Veep Rumor Of The Day
Actually, it was floated yesterday by CNN, and while it does not show any signs of traction, some are still wondering who Senator Obama will pick. The rumor was that it would be Senator Evan Bayh of Indiana, and it came out because Senator Obama would have an extended stay in Indiana today. The Indianapolis Star reports that Senator Bayh has not been asked, as yet:
Sen. Evan Bayh, D-Ind., told The Indianapolis Star today that Sen. Barack Obama has not asked him to be his running mate and that he's not expecting Obama to announce his vice presidential pick when Obama is in Indiana Wednesday.
Asked if he will be Obama's vice presidential choice, Bayh said; "I have no idea. You'd have to ask him."
Bayh will be introducing Obama at Wednesday's town hall meeting in Elkhart, but said he knows of no plans for a private meeting with Obama, even though both men are flying into northern Indiana tonight. The length of Obama's visit here -- he arrives at about 6:30 p.m. and isn't scheduled to leave until about 3:30 p.m. Wednesday -- had acceleratd already flying rumors that Bayh will be Obama's choice. ...
In fact, Bayh said that while he has "no idea" what Obama's timeline is for announcing his running mate, "I'm absolutely confident there will be no announcement tomorrow. I guess the best way to put it is, if there's an announcement tomorrow, I'd be as surprised as anybody else."
Now a few people started wondering what would the benefit of having Senator Bayh on the Obama ticket bring to his attempt to win the presidency. A little digging provided a few nuggets that would help Senator Obama, but Senator Bayh votes with the Democrats about 85% of the time. On the Issues shows that he is a populist-leaning liberal. He is not nearly as vehement on abortion as Senator Obama is. He is pro-death penalty. He believes in a limited amount of school choice; giving parents the choice between public and charter schools. He supports tax incentives for energy production, wants energy independence, and supported the Bush energy policy. He voted for both theater operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, and has not been on the same page as the Democrats when it comes to withdrawing troops.
He is also the former governor and secretary of state for Indiana, and has enjoyed tremendous support from his constituents. Looking at his past elections, he has beaten nearly every opponent by double digits. And he could very well put Indiana (a deep red state) into play. In doing that, it could also put Ohio in play, and possibly Pennsylvania -- two key battleground states.
On the bad side, he voted against both Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Alito. He has a mixed record on free trade. He has consistently opposed presenting ID when voting. He supports open borders rather than immigration reform, despite voting in favor of the fence along the border. He was rated 85% by the AFL-CIO showing a pro-union stance regarding jobs. His record also shows him to be a tax-and-spend Democrat.
Would he be a good choice for Senator Obama? He would not hurt the ticket, really, at least not in the way Governor Sebellius of Kansas would. For that matter, he could be the inside dark horse that few have speculated about, and he could be the sort of Midwestern official that could help Senator Obama in an area of the nation that he is weak in. Are the rumors true? Probably not, but in this day and age of election year politics you have to look at each rumor as it comes down the pipe.
Marcie
Sen. Evan Bayh, D-Ind., told The Indianapolis Star today that Sen. Barack Obama has not asked him to be his running mate and that he's not expecting Obama to announce his vice presidential pick when Obama is in Indiana Wednesday.
Asked if he will be Obama's vice presidential choice, Bayh said; "I have no idea. You'd have to ask him."
Bayh will be introducing Obama at Wednesday's town hall meeting in Elkhart, but said he knows of no plans for a private meeting with Obama, even though both men are flying into northern Indiana tonight. The length of Obama's visit here -- he arrives at about 6:30 p.m. and isn't scheduled to leave until about 3:30 p.m. Wednesday -- had acceleratd already flying rumors that Bayh will be Obama's choice. ...
In fact, Bayh said that while he has "no idea" what Obama's timeline is for announcing his running mate, "I'm absolutely confident there will be no announcement tomorrow. I guess the best way to put it is, if there's an announcement tomorrow, I'd be as surprised as anybody else."
Now a few people started wondering what would the benefit of having Senator Bayh on the Obama ticket bring to his attempt to win the presidency. A little digging provided a few nuggets that would help Senator Obama, but Senator Bayh votes with the Democrats about 85% of the time. On the Issues shows that he is a populist-leaning liberal. He is not nearly as vehement on abortion as Senator Obama is. He is pro-death penalty. He believes in a limited amount of school choice; giving parents the choice between public and charter schools. He supports tax incentives for energy production, wants energy independence, and supported the Bush energy policy. He voted for both theater operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, and has not been on the same page as the Democrats when it comes to withdrawing troops.
He is also the former governor and secretary of state for Indiana, and has enjoyed tremendous support from his constituents. Looking at his past elections, he has beaten nearly every opponent by double digits. And he could very well put Indiana (a deep red state) into play. In doing that, it could also put Ohio in play, and possibly Pennsylvania -- two key battleground states.
On the bad side, he voted against both Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Alito. He has a mixed record on free trade. He has consistently opposed presenting ID when voting. He supports open borders rather than immigration reform, despite voting in favor of the fence along the border. He was rated 85% by the AFL-CIO showing a pro-union stance regarding jobs. His record also shows him to be a tax-and-spend Democrat.
Would he be a good choice for Senator Obama? He would not hurt the ticket, really, at least not in the way Governor Sebellius of Kansas would. For that matter, he could be the inside dark horse that few have speculated about, and he could be the sort of Midwestern official that could help Senator Obama in an area of the nation that he is weak in. Are the rumors true? Probably not, but in this day and age of election year politics you have to look at each rumor as it comes down the pipe.
Marcie
posted by Syd And Vaughn | 11:01 AM
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