I frequently want to take Dem leaders aside and make them write on a blackboard, 100 times, “John McCain will not be John Kerry’s running mate.” Dick Gephardt, himself a likely finalist for Kerry’s short list, was the latest to raise (and praise) the possibility, describing the Arizona Republican as a “very attractive figure in American politics” who “would be accepted by the Democratic Party.”
It will not happen; it’s past the point of giving up hope. All of this speculation is not only foolish, it’s irritating and will make the eventual running mate seem less exciting.
That said, part of me understands why the talk seems compelling. A Kerry-McCain ticket would have broad appeal. Unfortunately, a new CBS News poll, which I saw via Taegan Goddard, will do little to decrease the hype. In fact, it’ll likely make this lingering talk much worse.
Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry holds an eight-point lead over President George W. Bush among registered voters in the latest CBS News poll, 49% to 41%, but one of the names currently bandied about as a running mate for him – Republican Sen. John McCain – gives Kerry an even larger edge when added to the ticket.
McCain has continued to face questions about joining his fellow Vietnam veteran Kerry on a ticket, despite having insisted that he is not interested in doing so. America’s voters, meanwhile, do have interest in such a bi-partisan slate: a hypothetical Kerry/McCain pairing holds a 14-point advantage over President Bush and Vice-President Dick Cheney, nearly double the 8-point lead Kerry has alone over Bush.
I wish CBS hadn’t even asked the question. How many times must McCain say “I have absolutely ruled it out” and “under no circumstances” before this talk dies?
Besides, the Kerry/McCain poll data obscures the real story here: Kerry (without McCain) enjoys a surprisingly-large 8-point lead. At this point in the race, that’s tremendous.