Perspective from the 19^th Hole is the title I chose for my personal blog, which is meant to give me an outlet for one of my favorite crafts – writing – plus to use an image from my favorite sport, golf.  Out of college, my first job was as a reporter for the Daily Astorian in Astoria, Oregon, and I went on from there to practice writing in all my professional positions, including as press secretary in Washington, D.C. for a Democrat Congressman from Oregon (Les AuCoin), as an Oregon state government manager in Salem and Portland, as press secretary for Oregon’s last Republican governor (Vic Atiyeh), and as a private sector lobbyist.  This blog also allows me to link another favorite pastime – politics and the art of developing public policy – to what I write.  I could have called this blog “Middle Ground,” for that is what I long for in both politics and golf.  The middle ground is often where the best public policy decisions lie.  And it is where you want to be on a golf course.

Kamala Harris, the new Democrat standard-bearer in the U.S. presidential race is facing a serious challenge:  Whom will she choose to run with her as a vice president nominee?

The choice will be one factor – not necessarily the most important – as she begins her run for president, which is not yet official because she is not the formal nominee. 

But she will be. 

She has accumulated enough votes to be the nominee, plus a large number of endorsements on top of that.  Along with a major uptick in enthusiasm for the presidential race that was lost when two old guys were running against each other.

Still, almost no one votes because a vice president is in the race.

Long-time political analyst Karl Rove wrote about this in his recent column, with this key paragraph, though he also added that almost no one votes because a specific VP candidate is on the ballot:

“Harris’s vice-presidential choice looms.  Will she try to broaden her appeal with an experienced governor or member of Congress who appears ready for the top job if something happens?”

That’s a good question.

But another one is whether a governor or a Member of Congress would be best suited for the VP job.

My bias:  A governor.

And here’s why based on my 40 years following government mostly in Oregon, but also in Washington, D.C.:

• Governors have run something.  They have had “executive responsibility.”  They have had to contend with the “buck stops here reality.”

• As for legislators, no.  They may talk a good game, but a member of the Legislative Branch does not carry responsibility for the result.

Now, let me emphasize that I am not bad-mouthing legislators.  If they do their job well, if they write good law, if they strike bad law, if they work to find middle-ground compromise, then that works in a democracy.

But, if they resort to yelling and screaming, as some do these days, then they are not doing their job.

So, I hope Harris picks a governor to help her win the presidency.

Here is a summary of the short list of the assumed leaders for the nod:

Governors Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, Andy Beshear of Kentucky, and Roy Cooper of North Carolina, and Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona.  The latter, obviously, is not a governor, but his record of accomplishment in both public and private life is worthy of consideration – and those accomplishments, including his experience as an astronaut, give him credentials.

In recent national stories, Kelly has emerged as a potential front-runner, which is fine with me, despite his lack of executive experience.

Otherwise, to indicate one man’s bias, mine, I hope Harris picks a governor, then wins the election.