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Advice to would-be Romney running mates: Run for the hills
Yahoo ^ | 18 May 2012 | Walter Shapiro

Posted on 05/18/2012 10:27:56 AM PDT by shove_it

Nothing is easier to mock in politics right now than the apparent reluctance of leading Republicans to sign on as Mitt Romney’s second banana. A few weeks ago, Jon Stewart summarized the way that Rob Portman was plugging his Senate colleague Marco Rubio, who in turn was passing the baton to Jeb Bush, with the line, “Doesn’t anyone want the rock in crunch time?”

Since naked ambition is the only bipartisan trait left in politics, however, no one takes these sorts of demurrals seriously. When someone like former primary candidate Tim Pawlenty says “Take my name off the list” for the umpteenth time, everyone assumes that he is merely trying to protect himself from the embarrassment of a high-profile rejection. (In his case, the Iowa Straw Poll was bad enough.)

But what if all these Romney refusniks are actually telling the truth? What if they made a rational calculation and concluded that the upside--sharing the history books with Spiro Agnew, seats at the best international funerals--is not worth the cost if Romney loses in the fall? We could hardly blame them. The modern history of what happens to losing vice presidential nominees is enough to make any politician recoil in horror.

[...]

What a rogue’s gallery of veep creeps. Portman, Rubio or anyone else on the supposed Romney short list might consider losing their cell phones and abandoning their BlackBerries. To be extra safe, they may want to embark on lengthy fact-finding tours of Outer Mongolia that take them off the grid through September. Judging from history, the prudent course clearly is to go missing from Mitt.

(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...


TOPICS: Editorial; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
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A fine piece of snarkism.
1 posted on 05/18/2012 10:27:59 AM PDT by shove_it
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To: shove_it

More like whistling past the graveyard. The nation has had its fill of OFudgePackula and would vote for Rin Tin Tin to replace him.


2 posted on 05/18/2012 10:32:41 AM PDT by DarthVader (Politicians govern out of self interest, Statesmen govern for a Vision greater than themselves)
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To: DarthVader

” The nation has had its fill of OFudgePackula “

LOL!


3 posted on 05/18/2012 10:37:00 AM PDT by stephenjohnbanker (God, family, country, mom, apple pie, the girl next door and a Ford F250 to pull my boat.)
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To: DarthVader

OFudgePackula
___________

LOL Very good.


4 posted on 05/18/2012 10:43:55 AM PDT by patriot08 (TEXAS GAL- born and bred and proud of it!)
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To: DarthVader

“OFudgePackula” LOL


5 posted on 05/18/2012 10:48:36 AM PDT by Rennes Templar
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To: DarthVader

Martinez (R-NM) for Veepee!!


6 posted on 05/18/2012 10:50:29 AM PDT by Perdogg
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To: shove_it

Agree with the snarkieness, but I think the comparison to Spiro Agnew was just a chance to remind the Yahoos about Nixon’s criminal vice president. Actually I believe Agnew thought being Vice President meant he was in charge of vice. A more accurate comparison would be with Sarah Palin. She was handpicked as the VP candidate by McCain, who then threw the election. I think the named non candidates think the same thing is going to happen this year. If the Republicans would nominate Mrs. Palin, I would hazard a guess that there would be a stampede to be on the ticket.


7 posted on 05/18/2012 10:54:10 AM PDT by Tupelo (GARY JOHNSON will cut spending. Will Mit?)
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To: Tupelo

.............................Romney will loose.........

.............................Palin would win............


8 posted on 05/18/2012 11:00:49 AM PDT by W. W. SMITH (Maybe the horse will learn to sing)
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To: Tupelo
"If the Republicans would nominate Mrs. Palin, I would hazard a guess that there would be a stampede to be on the ticket."

I'm with you on that.

9 posted on 05/18/2012 11:01:37 AM PDT by shove_it (just undo it)
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To: shove_it

Huntsman even turned him down?


10 posted on 05/18/2012 11:04:40 AM PDT by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going)
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To: shove_it

VP spot on a ticket, any ticket, is a dead end job. If you lose your career is mostly over, if you win you’re career WILL BE over once your president is out. Only time a VP can generally expect any success is if his ticket wins and his president dies in the first term. Any politician that’s not looking at hanging it up soon should say no, that’s been true for ages.


11 posted on 05/18/2012 11:04:59 AM PDT by discostu (I did it 35 minutes ago)
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As this primary showed, we desperately need bench strength. Whoever Romney nominates is very important for this reason, IMHO.


12 posted on 05/18/2012 11:06:09 AM PDT by D-fendr (Deus non alligatur sacramentis sed nos alligamur.)
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To: shove_it

Sarah?

You lurkin’???


13 posted on 05/18/2012 11:06:09 AM PDT by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going)
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To: Elsie

Nope, I’ve here a while.


14 posted on 05/18/2012 11:11:07 AM PDT by shove_it (just undo it)
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To: shove_it

there is a ‘been’ missing somewhere


15 posted on 05/18/2012 11:16:09 AM PDT by shove_it (just undo it)
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To: W. W. SMITH

It’s lose, not loose. Sorry, but that’s about the fifth time today I’ve read that.


16 posted on 05/18/2012 11:20:58 AM PDT by EEGator
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To: Perdogg

I’m sure there are many here who have a problem with Susanna as the choice. I admit to not knowing much about her, so there could well be many openings for her detractors, all valid.

That being said, there are several reasons I like this choice:

1) As a woman, she has immediate appeal to half the voters. There are many close swing states, and giving half the voters a good reason to vote your ticket is not a bad idea.

2) As a Latino, there is immediate appeal to a large percentage of the Florida voters, a state Obama must lose.

3) A bit more diabolical here, but politically it may not be a bad idea to subtly pit the Latino vote versus the Black vote, and find a way through surrogates to present it that way.


17 posted on 05/18/2012 11:31:14 AM PDT by Eccl 10:2
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To: Eccl 10:2

4) She’s a former Us Atty
5) She is pro-gun, avid shooter
6) She was backed by the Tea Party


18 posted on 05/18/2012 11:49:26 AM PDT by Perdogg
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To: discostu

Tell that to FDR and Richard Nixon. ;)


19 posted on 05/18/2012 11:50:57 AM PDT by Perdogg
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To: discostu

................ If you lose your career is mostly over, if you win you’re career WILL BE over once your president is out. ...................

I don’t totally agree with that:

George H W seemed to make out ok. Al Gore became a multimillionaire spewing his bullshit whilst standing on an ex VP soapbox. Cheney is a very well respected pubbie VP, who could have gone back to a successful businessman if his ticker was strong enough.

Yeah, alot hit the dustbin, but many of them were already destined for the dustbin, ie Quayle.

I guess one of the problems is that once you’re elevated to that VP slot, are you willing to be a politician in a lower post, or are you smart enough to make a career shift and do something productive for a change??


20 posted on 05/18/2012 12:06:39 PM PDT by Noob1999 (Loose Lips, Sink Ships)
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