All right, okay; so many of my blog-detractors are happy today: since I was wrong about Barack Obama’s vice-presidential nominee. But am I? Am I really?
Almost four months ago I said that he should (and would) select Kathleen Sebileus, the governor of Kansas; this morning he officially did not. Barack Obama picked Senator Joe Biden of Delaware, and text-messaged that fact to millions of his supporters, at almost exactly 3:00 am. Touche!
I am disappointed with this selection; but not enough to make me want to desert the ticket. The alternative to Obama/Biden is not an option for me. I still think that Joe Biden is better suited for a role as Secretary of State -should Barack Obama become the next president of the USA. Biden is a foreign policy expert. He is also a domestic policy wonk and a brilliant intellectual. However, he brings many downsides to the ticket. And since I don’t want to arm Republicans any further, let me just say that those of us who support Obama will have to cross our fingers on this one, and for quite a few reasons.
The McCain camp is going to overplay the Biden smack down of Obama during one of the presidential debates amongst democrats, where he bluntly stated (in fact, reiterated) that Barack Obama was not experienced enough for the presidency; and that were he to win: it would be tantamount to “on the job training”. Ouch! Touche! Game, set, match?
Out of this selection there will be some gems for republican talking-heads. They will glean nuggets from Biden’s plagiarism of a British Member of Parliament many years ago, and they will wait with bated breath for another “clean, smooth, articulate” Biden-moment. To Biden’s defense (and Obama’s), the democrats will now get an expressive pit-bull campaigner, who has the ability to kick McCain in his balls with subtlety -and without breaking a sweat, or his boyish grin.
Joe Biden is one tough cookie who speaks his mind; he says what he means and means what he says. He also has a tendency to suffer from “foot in the mouth” disease. He needs to pray that the good Lord makes his words very sweet and tasty: just in case he has to eat a few over the next month or two, or three. I will be pleasantly surprised if he doesn’t.
I still think that Barack should have chosen a woman (preferably Kathleen Sebileus). Governor Sebileus would have been a much safer choice than Biden on so many levels. Plus the biggest factor that Barack missed is the set-up for a female president. If the Obama/Biden ticket were to be successful, it gives Biden a four to eight year inside track (as a democrat) to becoming the favorite for the next presidential slot: not a woman. So then we will see another white male having a leg up on the presidential pathway. We will have to possibly wait for another four to eight years further (thus eight to sixteen) to see if they might just select a female veep (nominee) -who could be set up in order to be groomed for the presidency. This selection does nothing for female empowerment and it doesn’t augur well for future gender inclusion. It’s a man’s world: and even more so now.
It has been two dozen years since the Geraldine Ferraro disaster; do we have to wait another twenty four years for a woman to head up the ticket, or to be given the second-spot again? We know that the Neanderthal Republican Party won’t even go there anytime within the next millennium; so what does this say for empowerment and inclusion? What does this say about the state of feminism today?
Haven’t white men held the reigns of power for too long without including women, blacks, Hispanics, Asians, and people from other races, ethnicities, cultural and national heritage(s)? Haven’t they demonstrated that they need help in making the big decisions that affect us all in this world? Shouldn’t there be more input in decision-making from others? Especially in a post-nine-eleven world where we are now all terroristically affected by policy decisions made over the last couple centuries. This is no longer just a country for old white men; this should be a country for power-sharing amongst equals: men and women.
If you agree with me in principle, then you will have to admit that the best way to really, dramatically and seriously change things would be through a relay system. Remember the Olympic games of last week (in China); the male USA running team dropped the baton and they all lost. Anyone who gets to be the vice-president today gets a leg up on obtaining the presidency, no matter what the success ratio has been over US history: it’s as simple as that. The vice-president’s almost daily attention alone -given today’s high tech media strategies- would be proverbial in worth. It would also yield an almost insurmountable lead in terms of name recognition, fundraising and exposure. Barack should have made it a two member relay team; he should have selected a woman. He could have transitioned women for a smooth baton hand off. That would have been a winner; this selection is “so-so” at best.
All this talk about real change is just talk if you don’t want to walk the walk. If you don’t want to sacrifice “business as usual” for real change then you start to become suspect (at best). Barack Obama is putting his “change” message at risk with this selection. Biden has been in Congress for over thirty years. If you remove Hillary Clinton from the picture, tell me the woman with the inside track to be president four to eight years from now. And I am talking about any female from both Democrat and Republican parties (forget Independents, or those affiliated to some other political party). Look, by now I would think that we all know Hillary Clinton is more problematic a selection for democrats than her fanatic supporters want to admit; so who as a female, is warming up in the bullpen: so to speak?
You become president through being a governor, senator, congressman/woman, cabinet member (especially a high ranking one), an army general, a war hero, or such. There aren’t too many avenues for success in this area. There aren’t too many women positioned to get a leg up on the presidency: go check it yourself. Beating Hillary in the primaries was a major accomplishment for Barack; not selecting a woman as the vice-presidential nominee, could be a major setback that he may not be able to surmount. I wish him lots of luck in November. I will still be voting for him though.
Stay tuned-in folks.