Here's what N&O readers say about the qualities they would like to see in a vice presidential candidate and who they think might make good choices for Barack Obama or John McCain.

VP must be ... presidential

The new president must utilize the vice president to the fullest extent but avoid the two extremes between John Nance Garner's lack of responsibilities (as vice president to President Franklin Roosevelt) and Dick Cheney's too many responsibilities (as Bush's vice president).

The vice president's qualifications should allow a seamless transition to the presidency and closely approximate those required of a president. They are:

* Intellectual curiosity and ability to listen to conflicting views.

* Humility to recognize mistakes and learn from them.

* Strong people skills in selecting subordinates, delegating and enforcing accountability.

* Excellent communication skills.

* The ability to incorporate history's lessons into decision-making.

* The objectivity to reject ideology and partisanship.

* The willingness to seek balance in the government vs. free-market roles for the economy and in the global vs. national interests for international matters.

* A sense of humor.

* The highest personal integrity in all matters, personal and public.

No doubt there are other qualifications, and no one person will possess all of the above. At a minimum, candidates should demonstrate the first four items. This will ensure the right executive team and create a governing group where all qualities are present.

Stephen Fairchild

Pittsboro

It's a yin-yang relationship

A good vice president is someone who is seen and not heard, like Al Gore, George H. W. Bush, and Walter Mondale. A bad VP blames Murphy Brown for the dissolution of American values or shoots an old friend in the face.

So what's the key for a winning ticket? As the presidential candidate, your VP should make up for the traits you lack or the constituencies you can't count on. Both JFK and LBJ, and Reagan and George Bush, were primary rivals, but they managed to declare a truce to win the general election. In this election season, Obama and McCain need to find that special person to yin their yang.

For McCain, I nominate fellow maverick Christine Todd Whitman, the former governor of New Jersey and the former administrator of the EPA, who's no fan of George W. Bush. She's a moderate Republican, she can bring in the women (McCain's anti-choice) and she's an environmentalist, despite the controversy after Sept. 11, when she declared that the air in lower Manhattan posed no health hazard.

For Obama, he should go with John Edwards. Edwards is white and Southern, and his proposed polices regarding the poor and ending the war in Iraq should resonate well with Democratic voters. I know Edwards has said that he wouldn't consider being on the Obama ticket, but remember that he did make that big Obama endorsement in Michigan, which stole Hillary's thunder in West Virginia. An audition?

Alice Osborn

Raleigh

Running mate should be adviser

My hope is that a VP will be chosen who will not only help the candidate win November's election but will also be an excellent adviser during the president's tenure.

I'm a firm believer that the president's advisers are a vital part of an administration's success. Of course, there is also the possibility that the VP will have to take over the Oval Office unexpectedly, which is all the more reason for a good backup team.

The president and vice president don't have to get along famously on a personal level, but vice presidents should appreciate their own role and not interfere with policies that the boss wants to promote.

Next page >