Who Should Be Vice-President?

OK, I'm entertaining myself by running for President. Truth is, at least as I see it, I am at capable of keeping God tuned in while I do so, so I am going to continue to enjoy myself in this futile attempt to be elected President of the United States of America in 2008.

No other candidate has won God's endorsement! I'm laying claim to that one.

So anyway, I've been thinking about who would I select to be my Vice-President? It did not take me too long to decide on who I preferred, and I am going to include you in on my selection process.

My intention would be to have my Vice-President serve as the second most powerful person in the country. Do people think Dick Cheney wields power in the current administration? Whelp, if I were elected President they would not yet have seen the beginnings of the possible powers of the office as it was manifested in the service of Dick Cheney. If I were to attempt to fulfill the enormous responsibilities of the office I would need some help. I would have to assemble a team of advisers to help me and while other advisers (Cabinet leaders) might be hired and fired, one adviser could be always counted on to always say what they meant because there would be no threat of termination for telling their version of "the awful truth". That adviser would be the constitutionally protected office of Vice-President.

So... if I am going to select a Vice-Presidential candidate, I have to choose wisely. I need someone who will be an asset instead of a burden. If I am going to shoulder all the responsibilities, I need someone who will help me and not hinder me. I will not take into account how many electoral votes I might reap by my selection. Taking such a consideration into account would only result in my having a "traditional" Vice-President who is sent off to his office and told (or at least asked) to shut up. My Vice-President must feel empowered to have a voice of their own and not be afraid to grab his/her share of the bully pulpit to join in the debate.

So, who would I select?

Some time back after taking the question into consideration I came to the conclusion that Hillary Clinton would best serve as my Vice-President. Since then I have had time to reconsider and I am almost delighted that she is faltering somewhat in the polls in certain crucial early primary campaign states. I do not want to be accused of selecting her only because she is the front runner. If she is ground into the dirt, she is still my selection. The lower she sinks in the polls, the better it is for me.

Why? Because she best rounds off and would help me cover some of my own inadequacies (or weaknesses if you prefer). I would not want my selection of her to be dismissed as being a shrewd political move meant to attract votes. I would want the selection to be judged as my attempt to empower me to provide the best governance possible. When I look at the slate of those running for office I see no other that will so successfully round off my rough edges like Hillary could do.

But what if she declines and refuses to play second fiddle?

Well then I have some other names on my list and at least a few you might find surprising.

Thus far, second on my list is Senator Kent Conrad (Dem) from North Dakota. I really appreciate Kent's honest and skillful viewpoint on budgetary matters. While he does not balance out some of my other weaknesses (I could work on that on my own), his voice when it comes to fiscal policies would be invaluable.

Third on my list (with many nipping at his heels) is former Virginia Governor Mark Warner (Dem).

Are there any Republicans on my list? Well, if there had been enough of them, perhaps I would have decided to run as a Republican instead of as a Democrat. If I were forced to draw deep into the pool of potentials, John McCain and my own Virginia Republican Senator (who has announced his pending retirement) John Warner would make the list. Why these two are not higher in the list is due to age issues. Ronald Reagan proved to us that age does matter. (John McCain would have been a fantastic President eight years ago!)

But what about Barak Obama or John Edwards? First off, never John Edwards for reasons I won't go into. Obama? He's a rising star on my list. His proposals on solutions to the Social Security crisis has won him points from me on courage and realism. Early on I dismissed him due to his inexperience, however I am starting to rethink my appraisal of him. However I doubt that he is ever going to rise high enough to top Hillary. But the man is offering evidence that he has a noggin on his neck.