The Republican Vice-Presidential Spectulation Thread.

[retromike22]

I think it's Sam Brownback. He is:

1. Sufficiently economically and socially conservative (to ease the worries of the conservatives with Romney, a la Palin with McCain)
2. Catholic (A plus in Ohio and Pennsylvania, possibly Florida)
3. 14 years as a Senator, but currently a Governor. (He has long Washington experience but is currently "outside" of Washington. This can frame the choice as the GOP Governors vs. the Democratic Washington insiders)
4. He's not old. (currently 55)
5. Rejects evolution (Boo science!)

Edit: I changed the title to reflect the discussion over which candidate would be the perfect vp choice. I think it's a better discussion anyway.

2nd Edit: I'm going to rename this thread (yet again), since it seems to have the longest discussion of vice presidential nominees.

[Diabolical Minds Think Alike]

Cuz he would definitely help win Independents

[Senator Snowstalker]

Romney needs to pick an experienced Southern or Midwestern Protestant who is conservative enough to keep the base excited and moderate enough to not put off independents. Thune would be perfect if he were at least more charismatic than drying paint.

[Torie]

No. Among other things, they both have one thing at least in common - they're colorless. And Brownback can't deliver a speech as well as Mittens, which is well - sobering.

Brownback when he converted to Catholicism not only jettisoned Protestantism, but evolution along with it?  He's a traitor squared! Both of my parents are turning over in their graves at once.

[Chareth Cutestory]

I for one definitely don't think Romney needs to shore up the conservative vote. They've proven themselves to be quite amenable to whatever crap the Republican Party puts out for them. The real problem is with wishy-washy suburban types. The more Romney-esque the ticket gets, the better. Huntsman could be a home-run. I don't think he's said anything that faux-outrage could grow from in his life.

EDIT: Nevermind, I forgot about the double-Mormon issue. That's worse than a Scientologist...

[State Comptroller Atkins]

Romney probably won't choose anyone who's less charismatic than himself.

[perdedor]

Despite contrary belief, Romney will do fine among conservatives as the election rolls along. Independents are the group that will trouble him and picking someone like Sam Brownback does nothing to alleviate that problem.

[redcommander]

I still say Chris Christie is the best VP, but Mittens is probably going to be compelled to choose Rubio. Plus don't Romney and Brownback hate each other?

[SirNick]

Rob Portman

[Lloyd Bentsen's Ghost]

1. Yes.
2. No. Conservative Catholics already vote Republican. Mainstream Catholics tend to be put off by the kind of Catholics the GOP offers up.
3. Maybe. Expect the Obama campaign to drudge up every remotely untoward thing Brownback did or voted on while in Congress.
4. Yes.
5. No. The people for whom this is an issue are going to vote for Mitt Romney in November no matter who he picks as his running mate.

[A-Bob]

While conservative, he's done too many controversial things at the national stage during his term as Governor.

[True Federalist]

Romney would be a politically tone-deaf idiot to have another governor as his running mate.  So while it is possible, it would not be a good choice.  If Romney is the nominee, I think he goes for a Senator as his running mate.  Richard Burr of North Carolina would be a good fit for Romney, but not the only one.

[Devils30]

Burr would be perfect except for one minor problem: His bank run comments back in 2009 leaves one wondering if he's dumber than Palin. Apparently he'd never heard of the FDIC before.

[True Federalist]

Burr would be perfect except for one minor problem: His bank run comments back in 2009 leaves one wondering if he's dumber than Palin. Apparently he'd never heard of the FDIC before.

While the FDIC usually manages to deal with bank failures smoothly, if we had had multiple large banks fail as some feared at the time if the liquidity crisis, then there was a definite risk of a temporary loss of access to funds in affected banks.  Thankfully the risk never materialized, but it was there.

[Bacon King]

Sam Brownback? Really? He makes even Tim Pawlenty seem exciting in comparison.

[TheGlobalizer]

For Romney, I think Jim DeMint is the best VP pick.

I like Rubio but they need to not Palin him.

[Is Totally Not Feeblepizza.]

Richard Burr.

[I'm JewCon in name only.]

Richard Burr.

[MilesC56]

Burr would be perfect except for one minor problem: His bank run comments back in 2009 leaves one wondering if he's dumber than Palin. Apparently he'd never heard of the FDIC before.

Burr wouldn't bring anything enthusiasm to the ticket.

[Rooney]

I do not see why Romney does not select former presidential liaison officer Linda Chavez for the vice-presidency. She is very conservative, media tested, has run for office before, has the right connections in the Beltway, is Hispanic, a woman and has shown empathy in terms of helping undocumented workers. What is the downside?

[I Can't Get That Sound You Make, Out Of My Head]

I do not see why Romney does not select former presidential liaison officer Linda Chavez for the vice-presidency. She is very conservative, media tested, has run for office before, has the right connections in the Beltway, is Hispanic, a woman and has shown empathy in terms of helping undocumented workers. What is the downside?

How well known is she?

[Nagas]

I do not see why Romney does not select former presidential liaison officer Linda Chavez for the vice-presidency. She is very conservative, media tested, has run for office before, has the right connections in the Beltway, is Hispanic, a woman and has shown empathy in terms of helping undocumented workers. What is the downside?

How well known is she?

Not well known at all. The last time she was involved in nation politics was an assistant to Reagan. She left that post to get crushed in the Maryland Senatorial.

[RogueBeaver]

McDonnell or Jindal, preferably Jindal.

[milhouse24]

For Romney, I think Jim DeMint is the best VP pick.

I like Rubio but they need to not Palin him.

I like DeMint as the best choice among current Senators.  He's been around for a while, has relatively high name recognition in the South, has experience, is liked by Evangelcials and Tea Partiers, and can help shore up the conservative base; while Romney appeals to Catholic moderates in Ohio. 

Portman would be a good choice if he had served longer in the Senate, but I think he is too new in the public eye to be taken seriously by the media.  He's more of a cabinet member option.  He might be able to deliver Ohio, but the ticket would lose a lot of enthusiasm in important southern swing states like Virginia and Florida.  He is sort of like Dick Cheney, had a lot of experience but didn't help or hurt the ticket during the election. 

Burr is okay, but Burr is also the ex-Vice President who killed Hamilton, so that may be a bad omen to deal with. 

Thune is a safe choice, but he might not help in Ohio or Florida.  He suffers from the Evan Bayh shrinking nice guy syndrome.  Campaigns need loud fighters.  Thune also pissed off a lot of Tea Partiers with the bailouts, and he's not as popular with southern evangelicals as the other guys listed. 

Rubio is a bad choice because he is very young and very inexperienced.  The moment he messes up, he will be compared to dan quayle, sarah palin, and john edwards. 

[RogueBeaver]

DeMint will not take it, nor would Romney offer. He's always preferred being King of the Teepers. I think Romney's shortlist includes McDonnell, Jindal, Ryan and Portman myself. Perhaps Rubio gets the keynote.