Kerry-Edwards Meeting Fuels VP Talk
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By RON FOURNIER, AP Political Writer
WASHINGTON - Sen. John Edwards (news - web sites) interrupted his Walt Disney World vacation last week to meet with Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry (news - web sites), adding a new level of intrigue to the vice presidential search.
Kerry must select a vice presidential candidate at the Democratic National Convention, which begins in Boston on July 26. Delegates will be asked to formally nominate his pick.
The Massachusetts senator said Monday he had not settled on a running mate, but that didn't stop the rampant speculation in Democratic circles. Party leaders said they were told to expect a decision any day.
"I've made no decision at this point in time, and I'm going to continue to keep it a private and personal process until I announce it publicly," the senator told WTAE, an ABC affiliate in Pittsburgh. Since the search began in March, Kerry's staff has disclosed almost nothing about his list of candidates, their interviews and his winnowing process.
Edwards, a polished populist from North Carolina, outlasted all but Kerry in the Democratic primary fight and is the favorite of many party regulars. Two officials close to the Kerry campaign, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Edwards interrupted a family vacation and flew from Florida to Washington on Thursday to meet secretly with Kerry.
They say the meeting went extremely well, and that the freshman senator's stock has been rising with Kerry. But they cautioned against reading too much into the session because he's not the only potential vice presidential candidate who has covertly met with the presidential candidate.
Kerry also has given serious consideration to Rep. Dick Gephardt (news - web sites) of Missouri, Gov. Tom Vilsack of Iowa and Sen. Bob Graham of Florida.
He has not discussed his short or long lists, but that hasn't stopped speculation about a long line of Democrats, including retired Army Gen. Wesley Clark (news - web sites), Sen. Evan Bayh of Indiana and Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware.
The Kerry campaign has a staff of more than a dozen standing ready to serve the vice presidential nominee. Several other aides, preparing to respond to GOP criticism of Kerry's pick, have material in hand for a half dozen potential candidates, though they have no assurances that their secretive boss will pick from that list.
The focus of last-minute speculation, Edwards is the favorite of many Democratic activists because of his youthful good looks, a self-assured manner and a message that focused on President Bush (news - web sites)'s "two Americas" — one for the wealthy and another for everybody else.
Others express concern that Edwards, whose only political credential is a single term in the Senate, lacks the experience in international affairs, particularly in wartime, to be a credible candidate to assume the presidency in the case of death, resignation or removal.
Edwards, 51, seldom criticized Kerry or any of the other Democrats while running a generally positive campaign. The two had few major policy disagreements — both supported the decision to go to war in Iraq (news - web sites), for example, and both voted against the $87 billion package for Iraq and Afghanistan (news - web sites).
Kerry finished first and Edwards second in the Iowa caucuses in January, surprising front-runner Howard Dean (news - web sites) and driving regional favorite Gephardt out of the race.
Kerry said during the campaign that, other than himself, Gephardt would make the best president.
The son of a Teamsters milk driver and a secretary, Gephardt highlighted his working-class background during the primary campaign. Critics tried to turn his legislative experience into a liability by suggesting he was a Washington politician who already had ample opportunity to offer ideas and leadership and would not be a catalyst for change.
Gephardt, 63, has been in the House for nearly 28 years, its majority leader from 1989 to 1995, and was the minority leader until he began his bid for president. He is a favorite of organized labor, a key Democratic constituency, and hails from a battleground state.
Kerry has met privately with Edwards at least twice, and at least once with Gephardt and Graham. |
