And now for the Republican vice presidential candidate…
March 5th, 2008, 9:31 am · Post a Comment · posted by Le Templar
Florida Gov. Charlie Crist (left) and Sen. John McCain (as posted on washingtonpost.com)
After wrapping up the Republican nomination for president Tuesday, Sen. John McCain can get to work picking his running mate. In the past, political reporters and partisan pundits probably have overestimated the effect of vice presidential candidates on the outcome of presidential elections. But with the power that Dick Cheney has wielded in President Bush’s administration, it’s a fair guess that voters will pay a lot more attention this year to the second spot on the ticket for both parties.
Sen. Hillary Clinton made the first official mention Wednesday morning of the possible pairing with Sen. Barack Obama for a blockbuster one-two punch that many Democrats are dreaming about.
To counter that, McCain’s ideal running mate would be a Joe-Lieberman type: a nonRepublican who’s generally respected among many GOP activists and would help McCain appeal to independents and “soft” Democrats.
But such a choice would be viewed as an insult by many conservative Republicans, particularly by evangelicals and others on the social right. They want the GOP vice presidential candidate to come from their ranks as confirmation that McCain’s respects their role in the Republican base.
McCain would be comfortable with Sen. Lindsay Graham, R-S.C., a former military lawyer with proud social conservative credentials. But McCain might want a governor or former governor as a partner, to provide some executive experience to the Republican ticket that a Obama-Clinton pairing would lack.
My shot-in-the-guess for McCain’s running mate is Florida Gov. Charlie Crist. He comes from a critical swing state, wouldn’t offend social conservatives but also isn’t an immediate lightning rod for independents who are leery of the right’s influence on the Republican Party. Crist’s support definitely helped McCain win Florida, which was the victory that set up McCain to do so well on Super Tuesday in early February.
