With McCain way ahead in the GOP race (hard to say that he has locked it up after this weekend, but still), Vice President speculation has already started. Given McCain’s age and his problems with the conservative wing of the Republican party, that pick has taken on an extra level of significance. The person McCain chooses won’t just be his hand-picked successor in the next election, he or she might become the president before McCain’s term is out.
The most popular choice, right now, seems to be Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty. There’s more than a little support for Mike Huckabee. But, there’s also been a whole lot of talk about NC Sen. Richard Burr. See this column by Fred Barnes, for starters.
Burr was an early and enthusiastic McCain supporter, going so far as to stump for the senator in NH (where he caused a bit of a stir for campaigning without socks). Word in North Carolina circles is that the two men like and trust each other.
He’s real young, but seen as a rising star. He’s got an awful good conservative record. And — just being honest here — in person, he’s really smart and charismatic.
The Associated Press has gone so far as to ask Burr if he would be McCain’s running mate, if asked. And Burr did not say no.
There are, of course, a lot of reason why Burr might not get picked to be McCain’s VP. But back in 2000, another first term NC Senator popped up on Al Gore’s short list, and John Edwards used that attention to expand his national profile and build a nation-wide following. It’s not all that hard to imagine that happening again.
Matt Compton 
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