Senator Biden
The selection of Senator Joe Biden as Obama's VP could help the ticket in the rural areas of New Mexico, particularly in the south where Obama is weakest, and boosts the odds a bit that NM Governor Big Bill Richardson could become Secretary of State if Obama takes the White House. That was the analysis from Senior Alligators of La Politica who began weighing in minutes after the news of Biden's selection was flashed to the nation on CNN shortly before 11 p.m. Mountain Time.

We asked several to guess how long it would be before NM saw Biden once the Dem convention was completed. The "over-under" we came with is 14 days. In other words, these vets expect Biden to make a NM stop within two weeks of the convention.

"How about if Obama and Biden come together from the Denver convention and make a stop in Santa Fe. We are the closest swing state to Colorado, and Obama has yet to visit the North. Post-convention might be an ideal time," offered one of the Gators in a Midnight analytical session that burned cell phone minutes by the dozen.

Biden, 65, has demonstrated appeal to working class Anglos, a weak spot for Obama and one which Dems hope Biden can help him shore up. In fact, several of our Gators felt sending Biden to SE NM would be a good place to have him mine for votes. Not all agreed. "Joe Biden help in rural new Mexico? What are people smoking? It's more likely that Big Bill will be Hillary's VP choice on the Democrats 2012 ticket." Opined another Alligator. Others said Biden doesn't do anything for the ticket in NM.

Dem US Senate nominee Tom Udall pointed to a personal tie he has to Biden: “I’ve personally known and respected Sen. Biden since I worked for him as a special projects assistant during the Summer of 1973, right after he was elected to office. Since then, I’ve known Joe Biden as a dedicated public servant who will work for change..." Said Udall in a Midnight hour e-mail.

As for Big Bill, earlier Friday he said he received a "gracious" call from Obama telling him he would not be the #2 . No big surprise there, but because Biden has also been mentioned as a potential Secretary of State, the Alligators felt Bill's chances of getting SOS went up now that Biden is out of the betting pool. However, Senator Kerry remains and Bill's relationship with the Clintons continues to concern his supporters who fear they may try to block the Guv's ascension. Many in the Clinton camp are still stung by Bill's failure to endorse Hillary's Prez bid.

But for the next two months, all eyes are on the prize. Young Obama and semi-senior Biden
look like a formidable pair on paper. We'll see how they do once their march into political history becomes reality.

(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2008
Not for reproduction without permission of the author