VP Thoughts

A column in the liberal blog DailyKos suggests Al Gore as the perfect running mate for Barack. How revealing! Why do they suggest Al?

Gore's stature in America and the world would... lend Obama's new administration instant credibility. It would also tell people, especially in Washington, that Obama was supremely confident, that he was unafraid of being overshadowed by the last Democratic winner of a presidential election, a two-term vice president, a winner of the Nobel Peace Prize.

It's hard to imagine that Gore would do such a thing - he's got money, popularity and power, so a return to the second fiddle position seems extremely unlikely. But here's what I find interesting about this suggestion: It's a great one.

Al Gore makes strategic sense for Barack because:

1. His experience would compensate for Barack's lack thereof.
2. His maturity corrects for Barack being too young for the job.

What's significant about this suggestion, coming from a blog that's totally devoted to getting Barack elected, is that it reveals an uneasiness over Barack - it suggests an understanding that he's not ready to be president. With Al Gore as his Siamese twin, the democratic ticket would be credible in a way that Barack the candidate is not.

Does John McCain need someone to give him "instant credibility." Nope. He's credible all by himself. Would Hillary Clinton? Nope. Would anyone be worried about demonstrations of confidence from the new president if he were McCain or Hillary? Or course not.

If you need a vice president to make your top of the ticket credible, you've got the wrong man at the top of the ticket.