omg it's biden

[dieblucasdie]

Do you guys really not see that there's NO WAY he would have even CONSIDERED picking Clinton? It would have been actively going against literally everything he's represented thus far - he and Clinton are practically in two different parties.

Same with Bayh though.

And Biden's not exactly a fresh-faced "change" agent.

[distance]

Seriously, the VP is not supposed to matter. Bush fucked that up in a serious way and hopefully Obama will restore us to those previous days when it didn't matter and you had dumbasses like Dan Quayle getting the job and existing only as reasons for newscasters to crack jokes about him misspelling "potatoe".

we could have had george clinton as vice president again.

[dieblucasdie]

I do often imagine how much better off we would be as a country right now had we only elected Eric B. in '88. 

[theartlessmonster]

i would have considered voting for him had he picked Clinton.  now, now i don't know how i'll vote.  i'm so anti-obama i probably can't bring myself to vote for him.

bleh.

[diesel_powered]

God, you guys, I should not be on a message board right now, I'm 30% asleep and just don't give a fuck about much of nothin.

How did I miss the closest thing to Andrew being drunk?

[Ignatius]

Hey but at least we've got a voice from the old white guy contingent, right? I was worried there for a second. Whew.

[RavingLunatic]

I honestly don't give a fuck. I wanted Tim Kaine, but that would just be so I could go, "VIRGINIAAAAA WHAT'S UP BITCHES!" Which reminds me that I totally have friends who are right now going "DELAWAAAAARE WHAT'S UP BITCHES!!" in response to this news even though they probably think Joe Biden's a dumbass just like my friend Mike who is from Philly does.

I'm totally the opposite on this. People were saying Obama might pick Evan Bayh, a senator from Indiana, for VP and I was horrified. Bayh is is a smooth-talking, gutless corporate Democrat and it's kind of demoralizing to think that Obama was even considering him.

[heather]

And Biden's not exactly a fresh-faced "change" agent.

preach on blucas.

[Andrew_TSKS]

ehh, I wouldn't put it down so much.  Vice Presidents have a pretty good track record of becoming presidents.

But that's mostly because the presidents die.

The only two vice presidents in the 20th century that were later elected president (rather than succeeding into the office after the president died) were Richard Nixon and George H.W. Bush. It happened a lot back in the early 1800s, when whoever won the election became president and whoever lost became vice president, but by the 1830s or thereabouts it became largely a thing of the past.

[Andrew_TSKS]

Yo, I agree with everyone who is down on Bayh, but then again, Obama didn't pick him.

Also, RL, here in VA we love Tim Kaine. Especially in Richmond, where he was the mayor before he ran for governor. He did a good job here. Doug Wilder has made me miss him.

Also, Mary, I'm surprised anyone as rainbows-and-unicorns as you isn't a starry-eyed liberal.

[RavingLunatic]

Whether they become president or not, they do tend to get the nomination, and that's the best you can ask for. I don't think anyone thinks they lose the general because they were VPs.

Xpost with Andrew

[Andrew_TSKS]

I dunno... considering how often VPs get the nom and then lose, I think that's probably one trend that should be ended.

[hannah]

He is clean and bright and articulate.

[RavingLunatic]

Biden just said "it's literally incredible." He was talking about how America gave Obama and him a chance or something. Why can people not stop misusing the word "literally?"

[Nick Ink]

Biden just said "it's literally incredible." He was talking about how America gave Obama and him a chance or something. Why can people not stop misusing the word "literally?"

""The defender was literally – literally – up his [Jan Koller’s] backside."
Andy Thownsend, ITV

[RavingLunatic]

Hey but at least we've got a voice from the old white guy contingent, right? I was worried there for a second. Whew.

Well, I don't exactly think it would've been a smart move for the first black presidential candidate to pick a woman as VP. I mean, I totally understand why people would want him to choose a woman, but it's sort of like how I'd like for him to pick an atheist. It'd be a nice gesture but also a sure-shot way to hand the election to McCain.

[Nick Ink]

"Phelps has literally blown them all out of the water."
GABBY LOGAN
BBC1


I'll stop there, cos this could go on all night

[RavingLunatic]

Yeah, I'm not normally a language snob, but that particular one is inadmissible. It's strange how many educated people misuse it. It can be pretty funny sometimes though, as in your first quote.

[jebreject]

Well, I don't exactly think it would've been a smart move for the first black presidential candidate to pick a woman as VP. I mean, I totally understand why people would want him to choose a woman, but it's sort of like how I'd like for him to pick an atheist. It'd be a nice gesture but also a sure-shot way to hand the election to McCain.

I may be overestimating the people of America, and I sure hope not, but I disagree with this pretty strongly.

[Andrew_TSKS]

No, I think Ryan is right. Also, Biden is at least Catholic, which is like nominating an atheist in the eyes of the population of certain areas of the country.

[Nick Ink]

I know I'm lowering the tone here, but when I first saw this thread title, and without even knowing what this was about, my lazy mind expanded 'Biden' into 'Bin Laden'. All you have to do is remove the 'National Lightbulb Association' and it's right there, staring youy in the face!

I wouldn't even bring this up except for the fact that you guys have already pointed out some pretty sad attempts in sections of the media to equate 'Obama' with 'Osama'.

Oh my god, has my mind been completely poisoned?!

Now please continue with the grown-up comments and I promise not to reenter this thread until December or whenever this thing finishes.

[Andrew_TSKS]

Hah, oh Nick. I'm sure Sean Hannity has already had that idea.

Anyway, maybe I'm getting conservative in my old age, but I agree with Andrew Sullivan. Oh man.

[Nick Ink]

maybe I'm getting conservative in my old age

Andrew, we're (very) slowly turning into each other.

[Antero]

Clinton has too much of an ego to deal with the number 2 slot well

It drives me freakin crazy when people talk about the Clintons like they're uncontrollable animals or something.  They are fucking seasoned pols with an ability to stay on message.  Clinton didn't lose to Obama because of "ego" she lost because he ran a better campaign.  If she were his VP pick, she and her husband would've done whatever the fuck Obama and his campaign asked them do, and likely would've done it well. 

That seems a bit hyperbolic, doesn't it?  I'm not suggesting that she's some sort of animal, I'm suggesting that a person who runs a campaign based largely around entitlement and who gave a concession speech that didn't mention her loss doesn't seem to have the psychological profile to play second fiddle to someone she threw the kitchen sink at.

Of course, Bill might be more of the uncontrollable animal these days.  That man was a walking disaster for her campaign, and I think Obama would do well to stay away from him if he couldn't even stump for his wife without breeding resentment.

[Andrew_TSKS]

That shit was so weird to me. I loved Bill so much in the mid-90s... what happened?

EDIT: On the other hand, I don't know why I'm so confused. The same thing happened to my dad, just in the mid-80s.