The ball is in the Republicans' court at this point and WWC support doesn't mean as much as it would twenty years later- zenith of neoliberalism and all that- but Cheney alone is like John McCain with somehow even less appeal. Not unpopular at this point, and clearly liked enough to win the nomination here, but just bland and without whatever folksy charm or compassion the religious right, WWC, and moderates saw in Bush. Biden, the Republican whisperer, wins as a continuation of that time's winning formula- Clintonian Republican Lite triangulation. Curious why Gore wouldn't run though- if it's a scandal, that could change things. Not to mention that Nader and the long-term Democrat collapse in the Mountain West, Appalachia, and the South over the party's embrace of environmentalism and social liberalism would still be a drag on Biden no matter how rightward he pivots, so no West Virginia. Missouri is close but Danforth pulls it out for Cheney.
Senator Joe Biden (D-DE) / Senator John Edwards (D-NC)
Fmr. Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney (R-TX) / Fmr. Senator John Danforth (R-MO)
