[Vision2020] Smart VP Picks--what do YOU think?
Donovan Arnold
donovanarnold@hotmail.com
Thu, 04 Mar 2004 19:08:29 -0800
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<P>Tim,</P>
<P>You bring up some really points. However, I do disagree with you on a few of these and think that you forgot some that would really help Kerry.</P>
<P> Edwards: </P></DIV>
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<P>He would help in a few more areas other than just the Carolinas. I think he would balance the ticket with the left tilted Kerry. He would also make it a "good feeling" ticket. But I agree he should not be on the ticket as VP. Not because he is a "bad" choice, but because he is not the best. I would love for him to be Attorney General.</P>
<DIV></DIV>>Wesley Clark:
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<P>Here I completely disagree with you. Dick Cheney was Sec. of Defense. It is hard to have VP with that much experience with war and the military. Clark is the only Democrat that could match Cheney. Clark would also carry at least his home state. Clark is not strong among Democrats, but he is very strong among independents and Republicans upset with Bush. But still I would rather have Clark as the Sec. of State. </P>
<P>>Sen.. Bob Graham: </P>
<P>Graham was a great man in his time. I admire him and think he is decent senator. But I don't think he would add much to the ticket. He is way to boring. I kid you not, I fell asleep at the Iowa Victory Speech for Kerry, and I would probably fall asleep and miss the vote with a Kerry/Graham ticket.</P>
<P>"The other Fla Sen..--Bill Nelson has been mentioned for similar reasons. He would be better than Graham because he's a better campaigner and his former astronaut status would likely capture the admiration of many. Most the people that voted and supported Graham as governor are dead or don't remember him."</P>
<P>Here I agree, he would make a fine VP on the ticket. He is much more popular and might help to win Florida, an important state.</P>
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<P>Penn. Gov. Ed Rendell: </P>
<P>Nope, not at all. He has zero national appeal. But yes, I agree w/you that Kerry will carry PA anyway.</P>
<DIV></DIV>NM Gov. Bill Richardson:
<P>No doubt he is the BEST qualified to be VP. He is wonderful. But he would not accept the VP nomination, he hates DC. Also, NM we will carry anyway and AZ a bit of a long shot.</P>
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<P>> Former Co-President Hillary Clinton: President. </P>
<P>Agree 100% She will be President, but not in 2005.</P>
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<P>>NH Gov. Jean Shaheen: </P>
<P>To people on the ticket from New England is not a winning ticket for Democrats, maybe Republicans it would be.</P>
<DIV></DIV>Richard Gephardt.
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<P>I like Gephardt. However, I think he is too boring and would result in the same effect as the Kerry/Graham ticket.</P>
<P>Here are few you left out in the order I think Kerry is considering.</P>
<P>Evan Bayh:</P>
<P>Not my Favorite, but an almost sure win. Senator from Indiana, was Governor of Indiana, and his Father was Governor of Indiana. He adds many elements. 1) Money, much needed. Bayh has the most money in his campaign chest than any other Democrat, almost, a few others are wealthier. Kerry also cannot legally borrow money from his wife. She will be of help only in her spending money to slam Bush. 2) Balance on the ticket Liberal/Moderate. 3) Geographical Balance New England/Midwest. 4) Would be the most helpful for capturing neighboring Ohio and strengthening votes in Indiana, Michigan and Illinois.</P>
<P>Mark Warner:</P>
<P>Governor of Virginia. Highly popular in the state. Has passed legislation to fix the hurting economy. He is a former business man and is unable to run again for Governor due to the state constitution. Kerry also owes him a big one for helping him smash Edwards and Clark in the primary in that state. A Warner pick is almost 100% certain of carrying that state and will improve chances of winning West Virginia as well. If Kerry wins the same states as Gore plus Virginia, he would be President. </P>
<P>Marcy Kaptur</P>
<P>My personal second favorite after Bill Richardson, . Congress member from Ohio. She is smart, popular, ambitious and would most likely help Kerry win her state.</P>
<P>That is my take. I hope Kerry picks Warner, but only because I want to win and I am not to fond of Bayh. But Kerry/Bayh is still 10000% better than Bush/Cheney </P>
<P>Donovan J Arnold</P>
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<DIV></DIV>>courtesy of washingtonpost.com
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<DIV></DIV>>Now, the Kerry Team Looks for a No. 2
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<DIV></DIV>>By Jim VandeHei and Dan Balz
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<DIV></DIV>>Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) yesterday launched a search for a running mate that will consider everything from the historical importance of the South to the electoral necessity of tipping one of the nation's swing states away from President Bush, strategists inside and out of the campaign said.
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<DIV></DIV>>Unlike many presidential nominees, Kerry does not exhibit major weaknesses such as foreign policy inexperience that must be compensated for with his vice presidential pick, the strategists said. A top Kerry adviser, who requested anonymity because the search has just begun, said that there is no "obvious gap to fill" but that emphasis will be placed on the possibility of naming a southerner, a prerequisite for Democratic victories over the past 60 years. The last time Democrats won the White House without a southerner on the ticket was 1944: Franklin D. Roosevelt of New York and Harry S. Truman of Missouri.
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<DIV></DIV>>Kerry yesterday named former Fannie Mae chairman and Democratic insider James Johnson to lead the search. Kerry may outline his criteria as early as today.
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<DIV></DIV>>A Democratic nominee has not picked someone to head his search committee this early in the process, underscoring Kerry's sense of urgency. The campaign had not intended to announce Johnson yesterday, but Kerry let the news slip, to the dismay of advisers.
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<DIV></DIV>>Kerry is expected to cast a wide net for governors, women, minorities and swing-state political powerhouses. This will allow him to stroke key officials and constituencies and to ensure that no one who might help the campaign effort is overlooked. Among those who may be considered, according to speculation outside the Kerry campaign, are four former rivals for the nomination: Rep. Richard A. Gephardt (Mo.), Sens. John Edwards (N.C.) and Bob Graham (Fla.), and retired Army Gen. Wesley K. Clark. Several swing-state governors, including Iowa's Tom Vilsack, Pennsylvania's Edward G. Rendell and New Mexico's Bill Richardson, could add non-Washington balance to the ticket.
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<DIV></DIV>>Several women are being talked about, including former New Hampshire governor Jeanne Shaheen, Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano, and former health and human services secretary Donna E. Shalala. Rep. John Lewis (Ga.), a civil rights champion, could be included.
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<DIV></DIV>>Two names floated by influential Democrats outside the campaign: Robert E. Rubin and Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.). "The one person who . . . I think has the potential to really be a powerful voice against Bush's most significant vulnerability [the economy] is Bob Rubin," said John D. Podesta, a former chief of staff to President Bill Clinton.
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<DIV></DIV>>The Kerry adviser said a selection is unlikely before May, but some Democrats said it could come soon thereafter and would certainly be made before Democrats begin their July convention in Boston. "It's next to impossible to move next month if you wanted to," the adviser said. The chief advantage to an early pick is to make news during a slow period and to get a sidekick to campaign, raise money and hammer Bush. The chief impediment to a quick decision is the exhaustive vetting process.
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<DIV></DIV>>Presidential candidates typically seek out a running mate they are comfortable having around, such as Clinton choosing Al Gore in 1992, but it is not unprecedented to pick a rival, even a bitter one, as John F. Kennedy did when he tapped Lyndon B. Johnson in 1960.
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<DIV></DIV>>In 2000, Gore picked Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman (Conn.), a conservative Democrat renowned for his fight for morality in entertainment, to help assure voters that the era of Clinton scandals was behind him. Bush went with Richard B. Cheney, in part because he liked and respected him and because Cheney brought foreign policy heft.
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<DIV></DIV>>Several Kerry supporters are pushing for a Democratic pit bull who can attack Bush while Kerry stays more above the fray, advisers said.
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<DIV></DIV>>A few Kerry advisers said Gephardt could be the right choice because he is squeaky clean, loyal, tireless and as disciplined as any politician in the game. Gephardt has strong advocates, including leaders of organized labor and many House members, and one of his senior advisers, Steve Elmendorf, now serves as Kerry's deputy campaign manager. Gephardt advocates argue that Democrats must win the election in the Midwest and that the Missourian is a natural fit to make the case against Bush's economic policies in the industrial heartland.
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<DIV></DIV>>Politics - http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/politics/?referrer=emailarticle
<DIV></DIV>>© 2004 The Washington Post Company
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