Chuck Hagel

When word leaked late last week that Barack Obama would be joined on his upcoming visit to Iraq by Chuck Hagel, it set off an understandable round of Hagel-for-V.P. speculation. But the actual prospects of the Nebraska Republican joining the Democratic ticket can be summed up simply: a bold and brilliant idea that has just about no chance of becoming reality.

Sen. Raymond Lesniak (D-Union): Politicker photo 

For the good of the country, a Republican with foreign policy smarts and gravitas would be a wise running mate choice for Sen. Barack Obama, in the view of state Sen. Raymond Lesniak (D-Union).

In his NJ Voices blog over the weekend, Lesniak said he likes Indiana senior Sen. Richard Lugar, and today he told PolitickerNJ.com that Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-NE) would also be good.

"It would show that Obama wants to bring this country together," said Lesniak. "I’m most impressed with Lugar’s ability to articulate a tough and reasoned approach to Iran.

Last week Tom Ridge lost to Condoleezza Rice in MSNBC’s Veepstakes competition.  Now attention turns to the Democratic side.  In the first round Governor Ed Rendell is a number 5 seed and is paired off against 4th seeded Republican U.S. Senator Chuck Hagel from Nebraska.

Interestingly, Rendell makes the list while Bob Casey, who actually supported Barack Obama and was talked about early as a possible running mate, did not even make the list of 32. 

Few of the rumored Vice Presidential picks the now-presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, Senator Barack Obama (D-Ill.), could add to his ticket would help him much in the Commonwealth of Kentucky in November, according to a new SurveyUSA poll.

SurveyUSA compiled public opinion figures on sixteen potential ticket match-ups from May 16 and May 18 - before Senator Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) handed Obama a 35 point defeat in Kentucky on May 20 and prior to Obama's attainment of the requisite delegates to clinch the nomination.

The data was released yesterday.

With that said, Obama's numbers in the new poll linger around the 33 percent support he received in an earlier Lexington Herald-Leader match-up poll against presumptive Republican nominee, Senator John McCain (R-Ariz.). In that poll, McCain received 58 percent support.

Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius is an Ohio native whose father, John Gilligan, served as Governor, but she wouldn't boost Barack Obama much in Ohio as a Vice Presidential candidate, according to a SurveyUSA poll conducted earlier this month for WCMH-TV in Columbus and WCPO-TV in Cincinnati.
Among Ohio voters, an Obama/Sebelius ticket and a GOP slate of John McCain and Mike Huckabee each win 42%. Statistically, Sebelius boosts Obama by about the same percentage as Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell and Chuck Hagel, an anti-war Republican Senator from Nebraska.
Actually, the Vice Presidential pick that helps Obama most is ex-Senator/'04 VP candidate John Edwards. The poll didn't include Gov. Ted Strickland, who enjoys a 54%-39% approval rating among Ohio voters.