The sequel to Game Change is here, or, at least, in the hands of the New York Times. Journos Mark Halperin and John Heilemann take us inside the 2012 race with Double Down, and the Times shares a few juicy reveals.
- Obama's camp seriously considered losing Biden and replacing him with Hillary Clinton in order to give Obama's campaign a boost, going so far as to conduct focus-groups and polling in late 2011. Then-chief of staff William Daley championed the idea, but the team decided "adding Clinton to the ticket wouldn't materially improve Obama's odds," the authors write. "Biden had dodged a bullet he never saw coming."
- On the subject of VPs, why didn't Chris Christie make the cut? He didn't offer up as much info during the vetting process as other would-be VPs did, and his file was "littered with potential land mines," including questions about his household help and a defamation lawsuit.
- Who told Harry Reid that Romney hadn't paid taxes in 10 years? Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr.'s dad. The Times points out that the governor is depicted in "perhaps the most negative light in the book," noting Huntsman told the White House he wasn't considering a run—while meeting with potential campaign strategists.
Click for the
full article, which touches on an uncomfortable round of golf between Obama and Bill Clinton. (More
Joe Biden stories.)
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