Chicago, Illinois
Reading the tea leaves on Obama’s stops en route to Denver (Eau Claire, Wisconsin; Davenport, Iowa; Kansas City, Missouri; Billings, Montana) yields a couple of Dark Horses candidates: Dick Gephardt* of Missouri and my favorite, Brian Schweitzer of Montana. Their families have already met, remember that photogenic July 4 parade? He’s an incredibly popular Red State governor who speaks Arabic, is an energy expert and is young (52). The pick would underline Obama’s messages of youth and change but would leave the ticket open to experience challenges, particularly on foreign policy. On the other hand, the first part of the tour doubles down on the midwest — as would a Bayh pick. At any rate, it looks unlikely we’ll find out today. Hopefully that text message will arrive before Obama’s event in Springfield tomorrow, though his spokeswoman Linda Douglass did coyly say on the bus late last night that she’s never ruled out Obama announcing his pick at the convention.
Update:
I’m reminded that Gephardt is a lobbyist these days, so highly unlikely.