Carly for McCain VP?

Mon, July 07, 2008 - 10:43 AM

There are several unwritten rules for would-be vice presidential nominees, but by far the most important is to never display any interest in the position in public, much less actively lobby for it.

It would be far more honest for all would-be VPs simply to admit interest in the job. But there’s a feeling in Washington that doing so would be gauche. Why? Your guess is as good as mine. But there it is.

With that in mind, consider the answer Carly Fiorina, the former CEO of Hewlett-Packard and now a top economic adviser to John McCain, gave to the VP question this morning.

Fiorina’s name has been floated as a possible vice president for McCain, in part because of her business and economic experience. During the primaries, McCain famously revealed that he does not have as firm a grasp on economics as he does on issues of national defense and wasteful government spending.

At a breakfast with reporters Monday, Fiorina was asked not if she wanted the job. It’s a worthless question, since everyone denies it anyway. Rather, a reporter wondered, if she thought that someone with her background – lots of business experience, little government experience – would be suited for the vice presidency.

Fiorina responded by defending her qualifications for the job. She stressed her experience dealing with the federal government, lobbying them as a technology executive and more recent projects since leaving HP. She also argued that business experience would be very helpful in the job.

“John McCain is going to have a lot of highly qualified people to choose from,” she said.

“Let me also answer your question by saying the following: I’ve spent the last three plus years getting involved in a variety of issues in a variety of government departments, whether it’s the Defense Department, the Central Intelligence Agency or the State Department,” she said.

“I would certainly not consider myself an expert on government. But what I can tell you is that all aspects of the federal government reach out to business people, not just myself, because there are common elements in organizational challenges, there are some common elements in how you bring people together to make them more efficient and effective. And yes, there are things government can borrow and learn from business,” she said.

Press Play to listen to the whole clip:



--Sean Mussenden