Politics

Mitt Romney For Veep?

Matt K. Lewis Senior Contributor
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Having sparred with Evander Holyfield, could Mitt Romney be the next GOP attack dog? It’s possible. In his new book, “The Queen,” Hugh Hewitt apparently argues Mitt Romney should be a top VP pick.

Hewitt reminds us that George W. Bush tapped Dick Cheney, but my first thought turned to the idea that Ronald Reagan would select Gerald Ford as his running mate (and, as a sort of co-president) in 1980.

Thankfully, that didn’t happen, but this is very different. Ford had been the president, not just the Republican nominee.

Despite the baggage of having run and lost, Romney has much to recommend him. He’s fully vetted, competent, a solid fundraiser, and an experienced campaigner. The knock on Romney has always been that he’s not a great front man — that he’d be a better manager or chairman than politician. This could be the role he was born to play.

But is it realistic? It’s hard to imagine Jeb Bush picking Romney; he’d probably balance the ticket with one of the younger guys — maybe Scott Walker? More likely would be that one of the younger Senators — say Marco Rubio — would tap the older, more experienced Romney as his running mate.

Personally, I like the idea of running against Hillary by doubling down on the youth image — sort of the way Bill Clinton decided against “balancing” the ticket, and instead selected a young, moderate, Southern Democrat — Al Gore — as his running mate. I must confess, this thought hadn’t crossed my mind. But stranger things have happened, and as ideas go, this one isn’t absurd.

Matt K. Lewis