Finding fun in the presidential debates

Hello, everybody, and welcome back to another Cecil’s World in Print. Today we are going to talk about politics. OK, I hear some of you starting to moan already. Come on, it is so much fun to watch the presidential candidates tear each other down. I have to watch the network news each night to see which presidential hopeful is saying what about whom.
I think some voters are still trying to figure out what’s going on. Did Hillary Clinton lie about the gunfire in Kosovo or can you blame it on, “I just can’t remember?” Will Barack Obama really break away from his lifelong minister, who has made some wild and racial statements? What is going to happen next? Will former president Bill Clinton lash out at another reporter, or will he continue bringing up the Kosovo incident? One might wonder, is the former president trying to help his wife get elected or keep her out of the White House? Maybe he has a problem with being the first lady if his wife wins.
There is so much to watch in the Democratic Party. The big question is, who will each of these candidates consider for their running mate when they win the nomination? Of course, you have to have someone who will help you get plenty of votes.
Let’s think about this for a minute. Who is in the news a lot and could help Hillary get votes? Would it be a man, or will she pick a woman to be her running mate? In my opinion, I think former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards would help her pull some votes from the South. Edwards has a lot of political background. He served six years in the Senate, was a vice presidential candidate in 2004, and he also ran on the Democratic ticket for president this year. Someone asked the other day, what if Hillary picks her husband to run as her vice presidential candidate?
I don’t know about you, but I love watching political analysts on all the networks talk about the candidates and what they think is going to happen. Sometimes their input is more informative than the candidates’. Both Hillary and Barack are picking up support from movie stars. Obama has picked up endorsements from television superstar Oprah Winfrey and singer Bruce Springsteen. Now here is what I am thinking: Let’s play the “what if” game again. What if Obama picks a woman to run as his presidential partner? Yes, I am talking about Oprah. Just think: He could be on television a lot more and, who knows? He may even be the next Dr. Phil. OK, if you don’t like that idea, how about this one: he could pick Springsteen as his running mate. This way, he could take The Boss’ song “Born in the USA” and use it for his campaign theme.
Now let’s turn the page to the Republican nominee for president, Sen. John McCain. The Republicans have spoken and the party has united behind McCain. He ran his entire campaign about being a war hero and it paid off for him. He was shot down over Vietnam in 1967 and served 5½ years as a prisoner of war.
War heroes have been very successful in running for president. Teddy Roosevelt was a naval officer who received the Silver Star. How about former chief of staff Dwight D. Eisenhower, who served with Douglas MacArthur? And there was John F. Kennedy, a PT boat operator who was awarded the Navel-Marine Corps medal. Now my pick for McCain’s running mate is Gen. Colin Powell. The former secretary of state served in Vietnam and was awarded the Bronze Star and Purple Heart. That would put two war heroes on the ticket.
Remember, these are just my opinions. What really will happen is left up to you, the people. So make sure you vote in the presidential election and, that way, you can complain about it. But if you don’t vote, how can you complain? See you next week, right here in the Morning News and on the tube.

— Cecil Chandler is a veteran reporter at WBTW News13. His column appears Mondays in the Morning News.