Why Walz?
By
Leonard Zwelling
According to Lichtman’s 13 Keys, the choice of a running mate will have no bearing on the election of a president. I think this may not be totally correct this time for two reasons.
First, on the GOP side, Donald Trump is 78 and out of shape. He could keel over at any moment even though the BW believes that people like him never die. In his case, the running mate choice was critical. He did not select someone who could easily slip behind the Resolute Desk. Instead, he chose an attack dog with little political experience and a checkered pedigree of swinging from a darling of the liberal, upper east side set, to a MAGA maniac.
Second, on the Democratic side, Vice President Harris seems to have chosen someone with whom she is comfortable rather than a star astronaut or the Jewish governor of the most critical of swing states. It seems to me that she took the easy way out, although Walz seems to be quite genuine. Mark Kelly was probably too tough for her and Josh Shapiro apparently wanted his own portfolio of responsibilities. In Walz Harris got a Harris promoter. It remains to be seen if this was the wisest move, but his folksiness may allow him to say things in ways that do not turn off the undecideds.
If son Andrew is right, and Lichtman’s 13 Keys are everything, Walz was as good as anyone. If, however, this year is special given the Biden drop out and the Harris coronation, I would have liked to see one of the other two guys as her running mate.
Shapiro’s vulnerabilities may have been the fact that the lefty Muslim-Americans in Michigan would vote against Harris if he were the choice. Really? They might have opposed Biden, but vote for Trump over Harris? I don’t see it.
As readers of the blog know, I thought Kelly was the ideal choice from an ideal state with an ideal resume. Others believe Kelly and Shapiro can do the most good campaigning for the Harris-Walz ticket in their own states in their current positions.
For me, this is a concerning decision. It was made in haste, as it had to be, but not made with sufficient intellectual consideration, but more from the gut. Maybe that’s how she will govern too should she win. That concerns me, too.
I had previously said that I could vote for neither Biden nor Trump. I now have a bit of a better choice and barring any unforeseen dilemmas (which this season feels unlikely), I’ll vote for Harris. But, I would have been so much more enthusiastic with a more middle of the road running mate like Shapiro or Kelly than I am with Walz.
I have real reservations that either team is ready for prime time.
If Trump governs as he has promised to do, he will turn the executive branch inside out and negate the authority of the courts. If Harris governs as effectively as she was a vice president, nothing will get done.
Folks, we only have a bit better choice than we had a month ago. I guess I should be grateful for that.
