Well, it's been lovely ride, but the end is in sight. Both Hillary and Barack have made comments recently about the joint ticket. Essientially, Hillary has said that she is open to the idea (if that is where this process is going) but who will be at the top of the ticket has to be determined. Barack has said that he is not even entertaining the idea, and I have no reason to beleive otherwise at this time.
Clinton/Obama:
Pros: If they can get along, this ticket encompasses the entire democratic party. Obama will serve as a reason to vote for Hillary, who is still looked at as polarizing figure. The Republican stalwarts will still be licking their chops, but Obama will take some steam out of their sails. Hillary will bring the stability to the ticket and Obama will bring the vision.
Cons: Bill's role will be unclear and for a strong will like Obama, this could cause trouble. Also, Hillary may need Obama to get elected, but she doesn't need him to run the presidency, as Hillary will undoubtedly look to revist policies from the 90's with a similar staff. Obama may feel uncomfortable in this setting, and may view the next 8 years as a looong time to wait before it's his time again.
Obama/Clinton-
Pros: This represents a Democratic Party moving to the future with keeping roots to it's past. Having Hillary in the second seat means that his vision and charisma will be front and center, but Hillary's obvious skills as a policy wonk will never be far away. This will assuage the fears of many Democrats and moderates about Barack's experience yet hamper the efforts of the Repug attack dogs when they start the fear mongering.
Cons: Obama needs Hillary after he is elected, but he doesn't need her TO get elected. Obama's campaign of change will be contrasted greatly by Hillary and Bill's prescence of being the status quo. Bill will have to take a backseat, and it won't be Hillary telling him to do it, it will be Barack. History has shown that Bill doesn't take orders too well, and hasn't taken orders from anybody since 1992.
Bottom Line: Hillary needs Obama to win, and not much else after.
Obama can win on his own, but needs Hillary's experience after.
One might think that they are on the same footing with each other, considering that the primary process will probably end with some weird delgates/popular vote tie, or a slim win in both categories. The problem here is that while Barack can chose another running mate with a more solid background than Hillary, Hillary can't choose anybody that has the unique package of charisma and new voter base that Barack has.
As a Obama supporter, I am actually split on what he should do if he loses. If he takes one for the team and they win then he has 4 years playing second fiddle to Bill, and maybe losing in 2012, or running for president in 2016.
If he doesn't take the VP, and she loses the GE, then he is a top contender for 2012, and at worse 2016.
At the end of the day though, I don't think she brings much to his ticket as a VP.
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