Washington Examiner: Push on for Clinton-McAuliffe ticket

Terry McAuliffe, the Virginia governor who was former President Bill Clinton’s top fundraiser and Hillary Clinton’s 2008 campaign chair, is being pushed for vice president, possibly creating an extended Clinton family dynasty in America’s two top political offices.

A Clinton-McAuliffe pairing would be the most friendly ever and a long road from the usual ticket coalition like the 1980 Reagan-Bush ticket.

McAuliffe can serve only one-term as governor and will be a third-year lame duck when the Democratic nominee picks a veep next summer. And being a one-term governor isn’t a hurdle to higher office. A former Virginia chief executive, Jim Gilmore, is running for the Republican presidential nomination.

McAuliffe’s name has been rumored in the vice presidential mix for months and pushed by experts who believe that Hillary Clinton, or any Democratic nominee, must win Virginia to win the White House.

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Critics on the Republican side are eager to take McAuliffe on, noting his long support for Obamacare, his recent push for gun control, and his long record as a fabulously successful fundraiser for the Clinton family and former Democratic Party boss.

“Terry McAuliffe is perhaps the only politician in America less ethical than Hillary Clinton, and as the Clinton family’s longtime moneyman, it’s not surprising that his name is already being floated as a potential running mate,” said Colin Reed, executive director of America Rising PAC, which is dogging Clinton’s bid.

“Both McAuliffe and Clinton have spent their careers living at the intersection of money and politics, and the idea of a joint ticket should terrify any voter looking for honest and clean government,” he added.

This article was excerpted from The Washington Examiner. Click here to read the full article online.