Let's put the VICE in Vice President!

With the presidential nominees all but decided (sorry, Hillary!), it's time to think about vice presidential picks. There are all sorts of names being floated around, from various senators to governors to Supreme Court justices (!). I thought I'd put in my two-dirhams worth here.


Let's start with the Democrats. The most ridiculous suggestions are that Hillary Clinton (or, if she somehow found the superdelegates, perhaps a few lying around in Whitewater memos talking with Vince Foster or something, Barack Obama) could be the VP. This obviously would not be wise. The animosity between the two has been well-documented and now well-traveled. I understand that once the Democratic nominee has been decided, the loser will suck it up and support the Democratic presidential candidate, but choosing one's bitter former opponent as your running mate? Won't work. Another Democrat whose name is tossed out frequently is Bill Richardson, the governor of New Mexico. Secretary of Energy in the Bill Clinton administration, Richardson made some news earlier when he abandoned the Clintons like a rat scurrying off a sinking ship (thus prompting James Carville to call him "Judas Iscariot," but that says more about Carville than it does about Richardson), but he would make a good running mate for Obama (hmmm, the first black president with the first Hispanic vice president!). Obama might return the favor and give him the nod. There's also Sam Nunn, former senator of Georgia, who incidentally spoke at my graduation from university. And then there's the former North Carolina senator and well-known populist John Edwards, who certainly has the name recognition--but as one-half of a losing team four years ago, one should tread carefully around this slick trial lawyer. Then there's the unlikely but funny scenario of Bill Clinton as VP. I wonder if the interns who work for the vice president are any cuter? Finally, we have former South Dakota senator Tom Daschle, another good possibility for a Democratic ticket if you can escape his ego.


So we move on to the Republicans. One name that comes up, interestingly enough, is Joe Lieberman, another failed former vice presidential candidate, but in this case a Connecticut Democrat. Yes, Lieberman supports his buddy McCain. Honestly, Republicans have nothing to gain from choosing him. They already have a (nearly) Democrat on the ticket. Choosing him would be an outrageous move, turning off too many Republicans. Current Secretary of State Condoleeze Rice has been mentioned (thus giving the Republicans a minority on their ticket too), but she is so closely associated with the Bush adminstration that this would be a very bad idea indeed. Supreme Court justice Antonin Scalia's name has come up, but why on earth would he want to lower himself to the executive branch of government? South Carolina gets two honorable mentions, in the form of Governor Mark Sanford and Senator Lindsey Graham, but in the national arena, they aren't really "there" yet. Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney has been mentioned, but he doesn't play well with McCain. Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee is another possibility; he could reel in some conservatives who are concerned about McCain's track record. He would act as a character foil to McCain's lack of conservatism. Finally, there's Florida Governor Charlie Crist, who killed Romney's campaign when he rather quickly threw in his support of McCain. McCain went on to quickly take the Republican nomination after Florida's primary, and McCain may return the favor in a big way. Former New York Mayor Rudy Guiliani also gets mentioned occasionally, but like Lieberman, there's the problem of liberal politics. McCain really needs a candidate with whom he can work well and who has a more conservative outlook.


Ultimately, the vice presidents that McCain and (presumably) Obama will choose are probably not even on this list. Presidential candidates have a knack for choosing people you didn't see coming: I think of former president George Bush (the father) selecting Dan Quayle, or Bill Clinton selecting another southern politician (Al Gore), or the current president selecting his puppeteer Dick Cheney. Nevertheless, here is my prediction: McCain/Crist vs Obama/Richardson. If Hillary Clinton somehow took the nomination, she may choose Edwards. It will be a close election...