Democrat pundits are almost getting giddy with speculation that McCain may choose a running mate who has “pro-choice” views on abortion, specifically referencing Tom Ridge and Joe Lieberman. They’ve been daring, even goading, McCain to do it with teases such as “John McCain needs to show he can reach across political lines,” or “John McCain, the political maverick of 2000, wouldn’t even vote for John McCain, the strictly partisan hack of 2008.”
We’ll know the truth of the matter by the 29th of August.
But what would happen if McCain really did pick a Joe Lieberman or a Tom Ridge? Would McCain win the middle of the political spectrum? Maybe . . . maybe not. He would definitely lose his hold on the base, though. Would his base flock to Obama in that case? No. Would his base stay home? A few would. So, would letting go of his base to capture the middle help McCain win the election? Nope. Why? Because those in the disaffected Republican base would probably vote for a minor party candidate. Obama could be like Bill Clinton, who won the presidency with a minority of the vote, because minor candidates may siphon a significant number of votes away from the Republican.
How do I know that minor party candidates would enter the equation for picking the president if McCain picks Ridge or Lieberman? Because I, myself, have cast votes for minor party candidates when my conscience wouldn’t allow me to pick a Republican in a race in which the Democrat choice was also unsatisfactory. Been there, done that. Let me also say that Ridge and Lieberman are liberal on more issues than just abortion. So, let me just warn McCain not to play with fire, and pick a VP that the base can support.
My preference for the Republican VP would be: Mitt Romney.
Buckeye RINO 
August 21, 2008 at 5:13 pm
I think McCain’s recent state poll surge has led him away from a Lieberman type homerun pick. IMO, he would still be wise to name Lieberman to a potential cabinent slot at the convention.
Welcome back.
August 21, 2008 at 7:07 pm
I think it is important to have the truth about John McCain in order to make an informed decision:
Regarding Saddleback: It is very clear from his replies that John McCain was not in a cone of silence. He was in his limo listening and that gave him an unfair advantage over Obama.
His answers were quick and decisive which is unusual for him. Despite protests to the contrary, John McCain is a cheater and this is a reflection on his character.
It is outrageous that the media has not brought out McCain’s lies and adultery while married to his first wife, Carol. While she was sick and in need of tender loving care from multiple operations from a major car accident, he had an affair with Cindy and then left her. To me, this is a man of dubious character who thinks only of himself.
He committed adultery, and, in fact, got his marriage license with Cindy before he was divorced from Carol. His first wife, Carol, did all she could to help when he was a prisoner of war. Yet this is how he thanked her when he returned from the war and found that she had lost her model looks? I don’t think this is the kind of man we want as President.
For more details, see:
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/front/la-na-divorce11-2008jul11,0,7979459.story
http://digg.com/2008_us_elections/ McCain_s_Broken_Marriage_Fractured_Relationship_with_Re agans
August 21, 2008 at 7:17 pm
Thanks for the welcome back, Ben.
August 21, 2008 at 7:25 pm
Kathleen, if you really think McCain cheated at Saddleback, then why not prove it by having a series of townhall meetings with both McCain and Obama present to see how well each respond spontaneously to unscripted, unrehearsed questions from random audience members?
Oops! Such an arrangement was already proposed this summer, and Obama nixed the idea! Oops! I guess if the Obama camp wanted to press the point you make, the train has already left the station.
However, if Obama would like more forums with the same format as Saddleback, I’m sure his camp could approach the McCain camp with such a proposal, and I think the McCain camp would likely accept it, even if McCain has to go first in each one. Therefore, I urge you to press this matter with the Obama camp so we get more opportunities to assess these candidates.
I think McCain is more ready to be president than you realize.
August 22, 2008 at 2:14 pm
Obama wants no part of townhall debates……and we see why. Then we see what happens when Obama is outperformed by McCain – he gets accused of cheating.
October 31, 2008 at 11:21 am
[…] VP selection, though, I did stipulate that my support of the McCain ticket would at least require a pro-life running mate even though McCain himself had a pro-life record. McCain had assured us that he would. The pick […]