Current ticket predictions?

[Mordecai]

Clinton/Beshear vs.  Cruz/Rubio

Beshear will be 72 years old in 2016. Clinton is going to be looking for someone much younger than herself.

[Mister Mets]

Seems to me like on the Republican side Sen. Ayotte would be such a ticket balancer it'd be hard to ignore.  Her McCain/Graham connection gives her some hawkish foreign policy bona fides and gender balance for the GOP will be more important then regional balance.

I would say she'd be a bone to throw to the establishment wing, but the establishment wing of the GOP always gets their man nominated so that won't be necessary.  The one man who is working hard to run and win over the establishment will be happy to have her on the ticket to nullify the gender wars motif of the last few years.  Sure she's hawkish and he's not but her job is to be his VP, not campaign on her own views.

Rand Paul/Kelly Ayotte

Hilary will have to have a white male counterpart, I think America is ready to elect a black guy or a woman but probably not both at the same time. So Sen. Booker and Gov. Patrick are out as well as Sen's Warren, Gillibrand and Klobuchar.  Furthermore although Hilary is universally known and defined I think she'll look to have someone who is 'outside the beltway' to in some small way balance her 'insiders insider' persona.

McAuliffe is just too well known as a Clintonista to get serious consideration and let's be honest I don't think he has popularity in Virginia to significantly swing the vote there (unless she's running against Uncle Kenny Cuchinelli). So I think we take a long look at the west and realize Gov. Bullock is probably the right guy, unless she grabs Sen. Bennett but I think he looks kind of like a wuss.  Hilary won't have no wuss on her ticket.  Bullock was a former Attorney General, you need that kind of muscle.

HRC/Bullock

Ayotte seems like a solid choice for the Republican ticket, as a female swing state Senator. It would also be a doubling down on new faces, and Republicans elected to statewide office after the end of the Bush administration.

I still don't see her as Rand Paul's top choice, given their differing views on foreign policy. From the polls I've seen it also seems to be an issue where the electorate is on his side. If he has to compromise, it seems better to pick a different topic.

[henster]

Ayotte would basically surrender her seat to Dems(Hassan) if she were to be the VP nominee. That's why I don't see her as a likely VP choice at all if her seat is key to balance of the Senate.

[henster]

I still have Walker/Martinez I don't know what this Pence fetish is all of the sudden but I also see a Clinton/Steve Bullock more likely as well. I think a Governor from the West suites Hillary best also an outsider I don't think it's good to be picking anyone from Congress right now.

[daveosupremo]

I still have Walker/Martinez I don't know what this Pence fetish is all of the sudden but I also see a Clinton/Steve Bullock more likely as well. I think a Governor from the West suites Hillary best also an outsider I don't think it's good to be picking anyone from Congress right now.

Exactly. The only possible way Pence gets in is if Walker doesn't, and Walker will, barring a huge upset in November. It's kind of like bronze4141's weird obsession with John Thune.

[MATTROSE94]

Republicans:
Scott Walker/Susana Martinez
Scott Walker/Marco Rubio
Jeb Bush/Brian Sandoval
Jeb Bush/Kelly Ayotte
Jeb Bush/Rob Portman
Ted Cruz/Tom Cotton
Ted Cruz/Rick Santorum
Ted Cruz/Allen West
Ted Cruz/Michelle Bachmann
Rick Santorum/Sam Brownback
Rick Santorum/Tom Cotton
Rick Santorum/Mike Pence
Rick Santorum/Ted Cruz
Mike Huckabee/Marsha Blackburn
Rand Paul/Justin Amash

Democrats:
Hillary Clinton/Mark Warner
Hillary Clinton/Michael Bennett
Hillary Clinton/Steve Bullock
Hillary Clinton/Corey Booker
Hillary Clinton/Jay Nixon
Joe Biden/Bill de Blasio
Joe Biden/Corey Booker
Joe Biden/Amy Klobuchar
Joe Biden/Claire McCaskill
Andrew Cuomo/Amy Klobuchar
Martin O'Malley/Brian Schweitzer
Mark Warner/Maggie Hassan

[Rockefeller GOP]

Christie/Martinez vs. Clinton/Warner

[Vern]

Martinez/Schock vs. Hillary/Nixon

[tmthforu94]

Democrats:
Hillary Clinton/Martin Heinrich

Republicans:
John Kasich/Kelly Ayotte

[SPC]

Paul/Kasich vs Clinton/Booker

[Del Tachi]

Clinton/O'Malley vs. Bush/Martinez

[henster]

Clinton/Kaine v. Walker/Martinez

Still think Walker will be the nominee both Tea Partiers and establishment love him he can unite both factions unlike Jeb, Kasich, Paul etc. and has enacted conservative policies in a blue state like Wisconsin while winning there several times (2010, 2012, likely 2014). And Clinton goes for a swing state Senator like Kaine who's also fluent in Spanish although she could easily pick Warner but I don't because of concerns about his wealth along with hers.

[Never]

Democrats:
Clinton/Booker
Clinton/Patrick
Clinton/Warner
Clinton/Klobuchar

Republicans:
Paul/Rubio
Paul/Lee
Walker/Martinez
Walker/Kasich
Walker/Jindal
Bush/Martinez
Bush/Ayotte
Bush/Rubio

[Suburbia]

Democrats:
Clinton/Warner
Clinton/Bayh
Clinton/Heinrich
Clinton/Vilsack
If No Hillary:
O'Malley/Bayh
O'Malley/Warner
O'Malley/Gillibrand
Gillibrand/Vilsack

Republicans:
Pence/Thune
Pence/Pawlenty
Paul/Pence
Bush/Ayotte
Walker/Jindal
Pence/Jindal
Thune/Pawlenty

[Never]

Paul would never do Rubio or Lee

Why, because it would be a double senator ticket? It worked for Obama/Biden.

[henster]

I think Republicans would be wise to stick a women on the ticket. They'd probably put  Ayotte, Haley, Martinez up there or pluck some random women from the House and there are plenty of them there.

[SPC]

Paul would never do Rubio or Lee

Why, because it would be a double senator ticket? It worked for Obama/Biden.

Too much ideological redundancy, making the ticket prone to being attacked as "far-right"

[HagridOfTheDeep]

Paul would never do Rubio or Lee

Why, because it would be a double senator ticket? It worked for Obama/Biden.

Too much ideological redundancy, making the ticket prone to being attacked as "far-right"

I got news for ya: If both candidates on the GOP ticket oppose marriage equality and abortion, they will be attacked as far-right anyway. Since both candidates will oppose marriage equality and abortion, they will be attacked as far-right. Plus, the presidential candidate will have a Republican primary to go through.

I mean, Mitt Romney, the "Massachusetts moderate flip-flopper" was attacked for this. It's something any Republican will have to deal with, and frankly it will probably work until the party changes its tone.

[ShadowRocket]

Hillary/Kaine vs. Kasich/McNorris Rogers

I think the GOP nominee will be someone currently under the radar. I don't think Jeb will run, Christie is too much of risk due to his legal problems, and Walker either underperforms or loses his reelection campaign. Kasich is recruited by the establishment.

[henster]

If Walker wins re-election he's running it doesn't matter how much he wins by every move he's making at this point is one for primary voters in '16. He has a very clear path to the nomination unlike Jeb, Christie, Cruz, & Paul he could sweep the Midwest states & elsewhere and lock up the nomination. I see him as the only candidate right now who could unite both factions because Jeb, Christie, Kasich, Cruz or Paul can't do that.

[NHLiberal]

Hillary/Kaine vs. Kasich/McNorris Rogers

I think the GOP nominee will be someone currently under the radar. I don't think Jeb will run, Christie is too much of risk due to his legal problems, and Walker either underperforms or loses his reelection campaign. Kasich is recruited by the establishment.

Seriously...after that SOTU response?

They would be unfair, but the Palin comparisons would be immediate, widespread, and highly destructive.

[ShadowRocket]

If Walker wins re-election he's running it doesn't matter how much he wins by every move he's making at this point is one for primary voters in '16. He has a very clear path to the nomination unlike Jeb, Christie, Cruz, & Paul he could sweep the Midwest states & elsewhere and lock up the nomination. I see him as the only candidate right now who could unite both factions because Jeb, Christie, Kasich, Cruz or Paul can't do that.

To be fair, Pence could probably do that as well. Besides Kasich, he's the other dark horse that could make a run, and I think it one of them will, but its a coin flip as to which one.

I could swear that I've seen before that the establishment is wary of Walker.

[Panhandle Progressive]

Hillary will most likely pick a Virginian to be her running mate. The ticket will be:

Clinton/Kaine
Clinton/McAuliffe
Clinton/Warner

[Suburbia]

Hillary/Kaine vs. Kasich/McNorris Rogers

I think the GOP nominee will be someone currently under the radar. I don't think Jeb will run, Christie is too much of risk due to his legal problems, and Walker either underperforms or loses his reelection campaign. Kasich is recruited by the establishment.

Seriously...after that SOTU response?

They would be unfair, but the Palin comparisons would be immediate, widespread, and highly destructive.

I think McMorris Rodgers would be a "medium" pick, she may face problems though. Blackburn may be the safer pick, she's on TV all the time and she'll deliver the GOP message.
http://www.politico.com/story/2014/02/cathy-mcmorris-rodgers-ethics-inquiry-103205.html

[MyRescueKittehRocks]

I know many like the Walker/Martinez combo and I think it's an excellent one. Pence and Walker are interchangeable but I don't see Pence running for prez in 2016.

Martinez is a good running mate for nearly all the prospective GOP'rs. If I got my modern dream ticket you'd

On the Dems side, I'm looking at Deval Patrick/Blue Dog Dem here. I don't  see Hillary and Warren running.