John McCain should be the heavy favorite to be next President of the United States. I’ve never said that before. If “Barack America” chose Hillary Clinton as his running mate, Obama would and should remain as the favorite for the White House. In fact, the political betting odds would likely have gone up.

Am I oblivious to history which states emphatically that voters chose between presidential candidates and not the entire ticket? No.

The American public is not going to vote for or against Biden or the eventual McCain running mate choice. But Biden is on record forcefully questioning Obama’s qualifications for president and praising McCain’s.  Barack Obama’s highly questionable VP decision gives those soon-to-be-fatal comments a stronger voice.

When asked by George Stephanopoulos on the ABC program This Week about questioning Obama’s lack of experience, the verbose Biden gave a terse, “I stand by my statement.”

The American public is fair. They generally distinguish when a candidate is distorting his opponent’s words. One look at Biden’s criticism of Obama and praise of McCain will make it virtually impossible for Biden to claim he was taken out of context. Biden left nothing to misinterpretation or misrepresentation.

While Barack America still has the ability to win over the Hillary Clinton base that he disenfranchised, the fact he bypassed the person the polls and primary electorate clearly preferred as veep opens the door for a powerful question.

A big selling point by Obama was that he was willing to meet face-to-face with the vilest enemies of the country his wishes to represent. Yet the undecided may ask why he is so eager to find common ground with sworn enemies of the United States, yet he couldn’t even achieve accord with Hillary Clinton?

Just as Obama started to put the Jeremiah Wright controversy behind him, Barack’s choice was another gift horse.

Surely Republican partisans are looking to piggy back Wright’s racist and anti-American comments, Michael Pfleger’s inflammatory bigoted ranks and perhaps Michele Obama’s ill-fated “first time in my adult life I’m proud to be an American” with Biden’s shocking “In Delaware, the largest growth of population is Indian Americans, moving from India. You cannot go to a 7/11 or a Dunkin’ Donuts unless you have a slight Indian accent.” Perhaps the most devastating words followed, “I’m not joking.”

Hurry bet John McCain now as the big underdog (political betting odds) at one of the sportsbooks that have not adjusted to the fact the Joe Biden makes McCain the “Wright” favorite. 

The author, Grandmaster sports handicapper Joe Duffy is not only the top sports betting expert in the world, but a widely accepted authority in political handicapping. He can be reached at joeduffy@joeduffy.net