Presidential candidate Mitt Romney has gathered a list of 15 prospective running mates. This weekend, he picked up two big endorsements from South Dakota Senator John Thune and New Hampshire Senator Kelly Ayotte. Romney has admitted that the latter senator is on his shortlist.
Would Mitt Seriously Consider Kelly Ayotte?
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Kelly Ayotte was elected New Hampshire Senator in 2011. Are you hearing what I’m hearing? Yes, BATTLEGROUND STATE. In the Senate, she has been appointed to the Committee on Armed Services, the Committee on Commerce / Science / Transportation, the Committee on Small Business / Entrepreneurship and the Special Committee on Aging. Aside from the small business committee, none of her assignments are terribly relevant to the hot button election issues. Prior to her current post, she received her BA in political science from Pennsylvania State University and acted as state attorney general from 2004 – 2009. While serving as attorney general, her office caught some flack over failing to thoroughly investigate the Financial Resources Mortgage ponzi scheme. Her supporters argue that she is a young mom who breathes new life into the Republican party and appeals to different voting pools than Romney. Her critics argue that she would be to the Romney campaign what Palin was to the McCain campaign. Perhaps he merely dropped her name in the spirit of politeness because she was sitting next to him.
What About John Thune?
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On one hand, Thune could arguably pick up much-needed Conservative voter support. (The American Conservative Union awarded Thune a score of 100 two consecutive years in a row and gave him a lifetime rating of 88.97.) Also, Lindsey Graham once referred to Thune as “a consensus builder,” which could certainly help Romney get things done in Washington should he ultimately go on to win the election.
However, John McCain ended up passing on Thune in 2008 because he wasn’t enough of a “game-changer.” South Dakota is, after all, a heavily Republican state. Also, he doesn’t have a lot of name recognition outside of South Dakota and Iowa. He voted for the TARP bail-out and is a staunch defender of costly earmarks, so he will lose a lot of street credibility with Main Street Republicans and Tea Partiers. Critics argue that Senator Thune hasn’t made his legislative mark yet, and that he doesn’t appear to have that “fire in his belly” that will help him survive the brutal campaign process.
