Give us the NUMBER (sum) of these potential veeps' names acceptable to you.

[saltpoint]

Just the total number. If only 4 are acceptable to you, just post ' 4 '

If 36 are acceptable, post ' 36. '

If none are, post 'none.'

If all are, post 'all.'

And so forth.

This is the veep LONG list. Sixty (60) names. It is more or less in alphabetical order. It includes people who have expressly said they aren't interested in the job. It includes people who are oft-mentioned for the job and people who are rarely if ever mentioned for the job. There are some grizzled veterans and some spring pups on the list. There are mostly Democrats, 2 or 3 Republicans, and an Indie or two. Most geographic regions are represented, not all, and most demographic voting groups are represented, though not all.

If you think a name should be on the list I've left off, post that and I'll add it if it's within the edit-deadline time.

Consider both your own preferences as well as the Obama team's political strategies, which I would not expect to be the same list of preferences. Consider also the traditional attributes and considerations for a selection of a vice presidential candidate:

--Can he or she and the candidate get along, work together, enjoy some rapport?
--Is the selection likely to enhance the candidate's election odds?
--Is the selection likely to support the (presumed) president's ability to govern?
--Will the selection serve loyaly and effectively as Senate overseer?
--Might the selection serve to sharpen the candidate's profile among key constituent groups?
--Might the selection serve as steady advisor and counsel to the administration?
--Do core voter groups feel any affinity with the selection?
--Can the person selected handle the thugs & snarkgoblins at FOX News, ABC News, etc.?
--How might the person selected fare in the veep debate?
--Are their affiliate electoral vote advantages to a given selected candidate?
--Were Obama to fall ill could this person step in and govern?
--etc.

How many of the following names are acceptable to you as Obama's choice for the vice presidential nomination?

1 Evan Bayh
2 Joe Biden
3 Michael Bloomberg
4 Barbara Boxer
5 Bill Bradley
6 Phil Bredesen
7 Jerry Brown
8 Sherrod Brown
9 Bob Casey
10 Betty Castor
11 Lincoln Chafee
12 Richard Clarke
13 Wes Clark
14 Max Cleland
15 Hillary Clinton
16 Mario Cuomo
17 Tom Daschle
18 Howard Dean
19 Chris Dodd
20 John Edwards
21 Chet Edwards
22 Russ Feingold
( ) Melinda Gates
23 Dick Gephardt
24 Al Gore
25 Bob Graham
26 Mike Gravel
27 Chuck Hagel
28 Lee Hamilton
29 Tom Harkin
30 Gary Hart
31 Alexis Herman
32 Elizabeth Holtzman
33 Tim Kaine
34 Marcy Kaptor
35 Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
36 John Kerry
37 Dennis Kucinich
38 Blanche Lincoln
39 Claire McCaskill
40 Patty Murray
41 Janet Napolitano
42 Sam Nunn
43 Nancy Pelosi
44 Colin Powell
( ) Jack Reed
45 Ed Rendell
46 Bill Richardson
47 Bill Ritter
48 Tim Roemer
49 Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg
50 Brian Schweitzer
51 Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius
52 Debbie Stabenow
53 Chris Van Hollen
54 Antonio Villaraigosa
55 Tom Vilsack
56 Mark Warner
57 Henry Waxman
58 Jim Webb
59 Robert Wexler
60 Anthony Zinni

[Zynx]

1. About 25 of them.

[Arnold Judas Rimmer]

2. I'd say 36 of them are reasonable choices

though I like some better than others. And there are factors like, replacing an elected position - especially crucial since we need a bigger senate majority.

[blue neen]

3. 17.

n/t

[emilyg]

4. 9

[kevsand]

5. Maybe four.

Edited to list just the number. Four.

[CK_John]

6. You left out Melinda Gates. n/t

[saltpoint]

7. Hi, CK_John. I just threw her on there.

She just didn't come to mind when I made the post.

[CK_John]

20. Here is my case:

Mayor Bloomberg and Bill Gates just become best budds and setup a 350 mil fund together. 50 mil from the Mayor and 300 mil from the Gates Foundation. The Object is to stop smoking in foreign countries, a hobby project for 2 retiring billionaires.

But to have any clot they will need to go political.

Melinda is the CEO and getting 2 Bil a yr allowance from Buffet, an Obama insider. Ergo, Melinda gets an internship fitting her wealth and status as VP.

[saltpoint]

21. OK, I readily admit I had not considered it from that angle

at all.

I did put her on the list.

It's not resonating with me as a wildly vialbe option, but what the hell -- in U.S. politics lately, just about anything can happen.

[Arnold Judas Rimmer]

8. Mrs. Microsoft?

What list is she on?

[Muttocracy]

9. about 16 acceptable, but only about 6 or 7 happy. nt

[trayfoot]

10. Four!

eom

[saltpoint]

11. I'm reasonably ok with 44 of these folks, and very enthusiastic with 13.

[PBS Poll-435]

12. Only one is acceptable to me.

The one person that Barack Obama picks.

He has had months to consult with House Members, Senators, Governors, and important non-elected Party officials.

He has got great advice, and will make the right choice.

[saltpoint]

31. No argument there.

I was hoping to maybe open the windows a bit on the process of selection.

In other words, try to get people to consider that folks they might not ordinarily consider as a first-round choice may nevertheless be great for the country.

If Cheney can hijack the spirit of public service in the office of the vice presidency, one of our blue people can hijack it right back -- but for Good and not darkness.

[highplainsdem]

13. Only one. Because we're much more likely to lose if Clinton isn't on the ticket. Polls have shown

that.

Choosing anyone else will be a major political mistake for Obama, and one that might hurt down-ticket Dems as well.

Of the other possibilities, Biden would probably be best, but even he's a very weak second-best compared to Clinton, and a choice that won't unite the party.

[Thrill]

14. Kaine or Schweitzer would be the smart picks

[DJ13]

15. 4

46

39

13

2

[WheelWalker]

16. Six (6). All things considered.

[floridablue]

17. Bobby Jr.

[psquare]

18. Nine, but who's counting?

[blondeatlast]

19. 7. nt

[SoxFan]

22. 26

1,2,5,6,13,14,17,18,19,23,24,25,28,33,36,38,41,42,44(Reed),45,46,47,48,51,55,56

Some of the others are just not qualified (Melinda Gates, RFK Jr., Caroline Kennedy, Alexis Herman). Some are just too odd for the mainstream (Kucinich, Gravel). Some are long past their expiration date (Cuomo, Holtzman, Daschle). Others don't have a vice presidential temperament (Feingold, Webb, Harkin, Bloomberg). Finally, some just don't seem to meet an intangible threshhold (Casey, Murray

[saltpoint]

25. BDDNH, I can see your reasons and the divisions you get using those

reasons, and they're all to the point.

It's very hard for Obama to choose someone I really like -- say, RFK Jr., for example -- because he would not be acceptable to mainstream voters. I love him tons but he isn't going to be on the ticket.

Cuomo is my champion Democrat. While he's a bit long of tooth these days, what keeps him from being considered is less his age than his titanic brain. He would spook the herd. Voters would be frightened of somebody like Cuomo. Cuomo's evolved so far -- I just couldn't see him at one of those fish-fry Firday events in Jackson, Mississippi. I love him tons, but he's too far up the mountainside for the mainstream to handle. Or even see!

Etc.

The electorate is in groups and factions and nooks and crannies, and Obama's job is tough because there's some overlay to criteria but also many sharp lines drawn. Pick Hillary 'cuz she placed a strong second. Pick Bayh cuz he's competitive in Indiana. Pick Biden because he's a foreign policy whiz. Pick Richardson because he's terrific on energy. Etc.

Obama can't please all these groups and factions. So I threw out 60-some names to maybe suggest the width and depth of the party's possible choices, despite specific misgivings we all have.

For me, Sam Nunn would be the pits. I'd still support the ticket, but I've already written a letter to the Obama HQ begging them in the name of the world's religions to please pass on a Nunn choice and go with almost anyone else.

Nothing I can do about it if they ignore me, of course!

[scheming daemons]

23. Many Hillary Supporters will say 1 ... Many Obama Supporters will say 59

My number is closer to 59..... it does NOT include Mrs. Clinton.

[nevergiveup]

24. 24 1/2

[saltpoint]

27. I think over on the red team, Mitt Romney probably WOULD saw himself

in half to be on their ticket!

[tekisui]

26. 16.

The 16 good ones.:)

[janx]

28. Seven. n/t

[PBS Poll-435]

29. You forgot about the senior senator from New Jersey.

He is my second pick.

[saltpoint]

30. Frank Lautenberg?

You've stumped the band on that one.

I like Frank's toughness a lot. I've been kind of a long-distance admirer of Frank ever since the win over Fenwick some many moons back.

[PBS Poll-435]

35. And after a contentious 2002, he is gonna win re-election with a very nice margin.

Like 60-40!

[saltpoint]

38. Great. That is good news. I want New Jersey to stay true-blue and

long live Mr. Lautenberg.

[PBS Poll-435]

40. Surprisingly, he has got a lot sharper since he started his term in 02.

He is a strong Democrat who doesn't cave it.

Thanks New Jersey!

[YvonneCa]

32. About 30 are acceptable...

...and , of those, I would be VERY pleased with about 8. :)

[saltpoint]

33. Cool. Hi YvonneCa.

It's going to be an exciting time for Democrats, no matter who's ultimately chosen.

And I think McCain has a far paler field to pick from!

[Rowdyboy]

34. 55-I excluded the Republicans and Nunn.....but then I repeat myself....

For Christ's sake, its vice president not secretary of state or attorney general.

[saltpoint]

36. Hi, Rowdyboy.

I'm not a big fan of Nunn myself, so I know where you're coming from on him.

Prefer that Obama pick a blue person over a red person, but if it had to be a Republican, I'd prefer Chafee over Hagel.

Subject to change, I think Obama might choose Gov. Sebelius or Gov. Richardson, maybe Joe Biden.

I'm ok with 40-some names on the list. Ice cold to Sam Nunn, but just about everone else -- by degree -- has something to offer.

[emmadoggy]

37. 8.

A couple of whom are strong favorites.

[On the Road]

39. Acceptable? At Least 40

Preferred? Somewhat less.

Why is Melinda Gates being mentioned?

[Motown_Johnny]

41. Why don't Gates or Reed rate numbers? Oh.. and about.. umm.... 30 of those

but I will vote a straight D ticket no matter who the Veep is

[saltpoint]

42. I added Gates at CK_John's suggestion and realized that I had left

out Senator Reed and had not intended to.

I copied the list from an automated code list in Word and the codes don't translate. Hence, no numbers for late add-ons.

With you all the way on the straight blue ticket.

[Independent_Voice]

43. About 37, for me

Bayh, Biden, Bloomberg, Boxer, Bradley, Bredesen, J. Brown, Sherrod Brown, Castor, Chafee, Clark, Clarke, Dodd, J. Edwards, Feingold, Gephardt, Graham, Harkin, Kaptor, Kerry, Kucinich, Lincoln, McCaskill, Murray, Napolitano, Rendell, Richardson, Schlossberg, Schweitzer, Sebelius, Stabenow, Van Hollen, Vilsack, Waxman, Webb, Wexler, Zinni

The main short-listed candidates I have a problem with are Kaine, Clinton, Nunn, and Chet Edwards.

[thoughtcrime1984]

44. 22

However, I don't recognize a few names on there- just not as up on this as you are. :)