There have been some great articles about this written lately and I don’t think they’re getting enough recognition. The first one comes to us from the U.S. News and is an opinion piece written by Bonnie Erbe on the 11th. Some of my favorite parts (all bolding mine):
Imagine the two agree, instead, to join forces on the Democratic ticket. If there were to be a compromise between the two candidates (my thoughts are on the basis of age), Clinton should be given preference.
But for that preference, she would also have to give up a substantial amount of power.
Since she is 60 now and will be 61 in October, if she were to agree to serve as Obama’s vice president, she would most likely be 68 by the time she would be able to again run for president, assuming two successful White House terms by Obama. He, on the other hand, at 46 now, would be 47 when he became vice president with Senator Clinton at the top of the ticket. Assuming the win of a second term for the team, Obama would be only 54 when he would start his next run for president.
A reasonable price for his agreement to serve as veep would be Clinton’s pledge to run for just one term and give Obama (as vice president) responsibility for some major issue, as she was given control over universal healthcare during her husband’s presidency (and with better results, one would hope).
On the other hand, if the two don’t make amends, each stands to turn off important parts of the Democratic constituency (she: African-Americans and young Democrats; he: older white women and blue-collar workers). And then no one wins.
That last sentence is something I honestly worry about. If this gets to convention and they have to make a choice between one or the other, it could ensure a Republican win. On the other hand, there’s still a chance for them to make up by that time. Our second article is from the Reflector and was penned by Andy Anderson on the 12th. While similar to the first article, it adds some more depth, in my opinion.
The longevity of the campaign also comes into play. The longer the two continue to compete, the higher the chances of the two finishing together. Both of them know this. And that is the reason neither will concede the race. It will all come down to the convention, and the stage will be set for either candidate (or both) to step up and begin the healing process in America. The key here is that if either wins, they want to appeal to the other’s base, and what better way to do that than to put their opponent on the ticket?
So, why are so many people skeptical about the idea? Why are the pundits painting them to be too greedy to share the ticket? It’s simple. Most are afraid there has been too much bloodshed for the two to kiss and make up. But bitter primary opponents have forgiven and forgotten before. John F. Kennedy, who is constantly being compared to Obama in this race, eventually embraced Lyndon B. Johnson despite their differences. And Reagan, who is also constantly making headlines for the GOP, made peace with daddy Bush despite their war in the primaries.
So, is it really possible? Could it really happen? Yes, it can, and a dream team ticket for the Democrats could prove to be a nightmare for the Republicans.
So, for all the media’s saying that it’s just not possible, it’s happened in the past. I just hope both candidates wake up here soon and realize that it’s hard to spread a message of hope and dreams and everything else, if you refuse to join forces to guarantee you get that opportunity.
One last thing, as I mentioned in my blog post here, almost no one seems to care about science, and there has been another article written about it:
However, the fact that more than 12,000 scientists have signed onto the effort, along with prestigious organizations such as the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering & Medicine and the Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), shows how serious some researchers are about elevating the profile of science in this election. “It’s hard to get 12,000 scientists to agree on anything,” says Alan Leschner, chief of AAAS and former director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse. “But science is the biggest issue facing modern society, and we are concerned that only one candidate—Hillary Clinton—has so far devoted any energy to science.”
Just sayin’.
