Biden VP news megathread (pg 286 - been selected, announcement could be today)

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Title is misleading but I'm just going to set up a Biden VP speculation thread because I've been intending to for a while.

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I had an old thread on this that got buried. I’ll revive in the coming days.

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Guys don’t feed the troll.

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Bronz.

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This is the third time I've had to merge this into its relevant megathread.

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I doubt these names would be out there if Biden was truly happy with Harris as an option.

I’m hoping you are right but I’m basically resigned to Harris at this point.

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Honestly I hope Whitmer and/or Duckworth are still in contention but of those six, only MLG or Warren are acceptable to me. I loathe the remaining four.

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Honestly I hope Whitmer and/or Duckworth are still in contention but of those six, only MLG or Warren are acceptable to me. I loathe the remaining four.

Um, why?

Also, if Biden chose one of those "remaining four", what would you do?

Harris I felt was overrated ever since she launched her presidential campaign. Much like HRC, I don't find her inspiring nor a unifer. Her main selling point (criminal justice) is an issue that I don't think Harris stands out given her record, while not as bad as some people make it out to be, as California AG. She's  basically the backbone of the #resistance movement, whose criticisms at times of the president have been a bit misdirected. Val Demmings is at least more inspiring but not particularly experienced and her low enforcement background doesn't maximize confidence. Lance Bottoms is someone I don't know a ton about but given how recent her rise to prominence has been and her overall lack of experience, I'm skeptical. And Rice brings nothing to the table quite frankly

In general, Biden's best off with someone who is competent and fairly inoffensive with at least some sort of appeal to the Sanders folks and the moderates at the same time (granted, no one fits this bill perfectly).

If Biden chose either of the four (and lets be real, it's going to be Harris with an outside chance of Warren), I still will support him obviously though. 

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OC is meant to be appreciated not understood.

Not sure why people are engaging with him.

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https://twitter.com/ShaneGoldmacher/status/1273004134044782592

This article basically sort of corroborate something from the Politico article that claimed Klobuchar's chances of becoming VP had collapsed: that despite being white Warren would likely get the least backlash thanks in part to a fair number of Black activists and voters who really like her policies that they believe would be quite beneficial for the Black community at large. It also helps that unlike Harris or Demings, Warren hasn't been involved in a profession of criminal justice.

It also lists a few potential drawbacks: her age and ideology. Plus the fact that Harris is undeniably the frontrunner at this point.

This.

Warren has been thinking about how we rebuild the pillars of our society from the ground up - rather than how to make piecemeal changes - for her entire career. When it comes to economic policy that takes into account individual communities' needs instead of just the broad 'rising tide'-type policies, she has bold ideas that'll specifically help the Black community. When it comes to police reform & public safety, she's got a plan for that. When it comes to systemic racism, she's got a plan for that.

This isn't to say that other candidates who happen to be of color aren't qualified, but Warren is head-&-shoulders above them in terms of policy, guts, know-how, etc., & I've truly come to believe that she'd be the best VP (& future President) for the Black community all across this country. I think a number of other candidates are qualified, & would make history, but I'm not fully sold on the idea that they'd fight for the change we need to see, & while I can't speak for the Black community as a whole, I know my Black friends prefer a white woman who's all for bringing about structural change to a Black woman who might not be able to.

In terms of appeal to Black voters, she not only has the policy, the brains, & the ability to hammer out solutions, but she also understands that she can always learn more. She acknowledges when she's wrong & she makes efforts to fix her mistakes based on actually listening to the people she's wronged. She doesn't just crack open a book & say "statistically, this should work;" she turns to the downtrodden & says "tell me what you need," then she listens & she figures out how to make it happen. That ability to be wrong, to listen, & to reach out to continue educating herself is what puts her above not just the other VP contenders, but most politicians in this country too.

Oh yeah, & the party rank-&-file still wants her 2-to-1.

I wouldn't be upset what-so-ever if Elizabeth Warren is picked for the VP slot. I don't think she will, but if she isn't, then Biden has to choose her for Secretary of the Treasury. Wall Street would go nuts, but we need someone who's really going to shake-up the system.

It would cost Ds a senate seat they can't afford to lose. Baker would appoint a Susan Collins 2.0

No. This talking point needs to die already. What part of "THE DEMOCRATS HAVE A SUPERMAJORITY IN THE MASSACHUSETTS STATE LEGISLATURE AND WILL FORCE BAKER TO APPOINT A DEMOCRAT IF/WHEN BIDEN PICKS WARREN!" do y'all not understand?

Even if they didn’t Susan Collins 2.0 isn’t winning a special in a deep blue state unless Martha Coakley gets nominated.

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To anyone still seriously suggest MLG, (not sure if I've said something along these lines before, but) I must point you in the direction of the Dominic Cummings scandal in the UK. The risk of jewellerygate going something like that is too high for her placement on the ticket to be worthwhile.

Can anyone make a good case for why a Biden-Grisham ticket would be safe from such criticisms?

I like MLG because she brings balance both in geographic balance and is inoffensive. A few idiots would probably try to use that to bring that down but it’s not like she was voiating social distancing. There have been far more out of touch moments by right and even left wing politicians throughout the duration of the pandemic.

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Sawx I know this is personal for you but can we stay on topic going forward?

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Some insights into Biden's thinking from Edward-Isaac Dovere, and how it could be Bas (although to be fair, he's written puff pieces about Warren, Susan Rice, Duckworth, and Kamala already)

Now, much to Bass’s—and pretty much everyone else’s—surprise, Biden’s team is taking her seriously as a potential vice-presidential running mate. One theory is that she’s being vetted to help Biden win favor with the Congressional Black Caucus, which she chairs. Another is that Biden is trying to use the process to elevate as many black women as he can. Yet another is that he’s looking to distract people from speculating about some of the more likely choices. But inside the Biden campaign is another consideration: Over the next month, he’s effectively going to decide whether there will be a competitive Democratic primary in 2024 (or maybe 2028, if he wins and tries to serve until he’s 86 years old). He’s the leader of the party now. Will he decide its future by anointing a successor, or pick someone, like Bass, who’s less likely to run for president?

Biden has wanted to be president for almost 40 years. Now that the White House finally seems within reach, he does not want to be outshone, according to people who know him. He wants to win, but he wants the win to be about him, not his running mate.

The Biden campaign has been trying to decide whether to pick a running mate who satisfies the left or one who represents the racial and ethnic diversity of his party, since Biden himself does neither. Here’s where another argument for Bass kicks in: She shows that Biden doesn’t have to choose. Although Bass doesn’t have much of a relationship with Bernie Sanders, she hasn’t attracted the disdain of his most vocal and committed supporters. That helps explain the satisfaction among Bass’s Sanders-aligned House colleagues when she was named the head of the Biden campaign’s Biden-Sanders unity task force on the economy. Several top Sanders allies told me they were eager to see Bass picked—so much so that they wouldn’t go on the record, out of fear that making her look too aligned with the senator from Vermont could backfire and hurt her chances.

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2020/07/karen-bass-joe-biden-running-mate/613975/?utm_medium=social&utm_term=2020-07-13T09%3A00%3A31&utm_campaign=the-atlantic&utm_source=twitter&utm_content=edit-promo

I'm as much of a Kamala critic as anyone on this thread but Biden needs someone who is a stronger VP than Bass. Bass simply is not high profile enough for this job. Duckworth and Demings of course would get initial attention but I think either would stick to the message.

Being high profile isn't important. Having the necessary experience is and Bass can argue she knows what it takes to work with divided government (see: her cooperation with Schwarznegger during the California budget crisis) and is aware of the workings of Washington (due to her time in Congress and as chair of the CBC). It's not as if she's a freshwoman or an unimportant backbencher.

Honestly Bass has the perceived strengths of Kamala Harris and is presumably less divisive than Harris. After MLG and Duckworth, she's my third choice at this point.

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Some insights into Biden's thinking from Edward-Isaac Dovere, and how it could be Bas (although to be fair, he's written puff pieces about Warren, Susan Rice, Duckworth, and Kamala already)

Now, much to Bass’s—and pretty much everyone else’s—surprise, Biden’s team is taking her seriously as a potential vice-presidential running mate. One theory is that she’s being vetted to help Biden win favor with the Congressional Black Caucus, which she chairs. Another is that Biden is trying to use the process to elevate as many black women as he can. Yet another is that he’s looking to distract people from speculating about some of the more likely choices. But inside the Biden campaign is another consideration: Over the next month, he’s effectively going to decide whether there will be a competitive Democratic primary in 2024 (or maybe 2028, if he wins and tries to serve until he’s 86 years old). He’s the leader of the party now. Will he decide its future by anointing a successor, or pick someone, like Bass, who’s less likely to run for president?

Biden has wanted to be president for almost 40 years. Now that the White House finally seems within reach, he does not want to be outshone, according to people who know him. He wants to win, but he wants the win to be about him, not his running mate.

The Biden campaign has been trying to decide whether to pick a running mate who satisfies the left or one who represents the racial and ethnic diversity of his party, since Biden himself does neither. Here’s where another argument for Bass kicks in: She shows that Biden doesn’t have to choose. Although Bass doesn’t have much of a relationship with Bernie Sanders, she hasn’t attracted the disdain of his most vocal and committed supporters. That helps explain the satisfaction among Bass’s Sanders-aligned House colleagues when she was named the head of the Biden campaign’s Biden-Sanders unity task force on the economy. Several top Sanders allies told me they were eager to see Bass picked—so much so that they wouldn’t go on the record, out of fear that making her look too aligned with the senator from Vermont could backfire and hurt her chances.

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2020/07/karen-bass-joe-biden-running-mate/613975/?utm_medium=social&utm_term=2020-07-13T09%3A00%3A31&utm_campaign=the-atlantic&utm_source=twitter&utm_content=edit-promo

I'm as much of a Kamala critic as anyone on this thread but Biden needs someone who is a stronger VP than Bass. Bass simply is not high profile enough for this job. Duckworth and Demings of course would get initial attention but I think either would stick to the message.

Being high profile isn't important. Having the necessary experience is and Bass can argue she knows what it takes to work with divided government (see: her cooperation with Schwarznegger during the California budget crisis) and is aware of the workings of Washington (due to her time in Congress and as chair of the CBC). It's not as if she's a freshwoman or an unimportant backbencher.

Honestly Bass has the perceived strengths of Kamala Harris and is presumably less divisive than Harris. After MLG and Duckworth, she's my third choice at this point.

I'd actually argue Bass would be much more divisive once picked than Harris, but that's just my two cents. 

Any particular reason why?

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Just as an FYI, I'll be taken a much closer eye on this thread going forward because while I was on hiatus, this got a bunch of reports and around a half dozen posts were deleted.

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The OH Dem convention is scheduled for the 1st of Aug feat Harris. Hmm

IF the announcement is on Saturday, could that mean a no on Harris?

I was thinking the same thing. Or it could be their first "event" together. Who knows

So August 1 has been confirmed as the announcement? I thought it was all secondhand info.

I'd imagine a state convention in a swing state (Dependent on the individual) would be a good 'debut' event for the running mate, prior to the DNC

It hasn’t. The most recent reported timeframe was “early August”.

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Can we all agree nobody wants Abrams?

I wouldn't mind her.

How bout this: Can we all agree that it doesn't matter who Biden picks because his running mate will have a negligible impact on the race?

I mean, if we dismiss the likelihood that Biden doesn't run in '24 again, yes. But that and his age make the VP quite meaningful, especially when you allegedly have candidates who want to exploit it as a launch pad.

Do I need to put you on mod review from this thread and/or start formally infracting posts? You are a good poster but you've made nearly 75 posts in this thread the past couple days arguing about Harris and its getting to the point where it will spark side arguments.

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Please try not to refight the last two Democratic primaries in this thread.

Thank you.

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After reading the last 5 pages, I'm stunned this thread hasn't been locked or posts deleted. What a s**tshow

Who says I haven’t been deleting posts?

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I just don't understand how Biden's team failed to vet Bass, like, at all. How do you miss: Castro, Scientology, praise of the 1992 riots for burning liquor stores, & the Nation of Islam?

I'm so confused tbh

Whose to say he didn’t and now Harris is decided to leak it out anyway?

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I just don't understand how Biden's team failed to vet Bass, like, at all. How do you miss: Castro, Scientology, praise of the 1992 riots for burning liquor stores, & the Nation of Islam?

I'm so confused tbh

Whose to say he didn’t and now Harris is decided to leak it out anyway?

What motivation would she have? Harris is arguably the favorite, and Bass wasn’t even a factor a week ago, at least not until Dodd starting spewing his BS.

That would be the motivation.

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I just don't understand how Biden's team failed to vet Bass, like, at all. How do you miss: Castro, Scientology, praise of the 1992 riots for burning liquor stores, & the Nation of Islam?

I'm so confused tbh

Whose to say he didn’t and now Harris is decided to leak it out anyway?

What motivation would she have? Harris is arguably the favorite, and Bass wasn’t even a factor a week ago, at least not until Dodd starting spewing his BS.

That would be the motivation.

To help Harris? Sorry, not sure if I understand.

That she’s afraid (paranoia or not) that Dodd is causing her to be slipping up to Bass and she needs to counterattack.

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Whitmer really is doubling down on the suburbs if Biden selects her but I would argue it’s a pretty sound strategy. She’ll have much more appeal where the flips are compared to Coastal Rice and Harris.

Can we drop the right wing "coastal elites" nonsense. It comes off as if you're saying uppity. I never hear the same about Elizabeth. 

I’ve heard that a ton with Warren lmao

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🚨🚨🚨🚨 WEE-WOOO WEE-WOOO 🚨🚨🚨🚨

https://twitter.com/warddpatrick/status/1292126191248461825?s=21

Big if true.

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https://twitter.com/daveweigel/status/1292132127308488710?s=21