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1 - The Choice
Chapter 1. The Choice.

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“Are we really going to do this?”

“Yes, we are!” John said, patting his friend Joe on the back. “We’ll see how it goes.”

The Democratic Convention had just wrapped up in Denver, Colorado, and the Obama/Biden ticket was enjoying their post-Convention surge. Senator John McCain, the Republican candidate for president, hoped that his announcement of a running mate would shake up the race and catapult him back into the lead. The senator was preparing to announce his longtime friend, Joe Lieberman, as the Republican Party candidate for vice president. There was a problem, though. Joe Lieberman was a Democrat.

McCain walked out into an arena full of supporters in Ohio. He was surrounded by his family. “We have some exciting business to attend to today,” McCain told the crowd. They were on the edge of their seats in anticipation.

“Today, I am going to nominate a man for vice president not because he will make the best candidate but because he is the best man to serve by my side in the White House!” McCain declared to the roar of the crowd. “My friends, I mean what it says on all the banners in this room: Country First!” Another wave of cheers.

McCain advisers Rick Davis and Mark Salter were amazed that it was about to happen. Part of them hoped McCain would change his mind and say “Charlie Crist” or “Tim Pawlenty” when he got to the introduction. Nicolle Wallace, however, stood by them, encouraging them to relax. She had designed an incredible media rollout of the Lieberman choice.

After the event, they would travel to Washington, D.C. for a meeting with Congressional Republican leadership. Top conservative campaign surrogates would appear on television every night for interviews to defend the choice of a bipartisan pick. Lieberman would appear, by himself, on Hannity & Colmes where Sean Hannity would grill him for being a pro-choice nominee. Then, McCain and Lieberman would appear together for a series of interviews.

“My friends,” McCain said, “as I have toured the nation and listened to all of you I have heard stories about the state of our nation, and it is clear to me that we need to work together - Republican and Democrat - to solve the problems that divide us. We need a president and vice president who are committed to that mission, not to getting reelected.” Wallace held her breath. “That is why I am pledging today to only serving one term as your president, and I will do it with a great man by my side who shares my vision of a Washington that works for you, not the special interests. Ladies and gentlemen: Please welcome the next Vice President of the United States, Joe Lieberman!”

There was a momentary silence before an outpouring of support. Music blared as Lieberman and his wife emerged in front of the stadium crowd.

Lieberman appeared on stage and hugged his friend before beginning his remarks. “I am deeply humbled,” he said, “to have this opportunity again.” The crowd laughed. “It is not lost on me,” he said, “that the Republican Party is being asked to do a remarkable thing - to put what is best for the party aside to do what is best for the nation. I look forward to going to the Republican Convention and earning your support as John and I work to put country first.”

When the new McCain/Lieberman ticket left Dayton, Ohio that day, they were well aware of the fight before them, but both were ready to take it on.

Conservative Republicans mobilized fast. Former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum appeared on Fox News and announced that he was going to run for the vice presidency at the Republican National Convention. Within hours of Lieberman’s announcement, there was a direct challenge to his place at the bottom of the ticket.

Both Mike Huckabee and Mitt Romney received a flurry of interview requests to see if either one of them would make a play for the vice presidential nomination at the convention. McCain campaign advisers grew worried when attempts to contact Huckabee and Romney were unsuccessful. The night after the Lieberman announcement Mitt Romney appeared on the CBS Evening News and called on the Republican Party to unite behind John McCain’s choice for a running mate.

“I would not have chosen Joe Lieberman,” Romney said, “but I recognize that had I won the nomination for president, I would have wanted the Republican Convention to support the person I trusted. We owe Senator McCain that same respect, even if we hold reservations about Joe.”

The Romney move was a calculated effort ahead of the 2012 presidential campaign. Romney advisers recommended that Romney support the Republican nominee. “It’s going to be a bloody battle,” Beth Myers told him, “but Lieberman is probably going to win. It’s best for the party that there isn’t a fight and if you’re seen as instigating that fight, it’ll hurt you.” Romney took Myers’ advice.

On the morning of the first day of the Republican Convention, Mike Huckabee held a press conference where many expected him to endorse Rick Santorum or announce his own intention of running for the vice presidential nomination. Instead, Huckabee announced that he would be supporting McCain’s choice. “I think there were many more qualified Republican candidates for vice president,” he said, “but at the end of the day, I believe that Senator McCain’s choice must be respected. I am not supporting any effort to take the vice presidential nomination from Lieberman.”

With Romney and Huckabee behind him, Joe Lieberman held multiple meetings with conservative leaders in the Republican Party ahead of the vote. Without a credible challenger, the McCain campaign expected Lieberman to win easily. There would be some protest votes for Santorum from some conservative holdouts, but they anticipated that Lieberman would prevail.

The fight for the vice presidential nomination may have actually helped the McCain/Lieberman ticket. Network coverage of the fight extended the airtime for the Republican convention and brought more attention to McCain’s commitment to bipartisanship. Nicolle Wallace implemented a media strategy that emphasized this.

“John McCain knew this was a fight worth having,” Rick Davis said in one interview. “He cares that much about a government that puts people over politics.” As the gavel came down at the Convention, the narrative was beginning to shift.

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