Because the classic reason to pick a VP is to offset whatever supposed weakness the candidate has, and race identity is inevitably wrapped up in that.
Why use the word âpanderingâ?
(Never mind âdesperate.â)
Sounds like a lot of cowards to me. If theyâre for Biden, then be so forthrightly. Sharing the same skin color as a candidate doesnât obligate you to vote for her or him (looking at you, Sen. Booker)
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Okay, poor choice of words. How about âappeal toâ?
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Exactly. Why should she have to settle for the second sport on the ticket simple because sheâs female?
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Yes, but why does it become desperate or pandering when itâs a black woman instead of a white man or woman? Why is attempting to shore up the black vote either desperate or pandering? Thatâs what bothers me, and Iâm not suggesting itâs something you alone are doing. Itâs something I see all the time. White pols from the Midwest or the the Northeast going to the Deep South dropping their âgâsâ and talking about grits and NASCAR is never seen as pandering, itâs âappealing to working class white voters,â but donât let a candidate get caught with some hot sauce or theyâre pandering to the black vote as if trying to woo us is a bad thing. Thatâs all I mean.
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OK, so youâre suggesting that Biden has no (better) way to appeal to African-Americans than to have one of them on the ticket with him?
Iâm not agreeing or disagreeing here, just trying to comprehend.
I know thereâs some enthusiasm out there for a Biden/Harris or Biden/Abrams ticket, but it seems to me that this would look like desperate pandering for votes that you canât pick up otherwise.
No, Iâm saying that Biden has the least need for that, since he already polls well with that demographic. Sorry it wasnât clear.
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I wouldnât attribute that kind of motive or anything to it. Nor would I insert âblackâ for âfemaleâ in your statementâŚespecially since it appears this was something expressed by some from the CBC. I think itâs just natural to ask about that configuration because Bidenâs currently the frontrunner.
But again, itâs so damn early, I really donât even understand the question coming up other than the fact that the idea does have obvious appealâŚwell, that and the MSM is just a bunch of shit stirring idiots.
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The funny part is, part of Bidenâs appeal is that the real problem weâre having (if 2016 is any indication) is shoring up the portion of the white vote we probably need and can possibly get. This is, I think, a big reason why Biden/Harris has such great appeal overall.
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You probably donât. But others (and Iâm not referring to TPMers) would.
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Sheâs got a lot of spirit. I donât know, what do you think? Do you think a Senator and a guy like meâŚ
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Lemme say that I sure do enjoy the TPM commenters in the open forum. Too many panties in a twist in The Hive.
Apology completely unnecessary.
Thanks for elaborating.
This will be even funnier when in a yearâs time sheâs trying to get herself on the ticket of whoever the front runner ends up being.
Indeed. She is still my favorite in the current field. And if Joe is not willing to VP again, maybe she can ask that younger Biden, whatâs his name, Beto or something âŚ
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Thatâs just hilarious . . . and that was a great quip from Harris, a hard one to top. Probably none of this matters anyway at this early phase.
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No
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Exactly. And a good sense of humor is worth a lot. May I mention that Obama was the funniest President since at least JFK, if not since Lincoln himself. Wit helps cut through the stupid.
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Her response came across as prickly and defensive to me.
I was hoping to see her flash a big grin and more humor while she delivered the Joe as VP line. I think that would have been the best move against a well-liked front runner.
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