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

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I just don't think Harris, Rice have a life story that will connect well with a wide array of voters. Warren could have had that but her wonky plans being emphasized over her biography blunted that.

You're starting to become very, very annoying. Please, can you just not mention Kamala Harris at all until Joe makes his decision? Can you do that for the sake of everyone?

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I just don't think Harris, Rice have a life story that will connect well with a wide array of voters. Warren could have had that but her wonky plans being emphasized over her biography blunted that.

You're starting to become very, very annoying. Please, can you just not mention Kamala Harris at all until Joe makes his decision? Can you do that for the sake of everyone?

I feel like you could also take that advice.

Really? I rarely even reply to this thread. You must be mistaken.

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I just don't think Harris, Rice have a life story that will connect well with a wide array of voters. Warren could have had that but her wonky plans being emphasized over her biography blunted that.

You're starting to become very, very annoying. Please, can you just not mention Kamala Harris at all until Joe makes his decision? Can you do that for the sake of everyone?

It's the new left, we can't take criticism of anyone in our orbit. So my answer to you is no.

That said, this thread is running in circles anyway so I am not sure mentioning her further does any good for the discussion.

My point is not that Kamala (or Rice or Warren) is a bad person. Its that electorally I don't feel any of these three offer much in terms of aiding the largest possible victory. Senate seats like Montana, Georgia, Iowa are more likely to flip if Biden wins by 14% than 5%. That is simply a fact and my point is Biden will have an easier time as President with more Senators, more representatives.

And just to clear everything, I will certainly vote for Biden even if either of these three are on the ticket.

Of course, Kamala can be criticized. However, most of your "criticisms" are baseless and repetitive.

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Is the VP announcement still slated for the end of July?

Early August.

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https://twitter.com/JTHVerhovek/status/1280647259869282306

https://twitter.com/SteveWCarlson/status/1280649159050235904

This is a "Democrat" Senate candidate running against Tina Smith in the primary lmao

He's an evil demon.

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I don't see why people think Kamala is inevitable am I the only who just doesn't get what's so special about her?

Most of this forum agrees with you. Have you not been paying attention lol?

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Susan Rice has never held elected office. What is her purpose as VP? Foreign policy is what the State, Homeland Security, and Defense Departments are for.

Joe Biden has been absolutely mandated by his party to chose a non white woman as VP. He doesn't have a large field of credible candidates to chose from. She actually wouldn't be the worst choice for him. She comes across as measured and intelligent. That's enough. She will not be scrutinized in any way by the media and they'll immediate start the first woman president bandwagon once again.

That last sentence is laughable and untrue.

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Harris seems to inspire a truly visceral hate from some corners of the party and it doesn't make much sense to me.  I think it's just because people have been told to hate Harris for so long that they're just used to it by now.  They assume that's the right way to think.  Remember "corncobbing"?  That was almost three years ago now.  I remember talking to a girl in December of 2018 about the upcoming primary, and she wasn't familiar with most of the candidates but HATED Kamala Harris, with a bunch of talking points about her "ruthlessly locking up black men" and "putting innocent people in jail" and "going after pot smokers."

By the time Tulsi took Harris down in the third(?) debate, I had already heard all her attack lines a hundred times over.  She was literally just quoting Twitter's greatest anti-Harris hits.  But Kamala's response to it was very weak.

The Kamala hate is deeply, deeply ingrained in a lot of people.  The online left ran a very successful smear campaign against her.  That's probably part of why the KHive you all hate so much exists in the first place.  All those Kamala fans on Twitter got sick of the smears against their candidate and banded together to fight back with a similar degree of zeal.

It's that she alienates the far left with her past as AG of California while being centrist in the mode of identity politics, being close with donors while not really offering any sort of economic agenda to working people. It's the consultants, lawyers and insiders who like this type of politician, not average voters.

None of what you said is true. Also, that's just your opinion.

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Duckworth just seems like such the no-brainer pick. Much like Biden, it'll be hard to get the country to viscerally hate her. The same can't be said for Warren, Harris, or Rice, for obvious reasons.

Can you elaborate on that, because saying “for obvious reasons” doesn’t make there be reasons.

Warren is already hated and viliefied by a huge chunk of the country no thanks in part to her Native American ancestry scandal, Harris is the walking caricature of everything Fox News has been portraying Democrats as for the past 40 years, and Susan Rice’s involvement in Benghazi (yet another highly polarizing event) makes it easy for large swaths of the country to hate her

A stretch but ok.

It’s funny how Kamala is this far left, cancel culture, men are trash, all white people should repent for slavery liberal and tough on crime, corporate, centrist, status quo empty suit simultaneously.

I’m just saying what no one else seems to want to acknowledge on here: Kamala Harris will be hurt by sexism and racism more than most other women on this list.

“She’s from San Francisco, she isn’t one of you!”
“Another coastal elitist”
“She has no kids and married for money”
“She’s a narcissist who tried to paint herself as the female Obama”

That’s not even getting into what Fox and Trump will try to do to further dog whistle

So Democrats should be scared about nominating anyone from California because of what some morons think? And Democrats should never nominate a Black woman because of what some racists/sexists think?

Why even choose a non-White woman then? Biden should just choose between Baldwin, Whitmer & Warren.

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https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/07/11/demings-vp-police-356573

Probably just a hit piece and fortunately its a bit late

This seems like a piece that a Harris or Warren person would provide the research for.

Why? Because it's bringing up some issues during her tenure as Chief of Police? LOL

I bet you would love it if it was anti-Kamala. You wouldn't even give it a second thought.

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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

Honestly, if that is actually Biden's line of thinking then that's pretty stupid.

He's going to be 81-82 in 2024 and I would be very uncomfortable voting to re-elect an octogenarian. This year I'm mostly voting for him just to get rid of Trump. However, once Trump is gone, Biden should just gracefully bow out in 2024.

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Does anyone think Kyrsten Sinema might be dark horse? She's a swing state Senator and fairly charismatic.

No, absolutely not. Her seat would go right to a Republican and also she's to the right of even Biden.

Also, SHE JUST BECAME A SENATOR. LET HER BREATHE A BIT!

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Does anyone think Kyrsten Sinema might be dark horse? She's a swing state Senator and fairly charismatic.

No, absolutely not. Her seat would go right to a Republican and also she's to the right of even Biden.

Also, SHE JUST BECAME A SENATOR. LET HER BREATHE A BIT!

It actually wouldn't, since Arizona has a same-party appointment law.

Fair enough. However, Doug Ducey would probably appoint a DINO to the seat.

Anyways, the other reasons I mentioned are still valid (from a Dem perspective).

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The Daily Beast has a brief recap of Harris’s friendship with Beau Biden:

https://www.thedailybeast.com/kamala-harris-was-in-biden-circle-of-trust-then-came-debate-night

“Short of personal friendship with Dr. [Jill] Biden, there is no bigger credit that you can have with the vice president than a relationship with Beau,” said one source close to the Bidens, who told The Daily Beast that the family, marked by tragedy and incredibly tight-knit after decades in the public eye, would naturally hold anyone with Beau’s stamp of approval in the highest esteem. “He was the heir.”

And then on the fallout from the “that little girl was me” debate moment:

But some in Biden’s circle, and in the Biden family, have been slower to warm to Harris after the “little girl” moment. A source close to the Bidens told The Daily Beast that Valerie Biden Owens, the vice president’s sister and longtime adviser, is still “chilly” on Harris, and that Dr. Jill Biden was privately flippant when Harris endorsed her husband in March.
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But those in a position to make their feelings on Harris’ potential as a running mate heard still point to the debate as potentially disqualifying—and note that both Dr. Biden and Valerie Biden Owens hold huge sway in any final decision on a running mate.

“I don’t think the emotions of Dr. Biden and Val have softened,” said one source familiar with the Biden family’s feelings on the matter, who allowed that polling on Harris’ utility as a running mate “and the persistent whispering of advisers trying to smooth things over” might change their opinions.

Didn't Kamala and Jill do a fundraiser together last month? Dr. Biden was very effusive in her praise of Harris during that event. Dr. Jill Biden also said herself on MSNBC in late June that Kamala was on the "short list" for VP.

I think that Kamala's debate statement did sting the Bidens but I don't think it will have a significant effect on her chances to be selected as VP.

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I think the promise to pick a woman might be a mistake cause honestly there are so many better choices that are men. And the women who would be good picks he clearly doesn’t want to pick.

Rice - Good in office but awful campaigner
Harris - She seems good but there’s baggage there
Warren - Too polarizing. Would scare off moderate GOP voters
Duckworth: I think this would be a disaster. They’re looking at the combat vet angle and nothing else.

I’m convinced Whitner would be the best choice but hey what do I know

If there's a critical mistake, it's this. There are plenty of women who could be strong VP candidates but most aren't being considered. I don't see how this problem would be much better if men were also in the mix.

Which women do you want him to pick that he isn't considering?

I don't know who he isn't considering, but the apparent non-vetting of Hilda Solis seems like a mistake and we don't hear much about e.g. Baldwin compared to Demings. I should revise my point - it's not that the best candidates aren't being considered, but that it seems they aren't being considered nearly as seriously as some really flawed ones.

Problem with Baldwin is the way the Senate is set up. We can't afford to lose her seat. If her seat wasn't as crucial she'd be my #1 choice.

Solis is another one I don't get why they're not looking at closer if people like Demings are though. Minority working-class female who's on the progressive side on the party? That sounds like a great fit.

The Governor of Wisconsin is a Democrat though and by current projections, the Senate is going to flip.

As for Hilda Solid, she would be an interesting pick but maybe she has her eyes on being Mayor of Los Angeles.

It's not a guarantee that the Senate is going to flip and anyways, every seat in the Senate that is in a swing state is critical. Especially if, Democrats only gain a slim majority (50-52 seats). Even if Evers appoints a Democrat, will that Democrat get elected in the special election? There's a good chance that they won't.

Additionally, I like Tammy Baldwin (and so do many people on here) but who does she appeal to nationwide outside of SOME progressive voters?

Finally, Hilda Solis was just the Labor Secretary. She's largely unknown (outside political junkies like us) and why should she be put into a position that is a heartbeat away from the Presidency?

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The Kamala Harris saga has been way overblown,  that's why people snipe at each other. If she was so good to be Veep, why did she flop so badly as a Prez candidate

I like Susan Rice better than Harris, hopefully she is picked but some dont like Rice

So Kamala Harris isn't good enough because she couldn't get elected as a presidential candidate, so Susan Rice is your pick? Someone whose highest-held elected office was student council president in high school? Man, I know people on this forum love to hate Kamala Harris, but at least judge her by standards that you yourself can stick to.

I feel like, for Kamala folks, we have to be either totally for Harris/fawning over her as the VP pick, or we hate her.  There's definitely a middle ground.  I don't hate her, and I think there are a lot worse choices out there, but that doesn't mean I'm enthused by her/she's my first choice.  It also doesn't mean it will affect my vote one way or the other, though.  

I think for me, a lot of these anti-Harris people aren't really saying the whole "well shes not my first choice, but I'd still be fine with her." A lot just seem vehemently against her without any wiggle room.

Like i want Harris, but I'd be fine with Duckworth if she was the choice. She's not my first choice, but I wouldn't be "mad" about it

I would be mad about Susan Rice. Now that pick just makes no sense.

Yeah, exactly. I rarely see other VP candidates in here get criticized and if they do most people in here come to their defense.

Kamala is the only one who receives a high amount of vitriol. There's nothing wrong with criticizing Kamala but many of the attacks against her in this thread are superficial or based on lies/exaggerations about her time as a prosecutor.

Furthermore, like you said, I don't hear "I'm not enthusiastic about Kamala but I'm still voting for Biden even though she's not my 1st choice". I mostly hear that "Kamala sucks" or "Kamala is an uppity SF socialite".

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I love Warren and strongly dislike Harris, but if I’m being honest, I kind of think taking either one of them runs the risk of overshadowing Joe. Thinking with my head instead of my heart they should be a three person Battle between rice, Duckworth, and bass. All three are acceptable to Lincoln project types, but have no obvious baggage with the left wing. All three unquestionably confident and ready to step in to the presidency but at the same time it still keeps the race about a binary choice between Trump and Joe.

Duckworth is the only one you listed who is viable to me. She has a wonderful personal story and is inoffensive. Didn’t Bass say she’s not interested inheriting the party in a post on the last few pages? Rice has never faced the rigors of a campaign. Biden has been in national politics for 50 years and was VP. We don’t need her on the ticket for “foreign policy”.

Sorry to disagree with you again because despite our big difference on Harris I actually really respect you, but I disagree with both of your Points. Bass did say that, but as Jim Clybourn pointed out, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. My own take on it is when I had Democrats ever done well by anointing someone in advance? I think of Al Gore, Hillary Clinton, even Mario Cuomo is botched attempt. They all look kind of similar to this. And as I stated before, Rice is not there to balance the ticket. She is there to double down on the message of experience. It’s like Al Gore in 1992

Experience? What experience does Rice have that outweighs Biden's or Harris's?

Susan Rice has NEVER held political office. Also, Biden doesn't need any foreign policy help.

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I don’t think his point is that Harris is any less politiciany than the others — just that they would probably do the same thing she will.

I think Harris would be more aggressive, just because she’s wanted the Presidency for a lot longer than Duckworth or Bass have — everything she has done in her career for decades has been laser-focused on moving up in politics and eventually becoming President of the United States. Bass and Duckworth are in a different league entirely in that department. They might try the same stuff, but Harris has succeeded at doing it in California before and I think her 2024 machinations would make Hillary’s 2016 field-clearing look tame

Not any different than President Obama.

Anyways, unless Joe Biden ends up being an unpopular President (which is unlikely), why should Kamala as the incumbent VP in 2024 not run for the Presidency?

Biden publicly confirms that Whitmer is still in the running:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/biden-says-whitmer-still-in-contention-for-vp-pick/ar-BB171PbC?li=BBnbcA1

"Incredibly and yes," Biden told Wood TV Tuesday when asked how important Michigan is in the presidential race and if Whitmer was still in contention for the vice presidential nomination.

That's surprising. I like Whitmer but I think that it would be terrible optics for a first-term governor who has only been in office for a year and a half to just leave the state behind during the middle of a global pandemic. Also, I would prefer a woman of color to be chosen.

I do like that the Biden campaign realizes how important winning back Michigan is though.

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I don’t think his point is that Harris is any less politiciany than the others — just that they would probably do the same thing she will.

I think Harris would be more aggressive, just because she’s wanted the Presidency for a lot longer than Duckworth or Bass have — everything she has done in her career for decades has been laser-focused on moving up in politics and eventually becoming President of the United States. Bass and Duckworth are in a different league entirely in that department. They might try the same stuff, but Harris has succeeded at doing it in California before and I think her 2024 machinations would make Hillary’s 2016 field-clearing look tame

How dare a black woman want to continue to grow in politics and want higher office!

No, this is exactly why I want Biden to pick her

Almost all of the anti-Harris sentiment is really anti-black sexism dressed up as genuine criticism and I want her to f***ing bulldoze every last one of her opponents

Yeah, the Anti Anti-Harris discourse has gotten a lot more insufferable now

I disagree. I’m not anti-Harris, I just don’t like the idea of Biden picking the future of the Democratic Party. That’s not why he was made the nominee. We just wanted our best shot at kicking Trump out. He needs to be a caretaker President for 4 years and let us decide what direction we want to take the party in 2024.

That's just your opinion though. Also, Biden being in his late '70s means that his VP (whoever that is) will most likely run for President in 2024, whether you like it or not.

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If we are talking about Karen Bass then why not Terri Sewell or Gwen Moore? If you are gonna choose someone from the House (which I'm not a fan of at all) then mind as well broaden your options.

I feel like Terri Sewell should've been given a harder look. Does she have any real skeletons that would've disqualified her?

Terri Sewell is really dry and boring. During the impeachment trial, she asked some of the worst questions among the Democratic side. I'm sorry to say it but it's the truth.

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Honestly, her vote on the defense budget cuts is irrelevant. She's had the MOST progressive voting record in the Senate since she assumed office in 2017.

Also, she explained that the reason she voted against the amendment was that the cuts were too broad. She stated that she supports more targeted cuts and that she would support such measures in the future.

Also, the amendment wasn't going to pass anyways it was more of a "show" amendment.

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Honestly, her vote on the defense budget cuts is irrelevant. She's had the MOST progressive voting record in the Senate since she assumed office in 2017.

Also, she explained that the reason she voted against the amendment was that the cuts were too broad. She stated that she supports more targeted cuts and that she would support such measures in the future.

Also, the amendment wasn't going to pass anyways it was more of a "show" amendment.

Oh yes, total workhorse Kamala Harris concentrating on the issues that matter like trying to get Twitter to ban Trump's account.

Wow, I've never heard that one before. You're so clever! .

Anyways, Trump's Twitter account should be banned and that's not even close to most of what Kamala has advocated for in her 3 years as a Senator. I wouldn't expect you or most people on Atlas to care though.

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Bernie bros are going to Bernie Bro.

https://twitter.com/IsaacDovere/status/1286462426142187525

This is hilarious. The arrogance lmao

Ah yes. Because if there's one thing Harris supporters aren't, it's arrogant.

So Harris supporters are arrogant, while the Sanders fans claiming to be leading a transformative revolution (while being refuted by the voters - twice) are humble...

That awesome moment when you live in Scotland and go online to tell Americans they're arrogant for wanting healthcare.

1. I never mentioned healthcare, and was speaking more to the frustrating aspects of the Sanders fanbase, rather than any specific policy.

2. Please don't NHS-shame me. I am fully aware of my privilege. The NHS gave me extra time with three of my grandparents before they died from cancer, and protected our family from significant economic strain. Moreover, my aunt is receiving hospice care right now, from some of the most admirable people in the country. We are blessed, and I will never forget that.

However.

I'm a pragmatist. I believe that the best way to expand healthcare is to elect a democratic trifecta, and I believe Joe Biden had the best chance of uniting the party to pursue that outcome.

You can't go from the US model to the NHS overnight, not in a country with a system like the USA. Obviously it's not my place to tell you how to do it, but to imagine that you can just create a single-payer system in the space between 2020 and 2022 feels like a stretch.

Moderats to LBJ in 1964:

"You can't sign this civil rights bill overnight, not in a country like the USA. You can't just automatically create full civil rights between now and 1968."

Um, not comparable.

The Jim Crow laws of the South were mostly a social order/system. The current United States healthcare system is a major part of our country's ECONOMIC system.

You can't just simply overhaul that overnight. It has to be a gradual process.

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I actually think Bass would be quite the good pick since she's uncontroversial and has no ambitions of her own. We the voters of the Democratic party deserve an open primary in 2024 to choose our own nominee rather than having an anointed successor like Kamala imposed upon us.

This makes no sense. There was an open primary this year and Democratic voters CHOSE to nominate a 77 year old man to be the President - Biden would be the oldest president ever. Of course, Biden's VP is most likely going to be the Democratic nominee in 2024, that's just how it works.

You're just saying this because you don't like Kamala. I still have yet to understand why Kamala is so hated on this forum.

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https://twitter.com/andrewsolender/status/1287424396185935875?s=21

She's literally doing a virtual event with Biden (and a bunch of other people) later today lol.