Opinion: How do you not pick Hillary Clinton for Obama’s VP?: McAuliffe

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O.K., so he changed his mind over the weekend.

It’s a flip-flop if you don’t like the idea. And a wonderful vision for the country if you like it.

Terry McAuliffe, chairman of Sen. Hillary Clinton’s deceased Democratic presidential primary campaign and former chairman of the Democratic National Committee, has a nifty not-so new running mate for Sen. Barack Obama:

Hillary Clinton.

Yup, her.

Appearing on MSNBC TV today after what looked like way too many cups of coffee, the ebullient McAuliffe said:

‘Hillary Clinton. I don’t even think it’s a close call. How do you not pick Hillary Clinton? We would sweep all across the country, up and down the valley... Think about it.

‘It would be a bold move,’’ he said. ‘I don’t think people would expect it... It’d be a bold move: Barack Obama, leadership, take this country to a new place, first African American, first woman.... History!... I’m telling you!... All across the country!’’

The Democrats would hold the White House for 16 years, suggested McAuliffe. Trouble is, late last week McAuliffe, a longtime Clinton booster, appeared to have given up (like most everybody else) on the freshman Illinois senator picking his main party rival.

Obama has been quoted as saying Clinton is, of course, a VP possibility, but there’s a ‘complication.’ And his name is Bill.

How many presidents, ex-presidents and wanna-be presidents can one White House hold?

So just to be safe, today McAuliffe, who’s not known as being on the short list of top Obama advisors, offered up some other probably more realistic names for Obama’s running mate: Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware, Sen. Evan Bayh of Indiana, and Gov. Tim Kaine of Virginia, whom he pushed last week. ‘So many great candidates,’ McAuliffe added.

Is Clinton on the short list?

‘Sure, she’s on the short list!’ Our colleague Mark Silva has the rest of this fresh repeat story and what Clinton’s fall plans are over here at the Swamp.

-- Andrew Malcolm