Joe Biden And Mitt Romney Trade Barbs
VP Joe Biden is known for his colorful metaphors. At a Phoenix fundraiser Thursday, he explained that President Obama makes decisions “from the perspective of what’s best for average Americans,” even if it’s unpopular. He went on to say, “Obama knew that some actions were going to be unpopular, such as the financial sector bailout. That would be like legalizing rattlesnakes in the lobbies of hotels in Arizona. That’s why I love the guy.”
(And that’s why we love Joe Biden!)
Biden Attacks GOP
Biden alluded to the “radical” budget proposal from Paul Ryan and told supporters, “[For] the first time in my career, the Republicans aren’t hiding the ball. They’re saying exactly what they believe… As my mother would say if she were here, ‘God love ‘em.’ ”
Romney Fires Back
Mitt Romney called VP Biden “the gift that keeps on giving.” He poked fun at Biden’s comment about establishing a global minimum tax. “I don’t know how he intends, exactly, to apply that,” Romney laughed.
Tax Attacks
Biden has also recently called on the former governor to release his tax statements for 2011. In a New Hampshire campaign speech, Biden said: “If Governor Romney has his way, we’ll have the Romney Rule. The Romney Rule says, ‘Let’s double down on tax cuts for the wealthy.’ ” Later, he couldn’t believe that Romney characterized President Obama as “out of touch,” positing the question: “How many of you all have a Swiss bank account?”
Romney predicted this back in January by saying: “Every time we release things drip by drip the Democrats go out with another array of attacks.” More recently, he accused the Democrats of “trying to distract from the real issues,” and promised that he would release 2 years of tax information before the 2012 election.
Photo by CNBC
A Closer Look At Romney’s Decision Making Process
One of the first decisions a Presidential Candidate must make is who should be added to the ticket. Back in 2008, the choice of Sarah Palin ended up eventually hurting John McCain’s chances at the Presidency because it shows he hastily selected someone with very limited foreign policy knowledge or experience in dealing with the media. Amid all the Veepstakes speculation, ABC News reminds us that this isn’t the first time Mitt Romney has had to choose a running mate.
What Mitt Wanted In 2008…
The Lieutenant Governor is considered a state governor’s side-kick. When he ran for governor of Massachusetts back in 2002, he was looking for:
- Someone he could work closely with on the campaign trail and once in office
- A woman who could soften his appearance and balance the ticket
Kerry Murphy Healey was Romney’s eventual pick. Healey was the one who actually persuaded Mitt to come back to Massachusetts after the Winter Olympics and run for governor. However, the new Massachusetts GOP chairwoman was so unknown at the time that Romney mistakenly referred to her as “Sherry” instead of “Kerry” on a radio show. Yet, Romney’s advisers liked that she was a young, Harvard-educated college professor who specialized in criminal justice issues, which was an area where Romney was lacking in expertise. He had only met her twice, but she made a fantastic impression on him. So, after a little vetting from his team, she made the ticket. Beth Myers — former adviser and leader of Romney’s VP search team — told ABC News, “They were absolutely running together. She partnered with him on everything [and was] integrated completely into our operation.”
If Romney has a good history of working well alongside women and has similar concerns about wooing female voters, then perhaps the road is, in fact, bright for VP nominees like: Susana Martinez, Nikki Haley and Kelly Ayotte. (Although, as ABC reminds us, “Sarah Palin’s ghost” haunts the women on Romney’s list.)
Lessons Learned
One of the things Mitt Romney learned back then was that you can’t trust the party bosses to know what’s best for you. At first, he wanted to take a more “hands-off” approach and let the state Republican convention lead the search for a lieutenant governor. They had pushed for multimillionaire business mogul James Rappaport to run alongside Romney. Democrats were eager to label them a “Rolls-Royce” ticket and deride them for being “two rich white guys.”
Credit: AP/Julia Malakie/Reuters/Molly Riley
If Romney is again worried about being picked on for his wealth, then he might steer clear of Bob McDonnell (net worth: over $550 million), Rob Portman (net worth: $16 Million), and Chris Christie (net worth: $3.2 Million). Certainly, Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum will be off the list too.
Romney Looks For Someone To Help Him Fill Gaps & Enact “Change”
Romney’s political strategist, Mike Murphy, explained that: “The key factors were policy brains, ability to help enact his change agenda.” So it’s believed that he will very much be looking for someone who will help him expand his reach and fill any gaps in his expertise. In that case, Bob McDonnell would be a good pick if Romney wanted to find someone with foreign policy and social justice street credibility. Also, Paul Ryan is looking very good because he has radical ideas about changing the budget and shaking things up in Washington.
Historic Henry Wallace Cartoon
This historic cartoon was printed before the 1948 Presidential election. As our nation’s 39th Vice President during World War II, Wallace staunchly defended military preparedness as a deterrent to war. When he ran for the Progressive Party presidential candidate in 1948, Wallace changed his position and argued that military preparedness would not prevent confrontation.
Anecdotes From History: Daniel Tompkins
New York Governor Daniel Tompkins caught the eye of Democratic-Republicans in 1816 when they decided they were not just looking for an old geezer to “geographically balance the ticket” anymore. (After all, that certainly didn’t help James Madison whose two VP selections — George Clinton and Elbridge Gerry — both croaked in office at age 72 and 70, respectively).
A True Patriot
Tompkins had the unlucky task of having to protect his home state during the War of 1812 when the borders between Quebec, Ontario and the US were erupting in skirmishes. Not many people remember our nation’s 6th VP as a great fundraiser, but as governor, he had successfully drummed up $4 million to finance the state’s defense against Britain. Heck, he even threw in several thousand of his personal finances out of sheer patriotism. All this was done based on a handshake with little records to show. “We’re at war. We’ll sort this out later,” he said.
A Terrible Record-Keeper
Only… later, he was attacked by New York Federalist party boss DeWitt Clinton who accused Tompkins of using the war funds for his own personal gain. With no tangible evidence to prove otherwise, the state demanded that the defenseless Tompkins pay them $130,000 in remuneration. The creditors hounded him and he fell to the drink. At an unexpected time, he found himself elevated to the land’s second-highest office and he saw a faint glimmer of hope that he may finally redeem himself.
A Poor Drunk Sot
Instead, Daniel D. Tompkins became the only VP in history to work for free — when his entire salary (a $5,000 pittance back then) was withheld to pay toward his outstanding debts. By this time, he was truly a broken man. He had difficulty coping with his sullied reputation, not to mention his new-found poverty, and so he drank himself silly. In 1821, Martin Van Buren called him “the most injured of men.” Another quoted observer said that he had “degenerated into a degraded sot” and that he was too drunk to sit up straight in his chair. One 1822 observer on Capitol Hill said of Tompkins, “I don’t think he was perfectly sober during his time here.”
A Redeemed Man
Poor Tompkins died just a few months after his term ended — when an official audit uncovered that the state may have actually owed Tompkins $100,000 just as he had originally claimed!
Rob Portman Stumps For Romney
Photo by AP
Ohio Republican Senator Rob Portman is stepping up his try-outs for VP by stumping for Romney yesterday in Greensburg, PA. Last month, Portman ran a jaunt on the campaign trail with Romney in his home-state. As you may recall, we examined Rob’s credentials a few months ago and determined that he’d be a good safe bet for VEEP.
What People Are Saying
Dartmouth Alumni Rob Portman has been picking up positive accolades from professors at his old college. Government Professor Linda Fowler told The Dartmouth newspaper, “Portman is on the short list because he represents Ohio, a must-win swing state for Romney. He has stature within the Republican Party and good relationships with Democrats in Congress, and he also has broad experience governing with past positions ranging from international trade to the budget.”
Thomas Mann, a government studies scholar at the Brookings Institution, added: “Portman is a good choice and he’s seen as a safe choice because he’s got substantial experience in the executive as well as the legislative branch, and he’s got a reputation among colleagues for being a serious-minded guy.”
Meanwhile, big media politicos are making their opinions known — that for sure Romney will pick Portman for his VP nominee. Newsweek’s Paul Begala, National Journel’s Major Garrett, Politico’s Maggie Haberman, and The Atlantic’s Eric Randall all say they are sure Rob Portman tops the US Vice President list.
VEEP Prospect: Who Is Allen West?
We always find it terribly interesting when someone actually RUNS for Vice President. Florida Rep. Allen West has made it abundantly clear he is open to taking the job, which is odd — seeing as most people are saying “I am happy with my current job,” or “the conversation has never come up,” or “I’ll serve my country, but we’ll get to that bridge when we cross it.” VicePresidents.com takes a closer look at Rep West to determine… Is he a “battle-tested patriot with true star power” … or Romney’s Rev Wright?
Who’s Recommending Allen West?
“Top of my list is Allen West,” she said. “I love that he has that military experience. He is a public servant willing to serve for the right reasons. He understands the Constitution. He understands our national foreign policy issues that must be addressed. He has served. I really like him. There are so many, Sean, that are out there. And when I talk about going rogue, what I want to do is encourage the GOP nominee to not think that they have to go with somebody necessarily safe that conventional wisdom perhaps would lead somebody to believe that, if it’s somebody, quote-unquote, safe, that they’re not going to get beat up by the media, because no matter who it is.” She added that the GOP party should pick someone who is “passionate and strong” — who “understands the Constitution and wants to put government back on the side of the people.”
Then Herman Cain came out to endorse Allen West (in addition to Marco Rubio and Paul Ryan). He cited the fact that West is from the swing state of Florida, which could help swing the election in their favor.
Similarly, Newt Gingrich stated that he would consider both Marco Rubio and Allen West for his VP pick. There is also support online for a Gingrich/West ticket.
It seemed as though Nikki Haley was recommending West when she dropped his name as a “good pick.” However, she later back-paddled to say that she is not “qualified to recommend anybody” and that she was just mentioning people who have already been mentioned before. She also mentioned Chris Christie, Marco Rubio and Kelly Ayotte. ”We’ve got great people. We will have a great vice presidential candidate…. I think that whatever it is, it will excite people and I think that it will be a good, strong partner for the ticket,” Haley said.
Then there are these people behind the “Draft Allen West” movement… which makes you realize why it’s not really gaining any traction.
Why Allen West?
Photo Courtesy of GeorgeJarksey.com
On the surface, West is clearly someone Conservative Republicans would love to have on the ticket. He hails from a military family and grew up in Atlanta, Georgia before moving to the Sunshine State (which also happens to be a swing state in the election.) His father served in WWII and his brother in Vietnam. West himself spent 22 years in the armed forces — serving in Operation Desert Storm and Operation Iraqi Freedom as Lieutenant Colonel. After that, he worked for a defense contractor for several years and unsuccessfully tried to unseat an incumbent in 2008 (losing by 9.4%).
West began to pick up his political steam when he spoke at CPAC in 2010 and he was able to win Florida’s 22nd district in January 2011. His committee assignments include the Committee on Armed Services and Committee on Small Business.
He espouses conservative social values, appeals to tea party members and believes in a strict interpretation of the Constitution. He’s a Christian, a family man and the sort of person who doesn’t mind riding in the sidecar. His supporters say he would be an ideal balance to the more moderate Northerner, Mitt Romney.
Possible Pitfalls
Upon closer inspection, Allen West appears to be a loose cannon. Some Americans will be inclined to agree with him on the issues and love his brazen, off-the-cuff way of speaking; however, this could pose a real problem for a presidential candidate who doesn’t necessarily want to spend all his time defending or justifying the speeches his VP nominee is giving. Case in point:
The Bottom Line
If you’re someone who really, really, really hates the Democratic Party and everything it stands for, Allen West is your guy. He’s saying what “every real Patriot” is thinking, but cannot say. He’s “rogue,” as Sarah Palin put it, and he’s not going to put up with anyone’s B.S. on Capitol Hill. However, to mainstream America — and most of the Republican base — he comes off as a loose-lipped crackpot. If Mitt Romney only wanted to get the message out, he might choose Allen West. But if he wants to win, he’s going to have to find someone with a less incendiary history.
Share on Facebook