I haven't seen this diaried yet - but Obama just was asked if he would be Vice President.
Political Radar
ABC News' Sunlen Miller reports: While in Casper, Wyo., today Sen. Barack Obama ruled out the possibility being a vice presidential candidate during an interview with CBS' Montana affiliate KTVQ. Here is a transcipt of what he said.
Q: You’ve raised $55 million in February and in your speech today you said "I was against the war in ’03, ’04, ’05 -- all the way on through 2010, and you specifically mentioned Hillary Clinton and John McCain. Could you ever see yourself on the same ticket as Senator Clinton?
A: Well, you know, I think it’s premature. You won’t see me as a vice presidential candidate -- you know, I’m running for president. We have won twice as many states as Senator Clinton, and have a higher popular vote, and I think we can maintain our delegate count -- but you know, what I’m really focused on right now, because all that stuff is premature, is winning this nomination and changing the country.
It's not a conclusive rejection. He says it's "premature" and he could be interpreted as making a forward looking statement, saying that we "won't see him as a vice presidential candidate" because he's intends to win and expects to win. Then again, the question was whether he could "ever see himself on the same ticket as Senator Clinton," which is about as broad as you can get.
I'm sure that the Clintons will pick this up and use it to bludgeon Barack over the head - "Barack's too good for Hillary," "Barack's all about himself not the party." Hillary might even get more aggressive and say, "I was considering offering him the VP slot - but he turned me down - boo hoo hoo!" "He thinks I'm a monster!" Another "you're likeable enough" moment which will put Barack in yet another defensive crouch. Of course, if Hillary were asked that question, I'm sure she'd say basically the same thing, and of course, she's never going to voluntarily offer him the VP slot (and not just because she can't win without stealing the nomination).
This is not to say that I blame him one bit. It certainly deflates the fantasy in Hillaryland that she is capable of somehow wresting the nomination from Barack without having the pledged delegate lead without completely dividing the party. It's also interesting that he didn't answer the question as to whether he'd offer Hillary the VP slot (which was asked by implication as well).