Why Jared Polis will be Harris's running mate in 2024

[Heebie Jeebie]

This argument presumes that Biden will both win this year and choose not to run in 2024, neither of which is certain.  Still...

If Harris is the nominee in 2024, she'll want to pick a non-threatening white guy for her running mate, primarily as an outreach to moderate swing voters.  Look up non-threatening in the dictionary and you'll find a picture of Jared Polis.  Plus, as the governor of a mid-size, growing state, he could add a fresh, outsider's face to the ticket.  At the same time, he has ten years of relevant Congressional experience as part of his resume'.  Even though Polis is non-threatening, he would still be a historic choice--he's Jewish, and he's gay.  As a bonus, imagine what a gay, Jewish presence on the ticket would do to Mike Pence and all the pseudo-fascists in the Republican base.  His presence would be a giant invitation for them to openly declare their ugliest tendencies.

No doubt about it.  Polis would be Harris's best choice.

[Ferguson97]

Roy Cooper

[Suburbia]

Roy Cooper, Southerner.

Polis has baggage that the GOP will use.

Roy Cooper, Sherrod Brown or some white male will be her VP pick.

For balance.

[Heebie Jeebie]

Roy Cooper would be 67 on election day 2024, 75 in 2032 when he'd be expected to top the ticket. He's too old to be a viable pick.

[Agonized-Statism]

Roy Cooper would be 67 on election day 2024, 75 in 2032 when he'd be expected to top the ticket. He's too old to be a viable pick.

No offense, but that's odd to hear coming from a Democrat right now.

[Vosem]

I like Polis far too much for him to ever make it in today's Democratic Party.

[It’s so Joever]

I swear to god if Polis is the veep I will consider voting GOP (depending on the candidate)
He’s done some good things, but he’s still too libertarian for me.

[Roronoa D. Law]

Nah if she gets the nomination in 2024 she will pick Casey.

[Hope For A New Era]

Andy Beshear is the perfect "nonthreatening white man" for Harris. A very popular governor of a solidly Republican state, despite governing as a generic D rather than a typical red-state "embarrassed Democrat." A southerner, so he'll help out in the party's "future states" - the combination of Kamala "second coming of Obama" Harris and Beshear's appeal to southern whites/ancestral Dems would be very powerful.

Jason Kander would have been even better if he had won in 2016, but apparently outperforming Clinton by 16 points just wasn't enough. I still blame the Comey letter.

[Heebie Jeebie]

Andy Beshear is the perfect "nonthreatening white man" for Harris. A very popular governor of a solidly Republican state, despite governing as a generic D rather than a typical red-state "embarrassed Democrat." A southerner, so he'll help out in the party's "future states" - the combination of Kamala "second coming of Obama" Harris and Beshear's appeal to southern whites/ancestral Dems would be very powerful.

Jason Kander would have been even better if he had won in 2016, but apparently outperforming Clinton by 16 points just wasn't enough. I still blame the Comey letter.

McConnell should be retiring in 2026 (he'll be 84!) and Beshear really needs to run for that open seat.

[Heebie Jeebie]

Nah if she gets the nomination in 2024 she will pick Casey.

And put his Senate seat at risk?  His seat is up in 2024, and he can't run for both veep and Senate.

[😥]

Andy Beshear, John Bel Edwards, Roy Cooper, Pete Buttigieg. They all are perfect choices, but Polis isn't

[Heebie Jeebie]

Andy Beshear, John Bel Edwards, Roy Cooper, Pete Buttigieg. They all are perfect choices, but Polis isn't

I already commented on Beshear and Cooper above, but on the other two: Edwards should challenge Kennedy in 2022.  He adds much more as a Senate candidate than as a veep candidate. And Buttigieg remains unqualified for the ticket, especially given the wealth of other, better options.

[TiltsAreUnderrated]

Jared "not sure about innocent until presumed guilty #metoo" Polis is not a conventional safe choice and Cooper would not be too old to be VP (Biden wasn't in 2008, when nominees were expected to be younger than they are now). What makes Polis appealing is that he has been a reasonably ambitious progressive reformer and where he is most safe is in not being too enthusiastic about long-term lockdowns (certain governors have really botched the job here without even cutting death rates that much - see Cuomo, who I still hope will receive the appropriate scrutiny if he ever runs for national office).

[Hope For A New Era]

Andy Beshear is the perfect "nonthreatening white man" for Harris. A very popular governor of a solidly Republican state, despite governing as a generic D rather than a typical red-state "embarrassed Democrat." A southerner, so he'll help out in the party's "future states" - the combination of Kamala "second coming of Obama" Harris and Beshear's appeal to southern whites/ancestral Dems would be very powerful.

Jason Kander would have been even better if he had won in 2016, but apparently outperforming Clinton by 16 points just wasn't enough. I still blame the Comey letter.

McConnell should be retiring in 2026 (he'll be 84!) and Beshear really needs to run for that open seat.

No, that's Rocky Adkins's seat.

I already commented on Beshear and Cooper above, but on the other two: Edwards should challenge Kennedy in 2022.  He adds much more as a Senate candidate than as a veep candidate. And Buttigieg remains unqualified for the ticket, especially given the wealth of other, better options.

wrong Edwards

[Heebie Jeebie]

Andy Beshear is the perfect "nonthreatening white man" for Harris. A very popular governor of a solidly Republican state, despite governing as a generic D rather than a typical red-state "embarrassed Democrat." A southerner, so he'll help out in the party's "future states" - the combination of Kamala "second coming of Obama" Harris and Beshear's appeal to southern whites/ancestral Dems would be very powerful.

Jason Kander would have been even better if he had won in 2016, but apparently outperforming Clinton by 16 points just wasn't enough. I still blame the Comey letter.

McConnell should be retiring in 2026 (he'll be 84!) and Beshear really needs to run for that open seat.

No, that's Rocky Adkins's seat.

I already commented on Beshear and Cooper above, but on the other two: Edwards should challenge Kennedy in 2022.  He adds much more as a Senate candidate than as a veep candidate. And Buttigieg remains unqualified for the ticket, especially given the wealth of other, better options.

wrong Edwards

  No, I think I mean John Bel Edwards.

[President Johnson]

If President Joe Biden declines to seek reelection and Kamala Harris is the Democratic nominee, I'd actually like to go all in with a female ticket and pick Gretchen Whitmer, assuming she wins a second term in Lansing. She helps in the Midwest, is white, seven years younger than Kamala and has executive experience. Polis is kinda bland aside from being the first openly gay governor. He's not even from a swing state. Other than that, Roy Cooper or Andy Beshear would be decent picks as well, assuming both are reelected. Or Conor Lamb, unless he was just elected senator in 2022.

If Mayor Pete becomes UN Ambassador under President Biden, President Harris should then hire him to be secretary of state rather than vice president.

[Heebie Jeebie]

If President Joe Biden declines to seek reelection and Kamala Harris is the Democratic nominee, I'd actually like to go all in with a female ticket and pick Gretchen Whitmer, assuming she wins a second term in Lansing. She helps in the Midwest, is white, seven years younger than Kamala and has executive experience. Polis is kinda bland aside from being the first openly gay governor. He's not even from a swing state. Other than that, Roy Cooper or Andy Beshear would be decent picks as well, assuming both are reelected. Or Conor Lamb, unless he was just elected senator in 2022.

If Mayor Pete becomes UN Ambassador under President Biden, President Harris should then hire him to be secretary of state rather than vice president.

Generally, I think it's a mistake to pick a running mate from a swing state or a red state.  If you're a successful Democrat in North Carolina or Kentucky or wherever, you're much more useful to both the party and the country  if you run for a Senate seat.  Whatever small good Cooper or Beshear might do as the veep nominee would be dwarfed by the massive good they would do making their states' Senate races competitive. 

[MarkD]

Are you really sure most voters, except the GOP base, would find Polis to be "non-threatening"? I would think that an openly gay politician might be a little threatening to a segment of the "moderate swing voters."

[KoopaDaQuick 🇵🇸]

Roy Cooper would be 67 on election day 2024, 75 in 2032 when he'd be expected to top the ticket. He's too old to be a viable pick.

Who said he had to run in 2032 in his own right?

[Heebie Jeebie]

Are you really sure most voters, except the GOP base, would find Polis to be "non-threatening"? I would think that an openly gay politician might be a little threatening to a segment of the "moderate swing voters."

I think I would have found that more concerning two years ago, but then Polis won Colorado, a super moderate state, quite handily, and his sexual orientation was barely a campaign issue at all.  And looking four years into the future, I can't imagine being gay will matter much to any actually winnable voters. 

[Heebie Jeebie]

Roy Cooper would be 67 on election day 2024, 75 in 2032 when he'd be expected to top the ticket. He's too old to be a viable pick.

Who said he had to run in 2032 in his own right?

That's the whole job of the vice president--be prepared to lead the country and the party if and when the sitting president can no longer do so. 

[KoopaDaQuick 🇵🇸]

Roy Cooper would be 67 on election day 2024, 75 in 2032 when he'd be expected to top the ticket. He's too old to be a viable pick.

Who said he had to run in 2032 in his own right?

That's the whole job of the vice president--be prepared to lead the country and the party if and when the sitting president can no longer do so. 

Well, yes. But just because you serve as vice doesn't mean you're obligated to run in an election in your own right afterwards. Go ask Dick Cheney.

[Heebie Jeebie]

Roy Cooper would be 67 on election day 2024, 75 in 2032 when he'd be expected to top the ticket. He's too old to be a viable pick.

Who said he had to run in 2032 in his own right?

That's the whole job of the vice president--be prepared to lead the country and the party if and when the sitting president can no longer do so. 

Well, yes. But just because you serve as vice doesn't mean you're obligated to run in an election in your own right afterwards. Go ask Dick Cheney.

Bush was a Washington novice and Cheney had decades of Washington insider experience and connections, so I can kind of understand how he was a reasonable pick back in 2000.  He was actually prepared to govern in a way that Bush wasn't.  Cooper would bring none of that to a Harris administration--his entire public career has been confined to North Carolina.  Choosing Cooper as a running mate would be an entirely political calculation, and not an especially good one at that.

To be clear, I like Cooper and I hope he continues to hold some future office once his governorship is over.  He's just not a good pick for the national ticket, especially when there are better options out there (Polis!). 

[Orwell]

Roy Cooper would be 67 on election day 2024, 75 in 2032 when he'd be expected to top the ticket. He's too old to be a viable pick.

Who said he had to run in 2032 in his own right?

That's the whole job of the vice president--be prepared to lead the country and the party if and when the sitting president can no longer do so. 

Well, yes. But just because you serve as vice doesn't mean you're obligated to run in an election in your own right afterwards. Go ask Dick Cheney.

Bush was a Washington novice and Cheney had decades of Washington insider experience and connections, so I can kind of understand how he was a reasonable pick back in 2000.  He was actually prepared to govern in a way that Bush wasn't.  Cooper would bring none of that to a Harris administration--his entire public career has been confined to North Carolina.  Choosing Cooper as a running mate would be an entirely political calculation, and not an especially good one at that.

To be clear, I like Cooper and I hope he continues to hold some future office once his governorship is over.  He's just not a good pick for the national ticket, especially when there are better options out there (Polis!). 

I'd like to point out Biden was picked under the assumption he wouldn't seek the Presidency much like Cheney.