Thanks for the jokes, but I still cannot believe that supposedly serious commentators out there actually believe that Nunn would be a good choice.

It seems to be based on the logic that because Obama is unpopular with Southern white conservatives, he should pick a Southern white conservative for his running mate (albeit a nominal Dem with supposed foreign policy gravitas).

It's almost as verkakte as the logic that tapping a divorced Jewish liberal billionaire New York mayor would be a bold move towards the center.

The short list is pretty clearly Sebelius, Bayh, and a few other dark horses (Schweitzer? Biden? Dodd?) with the remote possibility of Clinton if something goes seriously wrong between now and August. If I were betting, I'd say Bayh. He fits the bill (former red state governor, foreign policy experience, former Clinton backer), he's patently inoffensive, and he fits well with the currently cautious/centrist tone of the Obama campaign.

Philly:
Bayh has the same problems that Nunn has, except Bayh is currently in the Senate. You make 60 harder to reach in the Senate(Mitch Daniels could win re-election, so could be appoint Bayh's replacement?). Who are you trying to appeal to with Bayh? David Broder? Bayh voted for the war. Not something that would look good on an Obama ticket.

Also, Bayh's name is rich fodder for groan-inducing puns.

"Bayh Bayh Sebelius: It's The Indiana Senator, Insiders Claim."

"Bayh's the Way: Obama Taps Indiana Dem."

"Bayh Week For Team Obama"

August 21, 2008, DENVER, CO (AP)--If this part of the election is like the NFL playoffs, then the Obama team just earned a Bayh week by picking the milquetoast Indiana Senator as a running mate, guaranteeing a week of soft and favorable coverage before Obama heads to Invesco Field to give his acceptance speech."

I don't think Bayh's a great choice. I just can see the logic--he's just too boring to piss off anyone (majorly), he won't get in Obama's way, and he's expressed remorse for the Iraq War vote.

While I agree that the two Senators ticket is an issue, what makes Bayh different from, say, Biden or Dodd, is that he hadn't been in the Senate forever and that he come from one of those mythical heartland states where "real" American live.

And while surely Broder will be happy, you must admit that the other oft-mentioned options aren't really any further to the left. (Sadly, I highly doubt either Russ Feingold or Sherrod Brown are really in the running.)

I'd actually prefer Sebelius to Bayh (and Feingold to both), but I don't think the Obama camp wants to risk unleashing all sorts of pro-Clinton backlash and fears the avalanche of sexist remarks that will inevitably come cascading down.

Also, inevitable, the McCain camp and their handy MSM puppets will condescendingly claim that that is a neophyte ticket, as though a two-term governor in her sixties and an experienced legislator and constitutional law professor in his forties are somehow babes in the woods.

What? No puns about Shakespeare's line, "Get thee to a nunnery"?

I was amazed by Jonathan Alter's endorsement of Nunn for VP. The gist seemed to be that he ran into him at the "Aspen Ideas Festival." How nice.

I think Nunn would be awful. Please, let's flush that idea quickly and not hear about it again. I find his conservatism and homophobia offensive. If you want to find a way to really deflate a lot of Obama's most enthusiastic supporters, that's the choice.

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