In the vice presidential selection process, when a name suddenly appears in the closing days, my ears perk up. Chet Edwards was either a last-minute head fake, or a dark horse in the running all along, whose chances were torpedoed by having the same last name as America’s most high-profile philanderer. I figured Tim Kaine had to be on the list because Obama liked him, not because the Democratic grassroots were clamoring for a veep who had been governor of Virginia for about two years and change. The nominee liking you isn’t always enough, but it’s often a strong wind at your back.
When Texas Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison suddenly is being mentioned, as Larry reports…. something about it seems plausible. The McCain campaign has been hammering Obama with Hillary-centric ads. They obviously think a lot of Hillary’s supporters are in play. George H. W. Bush was surprised when Ronald Reagan asked him.