I'm beginning to think it's a no-brainer for Joe.

[mobeau69]

Kamala Harris

I was a Pete supporter and, for sure, that high and inside heater pissed me off but fuck that now. Our nation is in deep trouble and losing is not an option.

[relayerbob]

1. I prefer her for Attorney General

She'll kick more ass in that position, IMO

And lots of asses need kicking!

[mobeau69]

2. In a perfect world, I agree. But this time we need to win the election above all else.

[relayerbob]

7. There are other great choices

[padah513]

14. Sally Yates, Preet Bharara, Adam Schiff, just to name a few

[dansolo]

21. Sally Yates, definitely

[oldsoftie]

26. Adam Schiff? Please no.

You dont want someone who gives MORE energy to trump voters or ambivalent ones. And while it shouldnt matter, he doesnt have the "look" either.
Bharara, OTOH, might be a great choice.

[Laelth]

29. Plus, Adam Schiff is doing a great job in the House.

No way I would want to remove him from his current position.

-Laelth

[onetexan]

45. Preet or Sally would be my choice. Adam is best in the House. We need him there soooooo much!

[Upthevibe]

56. He already committed to choosing a woman....

I think Adam Schiff would be an awesome A.G.

[Dem4Life1102]

20. And to win the election you have to win the electoral college

Harris comes from a solid blue state and doesn’t help flip any swing states. So if you want to win the election there are better choices than Harris.

[SKKY]

23. Obama came from a solid blue state, and picked a VP from a solid blue state...

...so while I hear that reasoning often, I'm not sure it matters this time.

[oldsoftie]

27. It mattered last time. And Biden isnt Obama

Trump has to be beaten in enough of the swing states. And it wouldnt take much really. He only won '16 by about 80k votes over 3 states

[Dem4Life1102]

44. It mattered in 16

It always matters.

[Demsrule86]

35. I don't Harris as helping the ticket myself.

[DownriverDem]

39. Please tell us

why are you undecided? I keep asking undecided folks, but they never answer. I don't get it. If I were undecided, I would be able to explain why. So why are you undecided?

[The Magistrate]

41. In General There Seem To Be Two Reasons, Sir

One is lingering allegiance to a candidate who has conceded defeat. I might have selected Professor Warren as my allegiance when commenced activity in this forum, but the option was no longer available. I gather persons who had selected candidates no longer active have their flags changed to undecided if they do not shift to a current candidate.

The second, of course, is the one you suspect --- a flying of false colors, to suggest people who have not yet made up their minds are seriously considering one candidate or another. Which candidate such people actually do prefer becomes quickly evident from their comments.





"When things are not called by their right names, what is said cannot make sense. When what is said does not make sense, what is planned cannot succeed. When plans do not succeed, people become uneasy. When people are uneasy, punishments do not fit crimes. When punishments do not fit crimes, people cannot know where to put hand or foot."

[Dem4Life1102]

46. Can I explain for myself?

I remain undecided because my state's primary (New York) hasn't happened yet and I really don't know who I am going to vote for yet. I like Biden as a candidate and think he is best to beat Trump, but I do like Sanders' policy proposals and would like to see them in the party platform. So at the moment, I'm not sure who I will vote for in June.

[DURHAM D]

3. She kicks plenty of ass in the U.S. Senate and

needs to stay there.

AG is not a promotion.

[relayerbob]

6. I suspect she would disagree

However, VP would certainly be

[Zeus69]

4. Correct

She'll be the pick.
Woman of color
Progressive bent
Resume and gravitas to take over on day one, should tragedy strike
California will replace her with a Democrat

Biden/Harris 2020

[Dem4Life1102]

19. Should tragedy strike???

What tragedy?

[oldsoftie]

24. Joe dies. This isnt new; he's even mentioned it himself.

The VP simply MUST be someone who the average person is satisfied would be able to take over as President if needed.
Palin removed that option for McCain in '08.

[Laelth]

30. Hear! Hear! n/t

-Laelth

[Dem4Life1102]

42. Why would he die?

Is someone going to murder him?

[oldsoftie]

50. Well, the life expectancy of a man born in '43 is about 63. Joe is 77. It HAS to be considered.

Current male life expectancy is just over 78. Which he would be by the time he took office.
Acting like age isnt a factor is just barking at an empty closet.
And as I said before Biden himself has brought it up. Because he's being realistic.

[Dem4Life1102]

51. That's a great argument

for re-electing Trump.

We shouldn't be parroting GOP talking points if we want to win in November.

[oldsoftie]

53. Oh lord. Ignoring reality is what helps trump. Who also happens to be 74 in a few weeks.

If you dont see that the average voter WILL look at Bidens age as a factor in their decision, then you're simply ignoring REALITY. When McCain ran & picked Palin for his VP, it was a disaster. People were concerned about HIS age & the thought of HER taking over worked against him.
People WILL scrutinize this cycles VP choice just as they would a presidential choice. Whether we like it or not.
Its not a "right wing talking point". Which seems to be anything we dont want to talk about

[Dem4Life1102]

55. OK

Keep helping Trump if that's what you want to do. And then you can be self-satisfied about how right you were during Trump's second term.

Any answer to any argument about Biden's age is that he is very healthy and in better shape than Trump. Otherwise you are just helping to re-elect Trump.

[oldsoftie]

57. And there's the answer! Because it WILL be brought up.

Trumps obesity & insanity is the response.

[Dem4Life1102]

61. Let them bring it up

If we do it just helps Trump.

[DavidDvorkin]

54. That's life expectancy at birth

At 77, a male can expect another ten years of life, on average.

[oldsoftie]

58. Thats true.

But we HAVE to know that age will be brought up. The response is pointing out trumps obesity & other issues. Biden has none of those.
And the average joe will think about it. So the VP pick is very important as well

[chimpymustgo]

47. You said it, Zeus!

She checks all the boxes, and she's smart as heck.

[Upthevibe]

60. Zeus69.....You make good points...

And this is the guy who would pick her successor....

My Gov.....

[quickesst]

5. No to any former candidates

This is only my opinion. I hope he looks for a running mate outside the field of candidates who ran for the Democratic nomination. Here are some of some of the reasons I have formed this opinion.

1. There are some candidates who I believe will bring little or nothing to his campaign.
2. There are several candidates that would better serve the country, and themselves by staying in the positions they now hold.
3. There are several candidates who would be ideal choices for key positions in a Biden Administration.

I especially do not understand the fascination with Kamala Harris. She is from a solid Blue State, was able to barely garner 5% of the black vote during her entire campaign, and tried unsuccessfully several times to play the race card in order to throw Joe Biden under the bus, all of which backfired on her.

My preference? Val Demings for one, along with several other well-qualified women. I can only hope that logic plays a large part in the choice he makes.

[Dem4Life1102]

16. You make a lot of sense

I would add that Harris’ history as a prosecutor may not help attract progressive voters to the ticket.

[quickesst]

22. I can tell you exactly what I think

The Kamala Harris that people fantasize about is not the Kamala Harris we saw in the Democratic primaries. Part of that fantasy is the belief that she will bring the black vote to the campaign, while ignoring that she was barely able to garner 5% of the black vote during her entire primary endeavor.
They remember the attacks on Joe Biden during the debates and those gotcha moments that, on the outset looked as though she had hit it out of the park, while forgetting that it only took a short time for those attacks to backfire, and start her down the road to ultimately having to withdraw from the race.
Hindsight is 20/20, and when looked at objectively, the only conclusion one can come to is the fact that Kamala Harris torpedoed her own campaign. While her background makes her an effective senator, she is not 1/2 of a winning presidential strategy. She is the same Kamala Harris everyone saw during the primaries. Like everyone else here, this is my personal opinion.

[SheltieLover]

28. Agreed!

👍

[quickesst]

63. thanks for the thumbs-up

Right back at you.

[SheltieLover]

64. YW! 👍

😊

[Dem4Life1102]

43. Again you make a lot of sense.

Some are already attacking her for endorsing Biden after attacking him so harshly in the debates. It will be worse if she's on the ticket.

We really need a Woman of color from a swing state to help win the electoral college.

[quickesst]

65. thanks for the kind words....

.... and while I agree with your assessment, I am not completely locked into a woman of color because there is also strong argument for someone like Gretchen Whitmer, governor of Michigan. I will trust in Joe Biden making the best decision for his campaign, and for America. No matter who he chooses, my support for Joe Biden as the next president of the United States has been, and will remain as strong as ever.

[Dem4Life1102]

67. Whitmer could work too.

[Dream Girl]

33. I would prefer Val. From aSwing state.

Tough, brilliant,Former police chief and from a swing state

[quickesst]

62. I could definitely get behind....

.... Val Demings.

[caraher]

8. I agree

If the election were a sure thing then maybe Harris for AG, but I'd rather have her on the ticket. And her Senate seat is safe.

[Maven]

9. Yes, I agree it's a no-brainer.

Hopefully the "insiders" don't ef this one up. We don't need another Tim Kaine on the ticket this year.

[Talitha]

10. I'm good with whoever (whomever?) Joe picks.

[StFrancis1]

11. I believe you're right

Every adult female republican I know wants Joe to pick Kamala.... it seals it for them.... I work with dozens of tennis teens at a suburban catholic school district...

That said, it will be interesting if Joe's lead significantly widens, if Donald dumps Pency (in mid-June) like he does wives, and if Nicki Haley is willing to attach herself to Donald's misogynistic anchor.

[fpublic]

12. "no brainer" That's a very unfortunate image in relation to aging Joe Biden

I will vote for Joe over Trump when the time comes.
But not without trepidation about his capacity to effectively campaign.
I believe that on his worst day, he has more intelligence and judgement than Trump.
While "no brainer" is likely an attempt at Biden boosterism, it inadvertently reminds the reader of his vulnerability.
I hope he beats Trump.

[padah513]

15. ...

[OnDoutside]

13. Can you back up WHY it will be Kamala ? Why is it a no-brainer ?

[Dem4Life1102]

17. It's not a no brainer at all.

Harris comes from a solid blue state and doesn’t help flip any swing states. There are other potential VPs who could. Her history as a prosecutor might not help attract more progressives to be ticket. While she could help excite the African American base, there are other possible running mates who do too, none of whom accused Biden of being a racist on national television. And because of that attack, some will cast Harris as an opportunist hypocrite for accepting a place on the ticket.

[Sloumeau]

18. mobeau69, Mayor Pete is highly intelligent and answers questions better than pretty much anyone.

It's a real challenge to become President, and making the jump from a mayor in his 30's is probably even tougher. Pete has a lot of years in which he can fill out his political resume and then make the attempt again. This is Biden's third try, and the previous tries helped get him ready for this one.

Both Mayor Pete and Joe Biden prefer inclusiveness over exclusiveness. They prefer kindness over meanness. They like to talk in ways that inspire, and they like to honor people. Democrats want a candidate whose goodness shines through. I am hoping that Biden wins the Presidency and that he offers Mayor Pete something like the U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. post. It would allow Mayor Pete to use his many languages, and give him valuable foreign policy experience that would help him with another Presidential attempt. It could also help prepare Mayor Pete for being a Senator or for a Secretary of State position, both of which ould be a stepping stone to the White House.

[exboyfil]

34. I think Mayor Pete would make a great Chief of Staff

Maybe run for Tim Kaine's Senate seat in 2024 or another surrounding state to Washington, DC. Maybe Governor of Maryland?

I don't think he will get too far in a statewide race in Indiana.

[Sloumeau]

36. I agree.

Mayor Pete would make a great Chief of staff, and a great Senator or Governor. I also agree that his opportunities in Indiana are limited. He really either needs to get to Washington D.C. or to another state as quickly as possible.

[oldsoftie]

25. Whoever the pick is, it will be the make or break of the campaign IMO.

Sorry to say it, but i try to look at the realities of the entire population & how they vote. What they think & "feel". Even though "feelings" should have little to do with choosing; it does.
I worry about how well Joe will hold up to the awful attacks from Trump during the debates. I think its right to worry about that for ANY candidate because of the insulting rude way trump is. He's a bully. Bullies have a different impact on different people.

[brush]

32. Joe is no push over. Remember he destroyed Ryan in the 2012 VP debate and he just...

be Sanders decisively in their recent debate. And he's not scared of trump and will be armed with all the ammo of trump's many fuck-ups and too late response on the virus crisis, the collapse of the economy and sky high unemployment, the bribery scandal, etc.

Don't worry about Biden not being able to handle himself. If trump tries to pull that bullying shit he did with Hillary Biden will call security to help him throttle trump's fat behind.

[oldsoftie]

38. I would like to see Trump with a "scared" look on his face for once.

[Ferrets are Cool]

31. I agree 100%. It seems to me to be a perfect choice. nt

[Skya Rhen]

37. Her infamous debate moment will be a constant 24/7 Fox News loop that will be a huge distraction

and drag on the ticket. I'm sure this is being taken into serious consideration.

[Celerity]

40. I have said one name for VP for over a year, so why stop now, Stacey Abrams

she has 'IT'

Shedloads of charisma, insanely powerful speaker, an A-A ENERGISER (Klobuchar would be a damp squib here, she polled worse than Pete with my fellow PoC, and has the same racial/legal problematic past, even though that is so unfair to both her and Pete), compelling backstory, perfect age, has leadership experience on a major state House for years, puts GA and NC in play, helps nail down FL, is progressive enough to excite many on the left etc etc etc. (BoB'ers can sod off, they will never vote for our candidate anyway, by the very nature of their self-labelling, ffs, and almost none are Dems anyway)

Abrams is what is NEEDED as Biden has to add some magnetic and kinetic energy to the ticket. He has a 40yo and under voter issue (deny this at all our peril, this is no time to be trying to ram a take-it-or-leave-it stance chasing down centre-right voters in Scottsdale, AZ, Dallas TX, etc. like Hillary fatally did in 2016 with her campaign's 'expand-the-map' massive late blundering), and someone like Klobuchar is so not going to help with that. Abrams WILL help here, tremendously.

WE NEED an 'IT' woman on the ticket, as we are going straight into the jaws of the biggest beast/threat this nation has EVER seen in terms of a so-called leader. Abrams can rattle the FUCK out that fat piece of orange dogshit Rump. She is more than capable of dropping a BOMB on his berk arse, and the same goes for her SHREDDING Pence in a debate.

Vice-president Stacey Abrams would make the US a real democracy for the first time

Abrams could use her office to be the driving force behind a nationwide fight against voter suppression


https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/mar/16/vice-president-stacey-abrams-real-democracy-first-time-biden-sanders



Democratic debates in times of coronavirus make for even less interesting television than during normal times, whatever that means in the Trump era. In Sunday night’s debate, Bernie Sanders had a double task. For the believers, to make a last pitch that he is the better candidate (which, in terms of the presidency, he clearly is). For the realists, his task was to push the inevitable nominee, Joe Biden, more to the left. He probably achieved neither, as Biden stole the show, by announcing (cleverly) that he will pick a female vice-presidential candidate, a progressive weak point of Sanders (who has remained unclear on this point).

Of course, the announcement should come as little surprise, given how important women have been in the anti-Trump mobilization – the 2017 Women’s March was likely the largest single-day demonstration in US history, while black and suburban women were crucial to the “blue wave” that brought the Democratic party the House of Representatives in the 2018 midterm elections. And there has been broad and loud disappointment that the most diverse candidate field in any US primary has ended up with just two old white men standing.

Social media was quick to speculate and two names came up most often: Kamala Harris and Stacey Abrams. Both women would cater to not just women but also African Americans, two crucial demographics for the Democrats in November, with African American women being proclaimed the saviors of the Democratic party in the midterm elections. Although Harris has many merits, she also has at least two important weaknesses. First of all, she is from California, a rather unique and ultimately safe Democratic state, and her campaign does not necessarily indicate that her appeal reaches much broader. Second, she has a problematic past in terms of social justice, which also haunted her during her campaign, and could strengthen the “authoritarian” image of Biden, who has a long track record of being on the wrong side of social justice issues.

Stacey Abrams, on the other hand, has strengths that can help Biden in the campaign, being an African American woman from the south-east (which has several potential swing states), but could also give his presidency a crucial secondary agenda – the primary agenda being the return to relatively mainstream liberal Democratic politics. Abrams came to fame for her campaign for Georgia governor in 2018, which she lost against the man who oversaw the elections, Brian Kemp. While she was often described as an “identity politics candidate” outside of the Peach State, this was more a reflection of the ignorance, and prejudice of the journalists than of the politics of the candidate. She actually ran on a rather moderate agenda, knowing that while Georgia was in play, it is still the south, and southerners like their Democrats moderate to conservative, if they like them at all.

snip

[Skya Rhen]

48. Has Stacey Abrams endorsed anyone as yet?

[Celerity]

49. Biden any minute, now that Bernie is out. She maintained neutrality due to her national GOTV efforts

She even defended Bloomberg from Sanders and Warren attacks.

[Cornus]

52. Stacey Abrams

Also my first choice.

[Celerity]

66. My dream ticket (not counting the impossible to convince Michelle Obama and not willing to lose a

Senate seat via Sherrod Brown and also Newsom said pass) was Stacey and Pete , then when Stacey said no to top of ticket, Pete and Stacy.

In a semi-perfect world (ie one where OH had a Dem governor) I think the strongest ticket would have been Sherrod Brown/Abrams. Perfect balance and mass appeal across the board, it would have ticked every box, and satisfied the progs. Damn Senate, grrrrr.

Biden/Abrams is still very strong though, and also balanced (just not as much as Brown/Abrams would have been, and Brown was the best shot to grab Ohio, and thus truly fuck up Rump's chances. If we can re-take PA and MI, plus grab Florida, and hold VA, there is no path for Rump, literally none, even if he somehow grabs all of NV, IA, MO, OH, WI, NH, MN, NC, AZ, ME-2, NE-2

that would yield this map (and bear in mind as well, even if we LOST VA (and still take PA and MI and FL), all it would take to also win would be just ONE out of any of IA or NV or MN or WI or NC or AZ

this would be the WORST case map if we grabbed PA, MI, FL and hold VA




if we win those 4, then this is the actual map I would predict)




and this would be a best case scenario, absolute blowout, with Abrams helping flip NC and GA, and Biden flipping OH

[Bayard]

59. Am I remembering this right?

Didn't Biden say he was going to pick someone that had been on the debate stage with him? I agree, that Harris would not bring much to the ticket--he'd already have CA wrapped up. He said he'd pick a woman. I'm thinking Amy Klobuchar for VP. She'd help solidify the Midwest. She's young enough to take over the Prez spot.

I like Kamala Harris for AG, and Mayor Pete for Chief of Staff. Gov. Inslee for a new Climate/Global Warming Dept. I'm still thinking about Secretary of State.

Neither Val Demings (come on--first time Rep?), or Stacy Abrams have enough experience. Yet.