Obama and McCain Mulling Bloomberg for Veep

Sure, why not? From New York Magazine:

In a presidential year in which the unprecedented has become the commonplace, and in which the political currents swirling around the race keep carrying us into, as the cliché has it, uncharted waters, maybe it was inevitable that the veepstakes would yield a circumstance this bizarre: the presumptive nominees of both parties seriously mooting the concept of teaming up with the same dude. And not just any dude, mind you, but the Democrat turned Republican turned Independent, divorced, Jewish billionaire mayor of our glorious metropolis. The mind doth fairly reel at the notion-and even more so at the fact that it might actually make sense for either of them.

This election is starting to remind me of that Archie Bunker line that I can't remember/find on Google, where he ticks off a diverse list of some politician's staff, concluding with, "...and a regular white guy."

I can only applaud America, as she seems determined to break down every barrier to diversity in politics, all at the same time. Unfortunately, there can only be one President and one Vice President. After all the speculation is finished, about the first female vice president, or the first black president, or the first Wiccan Secretary of the Interior, we could still end up with another white Christian male prez and veep.

Bloomberg would be a great pick for John McCain, better from an electoral standpoint than for Barack. The conventional wisdom always says to balance out the ticket, and for McCain, that might mean picking a young, hard-right conservative, or a centrist who knows something about the economy.

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It's my sense that the perception of a lack of conservatism on this ticket wouldn't hurt McCain much with the base, at least not with vote totals. The die-hard base will turn out no matter what, just to defeat the Democratic nominee. So, while not losing any voters, Bloomberg helps McCain with independents, a group that both he and Obama do well with.

The same could be said of Barack choosing Mayor Mike, except that I think his gains would be far outweighed by the number of Hillary's supporters he would lose were she not on his ticket. Still, Bloomberg's op-ed in February hit many of the same notes that Barack's candidacy have.

In an ordinary year, I wouldn't give either pairing much of a chance, but McCain, especially, needs to find an answer to Barack Obama's historic candidacy, especially if it includes Hillary Clinton as Vice President. A union with Bloomberg would greatly amplify McCain's biggest asset, the perception that he is a maverick who reaches across party lines.

Of course, Bloomberg has to pass the vetting test, and in this age of Kevin-Bacon-Smears-by-Association, and microscopic scrutiny of candidates' investments, that might not be so easy. Mayor Mike could end up the 2nd Gotham Hizzoner to fly too close to the electoral sun this year.


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