Why I think Janet Napolitano is the right running mate for Obama

anigbrowl

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Thu May-15-08 03:41 PM
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Why I think Janet Napolitano is the right running mate for Obama

Janet Napolitano is governor of Arizona. And I think she should be his pick for running mate, because she would make an outstanding VP and later an outstanding president.

First, a quick run through her background and resume.

Janet was born in New York and as you might guess, has an Italian American heritage. Her Dad was dean of the New Mexico school of Medicine, and she was voted 'most likely to succeed' in Sandia High School. Then she went to California for college, following it up with a JD in Virginia.

Next she went to Arizona, and took a job as an attorney. Clarence Thomas dislikes her, because while there she represented Anita Hill, who had accused Thomas of sexual harassment. In 1993, Bill Clinton made her a US attorney for Arizona. In that job she helped investigate Michael Fortier in connection with the Oklahoma City bombing.

In 1998 she ran for and won the position of Attorney General of Arizona. She fought to improve protection for consumers and the standards for law enforcement. I guess she did a pretty good job, because in 2002 she ran for Governor of AZ, and won a narrow victory with 46% of the vote.

Coming into office, she found Arizona had a $1 billion budget deficit. In her first year, she turned this into a $1 billion surplus...without raising taxes. In fact, Arizona is not a tax friendly state, seeing as how it has two conservative GOP senators and a pretty conservative GOP legislature. And the legislature has voted to lower both income and property taxes in recent years.

Napolitano signed these bills, but has still turned in a balanced budget every year she has been governor, while increasing spending by an average of 6%. Pretty impressive, no? But she doesn't always just roll with her states' conservative legislature: she has vetoed bills about 130 times. Her spending priorities have been education above all else, and then healthcare, daycare and job creation.

She's also a strong advocate of both domestic and border security. She set up the nation's first state counterterrorism center, and indeed it's become a leading institution in the study of terrorism prevention. She also fought for and won permission to post Arizona's national guard along the border, where illegal crossings and human and drug smuggling are big issues. Hmm, is she a nativist? No, she strongly believes in fair immigration reform, and recognizes that most border crossers are seeking economic opportunity, not criminal status. She has signed legislation that penalizes employers who knowingly hire illegals, but opposed legislation that cuts illegal immigrants off from all benefits (eg school).

In 2004 she was widely rumored as a possible running mate for John Kerry, though eventually he picked John Edwards. Nothing daunted, in 2006 she ran for governor again and was re-elected by a landslide 2:1 margin. Time magazine has put in the top 5 governors of the USA. She's been chair of both the Western and National governor's Associations, and is currently a member of the National Governors Association executive comittee. She terms out in 2010 and has expressed interest in running for McCain's senate seat.

Pretty impressive. But why would she make a good running mate?

Many people argue Obama is weak on national security etc. I feel the opposite: he is at his strongest on international affairs, and is no shrinking violet when it comes to the use o the US military. I believe that Obama will appoint experienced people to head the departments of State and Defense, to whom he will delegate rather than defer.

To pick a defense-oriented VP would actually put his proposed administration 'on the defensive', allowing those on the right who define him as weak on such matters to say he had had to surround himself with people who knew better than he did - I call it the Cheney effect, which has worked out so disastrously for Bush and America.

Obama has the intellect, wisdom, experience and standing to become a world president. He's made it clear that diplomacy, national security, improvement of the relations between nations and equitable trade policies are big issues that he cares strongly about. He wants to end the Iraq war, but revitalize the war against our greatest enemy, Osama bin Laden and Al Qaeda in Afghanistan - a war that Bush and Rumsfeld assumed they had won and disgracefully put on the back burner. Anyone who was affected by 9/11 (ie most of us) must wonder why Osama bin aden has since enjoyed a life of peace, or if he's dead why he was able to pass away as a free man rather than in an American prison.

Obama also has a strong vision for domestic policy, built around creating a more egalitarian society where education opens the door to real economic opportunity, work is rewarded with dignity and a meaningful wage, and proper healthcare is a key component of economic security.I personally believe that he is in favor of a single-payer healthcare system, but knows that this will be a big challenge to implement. His strategy appears to be to out-compete the insurance companies by offering a better alternative.

To succeed with his policies, he needs a VP that is experienced and has a track record of success with wielding executive power at home. When he is focused on matters overseas, he also needs someone who will have great standing on domestic issues and will be able to refute criticism that his administration is too outward looking. He needs someone who shares his vision of making education more affordable and more accessible in order to build a competitive workforce. And lastly, he needs someone who is easy for Americans to like and who they'll feel confidence in, who will never reply to the voter's concerns with 'So what?'.

Napolitano meets and beats these criteria

First, there's no question that she's been an outstanding success as governor. She's proved she can run a state for the interests of its people, and still keep the budget in line. And she's proved that she's got no problem at all taking the fight to the Republicans - while still addressing the issues that are important to them. As a result, she's garnered huge amounts of respect from both parties, and this respect has been reflected in the voting booth.

Second, she's a great communicator. Whether on the stump, in a campaign commercial, on CNN or testifying before Congress, she has an easy manner that connects strongly with people without diluting her message.

Third, it doesn't hurt that she's female. She would be a great option regardless of gender, thanks to her existing success. But she exemplifies the idea of 'sisters are doing it for themselves'. She has the confidence of someone who has succeeded on their own terms. She's never been married or had children: she says she's just a straight workaholic, although she has faced (and laughed at) whisper campaigns suggesting she was gay in the last election. Like Obama, she believes marriage is a male-female institution, but has opposed ballot proposals to ban Gay marriage with a constitutional amendment in AZ (it lost).

Fourth, she's pretty much the opposite of elite. While she wears suits, she's frequently photographed with her sleeves rolled up. She's not likely to appear on the cover of Vogue any time soon. She's just a hardworking governor from a state that has no elected three female governors - and she's the first to get re-elected.

Take a look at her campaign commercial and you can see why she's been elected - and why nobody with a clue is going to try painting her as elitist: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8yipI0mcWU8&feature=related

For contrast, check out the GOP ads attacking her in the last election campaign: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVQ_z9aKu18 ...and yet they lost 2:1. She can take the heat alright.

BOOM go the 2nd amendment 'Obama doesn't get it' tactics for the GOP. Janet obviously knows how to have fun with a gun.

Finally, she puts Arizona in play. McCain leads Obama there by single digits, with 15% undecided, according to one recent poll. But Napolitano has outpolled McCain several times in the last year in hypothetical comeptition for his senate seat. she is Arizona's best-liked elected official, with 59% approving her performance in the job and a whopping 9% disapproval rating. If Arizonans are given a choice between two of their own for a place in the White House, I believe they'll back Napolitano.

She is presidential material just on the basis of her achievements alone: I am a little surprised she did not put up a candidacy this year. But if she becomes vice President, then she'll get 4 or maybe 8 years to develop her already-strong policy skills on the national stage, while acquiring crucial experience on the international front as well, next to a president who I believe has it in him to be one of America's most successful and respected for many years.

So that's my case for Governor Napolitano as Obama's running mate and our country's next Vice President. An outstanding track record, rock-solid political skills, and a warm personality that all Americans can easily connect with. As well as rounding out Obama's ticket in many ways, she's also someone I would trust to do a good job running the country if Obama fell ill or after he is termed out.

Barack and Janet in 2008! Please kick and rec if you like the idea, and if not please dispute with arguments about why your choice would be better than her. If you want to reply just to take a dump on Barack Obama, go ahead since you'll be kicking it anyway.