The rumors about Tom Ridge are also troubling for more than just the extreme religious right. Ridge seems like a nice fellow, but he's an extraordinarily poor choice as a running mate. He has too much in common with McCain, an undistinguished record as a legislator; although he did fairly well as governor of Pennsylvania, his career since then and his time as head of the Department of Homeland Security and close association with Bush are nothing to get excited over. Ridge's main claim to fame is his outstanding record in Vietnam, which has largely driven the rest of his career. Ridge's greatest shortcoming is that he doesn't have a constituency. Even Lieberman has a fan base. Ridge has none. He's not moderate enough or well known enough to draw votes from moderates and independents, and his pro-choice position alienates extreme conservatives.
The real question is, why has McCain chosen to be so closely and blatantly associated with Ridge and Lieberman at this critical point in the campaign? The only answer which makes sense seems to be that it's being done deliberately, as a sort of smokescreen to mask his real Vice Presidential pick and a scare tactic to remind the religious right how much worse things could be for them. It may also be intended to send them the message that there are a lot more moderate votes to be won than conservative ones, so they ought to toe the line. Of course, when McCain makes his announcement and it isn't Ridge or Lieberman, those who doubted him will embrace him out of pure relief or because they feel that their influence caused him to change his mind. If this is his strategy, it shows a level of clever ruthlessness among McCain's campaign advisers which is sort of encouraging.
Looking past all the furor and cries of outrage and political posturing, it seems likely that the one thing we can be sure of is that McCain's Vice President absolutely will not be Tom Ridge or Joe Lieberman. Playing these games keeps the McCain campaign in the news and keeps people arguing about it, which makes it exciting and builds suspense, and is what has gotten McCain to an unexpected virtual tie with Obama in the polls. It's certainly way more interesting than Obama's inevitable drifting towards the unavoidable choice of Evan Bayh (the nicest white guy in America) as his running mate. So, bravo to McCain and his advisers for realizing what Americans want out of a presidential campaign — entertainment.
Article comments
— go to most recent comments1 - Dr Dreadful
Well, the jungle drums today are beating loudest for Joe Biden, not Evan Bayh, so I'm not sure that Obama's choice is inevitable.
I hope they're wrong. As experienced and principled a chap as Biden is, he has far too many lower-leg-appendage-in-large-facial-orifice incidents on his record for the Republican smear machine not immediately to have a field day.
Bayh has the advantage that he would help Obama to carry Ohio, which is crucial - as Ohio goes...
I'd personally like to see Bill Richardson on the ticket, but that seems unlikely to happen.
As for McCain - well, I think you're more or less with me on this, Dave, when I state my preference for Anyone But Romney. However, I have a horrible sinking feeling that I'm not going to get my wish.
2 - Dave Nalle
Biden and Richardson both have too much 'gravitas' to be on the ticket with Obama. He can't afford to have someone who makes him look like a lightweight. Bayh is perfect because he's so whitebread and relatively inexperienced yet highly respected and well connected to the old liberal establishment.
Personally, if McCain was going to pick a Democrat as so many paranoid nitwits have speculated I think he'd be making a good bet picking Richardson. It would be a hell of a coup too. It would knock the legs right out from underneath the Democratic party.
I sure hope McCain can make a smarter pick than Romney. Romney is looked on with suspicion by the far right just like Ridge. McCain needs to shake things up a bit. But I do think he's done an excellent job making us all confused.
Dave
3 - Dr Dreadful
I do think he's done an excellent job making us all confused.
Including himself, probably!
Well, we'll know for sure about Obama's pick soon - if not today, then certainly by the time the DNC ends next week.
McCain may be tempted to steal some of the Dems' thunder by naming his as well, although it would cost him some of the advantage the GOP has in holding their convention second this year.
4 - Dave Nalle
McCain might actually wait to see who Obama picks and then make his choice based on essentially countering Obama. I'm still thinking Colin Powell might be on the secret short list.
Dave
5 - Arch Conservative
Why do you think Powell would want to have anything to do with McCain Dave?
One thing is for sure...whomever is in the White House for the next four years....Obama or McCain...neither is going to do a damn thing to secure our southern border and we'll just get that much closer to becoming a third world shithole.
I havn't decided if I should vote for Baldwin or Paul yet.
6 - Dr Dreadful
Obama or McCain...neither is going to do a damn thing to secure our southern border and we'll just get that much closer to becoming a third world shithole.
Says Archie from his perch in the front-line state of... New Hampshire.
7 - Baronius
Dave, I think Ridge's biggest claim to fame is the color-coded terror alert system. I'd hate to run for office with that as my best credential. As for Lieberman, the religious right doesn't so much hate him as...ok, you win, hate is the right word. But they should feel comforted, because the one thing we know for sure about Joe Lieberman is that he'll sell out all his beliefs to be on the bottom of the ticket.
8 - Al Barger
GO MITT!!!
9 - Baritone
I think you have all missed the best bet for McCain's VP choice. It wasn't for no reason that Dan Quayle turned down the opportunity to do "Dancing With The Stars." Dan has been intensely working on his spelling skills now for several months, and announced that he's ready to take on Murphy Brown. (No one's had the heart to inform him of Murphy's demise.) Nevertheless, it's virtually a done deal. Dan is back!
B
10 - Arch Conservative
So only people that live in border states are allowed to have opinions regarding our border problems dreadful?
11 - Clavos
Secure the border all you want, Arch. You'll still need to learn Spanish.
12 - Baritone
Well, when NH becomes a "third world shithole" we'll all cry crocodile tears for you.
Your characterization gives us all a pretty good idea of your opinion of other people.
B
13 - Dan
This won't happen, but my fantasy tickets would be, for the Dems, Joe Biden, then later in a stunning developement from a secluded bunker, Condoleesa Rice.
An authentic genius, she would be a stark contrast to old partisan war-horse Biden.
The female vote would cluster, and the debates would be riveting. She would also be reluctant, another great quality.
The tickets would be balanced old/young very nicely as well.
14 - Arch Conservative
"Your characterization gives us all a pretty good idea of your opinion of other people."
Why do you even bother to beat around the Bush Baritone?
Just call me a racist and be done with it.
Anyone who opposes the open border agenda is a racist xennophobe right B-tone?
15 - RJ Elliott
Good column, Dave. I generally agree with you in this piece, except for your gratuitous smearing of every pro-life conservative as "far right" or "extreme," as if they were some sort of radical fringe group.
(They aren't. I would speculate that a solid majority of Republicans consider themselves pro-life, and that the overwhelming majority of self-described "conservatives" consider themselves the same. I can google up some polling data if anyone is interested.)
16 - RJ Elliott
Before Obama makes his official announcement, I'd like to offer RJ's VP Picks:
Obama will pick Evan Bayh, Democrat Senator from Indiana. Good choice. He's moderate, experienced, generally likable, non-offending, unlikely to make any major gaffes (unlike Biden), and will certainly help Obama in Indiana (which is surprisingly looking like a swing-state in this election).
McCain will pick Mitt Romney, former Republican Governor of Massachusetts, in an effort to shore up his conservative base. Another good choice. Romney is telegenic, a good speaker, a capable attack-dog (always a good quality for a running-mate), has a lot of outside-the-Beltway experience, and could possibly swing Michigan into the Red State column.
Thoughts, comments?
17 - Dr Dreadful
Two possibilities for the Democratic ticket now seem likely:
1. Obama is never going to announce his pick. He's decided to go it alone.
2. He has announced who it is, but every single one of the millions of people who signed up to receive the text message have agreed to keep mum about it until tomorrow.
18 - Dr Dreadful
And of course Indiana's a swing state. It has Baritone in it!
19 - RJ Elliott
"Personally, if McCain was going to pick a Democrat as so many paranoid nitwits have speculated I think he'd be making a good bet picking Richardson. It would be a hell of a coup too. It would knock the legs right out from underneath the Democratic party."
Richardson wouldn't accept, since he's a major Obama-backer and may even be Obama's pick for running mate (although I doubt it at this point).
And if he did accept? Bob Barr would get 15% of the vote, and Obama would win the election. Richardson is far too liberal for the GOP base to accept (even though he's fairly moderate for a Democrat).
If McCain was going to pick a Democrat other than Lieberman, how about Ike Skelton? Yeah, he's really old, but he's socially-conservative, a strong supporter of the military, and he'd help McCain carry Missouri. It's not going to happen, but it makes more sense than Richardson, IMO...
20 - RJ Elliott
"McCain might actually wait to see who Obama picks and then make his choice based on essentially countering Obama."
That's definitely a possibility. If Obama makes a really out-of-the-blue kind of pick, you can bet that McCain will at least consider using his pick to counter that.
"I'm still thinking Colin Powell might be on the secret short list."
I though the buzz from a week or so ago was that Powell would endorse Obama?
21 - RJ Elliott
"One thing is for sure...whomever is in the White House for the next four years....Obama or McCain...neither is going to do a damn thing to secure our southern border and we'll just get that much closer to becoming a third world shithole."
I wouldn't phrase it exactly that way, but you've got a point there.
"I havn't decided if I should vote for Baldwin or Paul yet."
Baldwin would make a decent protest vote (he's certainly an "arch conservative"), but how are you going to vote for Ron Paul? Write-in?
22 - RJ Elliott
Hmmm. MSNBC is reporting that both Evan Bayh and Virginia Governor Tim Kaine are out of the running.
Who knows if this is true. But I felt that those two were his best two options. (Bayh might help him carry IN, and Kaine would almost guarantee Virginia, in my opinion.)
Maybe Obama is about to throw a Hail Mary and pick Hillary? That could work. Or maybe Bill Richardson is still a realistic possibility?
MSNBC's story also suggests that the pick will be announced Saturday morning. So it looks like we have all night to speculate. ;-)
23 - Clavos
RJ,
I don't think Romney can pull MI away from Obama as a veep. As President candidate, he might have, but not as veep.
There are too many out-of-work blue collar workers many (if not most) of whom are also African-American there.
Obama's got a lock on MI.
24 - Arch Conservative
"Baldwin would make a decent protest vote (he's certainly an "arch conservative"), but how are you going to vote for Ron Paul? Write-in?"
Considering that neither Paul nor Baldwin are on the ballot in my state and most likely won't be it will be a write in either way.
In any event I won't be voting for Juan McCain. I know he's just itching to take another stab at amnesty and his command of economics is severly suspect at best.
Seriously...Ron Paul asked McCain a question about economics during one of the GOP primary debates and McCain looked like a deer caught in the headlights. He proceeded to dodge the question and instead recite a list of people he knows that know something about the economy.
Listening to McCain discuss economics kills more brains cells and does more to diminish the soul than a week in Tijuana of doing nothing but watching donkey shows and abusing every drug known to mankind.
On a sidenote.....Huckabee's on TV right now and he's really getting under my skin with his McCain ass kissing. I liked him better when he was an anonymous 400 pound lardass in Arkansas.
25 - RJ Elliott
Clavos,
I agree that Romney is not at all guaranteed to flip Michigan into a Red State. However, he should help, at least marginally (thanks to his family background in the state). And Michigan is looking pretty close right now.
Here are some recent polls out of Michigan. Yes, Obama is in the lead, but not by a huge amount. Around four points, on average.
Yes, the economy in Michigan is in tatters. But the Governor of MI is an unpopular Democrat, and the Mayor of Detroit is an unpopular (and possibly criminal) Democrat.
The population of Michigan is only 15% Black. (Outside of metropolitan Detroit, it's pretty much New Hampshire up there, demographically speaking.) And Black voters would have supported a Democrat Presidential candidate anyway. Obama might get 98% of their votes instead of just 90%, but that's not too much of a bump.
Add Romney to the ticket, throw in the Bradley/Wilder Effect, and you've got a tight race.