McCain’s Next Pick for Veep

The likelihood the Gov. Sarah Palin will remain on the McCain ticket is declining daily. Republicans at the GOP Convention are adamant in their denials that her candidacy is in trouble, but the revelations about her past just keep on coming. “New” media and “Old” media alike are spinning off stories faster than the campaign can deny them.

The latest tidbit, that then-Mayor Palin attempted to fire the town librarian for refusing to remove books from the library shelves (she failed to terminate the librarian because of public backlash) oozed onto the scene on Tuesday.  On Monday we learned about her association with the Alaska Independence Party, a group with some “interesting” viewpoints.

The McCain campaign is now in total damage control mode.  A team of political veterans has been sent to Alaska to complete the vetting process.   It now has been disclosed that Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin was not subjected to a lengthy in-person background interview with the head of  the vice presidential vetting team until last Wednesday in Arizona , the day before McCain asked her to be his running mate.

 Palin was one of two finalists in the vice presidential sweepstakes who were questioned by former White House counsel Arthur B. Culvahouse Jr before McCain introduced her to the nation as his choice. The other finalist was Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty.

 Since Sunday night, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has been holed up in her suite in the Hilton Minneapolis while a parade of McCain advisers have briefed her on his policy positions, national politics and, above all, how to introduce herself to the national audience she will address Wednesday night at the Republican convention.

 Not anticipating that McCain would choose a woman as his running mate, the speech that was prepared in advance was “very masculine,” according to a campaign manager, and “we had to start from scratch.”  The original speech was to filled with attacks on the candidacy of Barack Obama that had to be set aside in the wake of the controversies surrounding her selection.

 In an effort to prevent any more gaffs, the McCain campaign is choreographing Palin’s public introduction with extreme caution. Except for an interview with People magazine last week, she has not taken a single question from a reporter, and it remains unclear when she will speak to the national news media.

 There are already pools (http://www.talkleft.com/story/2008/9/1/22315/12172) or odds http://www.intrade.com/ on her survival with the slate.  The Huffington Post published a blog that included a petition to the McCain campaign to please keep her on the ticket as the best possible candidate to help Obama’s candidacy.

Regardless of the final outcome, the McCain ship continues to leak badly as staffers, aghast at the candidate’s unpredictable actions, are the real source of many of the leaks about Gov. Palin’s background.  The Alaska Governor has seemingly energized the social conservatives in the GOP and McCain may yet choose to stick with his hastily made decision.  Regardless of his choice, it should be pointed out that, when it comes to executive decision making at the level of actually running a campaign, McCain has revealed poor judgment in handling this choice.

 So, now as to the question “if not Gov. Palin, then who”? My money goes with Joe Lieberman, who McCain actually wanted, but was talked out of by his staff.