The Veepstakes

Here we go: within about two days, we'll know who Kamala Harris is naming as her running mate. The candidates are, apparently, Gov. Andy Beshear (D-KY), Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ), Gov. Josh Shapiro (D-PA), and Gov. Tim Walz (DFL-MN). Note that those names are in alphabetical order. I do not have a personal favorite among them.

A couple of weeks ago, I saw both letters to the NY Times (gift link) and posts on Facebook supporting the notion that Harris should choose a Republican as her running mate. The names I saw included Liz Cheney, Adam Kinzinger, Lisa Murkowski, Larry Hogan, and Mitt Romney.

And what I have to say to my fellow Democrats is: Get a grip. And after you have gotten a grip, take a look at the platforms each of those people espoused during their political careers. They are Republicans through and through; anti-abortion, pro-military, anti-Voting Rights Act, anti-transgender rights, anti-diversity, anti-social spending, and on and on. You really don't want someone with those politics one illness, accident, or assassination from the presidency, not if you're a Democrat. Just stop with fantasies of some kind of bipartisan unity ticket.

I get that there are things to appreciate, and even admire, about each of them. Kinzinger and Cheney gave up their political careers because they recognized that January 6, 2021 was an attempted coup and they recognized that Donald Trump is a danger to democracy and to the whole world. That took guts, and yes, I do admire them for it. I'm grateful to them, even. It's good that there are a few Republicans who publicly recognize just how bad Trump is and the lengths to which he is willing to go. 

Romney has roughly half a spine, and it's true that he has done a few good things, including the universal health bill he signed when he was governor of Massachusetts. I own that Hogan and Murkowski are to the left of the others, but none of them are Democrats and they don't share the values of the  Democratic Party. We should never, ever, offer them the vice presidency or do anything to help them get elected to public office.