I've been offline running around doing convention things all day and all they say on TV is "any moment now." What's the hold-up?

And, it may or may not be Joe Biden. There are other serious contenders and until it's announced, keep in mind that everything you are reading is opinion only.

Even as John McCain claims to be questioning Barack Obama's judgment, not his patriotism, when he asserts that Obama would rather lose the war than lose the election, the smears from the McCain camp continue.

The attack machine is sharpest with surrogates like Joe Lieberman, the Democrat-turned-independent who seems gripped by a somewhat understandable cathartic need to stick it to the party that all but abandoned him in 2006. This race is "between one candidate, John McCain, who has always put his country first, worked across party lines to get things done, and one candidate that has not," Joltin' Joe declared recently.

Susan Demas asks whether McCain is actually "putting his country first" by indulging in and refusing to condemn unscrupulous campaign tactics. [more ...]

Apparently "anybody's short list" does not include Barack Obama's:

Obama has often said, most recently on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on July 27, that Clinton “would be on anybody’s short list.” But apparently not his.

“She was never vetted,” a Democratic official reported. “She was not asked for a single piece of paper. She and Senator Obama have never had a single conversation about it. How would he know if she’d take it?” The official also said Clinton never met with Obama’s vetting team of Eric Holder and Caroline Kennedy. . . . “This would be the biggest leap of faith ever,” the official said. “She’s waiting for the text message like everyone else.”

By Big Tent Democrat, Speaking for me only.

Comments closed

The good news about the house hunting story is Obama demonstrated that he is willing to use silly stuff to attack McCain. Yep, politics is stupid. The other good news is that we have a new definition of "the new politics":

The new politics is about competent governance, not getting elected, and taking accurate statements made by your opponent (in this case, their own admission they do not know how many houses they own) and highlighting them is not ceding the high ground. It is politics.

(Emphasis supplied.) Glad we finally got that straight. So much for the "say or do anything to win" attack line and the clinging to the attendant outrage about taking "accurate statements made by your opponent and highlighting them." That silly stuff really annoyed me. I am glad we are over that now.

By Big Tent Democrat, speaking for me only

John Amato at Crooks and Liars, who didn't take a position during the primary, tonight makes the case for Hillary as Obama's vice presidential candidate.

Do Biden, Bayh, Kaine or any other pick left standing represent his “change narrative?” No, because Obama is the narrative. He brings the change. He won the primary. Of course there are those that feel much differently. I’m just offering my thoughts. Many of my C&L writers don’t agree with me either. The blogosphere should be the place that we discuss these issues. There are so many undecided voters that I bet many of them are Hillary supporters. In my opinion her nomination would send a jolt of electricity throughout the country and into Denver.

I agree with John that Hillary vastly improves Obama's chances of getting elected because she will bring voters from the critical, not the tiny, swing states like Ohio and Florida. Even Pennsylvania isn't a lock for Obama.

Obama seems to be using his caucus state stratgy from the primaries -- going after little states -- to win the general election, and as I've opined many times, I think it's the wrong strategy. We need Ohio, PA, FL and MI. Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico and Virginia pale by comparison.[More..]

Sen. Barack Obama has made his VP choice. While he won't say when he's going to text it out, here's how he describes him:

Obama said he wanted somebody who is "prepared to be president" and who will be "a partner with me in strengthening this economy for the middle class and working families."

He said he was looking for not just a partner but a sparring partner. "I want somebody who's independent, somebody who can push against my preconceived notions and challenge me so we have got a robust debate in the White House."

So, who is it? [Update: Another Obama clue below:

Unlike the entire Left blogosphere, I could not care less how many homes John McCain's heiress wife has purchased for him. I worry about McCain's tendency to react like a madman regarding foreign policy issues (see the Russia-Gerogia conflict). But I do find it amusing that McCain's "reluctance" to discuss his prisoner of war experience does not extend to responding to silly charges about houses. Via TPM:

This is a guy who lived in one house for five and a half years -- in prison," [McCain] spokesman Brian Rogers told the Washington Post.

Aren't you glad Obama threw Wes Clark under the bus for saying getting your plane shot down was not commander in chief experience? I'm telling you, convicted felon former Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham, a Vietnam war ace, got a raw deal.

By Big Tent Democrat, speaking for me only

Kevin Drum reports:

..In a New York Times Magazine piece running this weekend, David Leonhardt does a good job of describing Barack Obama's economic worldview, which is dominated by a mindful friendliness toward market solutions for economic problems (Cass Sunstein calls him a "University of Chicago Democrat").

Since this comment is about Obama's economic views, I am fine with it. My problem with University of Chicago Democrats like Cass Sunstein are on civil liberties issues, the right to privacy and Executive Power. As a centrist, free trader, Rubin Democrat, Obama sounds good to me on trade and free markets. But how about all the "fair trading" populists? How do they feel about that?

Post Script - here is the NYTimes Magazine article and reading through it, sounds to me like Obama on his approach to economics is the second coming of Bill Clinton. I mean that as a a compliment.

by Big Tent Democrat, speaking for me only

Nevada is one of those states where the map can change for Democrats. But it's tight according to this Research2000 poll (I find R2000 to have a slight tendency to favor Dems):

A new RGJ/KTVN Channel 2 poll being released today shows Nevada continues to be a true toss-up in the presidential race. In the poll of 600 likely Nevada voters, 44 percent favor U.S. Sen. Barack Obama and 43 percent favor U.S. Sen. John McCain. The results also indicate that support for Libertarian candidate, Bob Barr, expected to do well enough in Nevada to draw votes away from McCain, is slipping. He registered just 3 percent support, while independent candidate Ralph Nader is at 2 percent. Six percent of voters remain undecided. The poll was conducted Aug. 18-20 by Research 2000 and has a 4 percent margin of error.

Colorado, NM and Nevada are tighter than I thought they would be when I called Obama a shoo-in. Iowa is still Obama country. Virginia is tight. The rest of the map, at least to me, looks like the Red/Blue map we've seen for the past 8 years.

By Big Tent Democrat

Want to put the election away, Barack Obama? Yep, one more time, with feeling, pick Hillary Clinton as your VP. The most compelling reason? Obama is underperforming with Clinton supporters, the most persuadable group for him. Picking Hillary Clinton is the most powerful action Obama can take to persuade them. It is that simple.

Some people have additional arguments. David Gergen writes:

I won't be around to hear the news of who Obama picks as his Vice-Presidential candidate if today is the day he chooses to text it to the world.

Here's a place for you to keep each other updated on what happens -- or doesn't happen.

I really hope it is not Joe Biden. But since everyone else seems convinced it is, I've got my i-Pod set to play Don Henley's "The Heart of the Matter" which begins:

I got the call today I didn't want to hear
but I knew that it would come.

Next up: B.B. King and The Thrill is Gone.

My earlier post on the mountain of material Biden will provide McCain for ads belittling both Biden and Obama, is here.

It may be that Sen. Barack Obama texts out his VP choice today. The pundits think it's Joe Biden. Clearly, I hope it's not.

But, what does Biden do for Obama? He gives McCain a wealth of tv commericals to use against him.

Can you just see them now? Biden, saying Obama wasn't ready to be President and the job is "not something that lends itself to on-the-job training."

Or this 20 year old Biden campaign commercial:[More...]