Edwards doesn't rule out VP bid
2008-06-15 17:24
Washington - Former Democratic vice-presidential nominee John Edwards said on Sunday he would have to "seriously" consider another shot at the job if asked by White House hopeful Barack Obama.
But the former senator, who unsuccessfully ran for the party's presidential nomination this year, reaffirmed that he was not actively seeking to be Obama's running mate.
Two prominent Republicans also denied they were in the hunt to be the VP candidate of Senator John McCain.
"I'd take anything he asks me to think about seriously, but obviously this is something that I've done and it's not a job I'm seeking," Edwards told ABC News.
Edwards, who was Democrat John Kerry's running mate in the 2004 election won by George W Bush, told Spanish newspaper Vanguardia earlier this month that "the vice-presidency is not a position that I desire".
Wiggle room
His comments to ABC appeared to leave open some wiggle room as Obama steps up his vetting of potential VP nominees.
Other Democrats cited by pundits include senators Joseph Biden and Jim Webb, along with Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius and Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell.
Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, the 37-year-old son of Indian immigrants, said media speculation touting him as a potential running mate for McCain was "flattering".
"The reality is, I've got the job that I want," the Republican rising star told CBS News.
"We've got the chance to make once-in-a-lifetime changes and reforms in our state. I want to be a part of turning Louisiana around."
Jindal is highly regarded on the Republican right and would bring generational balance to the ticket of McCain, who at 72 in January would be the oldest president elected to a first term.
Other names in the frame include former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney, who dropped out of the Republican White House race in February, Florida Governor Charlie Crist, and Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty.
Screen star
A longer shot for McCain's VP nominee, screen star and former senator Fred Thompson, sounded more categorical in ruling himself out.
"No, I'm not interested," Thompson, who also ran for the Republican nomination this year, said on ABC.
"It's presumptuous for a person to turn down things that haven't been offered to them and I don't think will be offered, and it's not something that I want," he said.
- AFP