Image from Team Coco
Matt Drudge managed to single-handedly change the subject of the national media conversation away from Mitt Romney’s tenure at Bain Capital for a few hours. The non-scoop: that former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was near the top of Romney’s short list to be his running mate.
It’s a great topic for water cooler discussion among political junkies and journalists. The problem is there isn’t a snowball’s chance in hell it will ever happen. Rice told 60 Minutes she was pro-choice, with reservations on some issues, which would be a dealbreaker for the pro-life conservative base in the GOP. One precedent to keep in mind:back in 2008, McCain’s original choice for running mate was pro-choice Democrat Joe Lieberman. That proposition was torpedoed because of fears of a revolt from social conservatives at the Republican convention. Here’s a good summary of Rice’s positions on hot-button issues. Also worth reading, check out this analysis by the New York Times of how a Rice VP pick would help or hurt Romney.
Despite her formidable intellect and experience in academia and government service, Rice has one glaring omission in her otherwise impressive resume and life story: she has never run for elected office, nor has she ever had any interest in being a candidate for anything.
Nate Silver runs through Romney’s possible options for a female running mate. The bottom line is there is not much for him to choose from that would satisfy the different GOP constituencies, appeal to swing voters, and can present a credible option to step into the role of president as necessary to avoid a repeat of the Sarah Palin debacle of 2008.
I’d have to agree with Silver’s closing assessment: Romney is likely to play it safe in terms of picking a running mate; or in the words of an unidentified Republican official, an “incredibly boring white guy.” The talk of Condoleezza Rice is just that – talk.
Icepicks and Nukes 