback forum?

The internets are buzzing this morning over reports that the Arizona senator may not have actually been in a “cone of silence” while the Rev. Rick Warren interviewed Barack Obama. Both candidates were asked identical questions, but Obama went first after a coin-flip.

The New York Times reports that McCain was en route to the event in his motorcade during the first round of questioning-a fact that came as a surprise to Warren on Sunday. Read the full story here.

Whether or not McCain could have benefited from advance knowledge is unclear, as the forum could at times have just as easily doubled as an interview for an entry-level managerial position at the neighborhood Popeye’s franchise (for example, “What’s the most gut-wrenching decisions you’ve ever had to make?”)

But at the very least, it gives us an excuse to bring back this “debate-gate” of yester-year, which remains the most exciting thing ever to happen at a presidential debate.