The Speculation Regarding Running Mate Selections Kicks Into High Gear

Now that it appears that the Democratic nomination has been settled, the selection of a vice-presidential candidate for both parties is beginning to take center stage.

Will Obama cave into mounting pressure to select Hillary Clinton as his running mate in an attempt to reunify the Democratic party?

Or will he seek to break new ground and forge his own direction with someone not as known nationally?

Senator McCain's search for a running mate has been underway for some time already. It is known that he has already had private meetings with Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal and Florida Governor Charlie Crist.

McCain's search will certainly involve individuals beyond those three, but it is the feeling of this blogger that the eventual choice will be Romney.

The bigger news, however, is who Obama will choose. It is more likely than not that a Democrat will win the White House in November, so whoever Obama chooses is very likely to be the next Vice President of the United States.

A portion of the source article from Reuters is reproduced below:

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http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSN0739761420080608

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Few events in U.S. presidential races spark a media frenzy like the choice of a running mate.

Now that Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain have secured their parties' nominations for the White House, the guessing game has begun in earnest.

Will McCain, who is 71, pick a youthful candidate but one also seen as fully ready to step in should health problems arise for him?

Is Obama, a 46-year-old first-term U.S. senator, looking for vice presidential possibilities with solid foreign policy credentials to lend extra heft?

Or will he tap his former rival, Sen. Hillary Clinton, for what her supporters believe would be a "dream ticket" of the first black to win a major-party presidential nomination and a former first lady who sought to become the first woman to win the White House?

The search process is already well under way for McCain, who became the presumptive Republican nominee in early March.

Last month, the Arizona senator stirred speculation he was narrowing his short list when he held a barbecue at his Sedona, Arizona, vacation home and invited three likely vice presidential contenders: former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal and Florida Gov. Charlie Crist.