weakest VP choice?

[Nym90]

McGovern's original choice was Tom Eagleton. Yes, he had electroshock therapy for depression when he was younger, but this should not have disqualified him for national office. He wasn't a bad pick at all. He was a moderate, well-respected member of the Senate from Missouri.

[© Tweed the Younger]

New vote for worst VP: Bentsen 1988

[zachman]

Wasn't Bentsen a strong pick?

[© Tweed the Younger]

Wasn't Bentsen a strong pick?

He was intended to be Dukakis's LBJ, but instead, Dukakis failed to carry a southern state.

[zachman]

He did well in the debates though, although he didn't think he could patch up his campaign.

I don't think I've answered.
Qualye and Stockdale were certainly weak picks, but I will go back to 1864 when Andrew Johnson replaced my great ancestor Hannibal Hamlin. Lincoln did not have to switch VP's, and he certainly shouldn't have bothered picking a Southerner. Johnson was the only president to be outshadowed by congress.

[© Tweed the Younger]

Why did Lincoln put a southern Democrat on his ticket?  Was he nuts?

[WalterMitty]

did dukakis actually expect to pick up texas by adding bentsen?  i find that hard to imagine.

[zachman]

He got rid of Hamlin because he was too black skinned. He should have picked Seward or Fremont.

[dazzleman]

I think that the following VP candidates since 1952 have been good picks:

Nixon (Eisenhower - 1952, 1956) - Balanced Eisenhower's age and the eastern orientation of Eisenhower supporters

Johnson (Kennedy - 1960) - Gave Kennedy crucial state of Texas

Humphrey (Johnson - 1964) - Classic northern liberal to balance Johnson's southern roots

Mondale (Carter - 1976, 1980) - Good choice for the same reason as Humphrey, though liberalism hurt in 1980

Bush (Reagan - 1980, 1984) - Balanced Reagan's western and more conservative orientation with a (then) traditional Republican.

Bentsen (Dukakis - 1988) - Well respected, but unable to help Dukakis overcome his own lack of political savvy

Gore (Clinton - 1992, 1996) - Brought Washington experience to a ticket with a small-state governor

Kemp (Dole - 1996) - Not enough to overcome Dole's age and lack of issues to run on, but brought a measure of enthusiasm to a tired ticket.

Lieberman (Gore - 2000) - Well-respected Senator, moderate, strong on character issue to counteract sleazy Clinton image.

I think the following VP picks since 1952 have been bad:

Lodge (Nixon - 1960) - Bluebood, poor politician.  Nixon wasn't going to capture Massachusetts anyway.

Agnew (Nixon - 1968, 1972) - Helped in the rim south in 1968, which Nixon needed with Wallace running, but that help came at a high price.

Eagleton/Shriver (McGovern - 1972) - Not sure they belong on this list; nothing could have helped McGovern anyway.

Dole (Ford - 1976) - From Kansas; didn't bring Ford any states that he wouldn't have won anyway.

Ferraro (Mondale - 1984) - Picked only because she was a woman, due to public blackmail by feminist groups.  3-term congresswoman not qualified to be president.  From a NYC borough, which is the kiss of death politically.

Quayle (Bush - 1988, 1992) - I don't think he's a bad guy, but he was not experienced enough to be in the office of VP.

Cheney (Bush - 2000) - I have nothing against Cheney, but he is better for appointive than elective office.  He lacks charisma, and is from a 3-electoral vote state that always goes Republican by lopsided margins, so he brings nothing to the table politically other than a reputation for competence, which is unfortunately not that important to most voters.

[Beet]

Thats a pretty accurate list. The only one I take issue with is Lieberman. In an election so close, picking a VP from a solid Dem state may not have been the best choice-- certainly there were other experienced politicians of strong character.

[dazzleman]

Thats a pretty accurate list. The only one I take issue with is Lieberman. In an election so close, picking a VP from a solid Dem state may not have been the best choice-- certainly there were other experienced politicians of strong character.

You may be right.  I do think that Lieberman helped in Florida, and almost put Gore over the top there.  But maybe a moderate candidate from a state that normally goes Republican, or a swing state, would have taken Gore that extra mile.  Still, Lieberman was a better choice than a noxious New York or Massachusetts Democrat would have been.

[Vasall des Midas]

He got rid of Hamlin because he was too black skinned. He should have picked Seward or Fremont.

At the time of the Convention, it looked as if the end of the war might still be far away and as if the Dems would give Lincoln a run for his money. Johnson probably was a great choice as ruinning mate, although he was a failure as a President. I could never help kind of liking the guy...

[Kevinstat]

Regarding Bob Dole, it is important to note that the Ford/Dole ticket lost several counties in Dole's home state of Kansas in 1976 (more than any other Republican Presidentail/VP ticket in Kansas since 1964; see http://www.uselectionatlas.org/USPRESIDENT/comparemaps.php?fips=20 ).  Several of those counties were in the western part of the state, where Dole served in the House of Representatives before he was elected Senator, although for a while during Dole's service in the House two districts extended to the Colorado border and it could be most of those counties were not in Dole's district.  1976 was the first election since 1964 where the Democratic ticket was poised to do OK on the Plains, but there there were a lot less red counties on the national county map in neighboring Nebraska (the Dakotas had a lot but they were right next to Mondale's home state).

[Reaganfan]

Ferraro. Representative? Not a good choice.

[PBrunsel]

Weakest VP Choice:

The Republican Party in 1936 nominated Chicago Times Editor Frank Knox for vice president. He was a super Conservative who wanted to destroy the New Deal. He made Governor Alf Landon look radical and made Landon loose in a landslide.

[Neil.A]

Quayle

[TexasGurl]

curtis LeMay was the scariest.
dole was a bad choice in '76
leiberman at the least lost gore his home state of tn
ugly truth.

[© Tweed the Younger]

Weakest VP Choice:

The Republican Party in 1936 nominated Chicago Times Editor Frank Knox for vice president. He was a super Conservative who wanted to destroy the New Deal. He made Governor Alf Landon look radical and made Landon loose in a landslide.

Landon would have had his ass handed to him anyway.