Dream Ticket

Starting right out of the gate I''ll say I think this is no more than a media pipe dream. Pretty much something to talk about to fill time. There are no good reasons for it and a lot of good reasons for neither getting involved. Start with the question of what does the other bring as VP?

In Hillary's case, contacts, mostly old, dated and potentially progressively hazardous. The big money contacts would follow the winner, regardless. Hilary's voter demographics don't encourage the idea, these are people who will vote Democratic with Obama at the head. She doesn't bring any real impressive foreign policy chops or contacts, eight years is a long time in international politics (much less considering the vaporous nature of her claims). In a run against doddering John she has no national security claims that would bring anyone away from the septugentarian. Her presence on the ticket would do nothing to encourage the voter groups that Obama has brought on board to more political activism. Her relations with the press are already uncomfortable, more due to her complaints and attitudes than any actual press anathema. What Hillary would bring is the Hillaryhate, some irrational and some with some basis - that is not useful. If gender is some kind of consideration, there are a quite a few other women. There is little advantage in it for Hillary, eight years from now she is eight years older and reaching an age unfriendly to a candidate. (see dodderer) An Obama/Clinton loss in 08 would not be a reason to bring either back in 2012, the amount of blame accruing from such a thing would amount to a firestorm.

For Obama as VP there is a little more to be considered. There is little reason to think he can bring along the new Democratic voters as second fiddle. He could certainly ask, but making the case to these folks is highly doubtful. These are the babies that need nurturing, they will easily get political indigestion. After serving as VP no one would be able to make negative claims about his experience. There certainly would be an element of Hillary looking magnanimous, but that is pretty immaterial. There is honestly an open question on whether Obama would actually bring voters Hillary couldn't get without him and by her own attacks she sees nothing useful in his presence in the Executive Office, certainly not at 3:00AM. His oratorical skills are superior to hers, but useful only in separate settings, you certainly cannot have the candidate being upstaged. Hillary's authoritarian style would definitely cause chafing for Obama in the Executive Office. Hillary gains little and risks a disaffected VP, a marriage made in hell. Besides, what would she do with the Bill?

Honestly, why does this sound like a good idea much less the "Dream Ticket"? Talk of Party unity is nonsense, they're running against John McCain and George W Bush not Ronnie. This ticket idea would be upstaged by a couple chants of, "four more years."