Category Archives: Politics: US: 2008 Elections

L.A. Times Editorial Calls for Cheney’s Ouster: A Los Angeles Times editorial Sunday called for a “far more audacious” makeover of President Bush’s administration, saying he should send Vice President Cheney into early retirement.

Let me start by saying that I don’t think President Cheney will allow this to happen.

But, just for the fun of it, let’s suppose that we wake up one day and for whatever reason we find ourselves de-Veeped. That raises two questions:

• Who would Bush be most likely to appoint?
• Who of the people Bush might conceivably appoint would be most politically destructive for the Democrats?

The media is already having a field day with the first question, and thinks the answer is Dr. Rice. But since I think that even if she were to become the Veep, I don’t think she’d run for President (or would be that hard to beat if she did), I don’t think that she is the answer to the second question.

The Democrats’ worst fear has to be the appointment of a viable Presidential candidate into the heir apparent role. Not only does this person get tons of free media and get to look more Presidential, but a new veep would get a leg up in the otherwise internecine primary fights.

So I think the answer to the second question is probably John McCain. It’s just conceivable Bush would pick him (they seem to have made some sort of deal in 2004). He would benefit the most from being anointed as the heir apparent, as it would allow him to drop his self-destructive run to the right. And a McCain who isn’t destroying himself, and doesn’t have to take full part in the rough-and-tumble of a primary (with the chances to lose one’s cool) would be a formidable candidate in 2008.

(I do note the Machiavellian argument that says Dr. Rice is the answer to the second question too, because that would ensure that Senator Clinton would become the Democratic nominee. I don’t quite buy it, but it worries me.)

Former Alaska Senator Mike Gravel is running for President. Sounds hoplessly quixotic, but “Gravel Rocks” will be a nice campaign button.

I read about the McCain-Obama dust up with a degree of incredulity, because it seems to me that one of the things that Sen. McCain can least afford is anything that will feed the whispers that, well, he’s not quite right, a little bit, you know, unstable. And this intemperate letter is so un-Senatorial in its lack of courtesy as to be enough to fuel an entire muttering, not just whispering, campaign.

Talking Points Memo does a valiant job of trying to find a rational motive for what seems otherwise to be a fit of childish pique:

the key here to note is what’s behind this dust-up. Obama is a rising star among the Democrats. Republicans want to lay a backstory for feature criticisms and character attacks against him. So, for instance, if Obama is the vice presidential candidate in 2008, they want to have a history of attacks on him banked, ones that allege he’s a liar, or too partisan, or untrustworthy, whatever. It doesn’t even really matter. What matters is that there already be an established history of them. Point being, that in early 2008, they want to be able to simply refer back to Obama’s ‘character issue’, the questions about his honesty, etc. rather than have to make the case on its merits.

So which is it: McCain the whiny baby, or McCain the unprincipled Machiavellian conniver?

Via Kos, we get the list below of would-be Democratic Presidential candidates — those serious enough to have formed a PAC or some sort of committee to serve as a proto-campaign. To which I have taken the liberty of adding my totally subjective grades and random comments. My grades are an arbitrary amalgam of my agreement with policy positions, my utterly subjective assessment of the person’s character (in those cases where I have views), slightly modified by my view as to electability — which usually I don’t weigh heavily long before the primaries; electability gets made in substantial part by how you run for the nomination.

Of course, these grades are just for the earliest grading period. Plenty of time remains to rack up class participation and extra credit points! (Not to mention, lots of tests ahead in future marking periods.)

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Senator Joseph Biden (D-Del.) is running for President.

Here’s what I’d like to know. Is there anyone reading this who believes, or has even ever met anyone who believes, that Biden ought to be President? (And it’s hard to see what ticket he enhances as Vice-President, otherwise a perhaps more attainable goal.)

Matt Stoler has a pair of interesting posts on John McCain. Since they dovetail pretty well with why I like some things about McCain but think he shouldn’t be President, ever, I recommend them : MyDD :: ‘Reform Republicans’ – The McCain Scam and BOP News: Coming Back to the Blogosphere.