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DEL.ICIO.USSonny Perdue and the race to become vice president
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Sonny Perdue, who makes an appearance before a U.S. Senate committee today, is running for vice president.
No, wait. That’s ridiculous. No one runs for vice president. Rather, the Georgia governor is displaying himself for vice president.
Perdue’s conversations with journalists have been spotty since his re-election three months ago, so the evidence is mostly circumstantial. But people around him privately tell us we’re on target.
First, look at the Republican side of the ‘08 presidential race. The three leaders — John McCain, Mitt Romney, and Rudy Giuliani — have two things in common. All are from outside the South. And none of them are likely to whip the GOP’s conservative Christian core into a frenzy of delight.
If the Republican party is to lurch toward the center next year, someone from the South, or with Southern appeal, will be needed to stoke the base. If the GOP nominee is to be McCain or Giuliani, both well-developed voices on international security, that would also argue for someone whose strength is in domestic policy.
Enter a Republican governor. Bob Riley in Alabama, Haley Barbour in Mississippi, Mark Sanford in South Carolina. Mike Huckabee, the former governor of Arkansas, now in the presidential hunt, might qualify. Jeb Bush, who just exited the office in Florida, is a scratch solely because of his last name.
And then there’s Perdue.
As we said, no one runs for vice president. The best one can do is strut down the runway, display the assets, and pray that the electoral vote strategy clicks with the geography and the resume.
Perdue “certainly has to be on anybody’s short list. He’d be on anybody’s list of 10, and he might make some people’s list of five,” said Alec Poitevint, friend of the governor and head of the state GOP.
Perdue has shown national instincts. Remember that he was one of the first Republican figures in the South to separate himself from President Bush after the Hurricane Katrina debacle.
The governor’s winning margin last November, particularly his performance among African-American voters, impressed many out-of-state Republicans.
In December, Perdue inherited the chairmanship of the Republican Governors Association, the largest GOP fund-raising operation outside the Republican National Committee. Two loyal strategists from Georgia now occupy the organization’s top posts.
The outcome of three governor’s races in 2007 — in Kentucky, Louisiana and Mississippi — could say much about Perdue’s future as a running mate.
Skeptics might point to Perdue’s lightweight legislative priorities this year — the emphasis on bass fishing, for instance. And the way he entangled himself in the topic of Sunday sales of alcohol. Then there are the governor’s real estate dealings.
But the GOP nominee for vice president won’t be selected for another 17 months. That’s plenty of time for Perdue to resolve his Oaky Woods problem, or perhaps mitigate it, and still establish himself as a policy wonk.
Thursday’s appearance before the U.S. Senate Finance Committee, on the all-important topic of children’s health insurance, is a chance for Perdue to earn national credentials on the topic.
(That sound you just heard was the sputtering of a former lieutenant governor. Mark Taylor based much of his Democratic campaign to oust Perdue on the trims the Republican governor made to PeachCare, Georgia’s health insurance program for kids.)
Last week, a wild rumor broke. The Georgia governor had been spotted in Iowa. It wasn’t true, but we had to pose the natural question.
Was Perdue running for president? The rational answer would have been as follows: “No. The governor’s wife would shoot him dead if he dragged her to Washington.”
Instead, Perdue’s communicator gave a well-rehearsed non-answer. “The governor is currently focused on governing in the state of Georgia,” says spokesman Dan McLagan.
That’s the language of courtship. By the subtle rules of the game, a fellow can’t be a vice-presidential contender if he rules out an interest in the presidency.
Talk about this amongst yourselves. We’ll pick out the best of the responses and highlight them in a separate posting Thursday afternoon.
Comments
Commenting is now closed for this entry.
By Joseph Pretto
January 31, 2007 7:56 PM | Link to this
Perdue & Zel Miller should be remenbered for their great contribution as the zig zaggers.
By Tator Tot
January 31, 2007 8:35 PM | Link to this
McCain, Romney and Rudy “Three Wives” Giuliani are dog meat in the eyes of the all-powerful Republican-Baptists. And what will happen when Sonny loses his temper in a news conference like the third-grader he is? He’s going to do it. You know it. And the replays are going to crash YouTube. Next candidate, please.
By SND
January 31, 2007 9:47 PM | Link to this
Perdufuss for VP? ROFLMAO
By RJ
January 31, 2007 9:56 PM | Link to this
You guys have thrown out quite a bit to respond to. Well…I don’t know how many but I suspect he got a lot of anti-Mark votes, which may in part explain the higher than expected African American Vote. For sure, there is very little transferability for a person who first got elected race-baiting, after being elected led the voter ID effort and sponsored some superficial discussions about race. With respect to distinguishing himself from President Bush after Katrina, it was a bold move that was later nullified with the exposure that the Georgia Oilmen Association was pulling his string.
Perdue’s unavailability to the media, except for carefully staged appearances, is mostly attributed to his misinterpretation of the meaning behind his impressive re-election victory, a departure from his commitment to open government, and an uncanny fear that he will be questioned about his land dealings and customized tax break. The high likeability and trust factors Perdue enjoyed during the campaign are disappearing with each new revelation and his arrogant indifference to media questions about his ethical lapses.
Reading your comments about Perdue’s race to become Vice President reminds me of the lady who had never been married. Following up on a tip he had received, one Sunday her pastor announced she was getting married. She immediately stood up and said no sir I am not getting married but thank God for the rumor. If the election were held to day, Perdue would be a drag not an asset on the ticket. Time will tell 18 months from now.
By Wonk before you run?
January 31, 2007 10:28 PM | Link to this
Perdue “establish himself as a policy wonk”? Please no!! The one time he tried that we ended up with natural gas deregulation. Let’s stick with the silly but relatively harmless things like bass fishing.
By Great Unmentioner
January 31, 2007 10:55 PM | Link to this
Your case fails spectacularly for two reasons:
No one nationally is at all impressed by Perdue. “Sonny Perwho?” is more like it.
The first virtue of a vice president is to present no problems. Sonny has answers for Florida land deals, Oaky Woods and Peachcare problems? How nice for him. But who wants the QUESTIONS?
Sonny is simply not in the top 10 or even the top 25 to the sort of person who would have any influence on such a decision. He’s just not in the ballpark. (Governors are not particularly attractive vice presidential prospects to begin with).
By Producer
January 31, 2007 11:53 PM | Link to this
Trust me, Sonny is on nobody’s short list for anything except maybe the state ethics committee. In an age where looks are all important, sonny looks like he just stepped off of the set of Hee Haw. If that wasn’t bad enough, he simply is not that bright. I can’t believe those dreamers who bring up his name every month or so as actually having a future in national politics. He won’t even win Isakson’s senate seat when Johnny runs for governor in 2010, the land deal questions will see to that. Nope, Sonny has reached the end of his political stage.
By Thank Goodness
January 31, 2007 11:59 PM | Link to this
GOOD GOD HELP US if Sonny Perdue is the best that we can do for Vice President of the United States of America.
A couple of things, if Republicans have to court the South in 2008, there are already major signs we’re headed to defeat!
The Governor is a lot of things, but Presidential, Vice Presidential, or anything else he is not.
He should just be lucky and happy to be Governor.
By jatlanta
February 1, 2007 12:02 AM | Link to this
One idea that lends itself to Sonny Perdue as a Vice-Presidential potential is that he is the exact opposite of Dick Cheney. Dick Cheney’s approval ratings must be around the same level as Jack Abramoff right now. Sonny, instead of being an ideological driven politician, with an impervious belief system, can really be seen as most vice-presidents are, pretty harmless. With the international resumes of McCain and Giuliani, a vice-presidential nominee with foreign policy credentials might just get in the way. If Romney is the guy leading the charge, then Perdue might not be much help.
By suspicious
February 1, 2007 10:22 AM | Link to this
What are you guys smoking? The American people would never support a dim-witted governor from a Southern state in a presidential election … oh wait, never mind.
By Craig
February 1, 2007 11:11 AM | Link to this
You gotta be kidding. Sonny didn’t win the election, the “Big Guy” lost it with his dreadful Republican-lite campaign.
By Heaven help us all
February 1, 2007 11:17 AM | Link to this
The mere idea that Sonny is considered a viable candidate for Vice President on the Republican ticket is proof positive that the party offers NOTHING for this country. That huge sucking sound you hear is the vacuum created by the party leadership’s lack of ideas and an unwillingness to tackle the tough issues we face. I guess we’re expected to just go on Sunday afternoon fishing to solve our problems (those of us with time management issues will need to remember to buy the beer in advance).
By Rawena
February 1, 2007 11:20 AM | Link to this
With the evolution of Republican nominees getting dumber and dumber with eash successive election, Sonny Perdue could fit this role perfectly.
But down from Sonny would be hard to imagine.
By Lauren
February 1, 2007 11:23 AM | Link to this
This is bad choice I can stand by. I would love it if Perdue was on the ticket. Dems would be assured a win! Sonny is an idiot. But this state loves idiots so long as you talk non-stop about Jesus, Georgians think you’re just great.
By Sunshines Bright
February 1, 2007 12:00 PM | Link to this
One thing I have noticed on this blog…except for my own rays of sunshine…very little light shines on the dialogue herein. That could be because the DemSpinners have nothing else to do since they have been defeated in recent elections. The Republicans are all busy making a living and do not have the time. (I am living off of my children…or, vice-versa.)
I can’t say I am really keen on Sonny being a heartbeat away from the presidency, myself. He has such an affinity for his ol’ Democrat buddies, that I would be very concerned about his influence in appointing Dems to high positions in the Courts and to other government agencies…as he does in Georgia.