30 June 2008
Stringing Us Out?
Posted by Joy Bischoff under: Presidential Election 2008 .
Call me cynical but I am starting to wonder if McCain is going to put off naming his VP for another two months in hopes of dangling the possible prize of Romney in front of Mitt supporters. That could gain him more support and money. If that is so, then I wouldn’t hold my breath that Mitt would be his choice. I have zero trust for Senator McCain.
Romney tops McCain veep list
Mike Allen
Surprising many Republican insiders, Mitt Romney is at the top of the vice-presidential prospect list for Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.). But lack of personal chemistry could derail the pick.
“Romney as favorite” is the hot buzz in Republican circles, and top party advisers said the case is compelling.
Campaign insiders say McCain plans to name his running mate very shortly after Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) does, as part of what one campaign planner called a “bounce-mitigation strategy.”
The Democratic convention is in late August, a week ahead of the Republicans convention. That means McCain can size up the opposing ticket before locking in his own.
The McCain campaign declined to comment, saying McCain has made it clear they are not to discuss the matter.
One of the chief reasons the Massachusetts governor is looking so attractive is his ability to raise huge amounts of money quickly through his former business partners and from fellow members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Mormons.
McCain sources tell Politico that they believe Romney could raise $50 million in 60 days. One close Romney adviser said it could even be $60 million.
Romney’s other advantages, according to people involved in McCain’s screening process:
—Squeaky clean, and fully vetted by the national media.
—Has presidential looks and bearing, and immediately would be a strong campaign who could be trusted to stay on-message.
—Family’s Michigan roots would help in a swing state that went Democratic in 2004 and is.
But there’s one big problem: Despite the buddy-picture choreography of a McCain-Romney campaign swing, McCain remains far short of enamored of Romney.
And it’s not just the candidate. Some of McCain’s closest confidantes evidence little enthusiasm for Romney, feelings that owe in part to lingering bad blood from the GOP primary, a genuine skepticism that such a conventional pick could bolster the ticket in a grim year for the GOP and concerns about whether his Mormon faith could imperil McCain in Southern states that Obama hopes to put into play
McCain sources also say he’ll pick his vice presidential candidate based more on ability to govern than ability to help in the election.
9 Comments so far...
Benjamin Says:
30 June 2008 at 10:56 am.
I totally agree with you Joy. He is playing us. My hope is that he outplays himself and gets so much pressure to tap Mitt because of the economy that he has to go through with it.
T. Fan Says:
30 June 2008 at 11:31 am.
The part about his presidential looks and bearing is probably the biggest reason McCain wouldn’t pick him. He makes McCain look pathetic by comparison. I’m not holding my breath. I think McCain is vindictive from past episodes and I doubt he could stomach the idea. It may be right that he wants to string Mitt fans along. IDK?
Anon88 Says:
30 June 2008 at 1:09 pm.
Joy, I sincerely hope you are wrong. I am counting on Mitt to bring some sense into politics. You could easily be right but I will pretend otherwise so I can have some hope.
Pickles Says:
30 June 2008 at 2:00 pm.
Anon88, i’m with you. i gotta hope for Mitt til there’s no hope.
Terrie Soberg Says:
30 June 2008 at 3:09 pm.
Scott Hennen from Minneapolis is filling in for Sean Hannity today. He says that McCain will pick our governor, Tim Pawlenty, for his running mate. I haven’t heard his reasoning yet. Should be interesting. At one point, Pawlenty said no way.
Matt Says:
30 June 2008 at 3:37 pm.
Terrie, I hope he is wrong but I’m not holding my breath either.
Cavetrollhead Says:
30 June 2008 at 6:10 pm.
I could probably vote for McCain with Romney as VP. I don’t know much about Pawlenty. And I am too lazy to research it now. Anyone want to give me the skinny?
What are some encouraging things regarding oil that Romney has said. I know he is in favor or drilling in Alaska. That is a big plus.
Right now, a monkey would be a good president if he could get us to get 100% of our oil needs domestically. The next step would be to set a price minimum so that upstarts could compete fairly with the giants. If McCAin would pledge to do that, I would vote for him with or without Romney in the VP slot.
And joy I think you are right about dangling the VP slot in front of Mitt. Mitt is a great fund raiser isn’t he. You can call McCain an idiot all you want but he knows politics and he will spend all his political currency to get the ultimate job. He won’t care who he uses or abuses. Mitt is being used I am sure.
Terrie Soberg Says:
30 June 2008 at 7:41 pm.
Pawlenty has been governor of Minnesota since 2003 and is known as the most conservative Minnesota governor since the 1920’s. We have so many Democrats here, so we always here the negatives about Pawlenty.
He ran on a no-new-taxes platform and was able to balance the budget. Of course, we had the collapse of the I-35W bridge fiasco, which many have blamed on the budget cuts.
I like him though. He is very big on supporting the troops deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan. My brother and brother-in-law have both been deployed twice. Pawlenty spoke at the ceremonies for each of them. He traveled to Bosnia, Kosovo, Poland, Iraq, and the Czech Republic to see our troops. He also spoke at the WWII Memorial Dedication ceremony.
His wife works in the same building that my husband’s company office is in.
Ghost Says:
30 June 2008 at 11:49 pm.
Yup, I think this blog hits the nail on the head.
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