Bush-Watts 2000

What if George W Bush had picked JC Watts as his running mate in 2000?

Watts would likely please a good number of evangelicals given his background as a minister and may be helpful with the African-American vote.

Without Cheney, I imagine Bush's Foreign Policy would be quite different. No Cheney would likely mean no Rumsfeld. Maybe Gates gets Defense sooner. Alternatively Powell could get it.
 
Watts doesn't provide much regional balance, but definitely cuts into Gore's, and later Kerry's margin of victory with African Americans. I think Bush would nominate Cheney as Secretary of Defense, because he had a plan for Iraq, and needed Cheney's help in seeing it through.

I don't see Watts winning the nomination in 2008. If the recession happens on schedule, he'll be associated with an unpopular administration. But him being Vice President also probably butterflies Obama.
 
It always blew my mind that the GOP didn't give Watts a bigger push than OTL - at least try and have him run for Senate or something.

That said, if Bush wants black VP, I think Colin Powell would be an easier sell - war hero, already known and popular with the GOP base, in spite of some moderate positions, and his wife might not have as big of an issue with him being VP.
 
Well someone else explored a similar scenario, except with Colin Powell as VP. They say that Obama would still be elected to the Senate in 2004 and probably run, but that he might grow discouraged because said Republican African American is higher on the ladder and while campaigning, he may face racist comparisons and be dismissed as not as experienced/qualified.
 
That said, if Bush wants black VP, I think Colin Powell would be an easier sell - war hero, already known and popular with the GOP base, in spite of some moderate positions, and his wife might not have as big of an issue with him being VP.

I think there was a push Governor in 2010.
 
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