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Posted on 03/17/2004 4:39:29 AM PST by JesseHousman
AND SO THE ELECTION -- or is it the war -- begins and the suspense does build. This is not just another election; this is an election about the heart and soul of America. It begins with the men on top of the ticket, George W. Bush and John Kerry.
Already there are questions about Dick Cheney and whether Bush will replace him on the ticket. The president says he is the candidate of the party, but if there is a drag on the Bush-Cheney ticket, the vice president will choose to step down because of health reasons.
Cheney is the great unknown in this election. His posture as head of Halliburton, a company in the news frequently for price gouging the federal government, will not be an asset to the Bush ticket.
If there is one thing Bush has, it is his loyalty. When his dad told him to replace Karl Rove in the 2000 primary election after John McCain beat him in New Hampshire, Bush said no. He stuck with Rove, and the man who made Bush who he is today turned the tide.
So don't count on Cheney leaving the ticket. He may weigh it down, he may be a drag on the Bush campaign, but he isn't going anywhere. The man is the keystone of this administration, with his bold statements and willingness to take the lead on controversial issues.
On the Democratic side, conventional wisdom says that New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson will be the odds-on favorite of the Kerry team for vice president. But I wouldn't count on it. Richardson is no great campaigner, and his tenures as U.N. ambassador and secretary of the Energy Department were less than commendable. His only claim to the position is his Hispanic ethnicity.
How important is the vice presidential candidate in the election?
Just think back. Joe Lieberman could not take on Cheney in his debate during the 2000 election. Cheney rode all over Lieberman, who patronized him in the debate. Contrast that with Al Gore's overwhelming dominance of GOP candidate Jack Kemp in the 1996 campaign.
Don't disparage the importance of the vice presidential nominee. The Democrats will not choose Richard Gephardt because he has become an old, shopworn political name with little public appeal. Howard Dean was never a choice. The Democratic Party favorite is John Edwards, but he only carried one state against Kerry and might not even carry his own state of North Carolina in the election.
The odds-on favorite is retired Gen. Wesley Clark. Don't be surprised if Kerry turns to Clark as a way to cushion the one thing Bush has going for him in this election: national security. Even though Clark only carried Oklahoma, he is the favorite of the insiders in the Democratic Leadership Council and has the backing of both Clintons.
Don't look for a Bayh or a Feinstein, or any surprises from Kerry. He is not going to take bold stands or make risky choices in this election. He is going to choose a candidate who can complement the ticket without risking any backlash from the media and the public.
And while he is at it, Kerry needs to sustain the lead, albeit small, he enjoys in the polls. Without the campaign money to begin early TV advertising, he needs a gimmick to keep his name and his fame before the American people.
He can do that by naming his cabinet. If he chooses Edwards for veep, he can name Clark as defense secretary. If he chooses Clark for vice president, he can name Edwards as attorney general, a wonderful replacement for John Ashcroft.
As secretary of state, how about Bill Clinton? For secretary of the interior, Al Gore. For national security advisor, Madeleine Albright. For secretary of labor, Gephardt. As secretary of the treasury, Robert Rubin and as defense secretary -- if Clark is the vice president -- McCain. How about former President Jimmy Carter as ambassador to the United Nations?
It would be the first time a presidential candidate named his cabinet choices before being elected to office. The media would eat it up, and the public would be mesmerized by the drama of this precedent. It would keep a candidate with little money in the public eye while his opponent, with unlimited funds, tried to roll over him before the election. Let's have at it.
Secretary of The Interior-Al Gore?
National Insecurity Advisor-Madeleine Albright?
Ambassador to The United Nations-Jimmie Karter?
Wow, how lucky could the USA get with a Kerry presidency?
And couldn't we just imagine Joe LIEberman debating Cheney? Joe couldn't debate Daffy Duck!
Cripes, if this lineup ever came to pass, we should just denotate all our nukes in place and get it over with quickly.
Edwards would probably try to close the deficit by having the government sue itself for $500 billion.
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And after mulling that over, the SF Examiner rapidly drops back to:
"KERRY'S CABINET COULD STEAL THE SHOW"
Just what I needed to read while recovering from the flu..
Kerry ain't gonna win, so why bother writing this article?
Secretary of The Interior-Al Gore?
National Insecurity Advisor-Madeleine Albright?
Ambassador to The United Nations-Jimmie Karter?
These are the people who got us where we are today.
NOT a pretty picture! But a scary thougt
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