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Obama considers some former military leaders for vice president
June 11, 2008
Mike Dorning and John McCormick - Chicago TribuneIssue date: 6/5/08 Section: Real News
WASHINGTON _ Barack Obama is considering former military leaders among his potential choices for vice president, according to a Democratic senator who discussed an extensive list of possible picks with members of the team vetting candidates.
Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., who met with two members of the search team on Tuesday, said there was "more than one" former military leader on a list of "about 20" potential choices the team discussed with him.
Conrad declined to name any of the candidates discussed, though he said they all fit into one of three categories: current top government officials, former top government officials and former military leaders. The Obama campaign has kept a tight lid on the names of candidates it is considering, though Obama has regularly said that former Democratic rival Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., "would be on anybody's short list."
A running mate with high-level military credentials would potentially provide reassurance to voters in the face of criticism that Obama's brief tenure in national office leaves him short of national security experience. Clinton pressed Obama on his readiness to be commander-in-chief during the party primaries, including a memorable television commercial that raised the possibility of a 3 a.m. phone call during an international crisis.
A former military leader also could provide balance on the Democratic side to the compelling personal story of John McCain, the presumptive Republican nominee and a former prisoner of war in Vietnam. Such a choice also could bolster the Democratic ticket's credibility in debating strategy in Iraq, a key point of difference with McCain.
Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., who was Secretary of the Navy during the Reagan Administration, has frequently been mentioned as a potential Obama running mate. Retired Gen. Wesley Clark, who led the war in Kosovo and unsuccessfully ran for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2004, is a possibility some have suggested.
Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., who met with two members of the search team on Tuesday, said there was "more than one" former military leader on a list of "about 20" potential choices the team discussed with him.
Conrad declined to name any of the candidates discussed, though he said they all fit into one of three categories: current top government officials, former top government officials and former military leaders. The Obama campaign has kept a tight lid on the names of candidates it is considering, though Obama has regularly said that former Democratic rival Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., "would be on anybody's short list."
A running mate with high-level military credentials would potentially provide reassurance to voters in the face of criticism that Obama's brief tenure in national office leaves him short of national security experience. Clinton pressed Obama on his readiness to be commander-in-chief during the party primaries, including a memorable television commercial that raised the possibility of a 3 a.m. phone call during an international crisis.
A former military leader also could provide balance on the Democratic side to the compelling personal story of John McCain, the presumptive Republican nominee and a former prisoner of war in Vietnam. Such a choice also could bolster the Democratic ticket's credibility in debating strategy in Iraq, a key point of difference with McCain.
Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., who was Secretary of the Navy during the Reagan Administration, has frequently been mentioned as a potential Obama running mate. Retired Gen. Wesley Clark, who led the war in Kosovo and unsuccessfully ran for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2004, is a possibility some have suggested.
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