The Biden Express
- Thread starter Whanztastic
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Well, he represents a good balance for Biden, I think. Perpich comes from the same constituency (white, blue collar) as Biden, but represents a different area of the country, being a Washington outsider as well. Also, the Perpich Supreme Court case I reference is a good chance to stick it into the eye of the Reagan Administration. Furthermore, I've never seen him in a TL and variety never hurt.
No worries. I hadn't before my search for Biden's VP as well.
Hmm... good point.
Thank you!
I've come across it but I haven't read the whole work. The style sort of hid the substance for me. I am delaying some later writing until I can get Biden's biography an autobiography to better understand what he'd want to do if in office.
Basically the '88 Dem ticket is reversed, in a sense. The POTUS candidate is a rather respected Senator from inside the Beltway; the VP candidate is a rather successful Governor, first generation American, and a little on the technocrat side.
I think '88 is plenty late for being of direct immigrant descent to not be directly hurtful; he doesn't have an accent or anything. Honestly, son a miner becomes a Governor is hard story to be against.
I'm glad you mentioned it. In all likelihood, yes, Quayle is butterflied. It was a pick which perplexed pundits at the time. The Bush campaign was rather secretive about the pick. They held off until the convention, which is rather odd.
Any suggestion/ideas who it might be?
My first instinct was Bob Dole but after 1976, I'm not sure he's a possibility.
Maybe Jack Kemp, Dole's 1996 choice? He was a long-time congressman already and had been in the primaries with them, and Bush did put him in his cabinet, so it's reasonable to assume he either liked the guy or hated him. He's also more conservative if I recall, so ideology and all. And he's from the typically liberal New York, so regional diversity, too.
I can't see him picking the more-conservative Pat Robertson or Pat Buchanan because I don't think Bush cared as much about the evangelical vote in 1988 as 1992. Obviously conservative family values and such, but not the directly Christian elements.
I don't think Bob Dole would be willing to play 2nd Banana again, plus the bad blood between the two sealed it. Pat Robertson is too dangerous to be put anywhere in the line of succession, so no to him too.
If you still want Bush to surprise people, have him pull an Al Gore and choose Ron Paul. He would be a rather good analog to Lieberman, outspokenly against the sitting popular president, appeals to nonstandard voters, and has the chance of backfiring spectacularly like Lieberman.
Dole and Bush... eee.
Good analysis. Kemp would be interesting, but perhaps a play to the supply-siders undercuts his financial discipline argument. Also, it may be seen as a play too close to the Reaganomics he so hates.
Robertson was a bigger factor in the '88 election than history books admit, but not too big. Buchanan is still rather fresh form the Reagan years, and honestly picking him would not be... prudent.
And yes, GHW Bush had/has little care for the Christian Right, unless he needed the votes.
David Durenberger.
Maybe Buz Lukens.
Nah, nobody self destructive/obscure-ish. Nice try though.
Ron Paul, eh? I think he had a different role in '88...
I'm sorry but I'm not sure what you are getting at.
Stolengood
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I was under the impression, however false, that Bush would pick Quayle regardless of butterflies; apparently, I thought, due to the thread I linked you to (which had Iran-Contra leaking a month early and leading to Gary Hart becoming President), that Quayle's Veep nomination was unbutterfliable.
Ah, I think the link I got was just to one specific post. I've read the TL. I enjoy it but Quayle is butterfly-able.
If that is what you want Sununu might fit the bill too.
I thought might want a legislator over an executive figure, given, as the Vice President, he has quite a bit of experience in that area, while his time in Congress has been rather brief. That doesn't discount the choice, but I believe the other two would provide stronger benefits.
Challenge accepted.
Really good argument.
Still, we know the TL wants Biden to win, so picking the best VP candidate possible may not be in the cards.
I can see Bush's team possibly re-using the ad Laughter ad that Humphrey's team used in '68' against Agnew
If Bush is up for the whole 'co-presidency' thingHmmmm... why not Gerald Ford?
Perpich is an interesting choice, and, given Biden's personality, even a plausible one. One interesting side-effect is that this makes '88 yet another stick-in-the-eye election to the DLC. Since you've previewed that Biden wins, that will likely cause mainstream Dems to reject the premise that they need to move drastically to the right on capital punishment, guns, entitlement reform.
If the DLC wing stays relegated to minority status within the party, that means you might get Bill Clinton as a VP candidate but not a nominee. On the other hand, I could see Gore drifting leftward earlier if he thinks the DLC is a sinking ship.
Perhaps that portends a future Gore-Clinton ticket??
On Bush: while I think Quayle is butterfly-able, I think Bush and Atwater will still prioritize the two factors that led to Quayle: (1) someone with impeccable culturally conservative credentials and (2) someone with relative youth and (perceived) charisma.
The problem is that the Republican bench in '88 is pretty old; it was difficult to be a "rising star" in the GOP in the 80s because Reagan sucked all the oxygen out of the room.
If the DLC wing stays relegated to minority status within the party, that means you might get Bill Clinton as a VP candidate but not a nominee. On the other hand, I could see Gore drifting leftward earlier if he thinks the DLC is a sinking ship.
Perhaps that portends a future Gore-Clinton ticket??
On Bush: while I think Quayle is butterfly-able, I think Bush and Atwater will still prioritize the two factors that led to Quayle: (1) someone with impeccable culturally conservative credentials and (2) someone with relative youth and (perceived) charisma.
The problem is that the Republican bench in '88 is pretty old; it was difficult to be a "rising star" in the GOP in the 80s because Reagan sucked all the oxygen out of the room.
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