Longshot, Or Sensible Pick?
The second in a series examining the policy alignment of the Democratic presidential nominee and the pols rumored to be on his vice-presidential short-list.
Once the subject of ample veep buzz, Gov. Kathleen Sebelius (D-KS) has become the dark horse of the rumored Democratic vice presidential candidates. Barack Obama hasn't visited her state of late (the IL Sen travels Thursday to VA, home, of course, to Gov. Tim Kaine, another talked-about running mate), and Sebelius has been slotted to speak Tuesday at the Democratic Convention (the veep nom traditionally speaks Wednesday, of course).
But don’t count her out just yet. Of all the Dem short-listers, Sebelius appears the most in sync with Obama’s policy views:
She’s pro-choice. Sebelius vetoed a bill earlier this year that would have let outside parties sue a doctor for performing a late-term abortion.
She’s promoted green policies, tripling the use of wind power in KS since ’02 and vetoing construction of a pair of contentious coal plants. Energy lobbyists spent hundreds of thousands of dollars pressuring her to vote the other way.
She attempted to usher in a $227M health care expansion this year, most of which would have gone towards offering state-provided or state-subsidized health insurance to the poor.
She signed an anti-discrimination measure affecting state employees.
And she fought Bush administration efforts to earn gubernatorial support for CAFTA.
Sebelius and Obama differ on gun control and the death penalty – yet on both issues, Sebelius, like Obama, has straddled the line between support and opposition.
In her ’02 campaign, she said she supported “the language in the Kansas Constitution” regarding the right to bear arms, a ringing endorsement of the Second Amendment. Sebelius spokeswoman Nicole Corcoran-Basso said at the time, “Like Charlton Heston, Kathleen Sebelius supports every person's Second Amendment right to bear arms." And this April, she approved a bill lifting restrictions on ownership of automatic weapons and silencers. But in ’06, she earned the wrath of the NRA for vetoing a concealed-carry law, and the state legislature overrode her veto.
According to the Topeka Capital-Journal, Sebelius either abstained from or voted against every death penalty measure that came before her as a state rep. But her position later softened when she campaigned for the state’s top job. During her ’04 reelection campaign, she walked conservative line on death penalty bills, saying that “protecting Kansas citizens is the No. 1 priority."
(Hotline’s NICHOLAS TABOR)
Kathleen Sebelius is the only conceivable VP selection at this point who would both excite the Democratic Party grass roots and wow the news media. Bayh, Biden and Kaine would do neither. If Obama picks a white male traditional politician for this job, the sense of deflation -- among both the base and the media -- will be palpable in less than three days. In what now looks like an unnecessarily close election from the Democrats' perspective, and with a qualified progressive woman governor of a Republican state (with great media sparkle) available, any more conventional choice is almost surely going to contribute little to Obama's momentum. He can't win this election by making safe choices and hedging his bets, or else he'll seem more conventional himself. He needs a home run, not a single...
"And this April, she approved a bill lifting restrictions on ownership of automatic weapons and silencers".
Wow, when did Kansas secede from the United States? If federal law no longer applies to automatic weapons in Kansas, maybe we should all move to the state.
"And this April, she approved a bill lifting restrictions on ownership of automatic weapons and silencers".
Wow, when did Kansas secede from the United States? If federal law no longer applies to automatic weapons in Kansas, maybe we should all move to the state.
Uh, Cool, automatic weapons and silencers have been legally owned by Americans since they were first manufactured, and are now. They must be registered with the ATF, a background investigation done and approved, and a $200 tax paid and stamp kept by the owner. I believe owners are also fingerprinted. Some states like Kansas and California, place such severe restrictions on ownership of them as to make their possession very unlikely. The requirements for ownership have to be repeated every time the silencer or automatic gun changes hands. Owners of silencers have to pay the $200 tax for every silencer possessed, ditto for the guns. So we won't have to secede or the 600,000 deaths to do over again. Unless uneducated persons like yourself become the majority in the US some day.
Kathleen Sebelius is another boring liberal. As a Jewess in the US, I want to remind everyone that America wasn't won with a registered gun! Nor are criminals stopped by talk, but by FIREARMS. That is why all REAL Americans put our 2nd Amendment FIRST!
Kathleen Sebelius is another boring liberal. As a Jewess in the US, I want to remind everyone that America wasn't won with a registered gun! Nor are criminals stopped by talk, but by FIREARMS. That is why all REAL Americans put our 2nd Amendment FIRST!
Kathleen Sebelius is another boring liberal. As a Jewess in the US, I want to remind everyone that America wasn't won with a registered gun! Nor are criminals stopped by talk, but by FIREARMS. That is why all REAL Americans put our 2nd Amendment FIRST!
Sebelius is not another boring liberal. In fact, she's not even classified as liberal. She is progressive, thinking outside of the box for complex solutions and moves forward to change things for the state of Kansas. Just look at how she's completely eliminated the budget deficit in Kansas. She represents predominently moderate democrats and republicans. There is no way she would get elected in Kansas as what you say, a liberal democrat. Progressives are what we need more of in this country. I know whoever Obama chooses as his Veep will be very carefully thought out, but Sebelius would be an excellent choice and there's no doubt in my mind that Clinton supporters are sick of seeing white males in office. They would get over it, they're democrats for crying out loud. ;)
Sebelius would have been a great choice for VP. Visionary, inspiring, effective and someone with integrity.
That being said, Hillary Clinton probably would have been the best choice if Obama is truly serious about winning.
Sebelius would have been a great choice for VP. Visionary, inspiring, effective and someone with integrity.
That being said, Hillary Clinton probably would have been the best choice if Obama is truly serious about winning.