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Perhaps I can make McCain an ally

By Jack M. Balkin

Last July, I published a piece in the Boston Globe, entitled "No Vice," arguing that we would be better off either without a Vice President at all--we got along without one for 45 of our first 180 years)--or, perhaps more plausibly, waiting until after the election and having the winner, a la the 25th Amendment, nominate a vice president, subject to congressional confirmation. I would, incidentally, also allow the President or Congress to fire the Vice President, but that's another matter for another thread.

I can't help but wonder if John McCain might not find some real merit in the suggestion. Consider his dilemma. It is clear that Mike Huckabee isn't going to be the nominee for president, but his followers might (legitimately?) feel dissed if he isn't chosen for Veep. At best, they might stay home; at worst, they might vote for Obama and actually put some of the Red States in play, especially if Obama chooses, say, James Webb or Wesley Clark as his Veep. On the other hand,

I can't think of a vice-presidential nominee more likely to scare off independents than Huckabee. Could St. John of Arizona (the name used for him by George Will) look at the cameras with a straight face and proclaim that that he is engaging in taking straight to the American people by proclaiming that Huckabee is ready to be President should anyone happen to the 71-year-old cancer (and torture) survivor John McCain? (His 95-year-old mother, I believe, was never subjected to years of torture.) So that brings up Rudy Giuliani, to whom McCain owes his current front-runner status. That is not only because of whatever votes Giuliani might have swung by his endorsement, but also, and altogether more importantly, because Rudy is the architect of the Northeastern winner-take-all strategy that gave McCain all of the Empire State's delegates with, I believe, about 44% of the popular vote. I would think that McCain might well believe that he owes Rudy big time, and McCain may even believe that Rudy is capable of being president. But, of course, to select Rudy would be to spit in the face of the Huckabee supporters, who don't take kindly to a twice-divorced adulterer who publicly supports abortion and almost certainly is supportive of many rights for gays and lesbians.

So what is McCain to do? It's too late for my suggestion to save him this time around. But perhaps he will realize its altogether good sense and promote this stand-alone constitutional amendment, which certainly wouldn't require a constitutional convention, to get rid of an office--that of "running mate" during the election itself--that ill serves candidates or, more importantly, the country.

Full post as published by Balkinization on February 06, 2008 (boomark / email).