MauryTHINKS

Prior to becoming vice president for Gerald Ford, New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller said “I don’t want to be vice president of anything.” When he became Vice President John Adams said “the people have found it necessary for me to hold the most useless position ever created.”

So is the vice president important. At times in our history, the veep has played a very important role. Especially when a president has died in office. Could we do away with the position? Maybe, if we were to do that it would take a constitutional amendment.

Sometimes a VP candidate can help Johnson for Kennedy in the South, sometimes hurt Eagleton for McGovern, tater for George H. Bush.

So have there been other unusual situations concerning the vice president? Absolutely, once and only once in our history we had a president from one party, John Adams – Federalist and Thomas Jefferson – Democratic-Republican. The 12th solved this problem. Aaron Burr became vice president under Thomas Jefferson, both Democratic-Republicans. Burr would become part of a scandal when he fought a duel with Alexander Hamilton.

So who will be the running mates for Senator Barack Obama and Senator John McCain? Well, I had my people contact their people and found out nothing. So this is my best guess.

First Senator Obama, he is not going select New York Hillary Clinton. Mrs. Clinton is a great vote getter. Enormous appeal to women, blue collar and Hispanic voters. Seems like a natural. Senator Obama has negatives like all candidates and so does Mrs. Clinton, more that Obama. Multiple negatives down add up to victory most of the time.

So who does Senator Obama choose? I have a list of 8 possibilities

1. Pennsylvania Governor Ed Randall – Obama lost Pa. bad. He needs blue collar voters to win and Pa. could be in play for McCain.

2. Ted Strickland Governor of Ohio. – good campaigner, no Republican has ever been elected president and lost Ohio. Gets blue collar votes. Strickland announced on 6/10 he did not want to be veep. Danger Will Robinson for the Dems.

3. Evan Bayh Senator from Indiana – young aggressive, well liked and done a good job in his second term in the senate. Nationally, Indiana votes Republican, Bayh would turn that around.

4. Tim Kaine Governor of Virginia – for several years this commonwealth has voted Republican. It is now a tossup state for Obama.

5. Governor Kathleen Sebelius - Kansas – you don’t get much more Republican than Kansas. She provides the women vote.

6. Sam Nunn former senator from Georgia. Nunn has been out of politics for several years, but still very popular in the party and known nationally. Nunn was known as a military expert when he was in the senate. Brings military experience, Georgia to the Dems. And confidence too many who feel Obama does not have the experience and knowledge.

7. New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson – a Hispanic, Clinton man as Ambassador to the UN and several other important positions.

Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen – a conservative expert in health care with a business background. Gives Obama conservative help.

So who should Republican Jon McCain select?

The talk is what will the evangelical Christians do? Some say they won’t back McCain. That is not likely to happen any more than the women who supported Senator Clinton say they won’t support Obama.

Let the emotions settle down a little. The chickens will come home. Why you ask? Because of the Supreme Court. During the next 4 years, six of the nine Supreme Court Associate Justices will be at least 70 years old. Justice Stephens will be 88 during that time. The next president could appoint 6 justices.

Do you really think the women are going to allow Republican McCain appoint prolife justice, anti homosexual, strong gun control justices NO WAY.

Are Christian evangelical voters going to stay home and let Obama appoint justices that would take the country beck to the liberal days of the 1960s? Not going to happen!

So McCain can choose between;

1. Ron Paul - congressman from Texas, very conservative and satisfies many Republicans

2. Mike Huckabee – former governor from Arkansas, also a conservative and strong with the religious groups and one of the early favorites

3. Mitt Romney – former governor of Massachusetts – has tried to mend the fences with McCain and seems to have done a good job doing that.

4. Bobby Jindal – Governor of Louisiana- Jindal is an up and coming Republican. Well known while a congressman respected conservative.

5. Texas Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison – strong with conservative women and Christians. If selected she would be the first woman selected by the Republicans

6. J. C. Watts – former congressman and rising Republican star. Watts was an All-American at Oklahoma and black.

7. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg – a former Democrat who has enough money to finance his own campaign. Bloomberg has been reelected in the city of New York, not an easy trick for any politician. Ok so he is a liberal, but would bring New York into play and New England.

So what is this worth, exactly what you paid for it.

Hoyt Gardner
Political Science Columbia State