August 20, 2008

Conventional wisdom holds that a female running mate might help deliver the female vote, a southerner would deliver the South, and a Catholic like Sen. Joe Biden might deliver the Catholic vote. But the reality is it does not work that way.

To be sure, Lyndon Johnson helped John F. Kennedy in the South, but even after George H.W. Bush chose laughable Sen. Dan Quayle and Michael Dukakis chose respected Sen. Lloyd Bentsen, Bush mopped the floor on Election Day.

Well before before Democratic candidate Barack Obama of Illinois alerted his supporters to his choice of Biden in a text message sent at about 3 a.m. Saturday, journalists have been speculating about the Delaware Democrat’s likely impact on the ticket.

USA Today traced some of the history of running mates
:

President Ford picked Bob Dole in 1976 to win back the Farm Belt, Ford adviser Stuart Spencer said, which Dole did. Twenty years later, Dole chose Jack Kemp “mostly because he would give a big shot of energy to the ticket,” campaign manager Scott Reed recalled, though the ticket was doomed as Bill Clinton was sailing to re-election. In 2000, Democrat Al Gore sought to signal a move toward the center with Joe Lieberman, strategist Ron Klain said, a choice still being debated eight years after Gore’s narrow loss to George W. Bush.

History shows a veep candidate can harm the nominee but generally does not deliver many votes. George McGovern, Walter Mondale and George H.W. Bush can all attest to that.

The Politico reported
:

The way Democratic strategist Tad Devine sees it, a running mate should have three moments: an announcement, a convention speech and a debate.

“The only other moment is when you screwed up,” says Devine, who’s had an inside seat at several vice presidential vetting processes and announcements.

The other thing that candidates have learned over the years is not to pick a surprise running mate. That is why campaigns float so many names. The rumors smoke out public and more importantly media reaction and potential problems that the veep candidate might pose.

More info

A veep test

  • Who was George Clinton?
  • Who was Elbridge Gerry?
  • Who was George Mifflin Dallas, who once said, “[Except that he is president of the Senate, the vice president] forms no part of the government — he enters into no administrative sphere — he has practically no legislative, executive, or judicial functions. … While the Senate sits, he presides, that’s all — he doesn’t debate or vote, (except to end a tie) he merely preserves the order and courtesy of business. … [When Congress is in recess] where is he to go? What has he to do? No where, nothing! He might, to be sure, meddle with affairs of state, rummage through the departments, devote his leisure to the study of public questions and interests, holding himself in readiness to counsel and to help at every emergency in the great onward movement of the vast machine. But, then, recollect, that this course would sometimes be esteemed intrusive, sometimes factious, sometimes vain and arrogant, and, as it is prescribed by no law, it could not fail to be treated lightly because guaranteed by no responsibility.”
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Al Tompkins is one of America's most requested broadcast journalism and multimedia teachers and coaches. After nearly 30 years working as a reporter, photojournalist, producer,…
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