Picking up the Boston Sunday Globe this morning, I was dismayed to see how successfully Repblicans and AP had spun Obama's pick of Biden as filling an imaginary "foreign policy gap" (as if Senator McMansion has any foreign policy cred!). Clearly, it is time to get on message as to which of his plethora weaknesses John Sidney Bush III will try to overcome with his VP pick. Every one of the top candidates fills a glaring hole in McCain's resume, but each comes with their own baggage.
More below...
MITT ROMNEY
Gaps Filled
Economy - By now it is clear voters realize that McCain has a huge credibility gap on the economy. The man does not even know how to log into a computer, yet he wants to convince us that he can restore the damage done by his mentor, George W. Bush? Unlike McSame, at least Mitt's familiarity with the private sector goes beyond trust funds and briefing sheets provided by lobbyists.
Fundraising - By contemporary standards, McSame's fundraising has been anemic. While Mitt has shown no talent for fundraising outside the confines of his personal bank vault, at least he does still have some cash to throw to the RNC.
Age - It is well-known that every four years spent as President of the United States takes a physical toll equal to 8-10 years. That means that were McCain to last until 2012, he likely have the capacity of your average 86-year old. Yikes! (Anyone want to photoshop what he would look like?). Given that McSame already shows many signs of confusion and forgetfulness, he needs to reassure voters with some relative youth on the ticket. Can we really risk a Grandpa Simpson Presidency?
Baggage
Houses?-gate: - Like McCain, Romney comes from a background of privilege, and boasts more luxury residences and vacation homes than the average voter could even dream of. These have proven an embarrassment in past campaigns, such as when he used his Utah estate to dodge Massachusetts taxes prior to moving back to run for Governor, and when it was revealed he employed illegal aliens to manicure the lawn of his Belmont estate. His wife Ann also had her "Cindy-McCain-Poor-Little-Rich-Girl" moment in 1994, when she complained that she and Mitt knew economic hardship early in their marriage, when at one point they under unable to live off just interest and dividends from their inherited investments, and actually had to dip into the capital and sell stocks.
Conservative Creds - The history of oily Mitt's flip-flops is well-documented, and has been driven home by none other than John McSame himself. How many times do you think Colorado, Tennessee and Texas Voters would see the video clip of Mitt declaring that he would be a stronger supporter of Gay rights than Ted Kennedy, and that he was pro-choice?
Religion - No matter what anyone else thinks, there is a large portion of Republican's all-important Evangelical voters who consider Mitt to be a member of an insidious cult.
Boredom - Mitt put his all into becoming of Governor of Massachusetts, but a mere two years into the job it was clear he was bored. He clearly experienced a Peggy Lee Is that all there is? moment. If he were to become President, how do we know he would not get bored and decide he wanted a more interesting job and run for President of France?
TIM PAWLENTY
Gaps Filled
Age/Out-of-Touch - While Pawlenty is a bit too old to be McCain's grandson, he does demonstrate knowledge of developments in the American economy and culture after 1970. If Pawlenty is the choice, I think the age/in-touch gap would be the number one point to emphasize.
Conservative Creds - Pawlenty is a right-wing evangelical Christian, and heavily promoted by Republicans who doubt McSame's true conservative creds. Probably not the greatest McSame weakness to promote, since swing voters are not likely to be nervous about this gap.
Baggage
Inexperience - Given McSame's age and declining mental state, the chance is not small that the 25th Amendment would be invoked sometime in the next four years. Do voters really want to take a roll of the dice on an unknown quantity who could be the next George Bush or Dan Quayle?
Unvetted - Pawlenty has never undergone the scrutiny that a high-profile, national campaign brings. None of his potential skeletons have been unearthed, run through the news cycle, and been declared "ancient history."
Bush IV? - America has recently experienced what it was like to have an unknown right-wing Evangelical Governor in the White House. How many times can we make that mistake?
TOM RIDGE
Gaps Filled
Economy- While Ridge would help fill McCain's huge gap on management of the economy, it is not clear how much influence he would be given as Vice President. It is unprecedented for a President to hand leadership on such a bread-and-butter, day-to-day area of governance to his VP.
Integrity - Notwithstanding the mythology about McSame's anti-corruption efforts, the fact remains as a founding member of the Keating Five, McSame has a long (and continuing) history of costing the taxpayers billions through his close ties to lobbyists and oligarchs. That said, as noted below, Ridge would have a lot to answer for in his manipulation of "orange" and "red" alerts to help Chimpy's election in 2004.
Baggage
Conservative Creds - Is pro-choice. Enough said. The wingnuts will go crazy.
Management of Homeland Security- Ridge's management of Homeland Security is a double-edge sword. No one could support the case that Ridge left the Department as a well-run and competently staffed organization, and Ridge remains under a cloud of suspicion of having manipulation the threat level in 2003/2004 to help Bush stay in power.
DARK HORSE: CHARLIE CRIST
Gaps Filled
Log-Closet Republicans - An sizable share of the Republican Machine abides by the principle that healthy, open, same-sex relationships are unacceptable, and that gay sex should be restricted to airport restrooms, highway rest-stops, Capitol Hill apartments, and White House briefing rooms. Charlie Crist is a poster child for this lifestyle, and could surely count on the support of tens of thousands of Republican operatives nationwide.
Baggage
See above - He has probably not covered his tracks well enough to preclude the Evangelical voters from staying home.