It took awhile, but he finally did it. After waiting nearly three months since he dropped out of the race, former North Carolina Senator John Edwards took the stage in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on Wednesday and took a side.
"The people in America have made their choice," he told a crowd of 12,000 supporters, "and so have I." With that Edwards very well may have sealed his fate as the Vice Presidential nominee- again.
In all likelihood, Edwards was wise to withhold his endorsement. Had it come a month ago, it probably would have been lost in the veritable sea of endorsements flying around before Pennsylvania and Indiana. Certainly, it would have been overshadowed by what most considered a shocker in the Bill Richardson endorsement of Obama. After all, Edwards isn't even a superdelegate.
But Edwards' comment comes at a time of relative quiet, and now, he's thrust right back into the national spotlight as a top contender for the VP slot on Obama's ticket.
For better or worse, the racial tone of the 2008 race for the Democratic nomination has been real, with statewide votes often split down racial lines. In a USA Today interview last week, Hillary Clinton essentially declared herself the poor white man's candidate, and the fact is, she has a point. In putting together a ticket that has any shot of winning, Democrats will need to bring in the Clinton vote. But the hard part will be doing it without Clinton.
That an Obama-Clinton ticket is out of the question is almost a foregone conclusion. Putting the personal nature of the campaign aside, Hillary Clinton is not likely to be a quiet second-in-command. Moreover, Obama would be wary of putting himself in a situation where Bill Clinton- who was the most powerful man in the world just eight years ago- is on the sidelines, but close enough to the action to get involved. Just like any of those who've gone before him, Obama will want his presidency to be his own.
But Edwards essentially accomplishes everything Hillary does. In fact, his appeal in the South and Midwest, coupled with Obama's success among African American voters in the South may very well put Democrats in a position to compete in states beyond the typical Democratic mainstays on the west coast and in New England. Plus, Democrats have never been shy about regional balance on the ticket, and to that extent, Edwards exceeds Clinton in what he brings to the table.
True, the Edwards experiment didn't work so well last time around. But the difference between John Kerry and Barack Obama as candidates is astronomical. Obama carries a far wider appeal nationally than Obama ever did. The fact that the Kerry-Edwards ticket couldn't even carry Edwards' home state of North Carolina is more a reflection of the limited reach of Kerry than of Edwards himself.
The one downside to an Edwards vice presidential candidacy is the experience issue. Neither Obama nor Edwards have more than a single term in the Senate. To that end, it's possible that Obama may opt for a governor like Ted Strickland of Ohio. But still, Edwards' national name recognition, Southern charm, and generally favorable appeal may trump any question of time in office. And having run a national fall campaign before, Edwards may appear to Obama as someone with the experience and know-how to get it right this time around.
Is Obama-Edwards a viable option for the Democratic ticket?