I've been a big fan of Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal for a long time now, for a lot of reasons. Ponnuru says that Jindal and Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty "hit the sweet spot", and I agree. My case for Jindal:
- First and Foremost: Executive Experience
- Handling disasters like the BP Oil Spill, challenging Obama on his ridiculous assertion that its was "not a big deal" that the administration put a moratorium on drilling in the Gulf after the spill a couple years back because the out of work rig employees could "collect unemployment".
- He takes the minority card completely away from the Obama Administration. Like a lot of Republicans, I think race is a total non issue, but for a national election against "America's First Black President", it matters.
- The Republican ticket needs to continued enthusiasm and support of the Tea Party, and Jindal will strengthen that.
- As Ponnuru points out, he's "reform minded", something I think the electorate in general and the Tea Party in particular, are craving right now.
- Can you imagine how stupid he'd make Joe Biden look in a debate? Especially calling the Biden Clown out on his stupid comment in the 2008 campaign about Indians running convenient stores (an epic gaffe a republican could never get away with)?
Hopefully, someone with some influence in the campaign is reading Ponnuru's piece this morning.