Webb Said He Won't Be Vice President

Jim Webb really, really says no. 

Obama VP Feedback

CNN: “I think Barack Obama will pick someone first of all who he believes is most qualified to be president,” David Plouffe told reporters. “Whether someone helps you in an election I think is kind of a side benefit. You certainly want to pick someone who doesn’t hurt you.
Plouffe pointed to Dick Cheney and Al Gore as examples of VP candidates who weren't necessarily chosen to help win states.

“I don’t think that that’s going to be a factor in the selection,” he added.

Imagine that. Obama's going to pick a vice president who is qualified.
I don't know why the media has had such a hard time with that concept. They are again underestimating Obama, thinking that he needs someone else to help him win. We'll elect Obama no matter who his vice presidential choice is. All those Appalachian voters will be outnumbered by the new voters, the youth vote, independents and new democrats. 

Hillary Says VP is Obama's Choice

nyt: Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton today disavowed a campaign by some of her supporters to pressure Senator Barack Obama into choosing her as a running-mate, saying they were acting on their own and the decision on who to pick was “Senator Obama’s and his alone.”
The statement from Mrs. Clinton campaign came after two days in which a number of her key supporters had pressed the idea of picking her as a running-mate, saying that such a match-up was key to salving wounds in the Democratic Party and to assuring a Democratic victory in the fall. And Mrs. Clinton had made no obvious effort to discourage it, telling New York lawmakers, in a private conference call earlier this week, that she was open to serving as Mr. Obama’s running-mate.
The apparent campaign to push Mrs. Clinton onto the ticket was, in its directness, unusual and several Democrats said arguably counterproductive. Aides to Mr. Obama said they were unhappy with the effort and some Democrats outside the campaign said that Mr. Obama could be portrayed to bowing to pressure should he choose Mrs. Clinton to run with him.

What is Hillary Up To?

hillary's still soliciting contributions on her website. her supporters are still hopeful. that sums it up.

maureen dowd: Clintonologists know that Hillary is up to something, but they aren’t sure what. Theory No. 1 is that it’s the Cassandra “I told you so” gambit: She believes intensely that he’s too black, too weak and too elitist — with all his salmon and organic tea and steamed broccoli — to beat her pal John McCain. But she has to pretend she’ll do “whatever it takes,” even accept the vice presidency, a job she’s already had and doesn’t want again, so that nobody will blame her when he loses on Nov. 4. Then she can power on to 2012.

Theory No. 2 is that it’s a “Bad stuff happens” maneuver, exemplified in her gaffe about the R.F.K. assassination, that she figures that at least if she moves a few blocks from Embassy Row to the Naval Observatory, she’ll be a heartbeat away from the job she’s always wanted.

Either way, by broadcasting that she’s open to being Obama’s running mate, she puts public pressure on him similar to the sort of pressure Walter Mondale was under from rampaging feminists when he put Geraldine Ferraro on the ticket. Mondale ended up seeming henpecked, as Obama would seem if he caved to the women who say they will write in Hillary’s name or vote for anti-choice McCain before they’d vote for Obama.

..........

msnbc: What does Clinton want? The former first lady wants campaign donations to cover her debt. And she will press her case for relevancy at the risk of widening the divide between Barack Obama's supporters and her older, whiter, working-class coalition.

"This has been a long campaign, and I will be making no decisions tonight," Clinton said, begging patience of a party desperate to unite. "In the coming days, I'll be consulting with supporters and party leaders to determine how to move forward with the best interests of our party and our country guiding my way."

What Clinton told supporters she wanted was an end to the war in Iraq, universal health care and a stronger economy. That certainly is true, but she's also looking out for her own interests. Clinton did not bow out Tuesday because she wants to retain her political leverage, advisers said privately, eyeing a spot on the ticket, a convention role and perhaps other benefits.

The New York senator told congressional colleagues Tuesday afternoon that she would be open to a vice presidential bid, a significant comedown for the former first lady who entered the race 17 months ago as the clear front-runner.

"I'm in it," she said Jan. 20, 2008, "to win it."

...........

nyt: Like her husband, Mrs. Clinton has a way of becoming the center of attention even when the spotlight is supposed to be trained elsewhere, a reality that Mr. Obama will no doubt continue to confront no matter how he proceeds. It was hardly a surprise that Mr. Obama lavished praise on Mrs. Clinton and her accomplishments in his remarks Tuesday night.

Until he deals with the Clinton question, it could be hard for Mr. Obama to move on to what he would like to achieve next: presenting himself to the entire electorate and not just Democrats, laying out his political ideology before Mr. McCain does it on his terms and trying to rectify some of the weaknesses highlighted by the combative primary process.

Politico Zeros in On Obama Veeps

politico speculates on who might be obama's vice president (and clinton's) but i think they're off the mark. i don't believe they've named obama's vice president.