Oh oh.....

There are rumors circulating that Condi Rice is Mittens' VP choice.

Now let me preface this -- I'm a Libertarian.  But anyone who thinks that this pick for a VP won't do material amounts of damage to both Obama and at the same time not do anything good for the Johnson/Gray ticket has rocks in their head.

Condi is not someone to fool with, and she has the chops for the job.  She's also "safe", and at the same time is going to shift a fair bit of vote around -- both from a women perspective and also from a black vote perspective.

The Johnson campaign needs to move -- now -- and get in front of some of the major issues, then be prepared to hammer Mittens in two places:

• Guns.  It is a fact that Mittens signed an assault weapon ban as governor.  He can't walk back from that move, and it's a major issue for a lot of people.  He'd like us all to forget it, and it's damned important that Johnson doesn't allow him -- or the electorate -- to do so.
  
  
• Financial frauds.  This shouldn't need explanation after all the fire I've loosed on this issue over the last five years.  Johnson simply has to go on the offensive here. 

These are two weak spots for Mittens.  Between them real blows can be landed with great effect.  But you can't be timid on it, you can't sidestep and you can't weasel.

At the same time Johnson must develop and be able to articulate a strong, sound policy and view on the Medical system.  NOT Medicare and Medicaid per-se, but the medical system itself.

EMTALA must go and in addition the cost-shifting and differential billing must have their protected status under Federal Law removed.  This is the only way you can put a cork in the medical cost expansion.  The budget proposal, absent this as an inherent part of it, will be attacked by Mittens and he will win in the court of public opinion, as the argument will simply be framed as "Grandma will have half of her Medicare taken away and by the way she needs that to stay alive -- you murderer!"

This argument can be countered but it can't be dodged.  It also can't be ignored as Mitt is not stupid and will hit this point hard.  He already knows, evidenced by his statement that he won't cut the budget in the first year -- he's figured it out.

You can't go into battle against a Klingon Battle Cruiser with your shields down or you're going to get blown to bits.

Condi is a massive complicating factor should he choose her.  I had expected a "safe" pick of some kind, perhaps a governor of a state with a few EVs, not enough to move anything.  This decision, if it's in fact on the table, is a fastball high and inside that looks an awful lot from the batters' box like a beanball and, if mishandled, will turn into one.