Obama to Announce Running Mate Tomorrow? McCain on 8/29?

Senator Barack Obama has all but settled on his choice for a running mate and set an elaborate rollout plan for his decision, beginning with an early morning alert to supporters, perhaps as soon as Wednesday morning, aides said.

[...]

Mr. Obama had not notified his choice - or any of those not selected - of his decision as of late Monday, advisers said. Going into the final days, Mr. Obama was said to be focused mainly on three candidates: Senator Evan Bayh of Indiana, Gov. Tim Kaine of Virginia and Senator Joseph R. Biden Jr. of Delaware.

My personal favorites are quite different than the names on this list, as I prefer someone with strong foreign policy and national security credentials PLUS preferably an "outsider" (or at least not a clear "Washington insider"). But barring a miracle (unfortunately), Jim Webb's taken his name out of the running and it doesn't look like Obama's going to pick Wesley Clark.  Frankly, I tend to agree with Kos when he writes:

...I'd love to see him pick a fresh face in politics who reinforces Obama's message of change. Biden doesn't. Clinton doesn't. Bayh certainly doesn't. If holding out for Sebelius is too much to ask for, and if Obama is going to pick a guy that has been around for decades, then pick Kerry. Or even Daschle.

Anyway, we'll know soon enough, with the announcement very possibly made while Obama is in Virginia tomorrow or Thursday.  Stay tuned.

As far as John McSame is concerned, The Politico is reporting that he'll announce his selection on his 72nd birthday, August 29, at a large rally in Dayton, Ohio.  Here's what The Politico has to say about who McSame's pick might be:

Senior Republicans are in the dark about who he'll name, although they say former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty are prime contenders after a trial balloon by McCain gave him very negative feedback about the idea of picking an abortion-rights running mate such as Tom Ridge, the former governor of Pennsylvania and the first secretary of homeland security.

Sources close to McCain say he has wrestled with the choice, torn between a high-stakes, high-reward pick like Ridge or Connecticut Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman - the Democratic vice presidential nominee in 2000 - or a safer and more conventional selection such as Romney or Pawlenty.

Friends say he has yet to make a final decision, and is not expected to do so until after Sen. Barack Obama announces his choice.

On the Republican side, I don't really have a "favorite" because I don't like any of them very much (if at all). I suppose my "favorite" would be the one who would help McSame the least, but I'm not clear on who that would be.  As to the timing of the announcement, TPM Election Central says:

...it could really cut one of two ways: McCain's pick could have to share media time with the post-game coverage of Obama's speech, and thus lose some of the bump that often comes with VP coverage. Or it could work to McCain's advantage and completely overshadow the post-Denver coverage, thus depriving Obama of his own post-convention bump.

It's an interesting point about the "post-convention bump," although I wonder how much Obama would have gotten regardless, given that the Republican convention starts on September 1, just 4 days after the Democratic convention ends.  One thing's for sure; the general election campaign is finally about to begin in earnest, 1 year and 9 months after it all began back in the early days of 2007. And, in just 2 1/2 months, it will all be over and we'll have elected a new president.  Given all this country's problems right now - the economy, the deficit, foreign policy, energy, the environment, health care, etc. - let's just hope we make a smart choice.

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