Why the Search for a Running Mate Has Become a Bigger Deal

Why the Search for a Running Mate Has Become a Bigger Deal
An expert on the U.S. vice presidency discusses how the position has changed. Transcript of radio broadcast:
13 June 2008

This is IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.

The candidates for president of the United States now face what some call the biggest decision of their campaigns. Republican John McCain and Democrat Barack Obama have to choose a vice president.

The Democratic Party will hold its presidential nominating convention at the end of August. The Republican convention is the first week of September.

Presidential candidates have not always had to choose. In America's first four elections, the candidate with the second most votes became vice president.

That changed after the election of eighteen hundred. Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr received the same number of electoral votes. The House of Representatives had to decide. Jefferson won -- on the thirty-sixth vote.

Since then, the president and vice president have been elected separately. But they run for office together.

The Constitution gives the vice president three responsibilities. One is to serve as president of the Senate. Another is to break any tie vote in the Senate. And the third is to replace the president in case of death, disability, removal or resignation.

Vice presidents have become president nine times. Eight were the result of a president's death. The ninth was because a president, Richard Nixon, resigned.

For the first half of American history, the main job of the vice president was serving as president of the Senate. Then, during the twentieth century, vice presidents became more involved in the activities of the executive branch.

Law professor Joel Goldstein at Saint Louis University in Missouri is an expert on the vice presidency. He says a major turning point came in nineteen seventy-seven when Walter Mondale became Democrat Jimmy Carter's vice president.

The professor says Walter Mondale had more responsibility than any vice president before him. He had an office near the president in the West Wing of the White House. He held private weekly meetings with the president. And he became one of his top advisers.


The four vice presidents since Walter Mondale have had the same level of involvement, the professor says, if not more. The current vice president, Dick Cheney, followed Al Gore, Dan Quayle and the first George Bush.
As a result of all this, the job of choosing a vice president has become more important. One thing candidates look for is someone to help balance their own weaknesses.

But no one can meet every need. So, as Professor Goldstein says, candidates start with a wish list, then make changes to fit reality.

And this year, one reality is that almost eighteen million people voted for Hillary Clinton. She ran a close race against Barack Obama. Come November, how many of those women and men will vote for John McCain, or not vote at all? This is a question for both nominees as they search for the right man -- or woman -- for their running mate.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English, written by Brianna Blake. I’m Steve Ember.

----------------------------Google Translate

为什么寻找一个竞选搭档已成为一个更大的处理
一位专家对美国副总统讨论了如何的立场已有所改变。全文电台广播：
2008年6月13日

这是在新闻中在美国之音特别英语。

候选人美国总统现在面临的是什么有人称之为最大的决定，他们的运动。共和党的麦凯恩和民主党巴拉克奥巴马有选择副总统。

民主党将举行总统提名公约截至八月底。共和党全国代表大会是第一周的9月。

总统候选人并不总是不得不选择。在美国的首四个月的选举，候选人与第二次得票最多，成为副总统。

改变后的选举， 1800 。托马斯杰斐逊和阿龙伯尔收到相同数目的选举人票。美国国会众议院已经决定。杰弗逊韩元-论3 0-第六表决。

自那时以来，美国总统和副总统已经当选的分别。但他们竞选公职在一起。

宪法赋予副总统的三个责任。一个是充当参议院主席。另一个是要突破任何票数相等，在参议院的。和第三次是，以取代总统在案件死亡，伤残，免职或辞职。

副总统成为总统的9倍。 8人的结果，一个总统的死因。第九届，是因为一位总统，尼克松辞职。

为上半年美国历史上，主要的工作，副总统是担任参议院主席。然后，在二十世纪，副会长，成为更多地参与各项活动的行政部门。

法学教授的Joel Goldstein表示美国圣路易斯大学在密苏里州是一个专家，副总统。他说，一个重要的转折点来到在1977年，当沃尔特蒙代尔成为民主党的卡特的副总统。

这位教授说，沃尔特蒙代尔了更多的责任比任何副总统在他面前。他的办公室附近总统在西翼的白宫。他举行的私人每周一次的会议与总统。和他成为他的一名高级顾问。


四位副总统沃尔特蒙代尔以来，已同等程度的参与，教授说，如果不是更多。目前的副总统切尼，其次是戈尔，丹奎尔和第一届布什。
由于这一切，就业选择一个副总统，已成为更重要的。一件事，看候选人是有人以帮助平衡自己的弱点。

但没有人能满足每一个需要。因此，作为教授高德斯坦说，候选人开始与一个愿望清单，然后作出修改，以适应现实。

这一年，一现实的情况是，几乎1800.0万人投赞成票希拉里克林顿。她遇到过密切的种族对巴拉克奥巴马。十一月来，有多少是那些妇女和男子会投票支持麦凯恩，或没有投票呢？这是一个问题的两个提名，因为他们搜寻合适的人-或女子-为他们的竞选搭档。

这是在新闻中在美国之音特别英语，写的brianna布雷克。我史蒂夫ember 。