Hotline After Dark -- Pro Con Pro-Choice

Veepstakes was the talk of the TV last night. On the GOP side, most of the discussion focused on the possibility of John McCain picking a pro-choice running mate.

FNC's Cameron: "Sources at the Republican National Committee now say they've been told by McCain's aides that the former Pennsylvania governor, Tom Ridge, is no longer being considered" ("Special Report," 8/19).

Ridge, on Rush Limbaugh saying it would be a shame for McCain to pick a pro-choice running mate: "Well, Rush has never known to be shy about his giving his opinion and I'm sure his point of view may be held by other people within the party. All I know is that my friend of 25 years, John McCain, is strongly and forever pro-life. He also believes that you shouldn't be judgmental on other people's point of view with regard to this and some other very difficult issues. And, as I said before, I think he will make the right choice for his vice presidential nominee. And, at the end of the day, I think Rush and everybody else, hopefully, can see that there's a clear choice, regardless of who the vice presidential candidate, a choice that says John McCain is needed now as president of the United States in this perilous time" ("Situation Room," CNN, 8/19).

MSNBC's Matthews, on why Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) is being more seriously considered than Ridge for VP: "Why can't he pick a pro-choice Republican, like Tom Ridge, a war hero, down-the-line Republican ... because he's pro-choice, but you can pick a Joe Lieberman even though he's pro-choice? Explain."

NBC's Mitchell, in response: "Because if you talk to people like Rich Lowry of the National Review, it would shake it all up. You would come out and you'd say, I'm a one-term president. It is a coalition ticket. We're going to shake up and change Washington. We're going to get something done. ... And then turn it back to the Republican Party" ("Hardball," MSNBC, 8/19).

More Mitchell: "The Lieberman possibility is so serious that state party officials say that they have been asked to check their party rules to see if a non-Republican can be on the ballot in their states. And if he does choose Lieberman, McCain would promise to serve for only one term" ("Nightly News," 8/19).

More Veepstakes after the jump.

(KATHERINE LEHR)

Time's Halperin: "I think Tom Ridge is not only not under consideration. I don't believe he's ever been, based on the Republicans I have talked to. ... Here's what I think they're trying to do. And, again, it's just a theory, but it's not a crazy one. ... I think that Tom Ridge and Joe Lieberman are people John McCain would love to serve with in the White House. But I think he's headed toward picking Mitt Romney. Mitt Romney is pro-life now, but he's been pro-choice. And I think what these consultations are meant to do is to give conservatives a little bit of a scare, so, when he picks Mitt Romney, people say, he was recently pro-choice. He's flip-flopped to this position. He's not as solid as we would like to be. Compared to Lieberman and Ridge, he's going to look very solid on that key issue" ("AC 360," CNN, 8/19).

Romney, asked if it would be a mistake for McCain to choose a pro-choice running mate: "I can't imagine someone like myself giving advice to John McCain as he makes a very critical decision. You know, marriage is an important decision, and when you're the nominee of a party, who you're going to get married to as your VP is an important decision. He's going to make that all by himself, and, you know, he's done well in making decisions in the past. He's surprised people by the kind of decisions he's made, and they've turned out well, so, you know, I'd tell him just go with your instincts and choose who you're comfortable with" ("Hannity & Colmes," FNC, 8/19).

MAXIN' AND RELAXIN'

On the Dem side, there was speculation about when Barack Obama would name his running mate, as well as analysis of Joe Biden saying "he's not the guy."

NBC pol. dir. Chuck Todd: "A couple things about the 'I'm not the guy' quote. I was talking to some folks who know Joe Biden very, very well and said, number one, notice the big grin on his face when he said it. Number two, if he had been told he wasn't the guy, he wouldn't be out golfing; he'd probably be inside, looking inside, a little introspective. He wouldn't be a happy warrior. This was more of a 'I'm not the guy' like 'Look, I'm not Joe Biden, I might look like Joe Biden.'So, I think everybody [is] so jumpy right now, you know, about this because we have nothing else to be jumpy about" ("Countdown," MSNBC, 8/19).

CNN's Henry, on Biden saying he's "not the guy": "People like Biden know that the first rule of the veepstakes is to not want it too bad, not look like you're too hungry. You have got to look humble. You have got to sit back and wait" ("Election Center," 8/19).

Karl Rove: "Since 1968 it's been normal to name your vice presidential running mate the week before or the week of the convention. There's only been one instance since then, 2004, for the Democrats, where the vice presidential nominee was named more than eight days before the convention. So this is normal. What's unusual is the way that the Obama campaign has been sort of prepping this thing and sort of building it up" ("Hannity & Colmes," FNC, 8/19).

And ex-VA Gov. Mark Warner (D) appeared on "Money & Politics":

Bloomberg's Cook: "Can you clear the air once and for all here? The fact that you're the keynote speaker, does that mean you're not a possibility as a VP choice?"

Warner: "I have told the Obama campaign early on that the only job I'm running for this year is Senate. And I would not want to be considered as a vice presidential candidate. I think Governor Kaine, who is still in the running ... I think he'd be a great choice. I mean, he's someone who has got 20-plus years of public experience, both as a city councilmember, a mayor, a lieutenant governor, a governor. He's really where the rubber hits the road in terms of delivering government services. He's a man of deep faith. He served as a missionary in Honduras. He brings, I think, a life experience and a level of judgment to the position that quite honestly, I think would be a great addition to the Obama ticket."

Warner, on people saying Obama needs to pick a VP with more nati'l security and foreign policy experience: "Well, listen, I think that at the end of the day, it's more about judgment than necessarily experience. One could argue that Dick Cheney had more foreign policy experience than anybody for the top job or second job in the last 20-odd years. I'm not sure that experience translated into good judgment."

Warner, asked if Obama can pick his running mate in VA on 8/20: "I hope so. I mean, I think the sooner it's out -- I think you know, we've got the talking heads -- now spinning heads, perhaps because of all of the speculation. You know, the sooner the better but he'll make his decision in due course" (Bloomberg, 8/19).