Here and There

Another one I hadn’t deeply considered who turns out to be perfectly viable. Except for that home loan thing …

John Edwards says now that he will consider VP or Cabinet offers from Obama. Way to go, John. Attorney general was made for you.

Wow, I’m a fucking idiot, but I honestly haven’t thought about the prospect of Colin Powell as vice president, for either candidate.

If McCain snatches him up (unlikely, as Powell has signaled stronger support for Obama), the election may be over. If Obama taps him, however, it might not be to his benefit. Sadly, a ticket with two black men, however lightly skinned, could sink like lead. I have a cynical feeling they’d do a lot worse than Obama would on his own.

If somehow we were to avoid such a repuational shit-stain, I would really, really like the idea.

Now there’s a choice I hadn’t yet considered. Lionel Beehner has.

My first, gut-reaction concern is her health. Edwards saw a recurrence of breast cancer last year.

Sorensen is a former speechwriter for JFK.

Thx: The Page

Never thought about it before. Then I read how he leaped to Obama’s defense in reaction to McCain’s assertion that Obama has a “Sept. 10″ mindset.

In no particular order:

• Bill Richardson
• John Edwards
• Chuck Hagel
• Michael Bloomberg
• Janet Napolitano
• Jim Webb
• Brian Schweitzer

Isn’t it nice not having to worry that the ticket will be too white? I know, I know, if Hillary had won, we wouldn’t have to worry about its being to male. Still, I’m just saying.

Sullivan likes the idea. I’m open to exploring it further.

Been awake just half an hour, and already seen two instances suggesting what a great pick Chuck Hagel would be for Barack Obama.

Arianna Huffington, on the Tonight Show last night.

And a Commentary magazine piece by Daniel Halper.

My short list, in order of preference:

Gov. Bill Richardson
Sen. Chuck Hagel
Ex-Sen. John Edwards
Gov. Janet Napolitano

The first from Survey USA is in, out of Pennsylvania, and shows that, through various pairings and matchups, an Obama-Edwards ticket does remarkably well.

I can see myself warming to the idea of Edwards as VP, though he’s not my ideal.

Update: Sullivan weighs in against the idea.

Original post: Saw this headline and felt the need to comment: John Edwards: Open To Vice President, Interested In Attorney General.

While I certainly wouldn’t not vote for an Obama-Edwards ticket, there’s something that doesn’t quite sit well with me having John Edwards as a VP candidate again. And I think the answer is tied up in the very idea of again.

There are many reasons to want Edwards on the ticket. He has Southern appeal, Caucasian appeal, lawyerly appeal. He’s known on the national stage already. He’s served as senator from a potential battleground state.

And perhaps he should be exonerated for the Kerry-Edwards ‘04 disaster of a campaign.

But when you look at what Obama really needs in a candidate, before looking at potential matches, Edwards falls short.

Obama needs someone with executive experience. Someone with foreign policy experience (the more, the better). He needs someone who didn’t vote for the war in Iraq. He needs someone already known to Americans, but perhaps not as fresh as Edwards, who largely came onto the scene in 2003, shortly before Obama emerged as a prominent pol.

I for one think Edwards would be an amazing vice president. But I’m a socialist, Left Coast, fringe-dwelling freak. What I think only matters insofar as to point toward what kind of candidate might play well “out there” in America.

Like I’ve said (and the abovelinked article suggests), Edwards for AG, not VP.

Al Giordano makes a pretty persuasive case for Obama’s picking Ohio Governor Ted Strickland as his running mate, and Al put a poll up on DailyKos.

God forbid Barack Obama should ask one of his fellow senators to join his ticket.

It’s striking me as more and more sensible to look to the West, to a governor of a battleground state. Janet Napolitano would make a wonderful VP, but she won’t carry Arizona for the Democrats. McCain has a lock on that state.

In terms of the nation being familiar with a candidate, Bill Richardson just seems obvious. I like him. He has executive and legislative experience, in addition to his much-touted foreign policy and diplomacy résumé.

Kathleen Sebelius would be solid, but faces an uphill battle in terms of recognition on the national stage. And, sorry, but I don’t think a African-American-and-female ticket is the way to go. Racism from now until November could reach new heights. Sexism inherent in putting a woman on the ticket won’t diffuse it, and may turn even more people off.

I have a new idea, a new argument for why Hillary Clinton should end this, once and for all.

It’s a safe assumption that Barack Obama will not choose her to be his running mate. Therefore, whomever he does choose will be someone less visible. They will be a representative or governor (I doubt seriously he’d tap the Senate), probably from a battleground state. Chances are, they will not be well-known nationally, or at best, marginally so.

So they’ll need some time. Some time to get out there, to test themselves and to be tested. To become as well-known and liked as Obama is.

The focus should now shift to cleaning up in November, as it has for our presumptive nominee. I have a feeling it could be a rout, with all battlegrounds going to Obama. We’ll see.

(I feel it’s only appropriate to debut a new category: obama’s VP)