Veepstakes: The base isn't happy
Posted: Friday, August 15, 2008 9:10 AM by Mark Murray
Politico's Martin checks in with key social conservative leaders to get their reaction to McCain's trial balloon of possibly picking a pro-choice running mate. Needless to say, these conservative leaders are not happy. “‘It absolutely floored me,’ said Phil Burress, head of the Ohio-based Citizens for Community Values. ‘It would doom him in Ohio.’ Burress emailed about a dozen ‘pro-family leaders’ he knows outside Ohio and forwarded it to three McCain aides tasked with Christian conservative outreach. ‘That choice will end his bid for the presidency and spell defeat for other Republican candidates,’ Burress wrote in the message.”
“He and other Ohio conservatives met privately with McCain in June, and while the nominee didn’t promise them an anti-abortion rights running mate, his staff said they could ‘almost guarantee’ that would be the case, Burress recalled."
What was McCain up to by pro-actively mentioning Ridge? Was it a trial balloon? The Washington Times notes: "Some analysts dismissed that explanation, saying the McCain organization has several experienced operatives who are themselves evangelicals or Catholics and strongly pro-life, and so it already knew what the reaction would be. But if it was a trial balloon, Team McCain got the answer loud and clear Thursday: Responses from leading political evangelicals ranged from outrage to thundering outrage.
“‘If Tom Ridge is on the ticket, I will not be voting Republican,’ Home School Legal Defense Association President Mike Farris said told The Washington Times. He thought for a moment, then added: ‘I won't be voting Democratic either.’”
More compiled by Matthew Berger, Carrie Dann, and Athena Jones…
Another shortlist showdown on Meet the Press this Sunday: Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal and Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine. Tom Ridge will appear on “Fox News Sunday.”
DEMOCRATS: More Democratic veep shortlist members get speaking assignments: Sens. Joe Biden, Evan Bayh and Gov. Bill Richardson will all speak Wednesday night. Convention aides say not to read too much into the speaking list or assume those already on the program are not veep candidates.
Kaine will campaign for Obama on Saturday, making six stops in his home state. Marc Ambinder writes that Team Obama's advance team is working on a Thursday event in Richmond, VA. But that doesn't necessarily mean anything veep-ish.
A good reminder: “There is nothing under Delaware law that would prevent Biden from running for both vice president and the Senate this year.”
A look at how much Bayh and Biden have voted with Obama during their time in the Senate.
The Washington Post points out that Obama has never been beholden to the liberal blogosphere, which has recently selected potential veep Bayh as the target of anti-war wrath. "…Obama has also shown he is willing to hold the liberal blogosphere at arms length, most recently by ignoring Internet entreaties to abandon support for a compromise bill on warrantless wiretapping."
REPUBLICANS: Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty spoke with the Stillwater Courier newspaper yesterday. “The main thing is I’m trying to help Sen. McCain, but to the extent I can bring some Minnesota ideas or Minnesota perspective to the table, hopefully that’s good for Minnesota and good for the country,” Pawlenty said. On veep speculation: “I’ve not been told anything in that regard, and I just don’t get into it. I’ve just stopped talking about it.”
Huckabee keeps throwing cold water on Romney: “I think there are better choices for Sen. McCain that have the approval of value voters,” he said on Fox News.
