Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Wednesday, August 20
Talked to more people today who are knowledgeable, in one way or another, about the McCain camp. I run past them what I heard yesterday, that is, if McCain knew ahead of time that he was going to win, then he would definitely pick Lieberman or Ridge. People pretty much agree.
Given that, I ask whether there's any difference to McCain between Lieberman and Ridge. Yes, one guy has an 80 ADA rating, I'm told. That's a reference to Lieberman's lifetime liberal rating from the Americans for Democratic Action. (As it turns out, Lieberman's actual lifetime ADA rating is just 77 — practically a conservative!) Just think of all those issues — pretty much every single domestic issue — on which Lieberman and McCain have voted on opposite sides. "I just don't know how you square the philosophical differences," one insider tells me. Why not just make Lieberman Secretary of Defense instead?
Choosing Ridge, on the other hand, might give McCain some of that maverick feeling without the problems of Lieberman. Ridge is, after all, the guy who doesn't have the 80 ADA rating, and he's a Vietnam veteran, to boot. Others just don't see any benefit to choosing Ridge, although they believe there is a faction within the McCain camp that is weighing closely whether Ridge might help deliver Pennsylvania to McCain, which would be a hell of a lot more tangible benefit than any good feelings that might result from choosing a Democrat.
On the other hand, someone else asks, why are we hearing so much about Ridge now? Just when did he enter the mix seriously? It's hard to pinpoint, but I am reminded that Ridge was vetted as a possible running mate for Bob Dole in 1996. People focus on his record on abortion now, the insiders say, but his whole record in Congress was more liberal than most of the House GOP.
In 1988, his American Conservative Union rating was 36; in 1987, it was 19.
Later, Ridge's rating went into the 50s and 60s, with the occasional rating above 70. But the point is there could be plenty of conservative unhappiness with Ridge even without the abortion issue. If McCain picks Ridge, I am told, it will be because he likes him personally and believes Ridge can win Pennsylvania.
On Lieberman, I talk to people about the value of sticking with one's team in politics. I have never worked for a campaign or for an officeholder or in the government or anything like that, but it seems to me that when you get down to the most fundamental level of politics, no matter how bipartisan you are, you have to stick with your team. For example, you can be an aisle-crossing senator all you want, but when it comes time to organize the Senate every two years, you're expected to vote for your team's guy. You just are. It seems to me that choosing a running mate on a presidential ticket is one of those occasions. Some of the people in the McCain circle agree with that, but there is some question about how much the inner circle — the ones who are actually helping McCain choose a running mate — share that opinion. Some of them have come up through activist Republican party politics, but others haven't, and they might not fully appreciate the intensity of feeling that choosing a Democrat would arouse among many Republicans.
How about an on-the-record source? I call Katon Dawson, head of the South Carolina Republican party. Has he gotten any feelers from Team McCain, asking him what reaction the base might have to a Lieberman or Ridge pick? Dawson says he hasn't heard anything from the McCain campaign. But he has some fairly strong feelings about the vice-presidential issue.
"I'm firmly in the pro-life camp," Dawson tells me. "I'm a platform kind of guy. And I would encourage the McCain camp to be cognizant of [the pro-life position] for the base and especially for the people who are doing the get-out-the-vote work for us."
Does that mean he would firmly oppose Lieberman or Ridge? "I wouldn't personalize," Dawson says. "But it's one of the fundamental foundations of the party. I would encourage the McCain camp to be aware of who we're going to have working in the vineyards. I understand it's probably sexy to look at other alternatives and see what they bring to the table, but at the same time, I'm a business guy, and we're talking about customersŠYou've got to have volunteers, and the vice presidential pick will be crucial."
Dawson tells me that enthusiasm for McCain has been growing of late — "we're having volunteers coming out of the woodwork." But that could change. "I would hate to see anything dampen that," Dawson says. And he tells me he remains optimistic that McCain will choose a running mate who will make the base happy. "I have my fingers crossed," he says.
08/20 03:00 PM
