Comments on: Look At It This Way

By: Daniel Larison

Daniel Larison — Sat, 24 May 2008 15:09:50 +0000

Agreed that she is not, in fact, the creature from Little Shop of Horrors or anything of the kind, and I also take the point that she is not the best VP selection available. Edwards might work, and a lot of other people have been talking up Strickland as a smart choice.

By: James_Nostack

James_Nostack — Sat, 24 May 2008 14:59:59 +0000

Whatever else one may say about Dick Cheney, he has transformed the Vice Presidency–even to the point of declaring that the Vice Presidency occupies some constitutional Twilight Zone between the Executive and Legislative branches. While Cheney’s specific acts, such as committing war crimes and violating the Constitution, are bad enough, the real problem is that he’s basically created his own shadow government.

Our next Vice President’s greatest task will be to come to grips with Cheney’s legacy. This is a constitutional issue and one far more important than any electoral math.

I don’t share Sullivan’s estimation that Senator Clinton is a Lovecraftian monster, but there is no question that she is exceptionally grasping. If you’re concerned about the Cheney Vice Presidency on general principles, a Clinton Vice Presidency is probably not the best choice.

By: Grumpy Old Man

Grumpy Old Man — Sat, 24 May 2008 05:06:22 +0000

I like Webb, and VA might be in play.

McCain might pick Bobby Jindal, just to shake everything up.

By: conradg

conradg — Sat, 24 May 2008 04:58:08 +0000

I don’t think Hillary is so problematic that she can’t be brought into the fold of an Obama administration, but I just don’t think VP is the right slot for her. I know it would be the best slot for her, but that’s the purpose of a VP is to serve the President’s needs, not her own.

Hillary just wouldn’t be the right VP for him. Yes, she’s obviously a good attack dog, but she’s not the right kind of attack dog for Obama, who is trying to create a more soothing and less threatening political posture for his campaign. But there are plenty of slots in his Cabinet I think she could fit into, such as Sec Def, Sec State, AG, etc. There’s plenty of uses for an attack dog personality in those roles.

To be honest, polling shows that Obama’s best VP candidate, the guy who helps him actually gain the most votes, is John Edwards. Edwards gives Obama more help in PA than even Ed Rendell, the Governer of PA. That surprised me at first glance, but then it makes sense. I know a lot of people like the idea of Edwards being AG, and Hillary VP, but it probably works better the other way around. Edwards can be a great attack dog as well, but somehow he manages to do it with a smile on his face and a more inspiriational message.He and Obama would still have differences, but not irreconcilable ones, and yet still fit well together, whereas he and Hillary just seem like oil and water when it comes to campaigning, and that’s the major qualification for the job, let’s face it.

Also, as VP choices for McCain goes, the polling seems to indicate that Romney is McCain’s weakest choice, so of course I hope he picks him, but unfortunately he’s not likely to do that. Huckabee had a great line about Romney, that he looks the guy who fires you. And Edwards looks like the lawyer you hire to sue Romney for unlawful termination.

By: Grumpy Old Man

Grumpy Old Man — Sat, 24 May 2008 04:53:11 +0000

Given the description of Hillary, McCain needs not the coiffed Mormon, but one of the Ghostbusters team. Aykroyd’s Canadian, so it might have to be Bill Murray. He could do his lounge act in the Senate. It might keep them out of mischief.