Biden informs Sanders he is starting VP vetting

[The Magistrate]

52. And I Suspect Mr. B. Backer Is Correct, Sir

I enjoy a fight myself, but am not going to allow my propensity towards that to slip me into one with you over such a trivial and pointless matter. I will merely suggest that how evident support fell out in a crowded Presidential field may be a poor indicator of whether people would support the choice for Vice President of the Party's anointed Presidential candidate. A legislative record is every bit the fact that levels of apparent support in the early primary going is.

Besides, the question of whether someone 'brings a state' is not nowadays the usual, or the best, calculation in selecting a running mate. Energizing a constituency is now the usual aim. Mr. Biden has made evident that, since a great many of the voters his run will need are suburban women and career women, these are a constituency he wants eager to cast ballots. At the same time, Mr. Biden knows he owes a debt to the Party's solid African-American constituency, and wants this bloc of his supporters eager to cast ballots.

On the face of it, Sen. Harris would seem to serve both needs. The fact of the matter is that 'progressives' are not a constituency anyone is going to go much out of their way to court this year. That is one of the consequences of attempting to make the Party sorry if 'progressives' don't get their way, instead of trying to make the Party glad to see 'progressives' are always in there pitching right alongside the rest, particularly in a crisis.





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