Quayle: Palin Furor 'Sounded Familiar'

Like Bush in '88, he must pick a VP to please conservatives: Steve Kornacki

(NEWSER) - Now that talk is turning to Mitt Romney's VP pick, Steve Kornacki at Salon sees a strong parallel between his situation and that of the elder George Bush in 1988. Both rose to the top of the ticket despite a "moderate/liberal past" and thus had to constantly appease the conservative base. In Bush's case, he had no choice but to appoint a running mate to satisfy the right. Romney is similarly flirting with Paul Ryan, though other conservative favorites are in the mix. More»

Instead, he picked Dan Quayle

(NEWSER) - Vice President Clint Eastwood? It was at least a possibility in 1988 when George HW Bush was considering running mates, reports the Note blog at ABC News. Two factors helped: Eastwood at the time was the Republican mayor of Carmel, California, and Bush was getting clobbered in the polls by Michael Dukakis. Eastwood's name got raised "in not an altogether unserious" manner, recalls former campaign chief and Secretary of State James Baker. More»

Don't be so quick to judge Palin

(NEWSER) - Sarah Palin's critics say she was unqualified to be vice president, but don't be too quick to label her the worst pick ever, writes Matthew Cooper. In the Atlantic , he runs down others since WWII who need to be part of the conversation:

• Spiro Agnew: Nixon's VP had to resign on bribery charges and had scant experience before being picked. "In terms of corruption and temperament, has there been anyone worse in memory?"
• Richard Nixon: His paranoid personality would have made him a disaster as president in the '50s had Eisenhower died in office. Nixon dealing with Stalin, Khrushchev, and Castro? Yikes.

Real test: can she woo undecideds?

(NEWSER) - Sarah Palin earned roars from the primed Republican crowd last night in St. Paul—but it remains to be seen whether she can translate that enthusiasm to undecided voters, writes Adam Nagourney in the New York Times. “It’s more difficult with someone of her background to go on the attack than it would be for Joe Biden” with his years of experience, a former GOP senator tells Nagourney. More»

Campaign aims to do the opposite of McCain

(NEWSER) - Team Romney’s rule of thumb: Do the opposite of everything John McCain did in 2008, or so reports Politico in a look at the campaign's strategy. The approach applies broadly, say advisers—focus hugely on the economy, fully engage in fundraising, integrate early with the Republican National Committee—but comes most into play in the search for a VP. The campaign doesn’t want to end up with its own version of Sarah Palin, so it is going to great lengths to avoid anyone who could be seen as unprepared. The goal, according to one official: Go with an "incredibly boring white guy." More»