Bad VP Candidates of Yore

I gave Crooked Media's "What a Day" an amuse-bouche on Nixon and Quayle. Here's an appetizer.

UPCOMING EVENTS

September 16th. Brooklyn, New York. I’ll be in conversation with Corey Brettschneider, professor of history at Brown and author of the great new book, The Presidents and the People: Five Leaders who Threatened Democracy and the Citizens Who Fought to Defend It.”

---

Erin Gloria Ryan of Crooked Media asked me to come on “What a Day” to talk about vice presidents who were…more Vance than Walz. Richard Nixon and Dan Quayle immediately came to mind.

Below, I expand on my thoughts—with this caveat: In the recent past, VPs haven’t had a lot of influence on the outcome of a presidential election. There may be a bit of initial excitement, but by November, it usually wanes. I don’t think Vance can sink Trump, but I don’t think he’s helping him win, either.

RICHARD NIXON

Most people know that Richard Nixon was given the ignoble nickname of “Tricky Dick” by the press, but they often get the timing wrong. By the time Watergate rocked the nation, they’d been calling him “Tricky Dick” for decades.