The Edwards-Obama Alliance

As the initial caucuses approach, inter-party attacks have begun to intensify. Giuliani and Romney have been sparring over who was less liberal in the past, Clinton and Obama have been dueling over health care and experience and Fred Thompson has been screaming in the corner like a petulant 5th grader in the hopes that someone in the media will realize that he still has a heartbeat. But for all the back-and-forth accusations between candidates across the board, one candidate-to-candidate exchange has been moderately demure, if not downright congratulatory—that between John Edwards and Barack Obama. Both men, whether they like it or not, are campaigning for the spot of the anti-Hillary in the Democratic field; whoever finishes behind the other in Iowa will most likely be out of the race for all intents and purposes. And yet, they seem to have surprisingly little to say to each other and instead have honed their attacks almost exclusively on Senator Clinton. Edwards has even gone so far as to praise Obama, occasionally on the stump and recently at a small debate in Iowa.

This certain is far from what would be expected from Edwards, the populist pitbull, particularly when he has such a glaring difference with Obama regarding a mandate for universal health care. And it raises the inevitable question of an Edwards bid for Vice President. An Obama/Edwards ticket would be one premised upon change to the extreme, prioritizing vitality and a necessary renovation of Washington politics. Edwards, moreover, could be a significant asset in Southern states. This all seems rather unlikely, though. Whoever lands the Democratic nomination will most likely pick someone who was not associated with the 2004 election. If Obama, in particular, is the nominee, you can expect he’ll pair himself with someone with considerable “experience” (read: an old white dude). Still, it’s nice to see a bit of camaraderie in the race and it certainly works to undercut Clinton’s new aggressive stance.