I’d pick Jesse Ventura. Just to give everyone fits. 
I think a Biden/Obama ticket would have been my preference. I don’t buy into this “change” bullshit. Washington isn’t going to change, so we might as well have a president who knows how to get things done. Biden is in a much better position than Obama. Having said that, I’m perfectly happy with Biden as VP. It was a good, safe pick for Obama.
Palen… I don’t really know much about her. She seems too close to the religious right for me, but that’s probably one of the reasons McCain picked her. If it were me, I’d have gone with someone like Jack Kemp or Tom Ridge. Kemp is probably a no-go since he already lost once (with Dole). I also like Alan Simpson a lot, but he’s probably too old for McCain to pick. Being much younger, it wouldn’t be a problem for me.
For Obama, my first pick would have been Richardson. He would have solidified support in the West/Mountain states (which I suppose he could still do). That being said, Biden was a good choice. It was “damned if you do/damned if you don’t” and I think he went the right way.
McCain and his advisors are shithouse-rat-crazy. If they wanted an attack dog, Palin is a Yorkie to Biden’s Doberman. Giuliani may not play well in small-town America, but he would have matched up well with Biden in the debates. If they wanted a “maverick” choice, they should have gone with Lieberman. A registered Democrat in the VP slot is about as “unconventional” as you can get. (and, yes, Lieberman is still technically a registered Democrat.) Romney would have appealed to both the conservative base and the moderates. Palin was a stunt that will backfire very badly. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if she drops out in the next couple of weeks citing “family concerns”. I have no cite for this, just a gut feeling.
I considered Biden, but thought that a Senate committee chair was probably worth more than VP. I was sort of hoping for Sebelius, whose gubernatorial term was up. But I don’t keep up with state governors enough to know which choices would be good. My dream pick was Samantha Power, to kill the GOP with (relative) youth & beauty, but she wasn’t born American.
You really think so?
It seems to me that that might have been the big issue in, say, 2000, but the issues are too important this year for everybody for the ‘Washington insider/untainted outsider’ game to be particularly significant.
I guess we’ll see. Congress’s ratings are at historic lows, almost in single digits. I think there’s a huge anti-Washington sentiment out there on both sides.
Hillary would have been a good choice if Bill could have been neutered and jailed during the term. I would not want to have Bill around.
For McCain, Snowe maybe. Certainly not Romney. Giulliani or Palin.
Measure for Measure might bring his ‘More Qualified than Palin’ thread back if people ask for it. I’m asking. Anyone else?
I think you’re underestimating the rabid dislike most of the flyover area has for Giuliani. There’s a real distrust of “East Coast” types and he’s exactly the type those people don’t like.
McCain sure didn’t have a lot to pick from, and I remain puzzled as to why he didn’t pick Romney. Palin is going to tank McCain, and I couldn’t be happier.
Biden? No. He is the antithesis of what Obama is trying to sell. Remember that a few Demos (including my pick of Ted Strickland) turned him down. Lot’s of liabilities and not a lot of upside.
Palin? A better choice for McCain than the Jobama ticket, but I would have looked elsewhere. In November hindsight, she may have been a brilliant choice. She is going after Obama like Biden is supposed to do to McCain and now the Dems are comparing their Presidential nominee to the Rep V-P choice (a losing strategy). If she works out, it’s more luck than planning.
My husband asserts that McCain HAD to pick a pro-life woman, preferably a governor, so Palin was all that was available.
Isn’t it a clue to someone that it’s hard to find a prominent pro-life Republican woman?