You find her an interesting individual? I find her a functional equivalent of Bill Kristol, whose raison d'etre is simply to puff up George Bush.

Condi Rice has no meaningful identity in this country's politics other than that one. So she likes football? Irrelevant.

If McCain chooses Rice, he's stupider than we think. Why would he further saddle himself with the 9/11 and Iraq debacle initiated by George Bush by selecting Condi "OBL to attack in US" Rice as his VP? The Internets would melt down with the reruns of her award-winning performance at the 9/11 commission.
She'd help round out McCain's total lack of domestic experience by bringing her knowledge of football and shoe shopping. And don't forget - she'll bring in the Black republican vote - all 6 of them.

Please, God, spare us from candidates that journalists find "interesting."

Please, Republicans. Please please please put her on the ticket.

It will make this blog even more fun:
http://sparklepony.blogspot.com/

The idea of Rice on the ticket doesn't scare me. I don't know if that means that she really isn't a threat, or that she's such a big threat that I can't see it and therefore will be blindsided like my fellow Democrats, but there you have it.

I just don't see what she is supposed to add to the ticket besides the fact that she's a woman. I'd hate to discount the idea that she'd successfully pick off some female voters--in a close election, 20,000 housewives in Ohio could prove crucial, or something to that effect. But outside of that, what does she have to offer the other side that already isn't part of the hardcore Bush loyalists? She's never run for anything. I doubt she'd help McCain with blacks, particularly if Obama is the nominee. She doesn't appear to be gifted rhetorically or have any relevant charisma. It seems like she'd help our side more than anything. She'd remind Democrats and Independents of McCain's positions on Iraq. Besides that, her allegedly mild pro-choice leanings would certainly shine more light on the fact that McCain is very against choice, probably losing whatever female voters that the ticket might get.

I felt like I had more to say, but oh well. Suffice it to say, it would make the election more interesting. And I have just one question: what the hell was she doing before a tax group?

Just a shoutout to Virginia, whose point is the one I intended to make. Bite your tongue (or, rather, break your pencil) Kate. If McCain wins in November (with or without Rice) it's going to be way more painful than it is interesting for most of us regular citizens.

Please, PLEASE make her NFL commissioner. Now.

Bush said he wanted to be commissioner of baseball, nobody listened and look what happened.

On the other hand if McCain really wants to send a signal that electing him will be the equivalent of Bush's 3rd term I can see no better way than to put Rice on the ticket.

Ain't gonna happen, so we should just all move on.

Stanford professor. Accomplished pianist. One-time Democrat. Football fan. Perjurer. Incompetent.

Isn't the obvious point the fact that Rice is utterly besotted with Bush? Putting Rice on the ticket is, literally, asking for four more years of Bush. And that's without knowing how much influence he would continue to affirmatively try to wield through her. Get real. McCain would have to be insane to do this.

Um, McCain is doing a biography tour designed to remind voters that he's a white man from an old American family, and thus appeal to those Americans who can't stand the idea of an uppity woman or black man being in the Oval. I don't think he's going to put another color or gender on his ticket.

I think he has to either pick someone who a substantial number of people already actively *like* or someone entirely non-descript, not someone prominent in the Bush Admin or the Rep Party for the past 8 years. 10 to 1 it will be a "fiscal conservative."

I also don't think they're going to out of their way pandering to the offensive religious right this time around. There's simply no need to give your thoroughly entitled voting block a cultural motivation to vote Democrat in a year in which you're vulnerable, anyway.

They're just not stupid enough to go ahead and lose the culture war once and for all, alas.

This is an interesting post. I fear for your safety. Now all the knee-jerk Democratic Party pollsters will avoid you. You see, all are afraid that Condi will steal votes from "them" [these clowns consider Obama already as their candidate and thus their extension; they hide dirt of all democrats; they highlight, including out of context, mistakes from GOP loud, louder, and loudly 24/7). These people call themselves progressives. I find them on the contrary - primitives. A progressive is an individual who wants everyone to succeed - even your arch enemy GOP. If McCain had Condi, at least GOP will be forced to address minority issues in their platform. Whether he wins or not is not relevant. The dialogue will be there. Why are the lefty bloggers so against this dialogue? I sense more and more that Condi as a VP will get these morons into some kind of heartattack, which if you think about it, is not a bad idea. I dislike intellectually dishonest progressives more than any red-winger. At least the right-winger is upfront about his biases. An intellectually-dishonest progressive is like a guy who puts a dagger in your back while he laughs with you about equity, diversity, and all that...

"If McCain had Condi, at least GOP will be forced to address minority issues in their platform. Whether he wins or not is not relevant. The dialogue will be there. Why are the lefty bloggers so against this dialogue? I sense more and more that Condi as a VP will get these morons into some kind of heartattack, which if you think about it, is not a bad idea."

Well, look. If social liberalism is the goal of politics, and I think it should be one goal, then the person we want McCain to pick is probably someone like Colin Powell. He was much more popular with people and ultimately fell out with the Bush Admin.

I'm not sure I want to resurrect the Republican Party from the top down so they win the Presidency. I think I'd rather run the purge in the Democratic Party from the bottom up.

Or, maybe McCain should pick whoever loses the Dem nomination. Particularly if that person is Hillary-- she'd make an outstanding Republican and they can throw back all the vodka shots they want.

Seriously. And I think they'd win. After all, they're both qualified to be commander in chief.

You know, if social liberalism is the raison d'etre of DC insiders (and it certainly looks that way to me), then lots of them should get behind this idea.

"Or, maybe McCain should pick whoever loses the Dem nomination. Particularly if that person is Hillary-- she'd make an outstanding Republican and they can throw back all the vodka shots they want."

Anonymous: You are the typical leftist, intellectually dishonest progressive, I keep talking about. You are just afraid of McCain/Rice. Thus, you (and other lefty bloggers like Matt, Marc and Atlantic) are forced to do the following:

- Keep saying Rice=DEVIL as loudly as possible (24/7). Like the idiot and intellectually light-weight Keith Olbermann.

- Muddy it up. Misquote McCain. Blame Rice. Bring Hillary as a new GOP. More muddy you things up, the worse for GOP.

- Cover all the mistakes by Obama. All. If something slips by, just repeat: Oh, this is nothing. It will all pass. Voters are not into it. Etc.

Basically, this is your algorithm. I can read you all more easily than a right-winger, even though the right-winger is open about her/his biases.

Go figure?

With Condi on the ticket it will be a lot easier to vote for McCain.