Turbulent decade of politics reaches peak in two weeks with former president nearly assassinated and Current President and Presumptive Democratic Candidate declare He is dropping out of the race just three and a half months before Election Day. Barring another sudden and unexpected twist, the next big political news will be who new presumptive Democratic nominee Kamala Harris chooses as her running mate. After everything we’ve been through, Americans deserve boring The vice presidential option, if only to provide some hope that this chaos will one day dissipate.
Here are three candidates who could bring a bit of blissful boredom to the Democratic ticket:
Governor Andy Beshear
“It’s like eating vanilla ice cream without toppings”
Andy Beshear, Kentucky’s reliably Democratic governor, was first elected in 2019, defeating incumbent Gov. Matt Bevin by less than 5,000 votes. By 2023, he had bipartisan support and won reelection by more than 67,000 votes. Beshear doesn’t often make national headlines, but recent opinion polls His approval rating stands at 65%, fourth among governors and the highest among Democratic governors.
his supporters appreciate him veto A 15-week abortion ban (later overturned by Kentucky’s Republican-controlled General Assembly). Republicans like him twice reduce The state’s income tax rate. Even liberals can find some common ground with Beshear: While the Kentucky Legislature failed to legalize marijuana, he issued a Conditional pardon Protect medical marijuana users from prosecution.
describe Kentucky sports radio host Matt Jones described the 46-year-old father of two as “like eating vanilla ice cream without toppings” without any scandals on his record.
Governor Jared Polis
“49 year old bald gay Jew from Boulder”
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis when asked by CNN’s Dana Bash if he would consider becoming Harris’ running mate responded: “Look, if they took a poll and found out they wanted a 49-year-old bald gay Jew from Boulder, Colorado, they’d get my phone number.” The perfect combination of stupidity and self-awareness!
From 1968 to 2004, the Centennial State was essentially a Republican stronghold. color.
After winning re-election to the House of Representatives four times (he was a member of the House of Representatives) only democrat congressman Freedom Caucus), Polis won the governorship in 2018 and was reelected in 2022. Keep your funds safe Full-day kindergarten and raising Colorado’s minimum wage. he still signed bill Lowering business, income and property taxes is attractive to Republicans.
limited government enthusiast There’s a lot to like in Polis’s discography. he support school choice, sign The Reasonable Independence of Children Act for free-range children and has pardoned More than 4,000 people have been convicted of cannabis possession.
He also mastered the deeply unsexy subject of housing policy. father of two Tell reasonChristian Britschgi said in March that he had worked with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle to roll back regulations that make housing less affordable. “We have multiple bills that would end government-imposed parking requirements…build the capacity to build more housing in transit-oriented communities near buses and rail, and really look at eliminating the red tape and bureaucracy associated with the housing that’s being built. ability”.
Governor Roy Cooper
“What would it look like if a sweater designed a person?”
North Carolina has tended to vote for Republican presidential candidates recently, but it twice elected Democratic governor Roy Cooper. Throughout Cooper’s tenure, he has quietly been working to compromise with the Republican-controlled Legislature. In 2021, he Sign big tax cuts Incorporated into law designed to attract businesses to North Carolina. he also signed second chance actwhich would allow certain nonviolent criminal records to be expunged — a positive data point for those who want to see more criminal justice reform across the country.
When Cooper took office, North Carolina was in the midst of a eye-catching The economic boycott comes as the former governor enacted an unpopular “bathroom bill” that micromanaged where transgender people could use bathrooms. Cooper repealed the act when he campaigned and repealed it and replaced it with a bill after taking office. bipartisan compromise that reduces controversy.
Cooper——self label as a”Diet soda sommelier,” and once describe go through slate “If a sweater designed a person, what would it look like” – his term expires in November. The dad-of-three is unlikely to inspire rap parodies or shirt-ripping wrestler endorsements, but if he can walk across the aisle with as much aplomb as he did in North Carolina, he might transform the state for the first time Into blue since 2008.
For libertarians, none of these options are ideal. (For that reason, Check The votes of Chase Oliver and Mike ter Maat of the Liberal Party. Cooper received Ds, Cs, and Bs on Cato Institute evaluations 2022 Fiscal Policy Report Card– They have historically opposed welfare cuts and are unlikely to change their stance now. None of them would challenge Harris’ pledge to strengthen the nation’s gun control laws, including the so-called assault weapons ban, or say they seek to rein in America’s war machine.
Sadly, Americans once again want votes from the major parties that are not the absolute worst, rather than votes that passionately support fixing the debt problem and defending all individual rights. But if we have to choose between the two ambitious, unethical dictator Or “vanilla” middle-aged dad, these purple governors don’t look so bad.
If we elect a boring vice president in 2024, maybe we might even elect a boring president in 2032.
