Veepstakes; or, How to Blow an Election if You're Not Really Careful

And one candidate brings more to the table than any other.

by Rod D. Martin
June 23, 2000

George W. Bush, presumptive heir to the Presidential throne, is on a tightrope. And the Vice Presidential nomination, done correctly, is the only thing that can get him off.

With a ten point lead in several polls, a nomination process which was almost a coronation, and a winning Texas smile (no matter how many left-wing journalists try to plant the word "smirk" in people's minds), Bush looks almost invulnerable. He would look absolutely invulnerable if it weren't for the seemingly-strong economy and memories of 1992. And having pronounced the inviolability of his party's abortion plank in this year's platform, the chance of a mass Christian Right exodus to Pat Buchanan seems almost nil.

Almost.

And there's the rub. It can only be almost. The Christian Right, without which Bush cannot muster enough votes to win – particularly in a year when they have a very visible (and theoretically viable) someplace else to go – still doesn't completely trust George Bush. Ri…