In his column today, Quin Hilyer at American Spectator lays out a blueprint (and a very good one at that) of the qualifications for John McCain’s ideal running mate. By the time you near the end of the article, you may be wondering if there is anyone who matches all of the specifications.
Hilyer concludes:
So there you have it: McCain needs a solidly “full-spectrum” conservative, reformist, youngish, cool, well-rounded, brainy, all-media-respected, articulate, telegenic, border-state/constituency-challenging, non-party-weakening, executive-experienced, running mate who can handle the presidency at a moment’s notice.
Good luck to McCain in finding such a candidate. The good news, amazingly enough, is that there are several potential running mates who fit the bill. I’ll save their identities for another occasion.
Can any of you political junkies out there think of someone who fits the bill? I’ll be mulling it over, too.
I don’t think there is a conservative who is “all-media-respected” if he means respected by all the media. The majority of the people in the mainstream media don’t respect any conservatives.
However, I think any of the following meet the other criteria:
* Jeb Bush
* Bob Schaffer
* Rick Santorum
* Elizabeth Dole
* Tom Tancredo
But, would any principled (the adjective Hilyer forgot) conservative agree to run with McCain?
Sarah Palin
Mike Huckabee
J.C. Watts?
What about Lindey Graham?
sorry Lindsey
1. Mitt Romney
2. Tim Pawlenty
3. Mark Sanford