Rob Portman

If John McCain announces his choice for Vice President at a rally in Dayton on Friday, he'll need thousands of signs with the name of his new running mate. And there's a good chance the campaign will use a local printer to produce the signs. So PolitickerOH.com put together a short list: printers close to the Dayton area with the capacity to print McCain's signs in time for the big event tomorrow.

Former U.S. Rep. Rob Portman, reportedly under consideration to be John McCain’s running mate, is not among the list of speakers scheduled to address the Republican National Convention, released by the GOP last night.  Does that mean Portman might be added later, perhaps in the slot where the Vice Presidential candidate speaks?

Former U.S. Rep. Rob Portman (R-Cincinnati) will be with John McCain at an Aug. 29 Dayton rally, the day after Barack Obama gives his convention speech. Portman is frequently mentioned as a possible vice presidential pick by McCain, and almost always is with McCain on campaign stops in Ohio.

Rob Lehman, who was chief of staff for Portman while a representative, trade ambassador and director of the Office of Management and Budget, told PolitickerOH.com Portman will be in attendance. Lehman reiterated Portman's public statements that he has not given documentation to the McCain campaign for vice presidential vetting.

The Politico reported last night that McCain will reveal his vice presidential pick at the event where Portman is now scheduled to be. 

However Portman has said he doesn't expect to be asked to be vice president. 

"I'm not looking for another Washington job right now," he said in June during a Republican fundraiser, PolitickerOH.com reported. 

Some Republicans view speculation that John McCain’s decision to hold a major rally in Ohio on the day after the Democratic National Convention as a sign that he will use this pivotal state to announce his pick for Vice President.  If that’s true, some may say it benefits former U.S. Rep. Rob Portman, picking him in front of a home state audience.   Still, people close to Portman aren’t convinced their guy is really on the list. 

Former U.S. Rep. Rob PortmanFormer U.S. Rep. Rob Portman (R-Cincinnati) will be in Indiana tomorrow campaigning for John McCain’s presidential campaign, in his first solo apperance outside of Ohio for McCain, according to a source.

McCain will not appear with Portman, although the two have campaigned across Ohio for months and Portman has consistently wound-up on journalists' short-lists of McCain vice presidential picks. According to the McCain campaign, he’ll be in Pennsylvania and New Jersey all day tomorrow.

Portman will speak at an economic roundtable in Indianapolis tomorrow afternoon at 3:00, an event that will be open to the press. Then he’ll walk for McCain at the Indiana State Fair tomorrow at 5:15. Afterward, Portman will go to the Indianapolis suburb of Fishers to speak at a county party's grassroots event for McCain supporters and Republicans. The event is open to the press.

Previously Portman's only other apperance outside of Ohio where he spoke about McCain was in June at the Republican Governors Assocation in South Carolina.

Republican internal polls show most people in Ohio don’t know much about Rob Portman, who is among those receiving consideration by John McCain for Vice President.  But push questions show voters are a little more likely to back McCain if he has an Ohioan on the ticket.  What the polls won’t show is that all this speculation about the ex-Congressman/OMB Director on the national ticket is doing wonders for his 2010 campaign for Governor.  In Ohio, where there has been a tradition of running statewide once and losing before moving on to a win, will Portman’s unofficial run for the vice presidency count?

His prospects to be U.S. Sen. John McCain's (R-Ariz.) vice presidential running mate might not look so good, but the attention that former U.S. Rep. Rob Portman (R-Cincinnati) is getting as a legitimate candidate for the slot can only boost his political career.

Though popular among his constituents, he was not well-known and never won an election outside the 2nd Congressional District. But as he embarques upon his first statewide campaign for governor or U.S. Senate, he can be thankful that all of the focus from national and state media is increasing his political stock, and probably his name-recognition, too.

Every four years, after the parties settle on their presumptive presidential candidates, the vice presidential speculation race begins. Inevitably, members or former members of the U.S. House are mentioned as possible candidates -- especially when they're from swing states -- but they're not usually chosen. So former U.S. Reps. Rob Portman (R-Cincinnati) and John Kasich (R-Westerville) can enjoy the attention, but shouldn't get their hopes too high.

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) is touting former U.S. Reps. Rob Portman (R-Cincinnati) and John Kasich (R-Westerville) as potential vice presidential picks for U.S. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.).

But if he had to choose between the two -- and there's a reasonable chance they might face each other in a gubernatorial primary in 2010 -- who would Gingrich support?

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and New York Times columnist David Brooks both said former U.S. Rep. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) would make a good vice president for John McCain. Speaking this morning on C-SPAN's Washington Journal, Gingrich said Portman and former U.S. Rep. John Kasich (R-Westerville) would be solid picks for McCain. Portman was former director of the federal Office of Mangement and Budget, as well as U.S. trade representative.