'The most insignificant office': John Adams didn't think much of his job as Vice President. But recent Presidents are giving their understudies a lot more to do

New York Times Upfront, April 26, 2004 by Todd S. Purdum

Bill Richardson, New Mexico's Governor, is already asking people if he should accept the job if it's offered. Senator John Edwards said he wouldn't take it--but that was when he was running for President. Gen. Wesley K. Clark is said to covet the job so much that he no sooner ended his own presidential bid than he endorsed Senator John Kerry, the likely presidential nominee.

The job in question is the vice-presidential spot on the Democratic ticket, and leading Democrats have begun the process of quiet jockeying, modest flattery, and studied indifference that they hope makes them Kerry's choice as running mate. It's the traditional vice-presidential mating dance--a complicated ritual that breaks out every four years among contenders in the party not currently in the White House.

For much of American history, the vice presidency has been more a target for jokes than a sought after job. George Clinton, Thomas Jefferson's Vice President, called his job a "respectable retirement," after 18 years as Governor of New York. In 1848, Senator Daniel Webster turned down an offer to be Zachary Taylor's vice-presidential running mate: "I do not propose to be buried until I am really dead." And John Nance Garner, Franklin D. Roosevelt's Vice President for his first two terms (1933-41), said the job wasn't worth a bucket of warm spit, or something cruder.

But the importance of the vice presidency has since increased, and in the 20th century, a significant number of Vice Presidents moved on to the Oval Office. Some ascended after the death of the President: Theodore Roosevelt in 1901, alter William McKinley's assassination; Calvin Coolidge in 1923, after the death of Warren G. Harding; Harry Truman in 1945, after FDR's death; and Lyndon B. Johnson in 1963, after John F. Kennedy's assassination. (All four were later elected to full terms on their own.)

RIVALS VS. RUNNING MATES

More recently, Richard Nixon, who served under Dwight D. Eisenhower, and George H.W. Bush, Ronald Reagan's No. 2, were later elected President on their own. And Gerald Ford became President after Nixon's resignation in 1974.

In the early days of the United States, the Vice President was not a running mate, but a rival: The Constitution made the Vice President--who presides over the Senate and breaks tie votes--the candidate who finished second in the presidential election. This meant the President and Vice President would very likely be opponents, as was the case after the election to succeed George Washington in 1796, when Thomas Jefferson became Vice President after losing the presidency to John Adams. The system in use today--the joint election of the President and Vice President--took effect in 1804 with the ratification of the 12th Amendment.

Even after that change, few Presidents shared significant power with their Vice Presidents, who were often relegated to ceremonial duties.

In recent years, however, the office has gained more importance and respect. Al Gore, who served under Bill Clinton, and now Vice President Dick Cheney, have been among the most active and powerful in history. (President Bush has said that Cheney will again be his running mate on the Republican ticket this year.)

Presidential candidates have chosen vice-presidential candidates to provide balance (a Northern presidential candidate might seek a Southern running mate); to offset a perceived weakness (Bush, who had little foreign policy or Washington experience, chose Cheney, with a long Washington resume, including Secretary of Defense); to help win a key state (Kennedy chose Johnson in 1960 to help win LBJ's home state of Texas): or to make a statement, or even history (Democrat Walter Mondale chose Representative Geraldine Ferraro in 1984, the first woman to run for Vice President).

Kerry could announce his choice as soon as April or May, or wait until the Democratic National Convention in Boston in July. In the meantime, speculation over who he will select is likely to intensify. (Whether the names the media focus on have any relation to Kerry's actual list is another question.)

Potential candidates are polishing their resumes--all the while feigning a lack of interest. Don't be fooled by that, cautions Senator John B. Breaux (D-La.). "If anybody tells you they wouldn't be interested in being Vice President," he says, "they're not telling you the truth."

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

* Why do you think the Founding Fathers prescribed such limited duties for Vice Presidents?

* Why might a President want (or not want) a Vice President to take on critical political, economic, or other related responsibilities?

TEACHING OBJECTIVES

To help students understand the vice presidency, specifically how it has historically been regarded as an unimportant job and why it has gained in importance in recent years.

CLASSROOM STRATEGIES

* CRITICAL THINKING: As the article reports, humorists have often nipped at the heels of Vice Presidents. (In a 1931 Broadway musical, a Vice President is seen mingling with a tour group so that he can gain entry to the White House, Theatergoers knew the target was Charles Curtis, Herbert Hoover's nearly invisible Vice President.)