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The American |
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Hillary Clinton has been anointed the Democrat Presidential nominee and will be formally confirmed in the primaries held in early 2008. The only mystery remaining is the name of the person she selects to run as Vice-President. This will be dragged-out for dramatic affect, partly to keep media focus from the nominee. There will be pomp and ‘gravitas’ ginned-up by a compliant media. There will be the de rigeur interviews with prospects from all voting blocs. The current leading pretenders for the Presidential nomination include Illinois Senator Barrack Obama and former North Carolina Senator John Edwards, whose wives have made impressive debuts, showing more strength, fortitude, and leadership than their spouses. It is unlikely that the Nominee would select either one. Edwards had a weak run with Kerry in 2004. Having two women at the top of the ticket may be too much for the electorate at this time. Obama brings little to the electoral table. Illinois is safely Blue. There’s no risk that Blacks may bolt the Democrats. Scratch both. There is a chance that New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson could add some buzz and bring some strength to the ticket. Richardson is a former member of Bill’s Administration and has Hispanic heritage. This vote will be important, again. President Bush gained 40%+, a high-water mark with this bloc of voters for a GOP Presidential candidate. The Dems need at least 60% of the Latino vote to cobble their block-built base into a majority. Hispanics could be the margin of victory in a dozen competitive states. What may shape the Democrat selection more than anything else is the nominee of the GOP. That person will most likely be former Tennessee Senator Fred Thompson. Democrats secretly fear him most, though they talk of former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani as the most threatening enemy, in order to build his GOP appeal. They know Rudy has as much vulnerability as Hillary & Bill, and will have scant appeal outside of urban enclaves. Rudy won’t be the GOP nominee. If the GOP went with former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, an interesting contender, Hillary would be free to use a broader calculus in making the selection. Romney will go nowhere in his Yankee home and Democrat bastion of New England, and his appeal South will be weak, given his Mormon background. Hillary would then go with Richardson to lock-up the Mountain States, long a GOP stronghold, and gain the edge in the Hispanic-heavy states. A Clinton-Richardson tandem could sweep America against Romney like LBJ took down Goldwater. But Thompson will be the man and Tennessee will be the battleground state in 2008, following Ohio (2004) and Florida (2000) as the epicenter of the national election. Thompson will go with a minority as his vice-President, perhaps with a reputable Hispanic woman or a Black, such as former Congressman J.C. Watts or Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice. Don’t discount her appeal. Regardless, once the GOP nominates Thompson, the Clintons will understand where the battle must be fought. Tennessee will be a battleground as it hasn’t been since the 1862-1864 war years, and, once again, the fate of the nation will hang in the balance. Former Tennessee Congressman & Senator, and former Clinton V-P Al Gore will not be the nominee. He would lose Tennessee, again. He would further identify Democrats as the Liberal Looney Left. Rather, Hillary will put the South in play by choosing a centrist, business-credentialed Democrat with proven bipartisan appeal. She will choose Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen. Write it down and put it in the 2008 tickler. Open on August 27, when the announcement is made at the Democrat National Convention in Denver. That how it will be in this, the American Age. |
