If Romney had picked Petraeus for VP

[Psychic Octopus]

Was Petraeus ever even vetted? I thought it was just mentioned, and wasn't ever serious.

I think that the Romney people would figure that something is up. Petraeus would refuse, and Romney would accept it. Now, if for some reason he didn't, the media would discover it. This would probably be an Eagleton-level disaster, to be honest. Petraeus would withdraw, lest he be a further drag on the ticket. Romney would have to go with a safer, less appealing candidate (like Pawlenty or Portman), and would lose an almost-certain bounce.

Furthermore, it gives Democrats a new wave of attack; Romney, a puritan, will have picked a philanderer who turned against his president. I see no real difference in electoral outcome, but this entire affair would distract from the issues, and Obama would probably walk into a second term even more easily.

But this assumes Petraeus was a realistic choice. He wasn't and isn't interested in electoral politics. Now, I know some of us longed for a return of Eisenhower and speculated, but really, it was never in the realm of possibility. The closest shot he had was moving up to Secretary of State or Defense. It may still be possible one day if this entire thing blows over.