Obama victory creates veep firestorm

Now that Barack Obama seemingly has corralled the requisite number of delegates to be the Democratic presidential nominee, two major items demand his immediate attention.

One is to cut a deal with Hillary Clinton that will generate her enthusiastic cooperation, rather than quiet acquiesence. One sure way to do this is to cough up enough money to clear her campaign debts, which are rumored to be $6-$12 million. Another would be to make her the vice presidential nominee, a serious mistake. Somewhere in between probably lies reality.

Secondly, Obama cannot afford a misstep on the vice presidential nominee. It will be a big enough step if America can be convinced to elect its first black president, when all voters are in the quiet of a private voting booth, with the decision between their fears and their conscience. A female vice presidential candidate--in essence electing the first black and the first woman in the same election and on the same ticket--is too big a reach.

Obama needs a nice, safe traditional white male vice presidential nominee. Someone like Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell or Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland. Ticket balance demands a Governor, not another Senator, and would be even better with someone from the West or South. New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson would present the same problem as Hillary: electing the first hispanic and first black on the same ticket is too big a reach.

As a Republican, I would hope Obama would do something like that, but good advice would be not to.

It's going to be tough enough to get the white, male, blue collar, voters that were Hillary's stock in trade, and are crucial for a Democratic victory. To anger them, or give them a reason to back McCain, with a gender or racie-based selection, is dangerous, to say the least.