Hillary Clinton shall surely announce her vice presidential running mate soon. With the Democratic National Convention coming up later this month, the vetting is happening. She already gave Elizabeth Warren a virtual VP audition, which turned into a magnetic appearance from the duo. There are still a host of other politicos under consideration, including Virginia Senator Tim Kaine and another candidate who’s sort of fueling media speculation over the holiday weekend.
Cory Booker, the very progressive New Jersey senator, is one of several names being tossed around on dream lists, and he has a special brand of charm that could help a Clinton ticket deflect Donald Trump’s constant attacks with honey. Booker’s idealistic ways could also pull in some Sanders voters, and wouldn’t it be something if New Jersey Governor Chris Christie ended up being Trump’s running mate too? There would be a whole lot of Garden State action in the general election.
Booker spent a few weeks waving away the notion that he’s under consideration, but he’s switched courses. In an interview with CNN’s State of the Union, Booker acts as a Clinton surrogate. He claims there’s no way that she’ll be indicted by the FBI for using a private email server while she was Secretary of State. And he no longer denies that he’s a Clinton prospect:
“I’m just referring questions about the vice presidency to the woman who is going to have to make this decision. You should talk to the Clinton campaign.”
Booker’s tightly guarded answer is a marked difference from how he responded to that question last month, when he told MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell: “I’m not being vetted.”
The former mayor of Newark was voted into the Senate in 2013, and he rose to social media prominence during the recent gun control filibuster. This isn’t his first political rodeo, and he’s not exactly scandal free, but the nation outside of New Jersey seems to forget that slight. Here’s a video clip of Booker not-discussing his possible vetting by Clinton.
(Via CNN)