Well, it came as no surprise even though it was a well-guarded secret, but Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware is now Barack Obama's running mate.
In an entry earlier this year, Biden was my second choice for vice-president behind New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson. But, I think the emergence of a potentially new Russian threat makes Biden the best choice even though Richardson is one of my favorite Democratic politicians.
Biden has excellent foreign policy credentials, and he is an expert on Pakistan, which is also going through political turmoil at the moment.
He ran for president himself but he wasn't quite as good at giving stump speeches in Davenport as his Democratic competitors, but that doesn't mean he is not qualified to be veep.......
In fact, in many ways, he is better than either Obama or John McCain! This is because Biden, 65, has been in the Senate since 1972, longer than both of them. I believe he is the third-longest serving senator on the Democratic side behind elder statesman Robert Byrd of West Virginia and Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts.
Interestingly enough, former Bush advisor Karl Rove also thought Biden would be the best choice for Obama. Though, somehow I doubt that was a factor, but who knows?............
Gov. Tim Kaine of Virginia, who I volunteered for during his campaign, was also on the short list for vice-president. I think there's a good shot that Kaine might get a cabinet post should Obama win the race.
Gov. Charlie Crist, a Republican from Florida, was who I expected to be McCain's running mate in a blog entry a few months ago. But, now I think it might actually be former Democrat Joe Lieberman, who is now an independent senator for Connecticut. He was Al Gore's running mate in 2000. I think Rush Limbaugh has basically said that if McCain chooses him, his followers may as well 'drink the Kool Aid!'
Regardless of who you are voting for, it should be interesting.
My friend Marc Montoni, who was once head of the Virginia Libertarian Party, would probably want me to remind readers that his party has Bob Barr, a retired Republican from Georgia who left the party because of Bush, on the ballot. He was one of the guys who tried to have Bill Clinton impeached.
And, of course, there is Ralph Nader. But, Michael Moore is not supporting him this time around........
We will now return to Olympic coverage. Does anyone know who that Mongolian athlete is (see below). I'm guessing he's some sort of wrestler.
Useful Links:
http://biden.senate/gov/biography
http://stillanotherpoliticalblog.com
Posts
1 comment:
Hi! Stopping by via AOl journals.
I agree that Biden is a good choice for Obama, although I think Richardson would have been, too--I find it odd that he wasn't in consideration for the VP slot. I'm from Indiana, so I was really hoping that Evan Bayh would get it, but I understand the need for a little "been there, done that."
I'm hearing and reading that Tom Ridge is right up there for McCain's running mate. If he chooses a pro-choice candidate.... I wonder if it won't be Romney, despite the lack of chemistry between him and McCain. Romney is pretty good when it comes to economics.
I enjoyed reading your take on things!
All my best,
Beth
http://journals.aol.com/luvrte66/nutwoodjunction/
Post a Comment