Sometime in the near future, John Kerry will select his vice-presidential running mate. He should be graded on that choice, for, since 9/11, the vice presidency has taken on an importance it simply never had before.

“Choose a running mate.” We should look closely at that particular phrase, for it has been something more than just a choice of words. A running mate, historically, has been someone who was brought on board primarily to help the presidential candidate get elected – usually by delivering a part of the country where the head of the ticket was weak.