Saturday, September 20, 2008
Say it ain't so. . .
I wanted to discount it as right-wing lunacy but now I've read in more than a few people who are hearing or at least predicting that the "October surprise" will be Obama dropping Biden and putting Hillary in as v.p. While it might originally (i.e., at the convention) have made sense to pick her - from a vote-getting and even a fairness standpoint - it remains hard to imagine how they could govern together. How does a president manage a vice president who's stronger than himself? and whose husband has already had the job to great acclaim? It seemed and continues to seem like a bad idea. One hopes that even an increasingly-nervous candidate can remember that the end result of all this is governing.
On the other hand, Obama may be as passionate about winning as the Clintons. And what made the Clintons go along with the nomination so quietly and relatively pleasantly?
On the other hand, Hillary does have huge and continuing negatives, so adding her to the ticket might not do the trick particularly in the so-called undecided states. (Don't forget that the election actually turns on electoral college votes not on the popular vote, not unlike the Republicans' winner-take-all primaries.)
More to the point, such a crassly and overtly manipulative gesture would reveal his need to win and pretty much erase any residual sense of him as a leader of change. Worse, it would generate voter disgust. Since October is dangerously close to Election Day there would be too little time for the negative feelings to fade and I'd bet many voters would commit themselves to vote for ABO (anyone but Obama). So in the end, my sense is that the end results away from him would far outweigh any benefits of the switch, were he to pull this stunt.
On the other hand, Obama may be as passionate about winning as the Clintons. And what made the Clintons go along with the nomination so quietly and relatively pleasantly?
On the other hand, Hillary does have huge and continuing negatives, so adding her to the ticket might not do the trick particularly in the so-called undecided states. (Don't forget that the election actually turns on electoral college votes not on the popular vote, not unlike the Republicans' winner-take-all primaries.)
More to the point, such a crassly and overtly manipulative gesture would reveal his need to win and pretty much erase any residual sense of him as a leader of change. Worse, it would generate voter disgust. Since October is dangerously close to Election Day there would be too little time for the negative feelings to fade and I'd bet many voters would commit themselves to vote for ABO (anyone but Obama). So in the end, my sense is that the end results away from him would far outweigh any benefits of the switch, were he to pull this stunt.
Labels: 2008 election, ugliness
Permalink | 
| posted by jau at 9:41 AM
CGHill — at 7:36 PM, September 21, 2008:
— at 11:15 PM, September 21, 2008:
| posted by jau at 9:41 AM
3 more:
CGHill — at 7:36 PM, September 21, 2008:
I'm thinking Hillary expects Obama to go down, and that she'll be ready for 2012 against Sarah Palin or whomever - so she's not likely to go along with any scheme like this.
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— at 11:15 PM, September 21, 2008:
Hill has as much chance of getting the nomination in '12 as John Edwards. Imagine old news like her against our Sarah, brings a smile to my face.
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[The big O by the way was the nickname of the white elephant of an Olympic Stadium built in Montreal for the '76 Olymics.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olympic_Stadium_(Montreal)
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