Every Presidential candidate needs a running mate to help define his or her campaign, and John Kerry is no exception.  Now that the big primaries are over, the media needs something positive to report about their favored candidate (not that the media would ever take sides).  Expect the next media flurry -- the next one not attacking President Bush, that is -- to be about the burning question of who John Kerry will pick for a running mate. 

Some people are hoping (or fearing) that Kerry will choose Hillary Clinton as his Vice President.  Others think he will ask former Presidential hopeful Senator John Edwards to run with him.  A running mate is normally chosen for one of two things: the positives he or she can bring to a campaign (like energising the base, bringing in funding or helping to win a state or region), or the negatives that he or she doesn't bring.  This is especially true of Democrats, who tend to think of people more as representatives of a racial or economic group than as individual voters.

The huge amount of negative baggage carried by Hillary Clinton completely cancels out any positives she might bring.  Also, Kerry doesn't need to take out "insurance" in New York; there's very little chance the state will go Republican this year.  As for John Edwards, he held his own home state against Kerry, but his presence would be no guarantee that South Carolina or any other Southern state will suddenly vote Democratic.  Another reason to discount Clinton and Edwards is that no President wants a VP who's vastly more charismatic or personally powerful than he or she is.  Keeping all the above in mind, here's my list of probable VP picks for John Kerry.

Representative Dick Gephardt still has a huge amount of pull with the unions, and could (with a little hard-sell campaigning) bring in his home state of Missouri.  He might also have an effect in neighboring states.  Gephardt is more of a centrist than Kerry (for that matter, Ted Kennedy is more of a centrist than John Kerry!) and does not have a record of flip-flopping on every issue.  In my opinion, Gephardt's daughter's inability to stop pushing her gay activist agenda even when stumping for her father in a middle-of-the-road state cost him the primary in Iowa.  In a national campaign, however, it may actually come as something of an asset (if they confine her to more "Liberal" states like New York, California, Massachusetts and Vermont).  On the other hand, those who see Kerry as "Old-Time Washington Establishment" wouldn't find anything different to like about Gephardt.

Senator Evan Bayh of Indiana has many of the positives and few of the negatives of Gephardt. Though he doesn't have quite the amount of support from the unions, he's also younger and more charismatic (though not so much so as to overwhelm Kerry, the way Edwards would).

Senator Bill Nelson could ensure his home state of Florida, a very tightly-contested state.  With the President's own brother campaigning for him there, the Democrats will need every advantage they can get.  Senator Bob Graham is more well-known by far, but much of that notoriety comes from his "quirkiness"... or, if you're not a fan, his obsessive-compulsive madness.

Lt. Governor Cruz Bustamante actually made a fairly strong showing in California's 2003 recall election, though he ultimately lost to Arnold Scharzenegger.  He brought in 52 percent of the Hispanic vote and 32.3 percent overall.  Though many people think that Kerry would choose New Mexico's Governor Bill Richardson for his influence with Hispanic voters, ensuring California may be considered far more important to the Kerry campaign.  California is considered to be "in play" for the first time in years, and a California VP would help to counteract Arnold's strong support for President Bush there.  However, his former membership in the Hispanic racist/separatist organisation MEChA would weight heavily against him. 

Representative Jane Harman would also help secure California's whopping 55 electoral votes (though not as much as Bustamante), and would have some appeal to women around the country.  At first glance, she doesn't appear to have any serious baggage to weigh her down aside from her pro-abortion, pro-gay "marriage" stances.  If Kerry wants to secure California and gain support with women, Harman might be a good choice.

A good choice for Kerry, that is.  Any of these people would do very little to mitigate the disaster that a Kerry Presidency would be for America.