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

[The Right Honourable Martin Brian Mulroney PC CC GOQ]

Crappy thread. It’s possible to respect both Kamala Harris and Elizabeth Warren. It is possible to believe both would be fine vice presidents. What even is all this?

Because we've made over 200 pages worth of posts on veepstakes, something that is pure speculation at this point, and something nobody other than Joe Biden really has any control over. All there really is to do is talk about a handful of prospective picks, and that inevitably leads to petty arguments over minor differences. I've barely made a 100 posts This is only my 99th post on this forum (stalked for a long time before though) and even I'm starting to get tired of this thread lol. But yeah this is just the worst tendency of political junkies (including myself), arguing endlessly over petty disagreements, to the point that it starts getting personal.

[BidenHarris2020]

Cali politics is brutal. I’m absolutely certain that Harris allies (not her) leaked all this stuff. And good. She wasn’t VP material and I’m glad it got aired out so we wouldn’t have to hear from certain people how Bass was the one that got away.

Better now than as a October surprise(s)

[Beet]

The destruction of Karen Bass is absolutely shameful. Especially when she went out of her way to praise Harris earlier. She's a good person. She didn't ask for this. Harris could have raised her concerns privately with the Biden team. Bass didn't have to be humiliated, assassinated, dragged through the mud in front of the entire nation. Her entire life of public service will now be remembered for this. I don't want Bass as VP, but this is just awful. How cold and heartless do you have to be do that to a person?

[Mike Thick]

If this were an inside hackjob by Kamala Harris' allies to benefit her, why only target Karen Bass?  Why not everyone else being considered as Biden's running-mate, including Tammy Duckworth or Susan Rice? 

Well, she did a KTLA interview at the start of the process (which I watched) where she more or less removed herself from the running and hinted that she was backing Harris. Then she turned around and jumped in herself. That’s not sitting well with people.

If you kiss up to powerful people and then stab them in the back, especially in a machine-y state like Cali, there are consequences. A not-insignificant number of people would probably be happy to see her out of Congress entirely at this point.

[Interlocutor is just not there yet]

What an upside down V-shaped ride Bass has been.

There’s just no way this stuff didn’t come up during the vetting. Either they were hoping to keep it hidden in the case she were selected, or they weren’t ever serious about her getting the nod and wanted to just throw another name out to the press.

This is making me doubt whether she was even a serious contender to begin with. So many skeketons. Goodness

Even more reason for me to feel sympathy for her. And we're not even sure how high up the list she was (If she was even on it at all or if Biden already made up his mind).

Of course, you're absolutely loving this. If only other non-Harris candidates had this type of public scrutiny

[WD]

The destruction of Karen Bass is absolutely shameful. Especially when she went out of her way to praise Harris earlier. She's a good person. She didn't ask for this. Harris could have raised her concerns privately with the Biden team. Bass didn't have to be humiliated, assassinated, dragged through the mud in front of the entire nation. Her entire life of public service will now be remembered for this. I don't want Bass as VP, but this is just awful. How cold and heartless do you have to be do that to a person?

lol She’s a Scientology supporting nut job. I don’t feel bad for her at all.

[BidenHarris2020]

The destruction of Karen Bass is absolutely shameful. Especially when she went out of her way to praise Harris earlier. She's a good person. She didn't ask for this. Harris could have raised her concerns privately with the Biden team. Bass didn't have to be humiliated, assassinated, dragged through the mud in front of the entire nation. Her entire life of public service will now be remembered for this. I don't want Bass as VP, but this is just awful. How cold and heartless do you have to be do that to a person?

and you have proof Harris is behind this? 😐

[BidenHarris2020]

What an upside down V-shaped ride Bass has been.

There’s just no way this stuff didn’t come up during the vetting. Either they were hoping to keep it hidden in the case she were selected, or they weren’t ever serious about her getting the nod and wanted to just throw another name out to the press.

This is making me doubt whether she was even a serious contender to begin with. So many skeketons. Goodness

Even more reason for me to feel sympathy for her. And we're not even sure how high up the list she was (If she was even on it at all or if Biden already made up his mind).

Of course, you're absolutely loving this. If only other non-Harris candidates had this type of public scrutiny

Don't tell me what I "love". You don't know me. I don't "love" seeing black women being torn down to advance anyone's agenda.

[Ferguson97]

Very telling that some people are trying to make controversies about Karen Bass into Kamala Harris's problem.

[Interlocutor is just not there yet]

Very telling that some people are trying to make controversies about Karen Bass into Kamala Harris's problem.

Not taking any side. But Christ, all those recommendations in like 20 minutes.

It really feels like some folks are watching over this thread like a hawk, waiting to pounce and/or defend their preferred pick.

One more week until this will all be over

[H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY]

Wonder how much Biden’s team has investigated the lawsuit against Duckworth when she was head of the Illinois VA. That was the only thing Mark Kirk really brought up against her in 2016 from what I’ve seen, and it clearly didn’t work then. I still think that if you want a “do no harm” candidate to not rock the boat before the election, she’s your woman.

[Mike Thick]

Very telling that some people are trying to make controversies about Karen Bass into Kamala Harris's problem.

Spot on. This is Bass’s problem, and it’s a problem that she took on when she decided to run up against someone she knew could and would use this stuff against her. That’s just politics.

[brucejoel99]

Wonder how much Biden’s team has investigated the lawsuit against Duckworth when she was head of the Illinois VA. That was the only thing Mark Kirk really brought up against her in 2016 from what I’ve seen, and it clearly didn’t work then. I still think that if you want a “do no harm” candidate to not rock the boat before the election, she’s your woman.

Duckworth would be a great, all-but-impossible to attack (though they'd try) choice, but perhaps Joe & she just don't "click"? After all, their personalities do seem pretty different: Joe's very much a people-pleasing person, while Duckworth is very much a moral high-ground, opinions-be-damned person, & so those 2 personalities might not pair well together.

[South Dakota Democrat]

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

We don't really know that they failed to find any of this.

[South Dakota Democrat]

The destruction of Karen Bass is absolutely shameful. Especially when she went out of her way to praise Harris earlier. She's a good person. She didn't ask for this. Harris could have raised her concerns privately with the Biden team. Bass didn't have to be humiliated, assassinated, dragged through the mud in front of the entire nation. Her entire life of public service will now be remembered for this. I don't want Bass as VP, but this is just awful. How cold and heartless do you have to be do that to a person?

lol She’s a Scientology supporting nut job. I don’t feel bad for her at all.

That's a bit harsh of you.

[WD]

The destruction of Karen Bass is absolutely shameful. Especially when she went out of her way to praise Harris earlier. She's a good person. She didn't ask for this. Harris could have raised her concerns privately with the Biden team. Bass didn't have to be humiliated, assassinated, dragged through the mud in front of the entire nation. Her entire life of public service will now be remembered for this. I don't want Bass as VP, but this is just awful. How cold and heartless do you have to be do that to a person?

lol She’s a Scientology supporting nut job. I don’t feel bad for her at all.

That's a bit harsh of you.

Sorry if I came off that way, I just find Scientology to be an absolutely disgusting organization.

[Landslide Lyndon]

I thought that Bass had a shot to become speaker when Pelosi retired.
Not likely anymore.

[Ferguson97]

I thought that Bass had a shot to become speaker when Pelosi retired.
Not likely anymore.

It’s going to be Hakeem Jeffries

[wbrocks67]

Biden is going to be dragged to the Kamala train kicking and screaming at this point lol

Who says that Biden hasn't wanted Kamala all along? People need to stop acting like the know what's going on or believing these "shadow" advisers.

Look at the people who *are* talking. i.e. Ed Rendell. Who don't know sh*t

[wbrocks67]

Just listened to Pod Save America, where they addressed the Veepstakes for the first time in awhile. They've been eschewing it because, as they say, "they gave up the prediction game after 2016" (though they did previously have a great 3-parter on the logistics of the selection process) but they finally caved today.

The main issue they have is with all of the articles, particularly of late, where opposition research is being dropped from all sorts of people (most of whom are miles away from actually knowing anything about Biden's thoughts). They actually called out Ed Rendell in particular because they said he's been looking for a way to diss Democrats & increase his own media presence.

It made me realize that the sources in pretty much all of these articles are sketchy & all have major agendas, & that if there was a clear front-runner, then they would've already been announced. What seems to be made clear by all of the Veepstakes punditry & reporting is that none of us know who Biden's gonna pick & none of the reporting we're reading can be trusted to actually tell us what's going on because so few people really do (& those people aren't talking!).

this is not true at all. why would you give Trump and the GOP 2 extra months to attack your VP? that makes no sense.

[wbrocks67]

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

One possibility is that they never seriously considered Karen Bass, and only used her as a smokescreen to distract from the true shortlist candidates.

THIS!!!! why does everyone keep believing these articles with anonymous sources? we literally do not know *anything* about this process. for all we know, there could've been 5 smoke screens.

[Torrain]

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

One possibility is that they never seriously considered Karen Bass, and only used her as a smokescreen to distract from the true shortlist candidates.

THIS!!!! why does everyone keep believing these articles with anonymous sources? we literally do not know *anything* about this process. for all we know, there could've been 5 smoke screens.

Yeah, this lends credence to the "we're throwing out fake alternatives to the real candidate we chose weeks ago" theory.

Given how extensive the vetting has apparently been, I can't believe that Bidenworld could have missed these glaring weaknesses. These aren't even aspects of her private life, they're public statements!

In 2000, Gore's team pretended that John Kerry was the frontrunner, so that Lieberman would be a bigger surprise when he was picked. I'm almost certain that we're seeing a less co-ordinated version of that now.

[DisneyDem]

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

One possibility is that they never seriously considered Karen Bass, and only used her as a smokescreen to distract from the true shortlist candidates.

THIS!!!! why does everyone keep believing these articles with anonymous sources? we literally do not know *anything* about this process. for all we know, there could've been 5 smoke screens.

Yeah, this lends credence to the "we're throwing out fake alternatives to the real candidate we chose weeks ago" theory.

Given how extensive the vetting has apparently been, I can't believe that Bidenworld could have missed these glaring weaknesses. These aren't even aspects of her private life, they're public statements!

In 2000, Gore's team pretended that John Kerry was the frontrunner, so that Lieberman would be a bigger surprise when he was picked. I'm almost certain that we're seeing a less co-ordinated version of that now.

Yep it will be duckworth

[The Other Castro]

Sounds like we're taking this right up to the convention.

https://twitter.com/sarahmucha/status/1290637804834365448

[Still Nervous]

Sounds like we're taking this right up to the convention.

https://twitter.com/sarahmucha/status/1290637804834365448

I mean, Garcetti isn't going to announce Biden's timeline and undercut when he will make the announcement; that's Biden's call. I think he's just saying that Biden will make the decision when he makes the decision lol.