The Dream Ticket - Obama and McCain

The Economist had an interesting article in its July 19-25 issue. It tried to nail down the best choice for both presidential candidates.

The article mentions that fourteen Vice Presidents have gone on to be Presidents of the United States. It's an important decision. The right VP in this race seems very critical to the outcome and both candidates are holding their cards close to their chest, hoping in this VP chess match, that the other will make the move first so that they can pick the best VP to counter the other's choice.

The Economist suggests that both candidates should ere on the side of caution. McCain, it says, "is the oldest candidate (71) in American history. He needs to appoint someone who could instantly step into his shoes" It goes on to say that he must compensate for his fatal weakness, economics.

Obama also has may weaknesses, most of which is his lack of experience and he also has trouble connecting with blue-collar America.

The Economist says that McCain has an easier choice. Their choice (and mine) is Mitt Romney, a youthful-looking 60-year-old with plenty of executive experience and a businessman with Wall-Street credibility. They go on to say "True, he is a Mormon with unreal hair, and he and Mr McCain don't like each other much. But running for the White House is not a road trip."

Romney stands out among the "short-list" as the obvious choice for the Dream Ticket for the Republican Party. He fills in where McCain falls short. Like Dick Cheney was for George W. Bush, he would almost be a co-president.

Obama's choice is not as clear. Hillary Clinton would be a disaster. The Economist says, "It would spell dysfunction in the White House.. and might suggest weakness on Obama's part." They run through a number of possibilities, leaving Mr. Warner, Bayh, and Kaine stating that they might be a little dull, but a boring white man may be exactly what Obama needs.

I think that the Economist has nailed it here. McCain is extremely weak when it comes to the economy. He is strong on the war in Iraq, but who is talking about that anymore? Energy Independence and the Economy are the two flags this camp needs to fly high. Let Romney hold the Economy flag and McCain hold the Energy Independence flag.

Obama can't choose Hillary. It just won't work. Both Obama and Hillary will always be overshadowed by Bill, and his reputation will follow them through the presidency. Obama needs to break away from that reputation. But he needs someone on the Democratic Party ticket to give him the experience he lacks. He needs his Dick Cheney to be a co-president of sorts to fill in where he is weak.

I'm not crazy about McCain. In fact, I, like many other conservatives out there, may not vote for McCain without a strong conservative VP running mate. Without Romney, I may just end up writing Romney in. McCain alone doesn't stand quite up to the conservative values that I'm looking for. And as a business owner, who is not fond of being over-taxed, I can't vote for Obama. So in my opinion, without Romney on this ticket, I'm without a party.