Hillary Clinton Should Not Be Obama’s Running Mate

[Dr Ron]

http://liberalvaluesblog.com/?p=3357

Hillary Clinton Should Not Be Obama’s Running Mate

June 4th, 2008 by Ron Chusid

Hillary Clinton appears interested in running for vice president. Hopefully Obama does not allow this to happen. There are several reasons why Clinton would be a poor choice.

From a purely electoral perspective, Clinton does not offer very much. Many of the people who voted for Clinton over Obama are traditional Democratic voters who will vote for Obama now that he is the nominee. There are at least two states, New Jersey and California, where Clinton won the primary but Obama later moved ahead of Clinton in the polls, debunking the idea that Obama cannot do well in the states which Clinton won.

In terms of states, Clinton might be able to bring in Arkansas, but that is hardly certain. She very likely would be in a situation comparable to Gore in 2000 and Edwards in 2004 who were unable to win Tennessee and North Carolina. The benefits of having Clinton on the ticket as vice presidential candidate would be less significant than Gore running for president n 2000.

If looking at demographics instead of individual states, it is also unlikely that Clinton would help. Most of the usual Democratic voters will still vote for Obama. Part of Clinton’s support does come from social conservatives who are not interested in reform as supported by Obama and many of his supporters. It could be counterproductive to worry too much about such voters.

In recent years we have been seeing a realignment between the parties. The Democrats have been receiving new support from independents and disenchanted Republicans who oppose the war and social conservative positions of the Republicans since 2006. Placing a pro-war, anti-reform, social conservative such as Clinton on the ticket might pick up some Clinton supporters, but it risks alienating all the new voters the Democrats have been receiving. Clinton represents what Obama supporters want a change from.

Hillary Clinton also fails to help Obama with his weaknesses. A bizarre fact about this year’s Democratic race is that the three top tier candidates were the three with the least experience. Looking at real experience as opposed to proximity to power as first lady, Clinton has far less meaningful experience than Obama. This includes national security, with Clinton having exaggerated her involvement during Bill’s years in office when she did not even have security clearance. Besides limited experience, Clinton has showed poor judgment in her positions going from Hillary Care up to her support for a gas tax holiday. Obama would be better off seeking a running mate who has more experience, as long as he avoids someone who conflicts with his message of change.

While Clinton took the low road during the campaign, Obama took the high road. There were many types of attacks which Obama avoided but the Republicans will not hesitate to use should she be on the ticket. While Clinton attacked Obama based upon people he has associated with, Obama did not stoop to this level. Clinton’s old associates, not mentioned by Obama, do provide considerable ammunition for the Republicans.

Having Clinton on the ticket also means risking damage to the ticket from the antics of Bill Clinton. Actually Hillary Clinton herself might be even more dangerous to the ticket as the Republicans replay clips of her attacks on Obama. They will do it regardless of whether she is on the ticket, but this will be more damaging if she is running for vice president.

Besides making a poor running mate, Clinton would be a poor vice president. Her lack of experience would be a problem both as a candidate and as vice president. Her lack of integrity presents an even more serious problem for someone next in line to be president. We cannot totally ignore Clinton’s warnings about the dangers Obama might face.