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Mitt Romney's Pending (and Perhaps Only) Presidential-level Decision
A look at the current media speculation surrounding the process of selecting a person who could be a heartbeat away from the presidency in a Romney administration.
Storified by · Fri, Aug 10 2012 20:00:53
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During the "Dog Days" of July and August in American presidential election years, one of the major stories that occupy flagging summer news cycles is the process of selecting running mates for the two major political parties' presumptive nominees. Unlike 2008, when there was not an incumbent running for re-election and both Republicans and Democrats announced their general election "tickets", the GOP has all of the attention this time around and the media is in a frenzy trying to guess who
Mitt Romney' s vice-presidential selection might be.
Not deliberately trying to sound "wonky", but there are some basic rules that apply to all potential nominees. Since the vice-president is first in line for
US presidential succession in case of the primary's death, incapacitation, resignation or removal from office, they also need to meet the same qualifications that the person at the top of the ticket does. Those guidelines are spelled out in
Article II of and the
22nd Amendment to the US Constitution:
Qualifications for the Office of President of the United StatesNo person except a natural born citizen, or a citizen of the United States, at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, shall be el...
With the basic requirements covered, we can now look into the political 'calculus' that is used in choosing a running mate. For example, while not mandated, a vice-presidential candidate should be from the same party as the presidential nominee. Perhaps the greatest consideration given to a potential selection is based upon geography. One common misconception about the selection of a vice-presidential candidate involves the state of residency of the prospective running mate. While Article II and the
12th Amendment stipulate that electors shall "vote by ballot for two persons, of whom one at least shall not be an inhabitant of the same state with themselves", this applies only to the
Electoral College participants, not the actual nominees, according to
Snopes.com :
snopes.com: President and Vice-President Must Be From Different StatesClaim: The U.S. Constitution requires presidential and vice-presidential candidates to be from different states. Origins: While browsing ...
Geography may be important in terms of the overall popular vote total and "bragging rights" between the parties, but it is absolutely critical when envisioning potential paths to securing a majority of votes in the Electoral College. In our current "red" and "blue" state system, a candidate from a "swing state" could help secure its electoral votes to the ticket and put them over the 270-vote total to secure victory. The following video clip is a primer on that 18th century scheme that still applies to our 21st century elections:
How the Electoral College Workscgpgrey
Demographics can also play an integral part in the decision process. If polling indicates that a presidential candidate needs to improve their standing among a certain ethnic group and/or gender, their vice-presidential pick might be a person who meets one or more of those qualifications. In 2008, to improve his standing with female voters, Republican candidate
John McCain picked Alaskan governor
Sarah Palin to be his running mate. In this current election cycle, with President Obama doing very well among women and Hispanics, Romney may have to make a similar targeted selection:
Should Senator Marco Rubio Be Mitt Romney's VP Choice?antichristcomes
Condoleezza Rice Floated as Potential VPwsjdigitalnetwork
Kelly Ayotte dodges VP questiontoddfein
Another factor considered key in this specific cycle is ideology. In the past, party tickets have been "
balanced " to extend a small concession to voters who might not be in total agreement with the presidential pick. While Romney is the presumptive Republican nominee, he has a very spotty conservative record and hasyet to win over the hearts and minds of that party's base, with many of those voters simply not trusting him to carry out the policies that they favor. To help secure that group's support, he would need to focus on potential running mates who have a solid reputation concerning fiscal and social issues with that constituency.
A
CNN poll, conducted earlier this week and released this afternoon, provides other qualities that Republicans and independents who lean towards the GOP want to see in Romney's vice-presidential pick:
CNN Poll: What Republicans want in their VP nomineeWashington (CNN) - They don't get a say when it comes to whom Mitt Romney will pick as his running mate, but a new national survey indica...
According to many sources, his "short list" of candidates consists of four (although some list up to eight) individuals who have supported Romney during the Republican primaries and/or have actively campaigned on his behalf since he secured the nomination in late May. Any news outlet worth their salt has already opined about who they believe the front-runners are and I am providing a balanced sampling of their accounts here for background:
Romney's Top 4 VP Prospects: Pros, ConsAs the Republican convention draws near, speculation is mounting as to whom presumptive Republican nominee Mitt Romney will select as his...
KENDALL: Romney's Vice President PeachesAs GOP presumptive presidential nominee Mitt Romney, former governor of Massachusetts, comes down to the wire on his vice presidential pi...
Orlando Sentinel Today's Buzz: Who will win Romney veepstakes?(JESSICA RINALDI, Reuters ) It's getting time for Mitt Romney to announce his pick for vice president, and the speculation is unstoppable...
Reading the VP Tea Leaves: Vision EditionFor hundreds of years, various cultures around the world have practiced the art of tasseography, in which the pattern of leaves at the bo...
Romney's Former Running Mate Says What She Thinks About The Potential VPsKerry Healey would know a thing or two about some of the qualities is looking for in a running mate: The last time he picked one, he chos...
The following infographic from
The Globe and Mail , a Canadian newspaper, provides a concise "north of the border" overview of Romney's possible choices for the post:
Folio: Picking a running mate - Mitt's method.The Globe and Mail - Design & Graphics
Social networks, such as Twitter and Facebook, are also very active with prognosticators and proponents with their personal perspectives on Romney's pending pick:
RT @onthemedia: Want to know Romney's pick for VP? Look for a frenzy of Wikipedia edits. http://wny.cc/NbgfoPKedase Derragar
Poll: Rubio tops list of GOP favorites for Romney VP http://usat.ly/OOiDQ2#.UCVTw8Bmnvs.twitter via @USATODAYTony Phyrillas
RT @cnnireport: Condoleezza Rice insists she won't run for VP, but iReporters still yearn for her familiar face: http://at.cnn.com/bamIJohn Grist
Is Mitt Romney about to announce Ron Paul as VP?http://www.whiteoutpress.com/articles/q32012/could-vice-president-ron-paul-be-in-the-works/Whiteout Press
PAUL RYAN is at the top of the GOP Popular Voters' list to be Mitt Romney's VP Pick.Black Political Buzz
Romney does not want a VP nominee that will outshine him, I think he will pick Senator Rob Portman from Ohio as his Vice President.Shaun Daily
It was not my intention to publicize my own prediction here because I do not want to be proven wrong in a public venue; however, the odds are good that he will make a "safe" pick (former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty, sitting Ohio senator Rob Portman) rather than a "Hail Mary" (former Florida governor "Jeb" Bush, current CIA director David Petraeus, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, sitting Florida senator Marco Rubio) like the 2008 Republican nominee did when he chose Palin.
Obama camp picks at possible Romney VP choices - Google22 hours ago ... Obama camp picks at possible Romney VP choices ... allies aren't waiting for Republican Mitt Romney to reveal his ...
To attract people who must know a half-second before everyone else who is connected to the Internet finds out about the Romney pick, they can download a free smartphone app to their iPhone or Android device.
Who will be the VP? Download the app and you'll be the first to find out: #MittVPundefined
And if they do not have such a device, there might be another way for them to "scoop" everyone else, courtesy of
Wikipedia :
How to Spot Romney's Vice President Pick in Advance | TechPresidentThe Romney campaign wants you to download its mobile app to be among the first to find out who Mitt is going to pick as his running mate,...
In closing, while this is a quaint quadrennial ritual of American presidential politics, all of the "hullabaloo" this time around might be all for naught.
Recent polls show the president increasing his lead in the important "swing states" of Pennsylvania, Ohio and Virginia in the wake of
brutal negative advertising by both campaigns prior to their respective nomination conventions. With
Election Day less than three months away, and unless something monumental happens to counter this Democratic-leaning
trending , this race might be over even before it formally begins.
President Obama is leading Romney in national polls, including Fox News pollPresident Barack Obama would receive 49 percent of the vote compared to Romney's 40 percent in a head-to-head matchup if the election wer...
Will Mitt Romney's VP pick make a difference?Romney is reportedly on the verge of naming his running mate, and the press is breathless with anticipation. But maybe it's time to chill...
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