Politics1 had an interesting chat over the weekend with a well-placed source who has been serving as a senior McCain advisor during the primary campaign. For reasons that will be clear, you'll see why he didn't want to be named. The topic: possible GOP Vice Presidential runningmates. "My advice is to pick a safe choice, someone who won't do any political damage," he said, "but I don't think that is entirely where it's heading. Everytime I look at the names, I think the choice is going to be [Florida Governor] Charlie Crist. I mean, just look at the other guys [being mentioned] and they're just so underwhelming that it leads back to Charlie by elimination. Mitt Romney isn't going to happen. Huckabee may end up in the Cabinet, but won't be the runningmate. [Minnesota Governor Tim] Pawlenty has a great story, coming from blue collar roots, but he couldn't deliver Minnesota Republicans, so how is Pawlenty going to do anything for McCain in the general? [South Carolina Governor] Mark Sanford would probably be my first choice, as he's a very safe pick. But Sanford doesn't add anything that McCain doesn't already have." What about former Ohio Congressman Rob Portman, who served as President Bush's Budget Director? "Give me a ****ing break: Portman has a zero percent chance of being on the ticket. He'd be a terrible choice." What about the rumors that McCain wants Senator Joe Lieberman (I-CT) as his runningmate? "Absolutely true. Joe Lieberman would be McCain's top choice if he could pick the person he really wants as a runningmate. It would be a bold pick, the kind of choice that would have the potential to remake modern American politics into something new. It would guarantee McCain a landslide win in November -- and, mark my words, McCain won't have the guts to do it. He'd really like to pick Lieberman, but in the end he'll cave to those who want a more traditional choice. That's why I say it falls back to Charlie Crist as the runningmate." Why Crist more than one of the other names? "Crist's endorsement, when Romney was flying up McCain's ass in the polls, and possibly had passed him in Florida in that last weekend, was the single turning point that made McCain the nominee. But for Charlie Crist, McCain would not be our nominee." What about the rumors that Crist is gay or too much of a centrist? "Who cares what he stands for because he delivered for McCain in the primary. Charlie would put Florida safely in the Republican column in November. As to the gay rumors, that's just a lot of insider stuff. Most Americans -- and most Floridians -- have never heard the rumors and really don't want to hear the rumors. Charlie says he isn't gay, nobody has proven otherwise, and the public will accept him at his word ... I have no idea if he is or isn't, but the public just doesn't want to hear this stuff.
