Well, I was pretty sure that I would have something to say about who Obama picked for VP by now, but he still hasn't announced who it is so I'll have to wait. This is despite the rumors I heard that he would announce to his supporters via text message on Tuesday. And then the rumors that he would announce that way today. And now rumors that he'll announce via text tomorrow. So I'm going to stop holding my breath, at least until Saturday when he's announced that he will be speaking WITH his VP candidate, so that should be a little more definite than rumors.
Still, the pick has been pretty much set by now. First off, the short list is down to about three candidates, and two of those have been all but eliminated. First off, senator Evan Bayh from Indiana. Despite being a trendy pick for most of July, and coming from a state that is surprisingly this year an important battleground state, there has been a very dull reaction whenever the Bayh balloon has been floated. Progressives and anti-war groups dislike him for his participation in the Iraq War group that recommended that the senate approve the Iraq War resolution. (Which of course technically wasn't a war authorization, but I don't want to drift off track.) Then there's former governor of Virginia Tim Kaine. Again, someone who would give Obama a boost in a state that typically isn't in play for the democratic candidate, and another crafty pick. However, speculation is that since the VP pick will be speaking Wednesday night, and on Tuesday the current governor of Virginia will be speaking, they won't schedule two Virginians in a row. I know that makes ABSOLUTELY no common sense, but this is politics, and is as over-thought as events get. But the real reason that I believe that neither of these two will be the VP pick is that it's been leaked that both of their surrogate teams have received word from the Obama camp that they will NOT be the pick.
So who does this leave us with? Well, surprisingly, we're lead back to Sen. Joe Biden. I have a lot to say about picking Joe Biden for VP, but I think I'll save it until he's actually the pick, and not just who I speculate will be picked.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
I had a dream last night that it was Biden. So it probably won't be him. I'm torn between thinking Biden and Sebelius are picks I'd like to see, for totally opposite reasons.
Biden is a foreign policy guru, and one of the longest serving senators in the whole Senate, which compensates for some of Obama's perceived weaknesses. Yeah, he voted for the war resolution, which in my book is grounds for disqualification. At the time I saw it as abdication of the Senate's power to declare war, and really who the fuck is stupid enough to give extra power to a guy like G. W. Bush??? But, there were tremendous political pressures, and as you mentioned it technically wasn't an endorsement of invasion. Also, Biden is VERY popular amongst older people who know who he is. And older people are the cohort most likely to be undecided, and the ones most likely to hesitate to vote for a young black guy.
Also, speaking from personal experience in Iowa, people LOVED Biden, especially older people. He actually did really well at the caucuses in many places, unfortunately you needed 15% or more for a single delegate and really when superstars like Obama, Clinton, and Edwards were in the mix how could someone else even hope to be competitive? The people at my caucus location wouldn't budge from the Biden group, they were like 1 or 2 people short of the 15%. They just loved that guy.
Then there's Sebelius... I can just imagine. Obama, with his already built-in appeal to independents, chooses as his running mate the extremely popular governor of a really red state, who has been extremely successful while working with a Republican legislature. If that's not brand-reinforcement then I don't know what is. I'm not completely convinced that choosing a woman for VP would help Barack, but it might. And, she's the governor of Kansas. The state where Obama's mother comes from. The mom's apple pie American heartland all-American state of regular folk American Kansas. I dunno, I see the potential there for some SERIOUS convention branding opportunities. Totally reinforce everything that has made Obama successful so far, while utterly destroying the "he's a foreigner" sentiment by grounding him in his roots in the heartland of America. Could be a game-changer. Oh and check this out:
http://www.fivethirtyeight.com/2008/08/obama-sebelibus.html
Then again, there's something exciting about the prospect of Wesley Clark, a distinguished retired four-star general, taking on McCain on his own turf.
And honestly, I think there are arguments to be made for Hillary Clinton, though at first glance I would disagree with them.
And I will hold out hope that this was all just a diversion so that Gore could ride up on his white horse and save the day as VP. And then Gore can run for president in 2016, and his slogan can be "seriously, you guys, what more do I have to do????"
Great response Kev, you pretty much summed up everyone that I actually DO want to serve as VP for Obama. I think Biden will be a fine choice, but I really wish that he would have given more consideration to Gen. Wes Clark. Unlike McCain, the guy is an actual decorated war LEADER. He was head of NATO command during Bosnia/Kosovo, an engagement that saw virtually no U.S. casualties and was considered a resounding sucess. That despite the fact that repulblicans, John McCain included, were on the floor of the senate the day the conflict started demanding that the US withdraw immediately. Regardless of course of what the advice was from the generals on the ground.
Post a Comment