The title says it. It’s now in print. First, I must personally apologize to Michelle Obama for even suggesting that her husband go back and work anywhere near the White House. She won’t be happy. I know it.
The rest of the world, just hear me out.
The Republicans control it all on the federal level - White House, Congress, Supreme Court, and the bureaucracy. Democrats control roughly 6 states - 3 that aren’t fully neoliberal...yet. Winning is everything. Democrats aren’t winning. They’re losing badly.
Bernie Sanders is still the most popular active politician in the country. In fact, the most recent Harvard-Harris survey, conducted by Mark Penn, shows Sanders as the *only* politician at the federal level with a positive approval rating. They also polled only registered voters. As Former Vice-President Joe Biden would say, “That’s a big deal”
Former President Barack Obama is currently polling (as a non-politician - hence a little post-presidency bump) at 62% favorable rating among adults nationwide.
So call me crazy, but after losing narrowly with the second most historically unpopular presidential nominee of a major party, to the historically least popular presidential nominee of a major party (Trump) I got this wild idea: Why don’t the Democrats run the two most extremely popular people they have -who aren’t entertainment celebrities and actually know what the Hell they’re doing?
And yes, Article II of the Constitution sets up the vice-president position, and the 22nd Amendment limits a person to being elected President two times, and allows 2 extra years for a vice-president who assumes office two years or more into a president’s term. Should Vice-President Obama have to take over for President Sanders for some unforeseen reason, he’s good to go. He just can’t run for re-election at the end of the term Sanders was elected for. But Bernie’s a healthy guy, assuming he’s laying off the Ben & Jerry’s.
I know it’s a little early to start worrying about the presidential election in 2020 -but only by about 6 months. Like it or not, that’s how early the campaigns start now, by necessity. Citizen Barack Obama had a nice little break. Good for him! He earned it! He is now fully recreated, rested, and invested (in D.C. real estate). He’ll have his new book done too, so he can take advantage of the campaign finance loophole for anonymous people buying his book by the truck load without it being conspicuous - like if his 1995 book, “Dreams from My Father”, suddenly soared to the top of the NY Times Bestseller List in 2019. But lest I digress.
Electorally speaking, that old saying that no one votes for vice-president - well, you can just toss that one out the door. After 4 years of President Trump, Obama will be sorely missed. Bernie can easily carry all the millennials, many Gen Xers, Reagan Democrats, rural Dems, and labor. Hillary just was not capable of turning out the black and Hispanic vote like vice-presidential candidate Barack Obama could - even as a v.p. candidate. Dude can run a campaign like nobody’s business, and that good judgement would be of great benefit to a Sanders campaign.
Frankly, the Democratic Party is divided. Notice how the Rep. Keith Ellison/Former Labor Secretary Tom Perez DNC tour was super short and counterproductive? That hurts them electorally at all levels of government. While Berners couldn’t stomach neoliberal Hillary, they could tolerate neoliberal Barack as vice-president. All the billionaires and Wall Street executives could have Barack’s cell on speed dial, so they could have a say, but the $27 donations would stop at President Bernie Sanders desk. That’s who would be in charge ultimately.
I would be remiss to not say that Barack would be the most qualified vice-president in U.S. history. The fact is that he has actually been president, so if he had to take over it would be old hat. Besides, Joe Biden taught him everything he knows! That should count for something. Former Vice-President Biden, quite frankly, gave then President Obama what I called, “establishment reality checks” on a regular basis. Former President Obama knows where all the potholes are on the way to fulfilling a Sanders revolutionary agenda - and that’s a very good thing my Berner friends.
Again, my very sincerest apologies to Michelle Obama, and for what it’s worth, I’d like to see Rep. Tulsi Gabbard as V.P., but this just makes too much sense to pass up. Electorally speaking, no one could deny that Sanders/Obama 2020 is a dream team. And it could get the party back on the reunification path, and that is no small or easy feat.