Biden Complicates McCain's Veep Calculus

Dem's strengths expose key gaps in armor of Republican's rumored short-listers
Posted Aug 27, 2008 11:55 AM CDT
Biden Complicates McCain's Veep Calculus
Barack Obama and his vice presidential running mate Sen. Joe Biden outside the Old State Capitol, Aug. 23, 2008, in Springfield, Ill.    (AP Photo, file)

Joe Biden presents a problem for John McCain, Jeanne Cummings notes on Politico. “McCain knows Biden well," says one Republican insider. "He knows how good he is as a knife fighter." Stacked up against Biden, all of the rumored GOP short-listers reveal potentially fatal flaws:  

  • Mitt Romney: Considering Biden's middle-class roots, the multimillionaire former governor could undermine McCain's claims of Obama elitism.

  • Gov. Tim Pawlenty: Though happy to parrot McCain's talking points, the younger Minnesotan can't match Biden's experience in foreign affairs and partisan debate.
  • Tom Ridge: The former Homeland Security chief, and Pennsylvania governor, supports abortion rights—a stance that could overshadow his national security cred with hardcore conservatives.
  • Sen. Joseph Lieberman: The Connecticut independent and McCain are close, but Lieberman's Democratic past will alienate Republicans.   

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