Could there be a more perfect choice for a potential Obama vice president than General Tony Zinni? I think not and, ladies and gentlemen of the court, here is the evidence that makes the case...
Listening to some of the names that have been suggested as a ticket mate for Obama, few have struck me as having that perfect fit. So I did some thinking, some research and hunting for facts and would like to advance the case for General Zinni. I think there are some key attributes which a successful Obama ticket would need and I think Zinni would cover them well.
Firstly, the question of ideological compatibility.
Exhibit 1a: Zinni on MTP discussing the Iraq war
Exhibit 1b: Obama's 2002 anti-war speech
These comparisons are highly interesting. Firstly, note the grave seriousness that each places on the prospect of going to war and the high bar of evidence (namely whether Iraq is a clear and grave threat) that each requires. It's not just that both men are anti-war. It's that they are anti-war for the same basic reason, the tests have not been met. Zinni shows his astuteness by having immediately doubted the motives underlying the war, whereas Obama - as masterfully as ever - is adept in contrasting Bush's appetite for war to his inability to stand up to the energy lobby. There's a real theme of complementarity here: in addition to the same basic doubts, Zinni is able to eloquently express the mistakes in the build-up and execution of the war whereas Obama is able to easily place the war into a compelling historical context.
There's no 'Bomb bomb bomb, bomb bomb Iran' going on here at all.
Secondly, Zinni has policy breadth
Exhibit 2: Zinni speaking on global warming
This was astonishing for me to find - definitely worth a watch. In this statement Zinni shows a sharp insight and is able to seamlessly draw together the threads that spring from climate change, ranging from global security and poverty, international crime and most importantly national security. Imagine if this man had a national platform alongside Obama in November. I think he would be able to pull the rug out from under the Republicans: national security isn't about the constant hyped-up fear of terrorists hiding under your bed, it's about positioning America and the world in such a way that future threats to peace are averted. And this would be a message coming from a retired 4 star general.
Thirdly, a complementary charisma
Exhibit 3: Zinni speaking at the Oxonian Society
Here you see just how good a speaker Zinni is, but in a very different way to Obama. Whereas Obama uses a message which is flighted and at times abstract, Zinni is earthy, anecdotal and funny, whilst still able to convey serious points and politics. This would be just the kind of grounding that Obama needs on the ticket.
My final case stems from Obama's recurrent theme of a broken Washington. Zinni is an outsider who is sincere in a way that many politicians - apart from some like Barack Obama himself - find difficult to be.
I'm sure a McCain/RabidConservative ticket would founder against Obama/Zinni. If the charge were made to Obama that he's not ready to be commander-in-chief he could point at his number two, the four star general standing behind him who, unlike John McBush, called Iraq right. McBush the war hero would also be neutered.
Now, what do you think? Zinni has said he'll never stand for office but isn't the combination worth begging and pleading for?