Interesting veep choices

No matter what, this is going to be an historic election.

Either the first African-American will become president, or the first woman will be elected vice president.

Both candidates have made excellent choices for vice president, shoring up areas of perceived weakness. Interestingly enough, neither chose a candidate who would directly help them carry a key swing state.

We've talked about Biden, a tough, no-nonsense senator whose experience as chairman of the Senate judiciary and the foreign affairs committee neatly fills the holes in Obama's resume. He's a "blue-collar" politician who was a single parent for many years (after the death of his wife and one of his children in a car wreck) and who still takes the train home each night from work. Although now the car will be filled with secret service agents instead of "regular joes."

Palin brings the youth McCain's campaign was lacking, and credentials as a very solid conservative. She is opposed to abortion (even in cases of rape and incest), birth control and sex education in the schools (three issues that have directly impacted her family recently), thinks that creationism should be given equal credit in the schools with evolution, is a huge supporter of gun rights (she's an NRA member and an outdoorsman), and has been an ethics in government advocate.

Her anti-abortion stance is certain to appeal to the evangelicals, which McCain had almost been forced to write off to this point, and her policies resumé should appeal to the Republican right wing, which was pretty luke-warm toward McCain.

Sarah Palin was born in Sandpoint, Idaho, and moved with her family as an infant to Wasilla, Alaska, (where she became a beauty pageant winner). She returned to her birth state to attend the University of Idaho, where she studied journalism and graduated in 1987 with a bachelor's degree. So we guess she helps solidify Idaho as a McCain state (like he needed that).

Palin significantly lacks national/federal and international experience, but McCain covers those bases. Her inexperience pretty much takes that card off the table when it comes to attacking Obama on that issue, however.

And you've got to wonder, seriously, about her ability to be a geriatric heartbeat away from the presidency if something should happen to McCain. She's served as mayor of a town half the size of Mountain Home and is half way through her first term as governor. If McCain should be elected, and, God forbid, die or be incapacitated (something that has to be considered because of his age, despite his apparent robust health), would you want her running the country? Could she? Obama's choice was far better in that respect, since Biden has the proven experience and skill set to do the job.

But Palin adds youth to the ticket, which McCain needed, and her gender may draw those voters who were backing Clinton primarily on that basis.

In the end, both candidates chose running mates that helped solidify their own parties. How those choices will play out with the crucial undecided voters remains to be seen.

-- Kelly Everitt