Wesley Clark for VP!

The long delayed Wesley Clark for VP echo chamber has finally begun. On June 15, 2007, I made the first noise on the McLaughlin Group: "The Democratic presidential nominee, no matter who he or she may be, will choose General Wesley Clark as the vice presidential nominee." The first echo occurred today on Meet The Press when Bob Shrum said Barack Obama will pick someone with a military background "and I think Wes Clark might be it."

I'm not counting my own echo of myself in last week's New York Magazine where I laid out the rationale for Clark's inevitability -- Obama needs military experience on the ticket to counter McCain and, as a strong Hillary supporter, Clark provides something of a unity ticket for the Democrats.

The silly season of TV talk about Obama-Clinton, Clinton-Obama tickets is almost over. There was general agreement on Meet The Press today that Obama will consider military experience in choosing a VP. James Carville foolishly suggested Anthony Zinni and other politically untested generals. That will continue now that the conventional wisdom has settled on the military angle for VP. But no former general other than Wesley Clark will make it onto the short list in the end.

Yes, Clark was a bad campaigner in 2004. So was every other Democrat who lost the nomination to John Kerry. Clark has learned enough since then to survive a two-month, one-debate vice presidential campaign.

An Arkansas Democrat with a good smile, a great looking family, and career military experience -- that's what VP inevitability looks like. It seemed so obvious to me ten months ago that I rushed to get my prediction recorded before everyone else was saying it. Turns out I had more time than I thought.

Comments

[Pneumaticus]

Are you nuts?

[plutorage]

You missed only one factor, Larry. Wesley Clark is not a politician. He has never been elected to anything. That's important.

[vat6948]

Larry, are you trying out a new script? The "West Wing" has been cancelled. After eight Godawful years of war, why in the hell do we need a 4 star as V.P.? If Obama is going to bring CHANGE to this country, and government, the FIRST thing that needs fixing is; U.S. gun-boat diplomacy! Obama needs a V.P. who shares his beliefs, and has a record to match. Clark is a fine fellow, but he's not the one.
.

[findingthetruth]

Wesley Clark is to Hillary as Leiberman is to McCain. The ONLY reason Clark supports Hillary is because Hillary reached out to him FIRST. In the meantime----Clark is a supporter of Hillary now and definitely needs to continue because according to EARLIER interviews, the loyalty was weak.

[vegasobserver]

Clark will always be more loyal to the Clintons. He's a loyal Clinton soldier.. An original Clinton gang banger!

And since when is it important what the VP nominee or his family LOOK like? Are we running for president and VP of the Screen Actors Guild here, or Prez and VP of the USA???!!

[floydSmoot]

For political advice on all things superficial, you're our man Larry!

Keep up the good work. Next stop, TMZ!

[Mystery954]

Obama-Zinni will be the ticket.

[alwaysthere]

i still have my Clark2004 hat !

yes !!

[ResidentChimp]

I remember. It was made out of tinfoil.

[SemperVeritas]

Wesley was in the audience at the ABC "debate."

Hillary introduced Clark as "her" supporter.

Obama/Clark??? Mm, don't think so.

[realitybase]

You're right Clark is a Hillary supporter. If I were Obama, I would think I'd like someone from my own camp.

[stringer]

Oh my gosh. We're still doing this.

Here's one chief problem that probably even you can agree with on this Lawrence: you want your Vice President to be a likely presidential nominee when your (hopefully) 8 years in office are over.

Now I know you Clinton supporters aren't too big on what's best for the Democratic Party, but the rest of us are. Especially after Bush.

So we have to have a VP nominee that can run for President when this president (most likely Obama) is done in office.

That's just not Wesley Clark. He's proven he can't be a presidential nominee, even with a good staff. He just can't do it. I like him, but he can't.

Then there's his age. Look at the problems McCain's having with this stereotype (right or wrong.) Clark's 63 now. He'll be 64 by the time the next president's inagurated. So he'd be 72 by the time he could run himself? Sorry the math just doesn't work.

So again we have to say Jim Webb or Mark Warner or Tim Kaine or Bob Casey or Menendez or Sebelius or Richardson or Edwards (who probably wouldn't take it) or any of a dozen other better, younger candidates. If it's the military experience thing that bothers you than go with Webb.

[Rcoke]

Why not Huff herself?

[Rcoke]

YES! YES! YES! Wesley Clark is one of the great liberal minds of the Democrat Party and is one of the vessels for Liberal Gravitas. He will bring us together, a healer if you will. I hope to be opening soon a speakers bureau for this type of person of which there are only a precious few. The Group will be called Liberal Thought Leaders and these are expected to be on the List of Speakers who will be available to YOUR organization to explain the nuances of Liberal thought:

Gen. Wesley Clark
Janet Reno
Jimmie Carter
Michelle Obama
Eliot Sptizer
Kevin McGreevey
William Ayres
Bernie Dohrn
Susan Estrich
James Carville
Jesse Jackson

Watch for new site Liberal Thought Leaders!

[OtayPanky]

List of Speakers who will be available to YOUR organization to explain the nuances of Liberal thought:

RCoke writes:

Gen. Wesley Clark
Janet Reno
Jimmie Carter
Michelle Obama
Eliot Sptizer
Kevin McGreevey
William Ayres
Bernie Dohrn
Susan Estrich
James Carville
Jesse Jackson

===

I vote for Kevin McGreevey.

Brilliant post. Otay!!!

[BatedBreath]

oops,
I was assuming below that Clark would be the clinton's vp, not Obama's. I didn't make that clear.

[londubh]

I suggested that a long time ago before he decided to support Clinton. He'd make a good Secretary of State or Defense though.

[BatedBreath]

I've thought all along it would be Clark because of his military background and because he's a clinton friend whom they would trust.. But mostly, I think it's because he would be happy playing 3rd wheel behind WJ, a position not very many men would be happy filling.

However, I'm beginning to think it might be Harold Ford. I'm curious to know if that would appease African American Obama supporters. Anyone out there care to comment?

[dglow]

I like Clark, but Obama will choose Bill Richardson as his running mate. To overcome the corrupted voting machines that will count the votes for President McCain, Obama needs an overwhelming turnout in November to make McCain's "victory" totally implausible. He needs someone to draw the progressive, anti-war Dems out to vote. Right now, many of them are very disenchanted with the Dems for helping to fund the Iraq occupation, and are threatening to support Nader or McKinney. Richardson is a someone who believes strongly in bringing the troops home NOW. He also has a lot of diplomatic experience, able to negotiate through the anti-Americanism in the world community. And of course, Richardson will bring Hispanics to the polls in record numbers. Voila! The White House turns BLUE!

[Arleang]

If Clinton is the nominee, nothing will appease black Americans if the contest is decided by something other than the delegate count.

And, by the way, Wesley Clark as VP would not be acceptable to me as an Obama supporter although he might be useful in another position.

Who else would make a good VP running with Obama? I certainly do NOT believe it should be a military man. If you have a president (Obama) who seeks out opposing opinions, does not base decisions on ideology, you are apt to get the best military advice. The President makes the decisions, not the military. Nor will the military get blamed for the decisions.

[RedBirdy]

Arleang, please don't speak for all black people. Anyone who knows DNC rules, and history and common sense, knows this race can't be decided with pledged delegates alone. Neither candidate will reach the magic number. Super delegates and other factors will have to pick a nominee. This whole "Obama has to be the nominee or he's being gyped" is ridiculous. Wesley Clark ran for president in '04, and I wish he'd won the nomination. He'd make a fin VP for any nominee. Clinton or Obama.

[gotalife]

A great choice in a time of war .

A proven winner.

Clinton/Clark.

[Myshkin57]

If somehow Clinton got th nomination, Clark would be a horrible choice. One thing that VP candidates are almost always picked for is the ability to deliver a state that the presidential candidate cannot deliver on his or her own. I don't think adding Clark would make it more likely for her to get Arkansas than her being on the ticket alone.

He might be a decent VP for Obama, but I think Obama would be better served by picking a strong woman, other than Hillary. Military experience is probably a bit over-rated. Military commanders work on tactics and strategy, not policy. The job of the executive branch is to have foreign policy objectives. It is the military's job to carry out some of the logistically necessary actions. Being a good strategist or tactician does not indicate being a good policy maker.

[BatedBreath]

Clark is a good friend of the Clintons and a big Clinton supporter. I doubt Obama would want him, or that Clark would be interested. Jim Webb would be better if Obama were going to choose a military man. Those are my thoughts, anyway.

[Oldtt]

That ticket would feature two 1st term neophyte Senators, although Webb served as Navy Secretary.

[robgo2]

Wesley Clark is smart and personable, but he is also a loyal Clintonista. Having him on the ticket will be a constanst reminder that "old" politics is still alive and well and just waiting for a chance to reassert its dominance over the Democratic Party. I would much prefer Jim Webb or Chris Dodd to Clark.

[adzeman]

I favor the choice of Barack Obama when he makes it. I suspect the ambitious Clark hitched his wagon to a swaybacked philly.

[britethere]

HUH? Hasn 't Clark been out there campaigning for Hillary? Guess he thought he had a clead path to a VP or big job with the Clinton Administration. Sorry....no way...too bad....bye bye Bosnia Billary and her minions.

[transparent]

I think he's going to choose a Republican. I used to think it would be Colin Powell since he is remorseful for his participation in the Iraq invasion, but since he can now be shown in the room while planning torture, I'm goin with Chuck Hagel.

[gatster]

The article is an example of the kind of old politics reasoning used by too many people when speculating on VP possibilities for Obama and this type of reasoning completely misses the point and shows a lack of understanding of the real meaning of Obama's candidacy. Obama simply cannot choose a VP who does not share his vision of bringing old style politics to an end otherwise we will return to politics as usual when Obama's two terms as president have expired. He has to pick someone who can carry his legacy forward. That is not likely to be any old school politician (Biden, Richardson, Nunn, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera). Even the old school politicians who support Obama are poor choices as VP because although they "get" what he's trying to do, they're too steeped in the Washington system to bring about change. The most important thing for Obama to consider when choosing a VP is to pick someone who is as much of a change agent as he is. Someone who really shares his mind on matters. That's not Jim Webb. It's not Wes Clark or else Wes Clark would be supporting Obama instead of Clinton. I think it has to be someone from out of the beltway. Also, as I've looked at Obama's campaign, it's run very methodically. I honestly believe that he's already made his pick, unlike McCain or Clinton.

[Oldtt]

How about Bill Bradley or Ralph Nader? That ticket would really be visionary.

[northcan]

Wesley Clark for V.P? This guy is a dud....Him and Clinton...in the 90's facing 'Human Rights" and "War Crimes" abuse of power in the Bosnia "wag the dog" thing in the 90's for many civilian death's in a war that should not have happened. Another mistake like "Waco Wacko" Wesley Clark with his brute assault with tanks toward innocent civilians. This was a Hillary / Bill / Reno / Ann Richardson / Wesley Clark atrocity. .... that should not have happened. This was same guy stroking Al Gore for the Job if he got in in 2000.

Bill Ayres "Weatherman Underground", Not a big deal when you look back. Police Brutality and FBI involvement when groups were beaten and many killed. The Vietnam War.. was a very difficult time for youth, some like Bill Clinton, escaped it by defrauding government on student visa program. Many kids came to Canada. My parent's would take them in. My father a WW11 vet. ,
The irony is Hillary Clinton fresh out of law school defended as a junior lawyer at a firm....'Black Panther" member's, so did Maxine Waters. Young Adults at that time were pushing against establishment all over the world. Canada also. A bit hypocritical, especially with the Yale Groups in support of these SDS, New Liberal type groups. Bill Ayres was not convicted, his wife was I think...but this was the 'atmosphere ' all over america including Hillary, plus many other Senators and Congressman.

[Bulbul]

Did you just forget Clark is a loyal Hillary Clinton supporter ?

[Noelle]

Hmm...

Military man or economic populist? With Jim Webb you get both. As an added bonus, he is battle tested against the right-wing, delivers Virginia and scares the crap out of neocons.

Obama/Webb08

[Oldtt]

That ticket might work if the head of the ticket had a lot more experience in government. By November 08, Obama and Webb would share exactly one Senate term between both of them combined. This would neutralize the Dem argument that McCain is too old for all but younger voters because McCain would seem like the only person in the race with any real experience.

[Noelle]

No experience? Webb was Secretary Of The Navy under Reagan.

[AnAmericanWoman]

Seems many people are forgetting something very important: This year the female voters outway that of the white male! Though I hate to speak in terms of color, mind you, it is a no brainer tath Barack Obama will win with a woman governor.
WHY do you think this country will only accept a white man on the ticket with Obama. Still thinking race are we? WHite men have ran this nation from the beginning of our birth!
The winning ticket. according to those feisty women who are backing Hillary - will vote happily for a woman governor with integrity!
It's a woman that will be VP! If not, It will be John Edwards.
We could care less about a military veteran, this election is about CHANGE!
Bet you a dollar that it's Sebelius!

[KMKY]

Haven't we already seen this article (or something very similar) here? Wesley Clark is a Hillary Clinton supporter--he was tapped (in strategic circles) to be her VP last year; it would have been a powerful ticket. Jim Webb is a senator; the last time Dems won with a two-senator ticket was in 1964 (that's somewhat misleading since LBJ was the imcumbent, but in 1960, it was also a two-senator ticket).