Evan Bayh, the Do No Harm Veep - Except for the pronounciation of that last name, and ......

[FrenchieCat]

What's not so good:

Damn that war vote. Did he ever say he was wrong?
DLC b-boy.
That last name does give the opposition some non-stop PUN fun potential.

What's not so bad:

He's safe. He's bland. He's tall.
Two term governor from a Red State.
Two Term Senator from a Red State....meaning he's won 4 national elections in a Red State.
His father was beloved in the Democratic party.
He's got twin boys and a lovely wife.
Young.
He's clean as a whistle and more than attractive enough.
Soft spoken and uncontroversial to the majority of moderate middle of the road voters.
Hillary fervent supporter.

[TwilightGardener]

1. Good assessment. I think he'd be a smart, safe pick, myself.

[Metric System]

2. I don't like the sound of Obama/Bayh. I mean, Obama? Bye! A little too easy.

[bigwillq]

3. I hope it's not Bayh.

He doesn't like my people. Plus, he's DLC....if Obama truly wants change he needs to not put DLC members in power.

[DJ13]

4. Milquetoast when we need a fighter

Bayh is the wrong choice.

[Dr.Phool]

5. Democratic version of Dan Quayle.

And he's from the same state!

[trewsx11]

7. Qualye and Bayh have nothing in common.

Quayle has never balanced a budget, provided Indiana with 350,000 jobs, or left Indiana with the largest fiscal surplus in the state's history...Bayh has done all these great things as Indiana governor.

Quayle was just a moronic pretty boy, while Bayh has a record of successful achievement and fiscal management running the state of Indiana. The only thing Quayle has ever run is his life is his idiotic mouth.

[tulip]

14. not to mention the 21st Century Scholars

Bayh began this program when he was governor. In Indiana if you are poor and want to go to college you can through this program. I don't what the percentage is but I remember reading that our College graduates have moved up considerably since the inception of this program.

[Skwmom]

24. Bayh looks as dopey as Qualye. Image counts in an election.

[cbc5g]

6. The war won't be an issue this year, bank on it

It will be one or two questions at the debates and that's it.

[Muttocracy]

8. ...

:boring:

[Donna Zen]

9. There's more

Bayh voted for bush's tax cuts and the bankruptcy bill. Of course the credit card companies did fill his coffers a little later...strange that they weren't even based in Indiana. Now Bayh's working to pass a bill that would blockade Iran...he's the sponser on that one. Kyl-Lieberman (aka Cheney's wet dream) was one of Bayh's favorites.

Ya know...whenever there's one of those votes where the Dems. cave, Bayh is on the list.

[FrenchieCat]

10. I guess I understated DLC.

Hi Donna! :hi:

[WinkyDink]

11. more than attractive enough.~~~Okay, NOW you've gone too far. :)

[nsd]

12. If I were Obama, I would pick Bayh.

There are other good choices, but Bayh really does make the most sense.

[tulip]

13. Chairs the Security & International Trade & Finance Cmte

He'll do just fine...........

He serves on the Armed Services Cmte, Banking Housing and Urban Affairs, Small Business, Select Cmte on Intelligence and the Special Cmte on Aging. I think those are some of the areas we need to fit the veep bill.

He may be a little boring but it was his campaign skills that helped put 3 new members into the House of Representatives in 06. Indiana now has more Democratic US House Representatives.

We'll see. I'd be happy with Clinton or several others as well. It's really up to Obama and I trust his judgement on this one.

[whirlygigspin]

15. Bayh humbug

my 'people' won't support him, no way, no how.

[nsd]

16. What people are those?

[tulip]

45. Labor Unions

That's ok because my people will back him on a ticket with Obama! :) Actually we will probably back the Democratic presidential candidate irregardless but Bayh has been a champion for labor which not only resinates in Indiana but throughout the country and especially in Ohio and Michigan.

And that doesn't touch on all the grateful troops serving in Iraq and Afghanestan............They very much appreciate Bayh's "up-armoring Humvees". Because of Bayh's work on this our troops are safer now then when Rumsfeld sent them over with the "military you get" attitude.

[Skwmom]

25. Yeah that's what really wins votes, someone who sits on committees.

Do they really pay Democratic Consultants to come up with this stupid crap.

[tulip]

44. 2008 is about the Rust Belt

I don't know I just did some research on my own. I'm not one to jump on a bashing bandwagon of Democrats. Just me but you are entitled to your own ideas. :)

The 2008 presidential election will be fought and won in the Midwest..........especially in states that make up the "Rust Belt". Will Bayh help with that? I don't know I figure it's up to Obama and his team to determine that. Bayh is well liked by labor unions.

Bayh is extremely loved by the UAW which is the driving force behind the Blue Collar workers. Why? because he is their champion on Foreign Trade. Does the committee he chairs make a difference to unemployed or laid off auto workers.............you bet. When Bayh was governor he signed the first executive order giving state employees collective bargaining rights. Bayh and Conyer's proposed Fairness and Accountability in Bankruptcy Reorganizations Act to prevent loopholes that allow management to propose lucrative compensation deals for themselves.

In the end I would be supportive of whoever Obama chooses. I like all of the potential veeps..........Bayh just seems to be at the top of the list right now so I am learning just like everyone else. What do I know.........I'm just a former member of the UAW and currently in a union duking it out in the Rustbelt.

http://www.uaw.org/events/cvn/33/news/0606_5.html
Sen. Evan Bayh called the mid-1980s a dark chapter in the Indiana Democratic Party's history.

"We couldn't elect a Democrat dog catcher in our state," he told UAW delegates via satellite from Washington. "Thanks to you, we've turned that around."

Now, Indiana elects more Democrats on a percentage basis than any other state in the nation, he said. And that's important, because when Republicans try to block pro-working family legislation or hand out tax goodies to fat cats, Democrats can do something about it.

Bayh, who was governor of the Hoosier state from 1989 to 1997, signed an executive order that gave state workers the right to collective bargaining after Republicans sat on legislation. Before he became governor, Republicans used to tout the state as a great place to do business because its worker's compensation program was weak.

"That was a pretty sorry example of economic development," he said.

[Skwmom]

37. Yeah, sitting on multiple committees in Washington D.C. should be a sure winner with the American

Public.

[Cosmocat]

42. His resume is actually exceptionally strong ...

given that, given that he is very solid in pretty much every way, I cannot emphasize enough that as much as it can be projected, he offers a bird in the hand by flipping Indiana AND there is no reason why he won't help in neighboring Ohio, and possibly Michigan ...

People can nitpick at the few positions where he might not be hard left, but for a D in a definitely red state, he is really a very strong VP candidate ...

[SwampG8r]

17. i dont think it will be another senator

i see a govroner from the south or southwest
im leaning richardson because he stood tall when it was hard and that showed me some guts

[cbc5g]

18. Bayh supports gay rights, stop the lies

http://www.ontheissues.org

Evan Bayh

Voted NO on constitutional ban of same-sex marriage.

Voted YES on adding sexual orientation to definition of hate crimes.

Rated 89% by the HRC, indicating a pro-gay-rights stance.
Bayh scores 89% by the HRC on gay rights

OnTheIssues.org interprets the 2005-2006 HRC scores as follows:

* 0% - 20%: opposes gay rights (approx. 207 members)
* 20% - 70%: mixed record on gay rights (approx. 84 members)
* 70%-100%: supports gay rights (approx. 177 members)

[NorthCarolina]

43. Stop the lies?? Do the research

Here's a posting regarding Bayh on Gay Civil Rights from the calendar year 2006 (well in advance of any VP speculation) as posted to an Indiana Blog site.

http://advanceindiana.blogspot.com/2006/06/bils-quest-for-straight-talk-from-bayh.html

If anyone wants to know how Bayh feels about Gay Marriage, read below a letter I recently received from him:

Dear Mrs. Gross :

Thank you for contacting me regarding the Marriage Protection Amendment to the United States Constitution. I appreciate your thoughts and concerns. Having been happily married for more than twenty years, this issue is important to me.

I do not support same sex marriage. I believe marriage should be between one man and one woman. That is currently the law in Indiana and is currently the law nationally. I support the Defense of Marriage Act that prohibits federal recognition of same sex marriage and prevents Indiana from being forced to recognize same sex marriages performed in other states.

If you have been told that a judge has struck down Indiana 's law or our nation's law prohibiting same sex marriage, that is simply not true. These laws may never be invalidated. In fact, Indiana 's law prohibiting same sex marriage was recently upheld by our Court of Appeals.

The Constitution should not be amended unless absolutely necessary and should not be amended to deal with situations that are hypothetical and may not come to pass. In a bipartisan vote on June 7, 2006, the Senate agreed and decided not to consider the Constitutional amendment this year because it is premature. I supported that decision.

In the event that the courts do invalidate our state or national laws prohibiting same sex marriage, then a Constitutional amendment should be considered.

Again, thank you for contacting me. I hope the information I have provided is helpful. My website, http://bayh.senate.gov , can provide additional details about legislation and state projects, and you can also sign up to receive my monthly e-newsletter, The Bayh Bulletin , by clicking on the link at the top of my homepage. I value your input and hope you will continue to keep me informed of the issues important to you.

Office of Senator Evan Bayh
[phone]
Russell 463
Washington, D.C. 20510

[cbc5g]

46. If you bothered to read my post, I did the research

He voted AGAINST banning same sex marriage and has an 89% rating from HRC meaning he STRONGLY supports gay rights.

Also

Voted YES on adding sexual orientation to definition of hate crimes.


Sorry, but one letter that could be forged means absolutely nothing. His votes and his record means more. I think the people who call him anti-gay are really just anti-centrist democrats from red states. He's from a red state so he MUST...MUST not be for gay rights! Who's the bigot now?

[NorthCarolina]

48. The letter is from 2006 Archive and not likely to be a forgery

because in 2006 nobody in their wildest dreams envisioned the possibility of him being considered as Obamas VP. Further, if you had bothered to actually read the entire content of Bayhs letter you would have noted that while he acknowledges that he voted against the Constitutional Amendment, he did so because he felt that it was not needed at that time, BUT, he goes on to state that should the courts seek to overturn legislation banning gay marriage as un-constitutional then he WOULD support a Constitutional Amendment to prevent it.

The issue of civil rights for the LGBT community impacts my life directly and adversely, and so I do not take the issue lightly.

[Rowdyboy]

19. Bayh would not be my choice but it isn't my choice...I can live with him...I'd prefer

someone who wasn't raised in Washington DC and whose dad wasn't a US senator. Obama is new and fresh and un-Washington. Picking Bayh or Biden or Reed or any other Washington insider is counterproductive. He needs another outsider to reinforce the image-Kathleen Sebelius or Brian Schweitzer or even Bill Richardson. A westerner with no connection to Washington. JMO

[CitizenLeft]

20. I don't know, Frenchie, Obama/Bayh has a nice ring to it...!

:hi:

I really can't think who would be "perfect." I don't think there is a perfect pick for him. I used to think it was Edwards, but... *sigh* That scandal, even if not true, would follow him into the GE now. Prior to SC, I thought it was Hillary herself. Then I thought Richardson, but he didn't do well in any of the debates, and that's one of the things that's necessary - win the VP debate. If Romney is McCain's VP pick, he'd beat Richardson out of sheer ugliness and nastiness.

There was a poll yesterday asking to list your 4 top choices: Schweitzer, Sebelius, Bayh, Clinton, in that order. I'll be happy with whomever he chooses.

I think.

[Skwmom]

21. I generally agree with your posts but this one - I couldn't disagree more.

The safe pick is such malarkey.

He REINFORCES too many negatives about Obama and destroys the positives:

Obama is change we can believe in. Oh really? Picking a Washington Insider, a Corporate Democrat kills the Change you Can Believe in message, and the I will take on corporate lobbyist message. B/C no one with an ounce of common sense would make it so they were the only person standing between corporations and trillions (yes trillions) of dollars.

Obama has good judgment and wants a VP to tell him when he is wrong. Hmmm... so a man who was WRONG on the biggest debacle of U.S. history is going to tell Obama when he's wrong. Plus, I think they'd better can the criticism of John McCain's march to war when you've picked as VP one of it's biggest cheerleaders. Yeah, that should make the troops feel like there's a great commander-in-chief waiting in the wings.

Obama is an empty suit. Have you really taken a look at Bayh photos? He reminds me of Bush and his "I don't have a clue" looks. The song that comes to mind is the Wizard of Oz - If I Only Had a Brain. The guy has such a DOPEY look on his face. Bayh does not come across as a person of substance.

Obama is a weakling. Bayh is a big zero on the "I will keep the nation safe" scale. Newsflash to the great Democratic Strategists, telling people that someone sat on some stupid committee in D.C. will NOT make the average American believe that means they can keep you safe. Just the thought of dopey being the commander-in-chief in waiting makes me uneasy.

Obama is an elitist. Birch Evans Bayh III.

Obama is to inexperienced. It must be true if he needs to pick a Washington Insider like Bayh.

Plus: Bayh is another George Bush in that he wouldn't be where he is if it wasn't for his daddy. Just what this country needs.

This, if we pick a Clinton supporter it will help with Clinton supporters is one of the dumbest things I've ever heard. The only Clinton supporters it will help with is the big money corporate donors who want to be assured that it will be business as usual in D.C. Plus, it will give the media and RNC an excuse to constantly remind us that Bayh didn't even think Obama was up to the job, he backed Clinton. There has to be some great footage out there.

I think what points to it being Bayh is his increased dopey look and the "fact" that Obama had his ad guys filming Bayh in Indiana (or at least it was reported).

Bayh as VP is a lousy choice and does not reflect well on Obama.

If the Clinton Camp has been pushing the safe bet meme, I'd make sure to run the other way b/c they have their sights set on 2012. And of course, if Obama can't serve out his term I'm sure they'd expect Bayh to tap Hillary for VP. Plus, it has been their hacks pushing the Obama needs to pick an "experienced" aka Washington Insider Guy. Nothing like killing the change message but what they heck it will help out their good buddy John McCain.

Obama must think he has it in the bag to go with a "perceived" safe pick. Me. I think they are still defining Obama and a Bayh pick will go a long way in helping them negatively define him.

Bayh - Do no Harm. I'd have to have a lobotomy to agree with that one.

[FrenchieCat]

28. Oh, I don't choose Bayh.....as just is name makes that difficult to me

I'm just trying to get acclimated to whomever is picked. But no, I'm not selling him....although your analysis is much deeper than mine. I currently have no real preference and am letting this (as it is anyway) be Obama's decision. In otherwords, I'm game no matter who he comes up with......as there is no "perfect" VP sorta speak.

[Skwmom]

31. There's a huge difference between no perfect VP and someone like Evan Bayh.

I'm not looking for perfection, just for someone who will reinforce what Obama tells us he stands for. Is that really to much to ask for? And if it's Clinton, well if he can't stand up to the Clintons how in the heck can we expect him to change anything in Washington. And picking Clinton would also tell me that his words are mere political rhetoric.

[nsd]

32. I don't think this assessment is correct or fair.

CHANGE: Part of what Obama means by change is reducing the bitterness and level of partisanship that has marked Washington for many years. That's why he emphasizes that he would like to reach across the aisle and work with Republicans, rather than simply fighting them. It's why he emphasizes his working relationships with Chuck Hagel and Dick Lugar. It's why Kathleen Sebelius and Tim Kaine are on his short list: red state governors who have worked with people across the ideological spectrum. And it's part of the reason Evan Bayh is also on the short list. As a Democrat in Indiana, who served eight years as governor, he's had to work with Republicans and has done so well. And Bayh, like Obama, would like to tone done the level of rhetoric.

JUDGMENT: First, I'll admit, Bayh's Iraq position in 2003 was a huge mistake. I think he knows that. His position today is roughly the same as those of others (e.g. Clinton, Biden) who made the same mistake: if he could do it over, he would change his vote. In recent weeks, he's gone on TV and praised Obama for making the right decision. However, as big a mistake as that was, I don't think it can be a litmus test; we'd have to disqualify a good chunk of the party. Moreover, as a representative of the more centrist part of the Democratic party, I think Bayh does bring a different perspective that would be valuable for Obama to hear.

LOOKS: He looks "dopey" to you? That's just ridiculous and not worthy of a reply.

WEAK: I don't know how much you've read about Bayh or whether you've seen videos of him questioning Petraeus or appearing on talk shows, but to me (and, I suspect, to a lot of others) he comes across as calm, reasonable, knowledgeable. I think most people will find his demeanor reassuring, and I think he'd be able to speak with confidence about most national issues.

ELITIST: The elite smear against Obama is not that he's rich or was born to wealth, but that he's an Ivy League leftist who is out of touch with and looks down upon middle America. Bayh, on the other hand, exudes Indiana. If you look in the dictionary under "All-American boy", you'll find a picture of Evan Bayh. Sure, he had a privileged background (just as John McCain did), but that's not the kind of elitism that they're trying to pin on Obama. A Bayh choice would not reinforce this smear.

EXPERIENCE: If Obama picked Joe Biden, who's been in the Senate since 1973, then, yes, that might create an unfavorable contrast with Obama's shorter resume. On the other hand, if he picked Tim Kaine, who's been governor for only 2.5 years and has no Washington experience at all, he'd be hit from the other direction as heading an all-lightweight ticket. I think Bayh has enough experience but not too much. It helps that he's only five years older than Obama.

DADDY'S BOY: Yes, Evan Bayh could not have gotten such a fast start in Indiana politics if Birch Bayh were not his father. However, it is totally unfair to say that he owes his career to Daddy. In electoral terms, he's much more successful than the old man ever was. Birch Bayh lost his Senate seat in 1980. Since 1988, Evan Bayh has been the bedrock of the Democratic party in Indiana. That's not because of Birch, but because he had a really successful 8-year run as governor (cut taxes, produced a budget surplus, initiated a guaranteed college tuition program for low income students) and he's done well as senator. If you're going to hold his father's help against him now, you might as well slam a bunch of other people too: Al Gore (son of Senator Al Gore, Sr.), Chris Dodd (son of Senator Tom Dodd), Hillary Clinton (wife of President Bill Clinton), etcetera.

[Skwmom]

34. Sorry, but we'll have to agree to disagree.

CHANGE: So we can't get rid of the partisanship without picking a corporate VP which contradicts Obama's we will get rid of the corporate lobbyists in D.C. promise. There are PLENTY of good Non-Partisan Democrats who are NOT DLC Hacks that put corporate interests first.

JUDGMENT: Again. You don't pick someone to tell you when you are wrong when they were wrong on the biggest debacle in U.S. History. Or maybe just willing to go along because they didn't want to be viewed as weak on national security and hurt their political aspirations. Or maybe a combination of both. That type of mistake would be a career ender in the REAL WORLD. Oh, but after trillions of dollars, thousands dead, thousands injured, and lives destroyed he now realizes it was a mistake. Yeah, that really makes me feel better.

LOOKS: Sorry but image matters and there are plenty of Bayh photos where he looks dopey. This makes it much easier for the GOP to do its job.

ELITIST: Of course the GOP won't try to use Bayh to further the elitist charge. What was I thinking? They'd never do that. They are going to stick with the definition of elitism that you espouse.

EXPERIENCE: Yeah, Washington experience really matters this year b/c we all know how the American People love that Washington experience. Look at what all that Washington experience has done for this country. Silly me. I didn't realize that in order to change Washington Obama needs to pick a Washington Insider.

DADDY's BOY: Yeah, that long explanation should really go over well with the American public. You've convince me already.

Finally, who ever said politics was fair?

[TexasObserver]

22. Evan Bayh: First do no zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz ....

[Skwmom]

26. But Bayh does harm. That's the problem.

[TexasObserver]

40. But I find him so boring, I never get that far.

That was my point. Whatever his politics, he's the most boring politician in Washington.

[cherokeeprogressive]

23. 4 elections in a RED STATE.

Bad thing?

[Skwmom]

27. In a state where he could ride on his Daddy's coattails. Now who does that remind me of?

Oh yeah, George Bush.

[cherokeeprogressive]

29. So you're equating Bayh's seat with GWB's?

[Skwmom]

35. They'd been trying to argue that Obama is the one really like Bush.

So do I think the GOP would use this as part of the argument? Yeah.

[goodgd_yall]

30. He's off-putting

I don't like his mannerisms, the way he carries himself, or his speaking voice. I don't think blue-collar folks are going to warm up to him at all. I have to say, I'd find it hard looking at the guy for 4 years---he's kind of Romneyesque.

[Cosmocat]

41. That is a joke, right ???

INDIANA !!!

The man has won SIX statewide races, for three different offices, by growing margins in each office to the point where they were big wins ...

In INDIANA ...

His "mannerisms" are spot on "blue collar," that is part of why he is a very solid choice here ... ""

[goodgd_yall]

51. Spot on blue collar

It must be an act then, because there's not one once of blue collar in the guy's recent past. I think I have a good sense of the "regular guy" that working class/blue collar folks feel comfortable with, and it's not Bayh. I don't know what demographic he appeals to in Indiana. Could be he's the only choice they have among Democrats, so I'm not ready to concede he has blue collar, regular guy appeal.

[Thrill]

33. Hard core Liberals would go nuts if he is the pick. Having said that, If Hillary won the nomination

he would of likely been her VP.

I would only pick him if polling showed he would clearly bring IN

[Skwmom]

36. I am not a hard-core liberal and I would be turned off by the pick.

Do you think only hard-core liberals are worried about the corporate influence in Washington? B/c if that's what you think, you really need to get out more.

Of course we live in a world where corporate cheerleaders and political hacks are now defined as moderates. And of course if you believe in rights for the middle class you must be, GASP, a dirty liberal.

[Justitia]

38. Make it BIRCH Bayh, and I'm in!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birch_Bayh

[Thrill]

39. This is my problem with Bayh.........You see this way too often with him

The Senate passed a companion plan by a 51-44 vote. It endorsed extending $340 billion of Bush’s tax cuts but balked at continuing all of them. The competing versions head to talks in which the House is all but certain to accept the Senate’s position endorsing tax cuts for the working poor, married couples, people with children and for those inheriting large estates.

All three major presidential candidates interrupted their campaigns for a Senate vote-o-rama that began before noon and included more than 40 roll calls. Maine Republicans Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe crossed over to support the bill; Evan Bayh of Indiana was the sole Democrat to vote no.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23612342/


He is a lot like Breaux. Remember him?

[sniffa]

47. I think his wife will be a problem

Whether true or not, I'm sure it will be flogged and investigated about possible malfeasance on some "suspicious" deals/money.

[Avalux]

49. We need a VP who wasn't in the Senate for the war vote, or who voted NO.

That is all.

[ChimpersMcSmirkers]

52. With everyone generally agreeing to get out of Iraq at about the same time

and reinforcing Afghanistan, the issue is dropping fast. I don't think the IWR for Bayh will much matter at this point. He's not my fav pick, I like Schweitzer, but I can see some of the appeal of picking Bayh.

[ChimpersMcSmirkers]

50. There's something to be said for a little safety. He fits that bill and may bring IN.

[TheKentuckian]

53. The most practical argument against Bayh is

that how would we ever get that seat back?

I firmly believe Obama himself represents all the change many in the electorate can handle. Bayh sends a message of being dedicated to responsible, workable results to voters outside the base, the way I see it. He lacks the personality and brain power to overshadow Obama but can provide him with a plausible framework of working with conservatives to accomplish the will of the people.

I now believe the way to go might be to bring in a huge CEO, energy expert, or an economist, that might be change that could be sold to a wary public. People like practical experience.