The Institute of VP leaks, tips, and speculation (GOP edition)

[J. J.]

The Hutchinson chatter is increasing.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/nation/5967502.html

In terms of EV's, she adds nothing.  Nationally, her lack of a Y chromosome may help.

[Mr. Morden]

The Hutchinson chatter is increasing.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/nation/5967502.html

Umm.....note what I posted just a few posts ago:

Chatter over Hutchison as possible VP grows louder

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/nation/5967502.html

[Keystone Phil]

A blatant pander to a Pro Choice woman, no less. The base will be oh so very pleased.

[Grumps]

The Hutchinson chatter is increasing.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/nation/5967502.html

Umm.....note what I posted just a few posts ago:

Chatter over Hutchison as possible VP grows louder

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/nation/5967502.html

Sorry, Mr. Morden.  Sometimes I just don't read far enough back.  I should have known you'd nail it before anyone.

[JSojourner]

A blatant pander to a Pro Choice woman, no less. The base will be oh so very pleased.

A 7% approval record from NARAL?  I've looked at her votes.  She's not as anti-choice as Tom Coburn, but she's pretty far to the right.  Look at her voting record.  Now, she might not favor overturning Roe (I don't know) and she does support stem cell (like McCain, Orin Hatch and Gordon Smith) but on all the other abortion issues, she's just plain dreamy to the theocons.

They'll be fine with her.  Moreso than with Ridge.  MUCH moreso than with Lieberman.

[Keystone Phil]

A blatant pander to a Pro Choice woman, no less. The base will be oh so very pleased.

A 7% approval record from NARAL?  I've looked at her votes.  She's not as anti-choice as Tom Coburn, but she's pretty far to the right.  Look at her voting record.  Now, she might not favor overturning Roe (I don't know) and she does support stem cell (like McCain, Orin Hatch and Gordon Smith) but on all the other abortion issues, she's just plain dreamy to the theocons.

They'll be fine with her.  Moreso than with Ridge.  MUCH moreso than with Lieberman.

I'll be honest - I never really looked at her voting record on this issue. I've always heard that she is Pro Choice though.

[Tender Branson]

Come on.  We need a wild card - Marsha Blackburn for VP!

[J. J.]

Announced Friday noon.

[Mr. Morden]

Announced Friday noon.

Huh?  We already know that.  See this post for example:

http://uselectionatlas.org/FORUM/index.php?topic=81522.msg1687455#msg1687455

However, as that story implies, it sounds like McCain's running mate will actually appear with him at that rally in Dayton, which means there's a good chance the name will leak out tomorrow, as we see who's making plans to travel to Dayton.

[J. J.]

Announced Friday noon.

Huh?  We already know that.  See this post for example:

http://uselectionatlas.org/FORUM/index.php?topic=81522.msg1687455#msg1687455

However, as that story implies, it sounds like McCain's running mate will actually appear with him at that rally in Dayton, which means there's a good chance the name will leak out tomorrow, as we see who's making plans to travel to Dayton.

And upstage the Obama speech?  Perish the thought. 

[Vasall des Midas]

I had this totally weird implausible idea yesterday...

McCain - Paul.

[HardRCafé]

I don't think that qualifies as an "idea."

[YRABNNRM]

Announced Friday noon.

Huh?  We already know that.  See this post for example:

http://uselectionatlas.org/FORUM/index.php?topic=81522.msg1687455#msg1687455

However, as that story implies, it sounds like McCain's running mate will actually appear with him at that rally in Dayton, which means there's a good chance the name will leak out tomorrow, as we see who's making plans to travel to Dayton.

And upstage the Obama speech?  Perish the thought. 

An announcement of McCain's running mate will not upstage the acceptance speech of the first African American nominated by a major party. It would just be a footnote.

[DownWithTheLeft]

I had this totally weird implausible idea yesterday...

McCain - Paul.

Believe me, the GOP certainly is too liberal for that

[Mr. Morden]

From RCP:

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/veep_watch/2008/08/chatter_over_cantor.html

First Hutchison, now Eric Cantor. We're hearing that he may be higher on McCain's list than originally thought. Stay tuned.

From Bob Novak:

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2008/08/avoiding_a_lieberman_disaster.html

Reports of strong support within John McCain's presidential campaign for Independent Democratic Sen. Joseph Lieberman as the Republican candidate for vice president are not a fairy tale. Influential McCain backers, plus McCain himself, would pick the pro-choice liberal from Connecticut if they thought they could get away with it.

But they can't get away with it -- and this has been made clear to McCain by none other than Joe Lieberman himself.

Lieberman surely doesn't know that much about Republican politics, but he has close Republican friends. One of them prevailed on Lieberman to tell McCain that a McCain-Lieberman ticket would be a disaster for all concerned, and especially for the GOP.
.
.
.
The Republican operative who urged Lieberman to dissuade McCain from picking him believes that there is still a very useful role for the maverick Democrat in this campaign: as McCain's secretary of state. While an announcement in St. Paul of Lieberman as vice president would bring groans from the assembled Republicans, placing him at the State Department would evoke a standing ovation.

At this writing, nobody knows McCain's choice. He is keeping the selection process secret, and his closest aides are in the dark. Could he still name Lieberman after being told by Lieberman himself that it is not a good idea? Nobody absolutely rules it out.

[YRABNNRM]

An announcement of McCain's running mate will not upstage the acceptance speech of the first African American nominated by a major party. It would just be a footnote.

yeah right, I'm sure the reason why people are tuning in is because he is black.

It will be a historic moment and would garner more attention, like it or not.

McCain picking an unknown two year Governor from Alaska would not upstage Obama.

[HappyWarrior]

The nation would collectively say Sarah Pawho?  And move on to Obama's speech.

[Former Moderate]

A blatant pander to a Pro Choice woman, no less. The base will be oh so very pleased.

A 7% approval record from NARAL?  I've looked at her votes.  She's not as anti-choice as Tom Coburn, but she's pretty far to the right.  Look at her voting record.  Now, she might not favor overturning Roe (I don't know) and she does support stem cell (like McCain, Orin Hatch and Gordon Smith) but on all the other abortion issues, she's just plain dreamy to the theocons.

They'll be fine with her.  Moreso than with Ridge.  MUCH moreso than with Lieberman.

I'll be honest - I never really looked at her voting record on this issue. I've always heard that she is Pro Choice though.

Best as I can recall, she is pro-choice only because she says she's pro-choice.  She otherwise votes pro-life with the rest of 'em.

I'm not sure I understand why folks are so eager to slap pretty much anyone on the McCain ticket simply because they have a vagina.  I mean, Marsha Blackburn, really?  Kay Hutchison?  Meg Whitman?

I thought the GOP was supposed to be against affirmative action hires.

[Mr. Morden]

If McCain's running mate will indeed appear with him on Friday, then there is every possibility that the name will leak out by Thursday night, whether McCain likes it or not.  I mean, by that time, you're going to have to have more than a few people in the know as to who it is, just because of the travel arrangements.

And I don't think the name leaking out would be such a bad thing for McCain because of the news getting "buried" by Obama's speech.  The media is going to have to spend some time talking about McCain's running mate once the name is out there.  There's no way around it.  They can't just say "Oh yeah, in other news, McCain's running mate will be Tim Pawlenty.  Now, back to discussion of Obama's big speech tonight."  They'll have to spend at least a little time talking about the McCain running mate news that would have otherwise gone to discussion of Obama.  So the McCain running mate news gets a little play on Thursday night, and then more play on Friday when they appear together, and the Obama speech is over.  It's not such a bad idea.

[Former Moderate]

If McCain's running mate will indeed appear with him on Friday, then there is every possibility that the name will leak out by Thursday night, whether McCain likes it or not.  I mean, by that time, you're going to have to have more than a few people in the know as to who it is, just because of the travel arrangements.

And I don't think the name leaking out would be such a bad thing for McCain because of the news getting "buried" by Obama's speech.  The media is going to have to spend some time talking about McCain's running mate once the name is out there.  There's no way around it.  They can't just say "Oh yeah, in other news, McCain's running mate will be Tim Pawlenty.  Now, back to discussion of Obama's big speech tonight."  They'll have to spend at least a little time talking about the McCain running mate news that would have otherwise gone to discussion of Obama.  So the McCain running mate news gets a little play on Thursday night, and then more play on Friday when they appear together, and the Obama speech is over.  It's not such a bad idea.

To most people in the news business, actual news (i.e., a McCain VP leak) typically trumps campaign speeches no matter how big or important they are.  (And on that same note, I would guess there was more interest in last night's Clinton speech than in the Obama address coming up at Invesco, so far as political drama and newsworthiness goes.)

Obama got absolutely no bounce over the Biden announcement, so it's not as if McCain has a whole heck of a lot to lose—it might actually be an interesting strategy play to draw focus away from the biggest free advertising event for Democrats of the cycle.

[Mr. Morden]

Liebermanworld pushes back hard on Novak report

http://www.politico.com/blogs/jonathanmartin/0808/Liebermanworld_pushes_back_HARD_on_Novak_report.html

A report out today that Joe Lieberman warned John McCain against selecting him to be on the GOP ticket is "totally and absolutely false," according to a Lieberman source who contacted Politico.

Columnist Robert Novak wrote that the prospect of Lieberman on the ticket is real, but that McCain and some his top backers know it would be politically unrealistic.

"And this has been made clear to McCain by none other than Joe Lieberman himself," writes Novak.

Not so, says a Lieberman source, stating categorically that the Connecticut senator has not contacted his Arizona colleague to say any such thing.

As I've reported, Lieberman is very much being considered by McCain.  And it's an indication of how much backers of the independent-turned-Democrat want the No. 2 slot that they would push back so hard against Novak's report.

One person familiar with the situation said the Republican cited by Novak as having "prevailed on Lieberman to tell McCain that a McCain-Lieberman ticket would be a disaster for all concerned" was the source for the column and appeared to be "pushing an agenda."

[Mr. Morden]

Politico says that Hutchison "has not been asked for any documentation of the sort typically handed over for vetting, according to a source in a position to know."

http://www.politico.com/blogs/jonathanmartin/0808/About_that_KBH_for_veep_buzz.html?showall

[J. J.]

Rice is being vetted.  Just reported.

[MSUfan]

Rice is being vetted.  Just reported.

Now, that's a great pick... for our side. Please, nothing would work better for us than picking a top level official, a SoS for a matter of fact, to help us link Bush and McCain.

[True Democrat]

Rice would be a good candidate. . .if Bush were popular.