And the Winner is ....Part Deux!

It appears we were right with our post earlier in the week regarding Obama's pick for VP being Joe Biden. The Obama team did a good job of throwing everyone off the track until Friday night. One has to give them credit for their execution on pulling this off.

Now what to think about Biden. As I have often said I was pulling for Clark and it became clear that it was not going to be him. This may have been one of the advantages for the way the Obama team handled this anouncement. People like myself came to accept that maybe their man / woman may not get the nod. More importantly people started to worry that OMG fill in the blank may get the offer. Once Biden was anounced I can assure you there was a collective sigh of relief by a large number of Obama supporters.

Biden who was not the favorite of majority of people mererly 1 week ago. He came to be a very acceptable compromise. I have nothing against Joe Biden. As a matter of fact as I have mentioned before he would have been my first alternative to Obama. For whatever reason he did not pop into my mind originally as the VP pick. The more I consider the pick the more I like it on many levels. There is a constant need to remind myself to look at it as objectively as possible and not simply attempt to rationalize this pick. So here it goes.

The most important job of the VP, sad but true, is to be ready to step in incase of the worst possible situation. How does Biden measure up. It is difficult to think someone who would be more prepared to govern on all fronts foreign, domestic, and griever in chief in this awful scenario. Senator Biden brings to the table unrivaled experience on many fronts that would be immensely helpful in this situation. Not only his experience on the important matters of the day, but also the great deal of respect Senator Biden has earned over his 30 years as a public servant. This respect comes from both sides of the aisle and both houses of Congress. This relationship with Congress will be important in his grasping the reins of the government.

Politically, there are several fronts that are to be considered. All the chatter is that Senator Biden brings Foreign Affairs weight to the team. This is true. That I believe is only a small part of the political calculus that is at play. I am guessing that the Obama camp believes that if they can shoreup the traditional democratic base, that Obama can reach more than enough of the independant and more importantly the new voters to win the race.

Biden's appeal in fact may be a play to put to ease a number of voters who would normally lean to the Democratic party but have concerns about Obama. Many of these people would cite various reasons for the concern. This will be the McCain strategy. It will be to provide these people with an excuse to not vote for Obama. These very people who know that their interest and policy concerns line up with Obama, however, can't come to pull the lever or fill in the oval. That is what McCain's who ad campaign is about. To allow people a reason to vote against Obama with out feeling the guilt of discrimination.

Continued later.....