The time is approaching for VP announcement by Barack Obama.  Who will it be and when will it be?  The best time is really at the Democratic National Convention on Tuesday night by Mark Warner.  Here he could announce Tim Kaine as his VP choice to get people to focus on his message instead of any message by Hillary that may be off subject.

First of all, let me say that my best wishes are with Congresswoman's Jones's family.  She was a true Democrat and her leadership will be missed.

Before I get into VP talk, I must say I am disgusted by the lack of class on dailykos.  I thought higher of the people here, and I suppose it is fair to say any victories Democrats achieve is in spite of and not because of your so called support.  Aside from the admin and the rare member, this site is made up of juvenile amateurs.  Sad, truly.

As far as VP news goes I was 100 percent wrong, Evan Bayh was not rolled out today, but he is still the favorite, and I am not the only one to say so.  The page run by Time Magazine also reports similar conventional wisdom.  

Yes, by gum and by gosh.

And since I am grumpy I am going to share it with you.

3 things have me grumpy.

1. All this VP talk

2. All this poll talk

3. All this HRC talk

It's gotten to the point I do not even go out to the movies or show at all.

More after the break.

Hillary.

Ok...so here we are less than a week before Obama's coronation at the Democratic National Convention.  His VP pick should be named any day now, and the media and political junkies are waiting by their cell phones for the text message from the campaign with the announcement.  Will it be Biden, as all current "indications" tell us?  Or will Obama "go with his heart over his head" and pick Kaine?  Will he thumb his nose at many in his progressive base and go with Bayh?  Or will he thumb his nose at Hillary Clinton's "18 million voters" and name Sebelius?

I think (THINK) he's playing all of us and will go outside of the box...

Yes, I know that VP speculation may be likened to the July 31st non-waiver baseball trade deadline as far as speculating which teams will be shopping and which ones will be dealing.

I did read the posting that a paper in Nashville is saying that Obama's aide are being dispatched to Indianapolis to greet the VP choice,Indiana Senator Evan Bayh prior to the Saturday pre-convention send off.

If it is Bayh,I have one thing to say: God help us!!!

I've been reading today's comments for the past two hours and my brain feels ready to burst.  I want to win just as much as the next person but I really truly feel confident that Obama's campaign will address our latest concerns, especially the obvious problems that seem to overlap in our individual analysis of the election so far.  Although the polls are tigthening and negative feelings are starting to grab hold of us, my thinking is that we miscalculate Obama's overall strategy for the general election.  

I am worried and am putting this out there to see if maybe I'm overreacting. I need some Kos help!

Until recently I was excited about the prospect of watching the Democratic National Convention. Now I am less sure. We all know that the Obama and Clinton camps have come to some sort of an agreement and have decided to enter Hillary’s name into nomination. Then a floor vote will be taken.  Of course Hillary has not yet released her delegates, and some say they need a "catharsis".  Will they in the end support Barack?  Some will, but how many? Will this vote be a sad parenthesis in the proceedings?

I felt on Feb. 5th that we could have a dream team for the Democratic Party. It was pretty exciting at that time to have two great candidates. We know how that went down. And now some kind of terrific team seems less likely.  Who will the V.P. be?  We need someone great. Is someone there in the wings, and did Obama pick him or her?

Okay people.  We may have less than 24 hours before Obama announces his pick.  So let's get something started!  

I want to hear one or two people who you would MOST WANT to be named,

one or two people who your THINK WILL be named, and ESPECIALLY
any new rumor and tidbits (any evidence one way or the other--inside sources, Obama planes being painted), etc.

For me, I think it will be Biden, with an outside chance of Bayh.

I would like Gore, or Clark, or of course Carlos Zambrano (he can truly do it all-- a pitcher hitting .350!)

Take the poll and comment below!

Okay, now that the diary title got your attention (yes, it's complete snark ...though I did vote for Ross once back in my too-dumb-to-know-better days), time for the real point regarding the VP selection.  And I'm sorry if this diary comes off as a sheer rant and something akin to a diary already on the RECed list.  But I've had a terrible day (my beloved pet passed away... one that was abused, abandoned and in terrible shape and I had to nurse back to health... after five years in my care, it was crushing to say "goodbye" today) and I could use a good rant, and something to take my mind off things.  And I've been considering a rant of this sort for the past week or two, amidst all the VP speculation.  So, bear with me below the fold...

Let's forget the political calculus used when picking the Democrat for Vice Presidential pick in 2008. Ignore all the expected traditional election night variables that campaign consultants use when informing the presidential nominee regarding who he selects as his running-mate. The political pundits on camera have been going bat-shit about Obama’s lack of experience and have been expressing this concern by saying how he needs an old white guy with military/foreign-policy experience to balance out his supposedly most visible political weakness.

I've been thinking a lot about why the Obama campaign decided to announce their VP choice through a massive text message, rather than the more traditional campaign event announcement.  Al Giordano already covered the strategic advantage, writing:

With the campaign giving every American that text-messages the letters "VP" to telephone number 62262 (that's touchtone-speak for "O-B-A-M-A") the simultaneous opportunity to be the "first to know" about his choice (and thus gathering a multitude more of voters whose cell phone numbers are in his database and will be contacted with other news, invitations, fund appeals and requests over the coming months), there would be a distinct advantage to holding off on the announcement until during the convention itself.

The difficulty inherent in this strategy is that it puts a huge amount of pressure on Obama to really "wow" his supporters with his VP pick.  Does Obama really have a VP trick up his sleeve, I've wondered?  What's he trying to pull?

Then it hit me: (Click over the fold to read more)

Ok, this will probably get torn to shreds, and my feelings will not be hurt.

The point I hope to make in this diary:
Due to advances in technology and culture no matter who is president their actions will be attacked/and viewed as an impeachable offense by 1/2 the population.

It started with Nixon and has gotten more pronounced as time has gone on.

I doubt it is because the quality of the presidents has gotten any better or worse. I mean they've always been pretty constant, I would think.

<More after the break>

I have to give it to David Schuster. I think the traditional media has been alarmingly tenacious in their need to perpetuate the idea of a close race. I feel NBC, FOX, ABC, CBS have been  involved in trying to manipulate the idea that 1. this race is close. 2. that coverage of Obama negative or positive is the same. 3. there is a significant number of DEMOCRATS opposed to an Obama Presidency.

On my most cynical days I see human kind as nothing more than talking monkeys.  On my hopeful days I acknowledge our opposable thumbs.  Now a week away from the Democratic National Convention, I must admit cynicism seems preferable.  Since the March I have been assured that the Democratic Party would be unified.  The latest measure of unity seems to be a national statement of our division.

The only thing to do during times like this is to pop some popcorn and watch and things flail.

Some people complain that the fact Georgia attacked South Ossettia prompting the escalation doesn't make it into the US news narrative.

To this, I say: So?. The following is a lot of background crap that doesn't make it into our news. First, as usual, is energy:

Can Georgia become a kind of a regional hub for transportation of large volumes of gas and oil through the Black Sea to Europe, in particular to Ukraine?
That is our plan. And all prerequisites are available for that. Today we transport gas and electric power from north to south and from east to west, with all the flows going through Georgia so this is a hub. As you know, the oil and gas corporation of Georgia, together with (Azeri state oil company) SOCAR, Ukrainian, Polish and Lithuanian colleagues, have created a company called Sarmatia to develop a route from Odessa to Brody and then further to Gdansk. This is another alternative direction that can be filled with Kazakh oil.

link

Wonder why Poland and Ukraine are so pissed?

I have looked into my crystal ball and have come up with some future headlines and news stories. You will be shocked and amazed by the accuracy of my predictions. In a few years you'll rememberthis day and think, "that guys was an idiot".

Well - SOMEONE had to do it...

Thank you, David Shuster, for exposing a couple of the PUMA leadership today for what they are - irrational, right-leaning, Democratic Party-subverting, baseless nitwits with no backing and no valid ground to stand on for their raison d'etre.

The claim that "Obama is not the Democratic Party's candidate, but the DNC's candidate - the DNC no longer represents the Democratic Party" were the parting words of Will Bower, co-founder of the massively influential "Just Say No Deal" - and so-called, self-proclaimed Democrat.

Interesting.