Another desperation move might be to nudge Vice President Joe Biden aside in favor of putting Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on the ticket. This idea, floating around for months, verges on political science fiction, but it’s always a possibility. Democratic strategists argue that the only way Vice President Biden leaves the ticket, barring a health issue, is if he says or does something so egregious he has no choice but to withdraw.
Getting Secretary Clinton to give up her long-anticipated retirement is another question. But if Obama were able to convince her, she could breathe new life into flagging Democratic prospects – especially among women voters. Clinton has only grown in global stature since her failed presidential bid in 2008, and is the early front-runner for the 2016 Democratic nomination, if she decides to run.
For now, though, Biden looks like he’s in good shape. He does well with white, blue-collar audiences that Obama has often struggled to connect with, particularly in Rust Belt battleground states.
