The presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, Joe Biden, spent his weekend following a decision on his running mate, with his party’s virtual convention next week.
Anyone who has been speculating for weeks about who Biden might be the vice presidential candidate, who is on the battlefield and who is out has no real clue. As Biden has already ruled on a name, he has left no one but that person as his deepest inner circle. And they do not speak either.
Choosing a replacement candidate is one of the most important choices a president will make, as we wrote last week. And the vice president in a Biden administration can be especially influential. There are several candidates who fit his criteria of someone who is ready to become president, including the one thing we know for sure: that Biden will choose a woman.
So with the proviso that we will only know the identification of his number two when Biden makes it official, here are some possible candidates.
Kamala Harris
The California senator has a winning personality, quick debating skills (as Biden knows at his expense) and is a Democratic rising star. However, her own misguided presidential campaign somewhat tarnished her political trajectory, and her past as a lawyer could be a golden mine for opposition readers.
Gretchen Whitmer
The governor of Michigan is in the midst of a battle against the pandemic, and may not want to run from her job. But that experience makes them ideal to testify about exactly Donald Trump’s rampant handling of the virus. She also won her job in a backlog against Trump in the same long-running Democratic state he shockingly won in 2016.
Susan Rice
Rice would know exactly where the light switches are when she walks into the White House shortly after a Biden inauguration on January 20th. (She was also the overwhelming favorite among Undertusken readers who wrote with her VP picks last week.) As the former national security adviser to the Obama administration, Rice would also be a lightning rod. Expect Republicans to rekindle controversy and pseudo-scandals over the Obama team’s withdrawal from the Russia investigation and Benghazi if she chooses.
Elizabeth Warren
Biden was able to signal that he was planning an ambitious, liberal economic agenda to resist America’s post-coronavirus when he grabbed the Massachusetts senator. That would make the Democratic Party’s left flank happy – but offer a juicy goal for Trump. Another risk to elect Warren: the Bay State Republican governor would get to nominate a new senator.
Karen Bass
A few weeks ago, the California lawmaker was the talk of the town. Bass is a popular, smart potential choice, a political veteran who has made agreements with Republicans and whose experience as president of the Congressional Black Caucus could help stimulate crucial African-American rise in major state cities such as Philadelphia, Detroit and Charlotte . But Bass has faced a painful examination of positions in the past on issues such as Cuba and Scientology, and can now be seen as a risk.
Tammy Duckworth
One reason why the senator in Illinois is seen as a serious choice is because of the enemies they have made. Fox News’ biggest star Tucker Carlson recently publicly attacked her patriotism, despite the fact that she’s already a national hero, after losing both legs when the army helicopter she was piloting was attacked by insurgents in Iraq. Duckworth, the first senator to give birth in office, is seen as a center-left and could be a good ideological fit with Biden.
Gina Raimondo
Rhode Island has weathered the pandemic well, and Goai Raimondo’s sharp television appearances have marked its power as executive. But unless she forges a strong bond with her fellow centrist Biden, she adds no ideological or geographical value to the ticket.
Val Demings
The Florida attorney general was one of the impeachment managers accused of making the case against Trump earlier this year. She has maintained a torrent of negative attention over her previous job as chief of police in Orlando. Demings could appeal to Biden if he is looking for a candidate without much of a national political power base, who could already mule the 20 nomination.
Michelle Lujan Grisham
The governor of New Mexico has successfully kept a lid on the coronavirus, and would, like Latina, represent a strong bid by Biden to target another critical Democratic constituency, Hispanic voters. Her candidacy could be valuable, given that Arizona is now considered a swing state and even deeply Republican Texas is said by some pundits to be in play.
Keisha Lance Bottoms
The mayor of Atlanta has become a national figure and one of America’s most prominent Black politicians by sparring with Georgia’s pro-Trump mayor over his impatience to rebuild the state’s economy. But her relative inexperience may mean she is not yet seen as a potential vice president.
Tammy Baldwin
The Wisconsin senator would become the first openly vicious vice presidential candidate in history and would add some historic potential to Biden’s ticket. She is also from a state that Trump is likely to win again if he holds the White House.
Ride or die
Tens of thousands of visitors are expected to fill the town of Sturgis, South Dakota, for the 80th annual City of Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. All American drag races, music and other festivities will stretch out over the coming week – so far photos and videos suggest that masks and social distance are the top priority for these crowds.
‘They do not have the money’
After lawmakers last week disagreed over a new incentive letter for America’s sinking economy, Trump took it upon himself to issue an executive action offering an additional $ 400 / month of unemployment benefits – with a catch. States must agree to provide a quarter of the funds; if they can not, their inhabitants get nothing. Whether states have the money to do so or not was the topic of debate Sunday on CNN’s ‘State of the Union’.
“Our estimates from the Treasury Department in terms of the CARES Act were that states do not have all the money allocated to them,” White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow told Dana Bash of CNN, referring to the sweeping incentive package that Congress submitted March. He said the White House expects states to use what he described as that “significant flood” of previous incentive funds to pay for unemployment benefits.
But some experts say states cannot use these funds for this help for unemployment, and House Majority spokeswoman Nancy Pelosi told Bash that many states are already short of funds because of the pandemic. “First of all (Kudlow) says states have the money. No, they do not,” Pelosi said. “They have expenses from the coronavirus. They’ve lost revenue. That’s why they shoot pagan workers, first responders, and the rest … Because they don’t have the money.”
Do you miss American tourists?
As we wrote last week, the US has lifted its blank travel warning for Americans, instead issuing specific warnings for individual countries – although that will not do much to change the fact that American travelers are not very welcome at the moment, due to the high prevalence of Covid-19 in the country. We ask readers in between if you miss American tourists. Here are some of the answers:
Chinese Angelo in Dubai wrote that if more people around the world were honest, “they would say the world misses the dollars of American tourists, and a relatively high spending rate.”
Mike in new Zealand grumbled that he missed American tourists “like a hole in his head.” “Arrogant, reckless and unintentional all around. Follow the rules, boys – stay home, wear a mask, keep your distance and wash your dirty hands!” he wrote. “No, but I miss being able to be a tourist in America,” chimed in his colleague New Zealander Rex.
But the majority of respondents had become friendly to the millions of Americans now living at home in the foreseeable future.
“Covid-19 showed us that beauty is worthless without visitors sharing it,” Stefano wrote in Florence. “We expect happy bracing for the crowds who can not wait to return to ‘La Dolce Vita.’
To the east, Marketa wrote, “Yes, I miss American tourists Prague (Czech Republic). They are usually friendly and it is easy to communicate with them. In general they are not problem makers 👍 Hope they come back soon. Without them, it’s boring here. “
“Of course YES we miss our American friends and visitors,” Francoise wrote of France. “The Versailles castle is empty. Nobody’s in the street where I can practice my English. For me, I do not like the dollars they have to bring – it does not go in my pocket – but I miss the fun. of meeting them and sometimes helping them when they are lost. “
Compatriot Donna said that says I the. “We live near a beautiful, old town in the south (of France) .. that we normally see them, especially in the summer. But not this year of course. I like to hear the accents .. and in general I would like to start a conversation. I would like to know where they come from, and I want people to enjoy their journey … are bold and interesting! “
And several Canadians reacted with their famous niceness, such as Judy, who wrote, “I live in Victoria, BC. Tourism in general and American tourists in particular are usually a driving force in our local economy, but not this year. And while most of us are firmly behind the border for the time being, we miss you guys. And we’re seeing the COVID-19 figures in your country and we’re worried about you! “
“Americans are always welcome Gran Canary Islands, “added Rita (although Spanish border and customs agents may not feel the same way.)
Bid his ride
It’s not just Sturgis’ cyclists who want everyone to know that they love the open road. After perhaps one too many videos from his dimly lit basement, and amid a Trump campaign to portray Biden as weak, the former vice president apparently posted a new video about the auto industry – but mostly about his classic Corvette.
.
