Barack: Tell Me About Your Peeps.

Senator Obama claims that he represents a new kind of politics - that he is a uniter, that he can bring people together and that he will bring a fresh, new approach to Washington politics.

I'd like to see some proof.

I want to see a "wow" move - a move that goes against the grain of politics as usual, I'd like to see him make a decision that is bold and at the same time, gives me more insight into the kind of president he will be.

I also feel that the race between them is so close - in my mind and in the minds of many - that we need and deserve a greater level of specificity.

So here's my idea. It's a big idea. Barack should hold a press conference. He should acknowledge that people are hungry for more details. He should then, in a bold and risky move, name his first choice running mate. Adding to that, he should name a few key people he has in mind for key cabinet positions.

Al Gore and Dick Cheney have changed the nature of the role of a Vice President in a profound way. The role has power in a way it never did before. Vice Presidents are no longer understudies at state funerals. They spearhead initiatives and, in the case of Dick Cheney, they can be given the authority to just do everything.

Why should the selection of a running mate be an afterthought? Especially in light of the growing role a VP will play. I actually think it's important information that is withheld until after I have to cast my ballot. It doesn't seem right anymore.

There are undoubtedly dozens of reasons this won't fly. First of course there is the issue that each candidate may consider the other as a running mate. That's OK - just tell me that. The deal does not have to be struck. I just want to know who they will ask first and who might be second or third.

Then I'd like to see a few names for Secretary of State and / or Attorney General. You know they both have lists already.

I'm not really asking for much. I am looking for evidence to support a claim that he will bring a new approach to Washington. Why should I have to take a leap of faith? He can make a bold move and give me some insight.

In a business as usual environment, my idea is far fetched at best. But in a fresh approach to politics, in a clear indication that he is looking ahead and not backwards, Obama could tell me about his peeps. It would be a sure fire way to ensure that I too became one of his peeps on Tuesday.

Comments

[DevoPro]

Joan. Thank you! I was whining about just this same thing, in terms of both candidates among friends and colleagues just yesterday.

I was an Edwards supporter who is now undecided. All this talk, yelling and mumbling about "change". What change? They both manage to include the word in every sentence like Giuliani includes 9/11. It's empty and meaningless because neither has put any "meat on the bones" of their claims of change.

Trying to compare economic stimulus or health care plans or their views on the war going forward is just silly. The fact is, yes, both would be a big change from the tyranny we are leaving behind next January. However, neither is very different from the other on most issues, nor are they bringing radical change to the democratic party. While, at the same time a woman and a black man are making history in America.

Now who to vote for? hmmm. I still don't know.

[altohone]

I think you got some good answers to your request here in the comments Joan.

Asking for a list would be new, but not better.
I don't normally agree with vbond, but he/she spells it out.

Other comments that point to some proof are also good, but wanting solid assurances is understandable though impossible.

[LordGrowing]

Peeps?!

Really?

Can he also tell us who let the dogs out?

[vox1]

Okay, maybe you are baiting people and I should resist... but "your peeps"? This is as irritating as when white people greet my (black) children, palms out, and say "Gimme five", like we're all living in an episode of "Good Times" or "The Jeffersons". Just quit it!

[jhamm1]

I'd prefer a leap of faith as opposed to a leap into certain disaster.

Hillary's impending appointment of Madeline Albright among others insures that the former first-lady-turned-senator is up to no good.

[BUSHsurvivor]

Isn't it obvious...Oprah is his choice for VP.

[AsaNisMasa]

Obama/Richardson is the ticket to win it. You've got the fresh face and a guy who has more experience working with diplomacy than most of the other candidates combined and can deliver the Latino vote.

Richardson would be vital in helping restore America's image abroad and helping to bring a coalition of nations together to undue the damage of a Bush presidency.

You then make John Edwards your AG.
How about Wesley Clark for your Secretary of Defense?

[vbond]

I think that this is a great idea, but completely impractical.

Think about it.

He can only do this if he has asked and gotten the commitment for each position he announces.

I have thought about this every way to Sunday, and I see no other way.

The immediate problem with this is that this process would inherently suppress acceptances, except for those who already know that they will not serve in a Clinton administration.

You could hardly expect serious people to risk precluding an invitation to serve from Hillary by doing this.

The reason that they must commit now is that it would be incredibly irresponsible of Obama to announce a list of first choices without knowing that they have accepted.

To do otherwise is to consign possible second choices to "Junior Varsity" status. Also, some people would be multiple first choices for different positions, or first choices for some job(s) and second choices for others.

It wouldn't be a very savvy thing for him to do.

I have a list, which I will publish in a later post, of those that I think he might invite, but I never expect to hear such a list from him.

Make sense?

[BitJam]

Read in the Washington Post about how he put his heart and soul behind a law to stop police beatings of suspects in custody. The first law of its kind in our nation that got passed because Obama could reach across party lines:

Judge Him by His Laws

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/03/AR2008010303303.html

Or read in the New Yorker about how his skills as a listener have enabled him to get diverse groups of people to give him their trust even if they don't always agree with him:

Where is Barack Obama coming from?

http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2007/05/07/070507fa_fact_macfarquhar?printable=true

Or read about his early years doing community organizing in one of the toughest areas of our nation:

Where Obama got his charisma

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080111.wobama-cover12/BNStory/Front/?pageRequested=all