Obama’s Choose Your Own VP Adventure
The New York Times sheds some light on the back-room dealings, global developments and veep-vetting sessions that went into whittling down Barack Obama's short list of vice presidential candidates to the final contender, who heard Obama's final pitch while at the dentist's office.
The New York Times sheds some light on the back-room dealings, global developments and veep-vetting sessions that went into whittling down Barack Obama’s short list of vice presidential candidates to the final contender, who heard Obama’s final pitch while at the dentist’s office.
WAIT, BEFORE YOU GO…The New York Times:
Mr. Biden was hardly considered a likely pick at the start of the process. His reputation for verbosity was Washington legend. While he impressed at the debates by defying expectations with his brevity, his presidential campaign foundered and ended quickly.
“I think in his heart of hearts he thought in the end he wouldn’t get it,” said Gov. Edward G. Rendell of Pennsylvania, a friend. “During the vetting process you mostly hear why you wouldn’t be a good candidate,” he added, naming “the change issue” and “some of the things he said during the campaign.”
But Mr. Biden had some powerful patrons in his corner whose opinions Mr. Obama respected, like Mr. Rendell; Representative Rahm Emanuel of Illinois, the chairman of the House Democratic caucus; and Senator Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts — not only a respected Senate lion but also uncle to a senior member of Mr. Obama’s vetting team, Caroline Kennedy.
If you're reading this, you probably already know that non-profit, independent journalism is under threat worldwide. Independent news sites are overshadowed by larger heavily funded mainstream media that inundate us with hype and noise that barely scratch the surface. We believe that our readers deserve to know the full story. Truthdig writers bravely dig beneath the headlines to give you thought-provoking, investigative reporting and analysis that tells you what’s really happening and who’s rolling up their sleeves to do something about it.
Like you, we believe a well-informed public that doesn’t have blind faith in the status quo can help change the world. Your contribution of as little as $5 monthly or $35 annually will make you a groundbreaking member and lays the foundation of our work.
Politics
Obama's only takeaway from the Syria episode was to never again seek Congressional approval for military action.
Politics
Cautionary politics lost them the majority a decade ago. It’s taken that long to reboot.
With his nonstop barrage of lies, the president has degraded our electoral system to the point that any result will feel illegitimate.
The class war that gave rise to his campaign is the fault of a long line of corporate Democrats like Joe Biden, and voters know it.
A revealing new study finds the Justice Department charged just 359 such criminals in January—a decline of 25% from five years ago.
A closer look at the Trump administration's agreement with the Taliban reveals all the president's concerned with is bragging rights.
There are currently no responses to this article.
Be the first to respond.