Right choice for VP?

Ever since John Kerry emerged as the Democratic standard bearer, questions have surfaced concerning whom he will select as his running mate. Recently, he announced his running mate would be Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina. The media was quick to shout out big names such as Edwards, Wesley Clark, Richard Gephardt and even Hillary Clinton and John McCain.

Given the polarized national atmosphere, Kerry should have picked a less known name as his vice president. In that respect, certainly Even Bayh, Bill Richardson, Bob Graham, Max Clelan, and Tom Vilsack would be likely possibilities. However, the strongest and most qualified candidate to have helped Kerry win in 2004 has received little coverage or mention in the media.

That man is Virginia Gov. Mark Warner.

The Democratic primaries proved many popular beliefs of Americans. If Howard Dean did anything, he confirmed that America still has a passion for a Washington outsider. For that reason and that reason alone, the traditional big names that were circulated as possible running mates were already off the board.

Most of the smaller names that were thrown around by Kerry were mentioned only because of their ability to win a single state: Iowa, Indiana or Florida. However, previous presidential candidates have picked vice presidents based on delivering a state; such a strategy has not worked in modern times.

Kerry had the option of selecting a virtual unknown who delivers key votes where needed - someone like Warner.

So, why was Warner the ideal pick for vice president? Alternatively, perhaps the question can be better phrased as - who is Mark Warner?

Warner was born and raised in Connecticut. He became a self-made millionaire after getting lucky with his investments in the then unknown cellular phone industry. After working as a fundraiser for the Democratic National Committee, Warner moved to Virginia. In 1996, Warner almost shocked the nation by running an extremely close race against powerful Virginia Sen. John Warner. Five years later, Warner got the breakthrough he was looking for by winning his first election - as governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Given his political experience, most people are skeptical about his qualifications for national office. However, he won the governor's seat over a very popular Republican in a state that almost never elects a Democratic governor. Warner successfully won his gubernatorial race by taking a reasonable stance on guns, an issue that many political pundits believe hurt Al Gore in essential states in 2000.

Despite governing for only two years, Warner has risen to prominence as vice chair of the National Governors Association and as chair of the Southern Governors Association. In only two years, Warner has done more for Virginia than most governors dream of accomplishing in two terms.

Warner is everything Kerry could have used in a running mate. He is a moderate southern Democrat. He is a Washington outsider. He has the charisma, the personality and supposedly the good looks of John Edwards. He is young and has fresh new ideas. Moreover, he gives George W. Bush a run for his money in Virginia, not to mention winning West Virginia for Kerry. More importantly, his personality, accomplishments, speaking style and moderate policies allow him to appeal to crucial independents and swing voters nationally.

In an election where the President will be selected by a slim margin, Warner could sway crucial independents in states like Pennsylvania, Iowa, Missouri, West Virginia, New Mexico and Florida, where the election may be decided by only thousands or even hundreds of votes.

When Warner came to office, Virginia faced terrible fiscal conditions like many other states. He demonstrated he could solve the state's fiscal problems by making bipartisan appeals. He successfully passed his tax reform package and a budget package that addresses Virginia's long-term structural budget imbalance. As governor, Virginia's AAA bond rating was also restored. He provides economic hope and fiscal prudence to a nation struggling to balance its budgets.

Warner also overhauled the state's struggling college and university system and has recently passed an initiative that reforms consistently low-performing elementary and secondary schools. In doing so, he successfully used his business experiences to initiate reforms.

While Warner is a public policy success story, he is also a fearless campaigner who could energize independents for Kerry. Being a Connecticut native, Warner was born and raised in my hometown, even attending the same high school I did.

I have heard stories of his political days in Connecticut. I even know people who received nominations to political office instead of Warner when he lived in Connecticut. Those setbacks made him stronger.

I also know that at Rockville High School, Warner had a dream that he shared with his history teachers who taught me years later. That dream was to become President of the United States one day. He has positioned himself to make his childhood dream a reality.

Warner would have put his heart and soul into campaigning for Kerry. He would have stopped at nothing - enduring long and tireless hours, using his business connections to help raise campaign funds, while also lending his heart and caring nature to identifying with everyday people.

Kerry should have picked Gov. Warner as his vice president. But, since he has not, America has not seen the last of his relatively small name. As it goes, the governor of Virginia is constitutionally limited to one term. But Warner has bigger plans -Washington, D.C. Warner will most likely be serving in the United States Senate by 2006 and someday will be a presidential contender in his own right.

Richmond may not be too far from Washington. Nevertheless, the road from Richmond to Washington is a very long and hard ride. A political freshman, Warner was already willing to walk that road if necessary.

Sources:

http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2004/special/president/candidates/vp.contenders/

http://www.ctnow.com/news/opinion/op_ed/hc-warner0621.artjun21,0,4720034.story

http://www.governor.virginia.gov