CHICAGO (AFP) — Democrat Barack Obama said Wednesday he was looking for a partner in government as his running mate, as a top aide dismissed a vice presidential choice based on the ability to win a swing state.
"I want somebody who can be a good president if anything happened to me. And I want somebody who can be a good adviser and counsel to me," the White House hopeful told a news conference.
"And tell me where he or she thinks I'm wrong -- not just on national security policy, but on domestic policy as well. Beyond that, I will give you more details when I announce my VP candidate," said Obama, 46.
Earlier, the Illinois senator's campaign manager David Plouffe appeared to rule out a VP nominee picked solely on his or her appeal to voters in swing states such as Ohio or Pennsylvania.
"I think Barack Obama will pick someone who first of all he believes is most qualified to be president and someone who will be a partner in government," Plouffe told reporters in Washington.
"Whether someone helps win you an election, I think, is kind of a side benefit. You certainly want to pick someone who doesn't hurt you," he said.
Obama's defeated rival for the Democratic nomination, Senator Hillary Clinton, said Tuesday she was not thinking about running on his ticket.
"You know, it is not something that I think about. This is totally Senator Obama's decision and that's the way it should be," she said, ahead of their first joint campaign rally on Friday in New Hampshire.
Plouffe noted that Vice President Dick Cheney came from a safe Republican state, Wyoming, but the vastly experienced politician brought other attributes to President George W. Bush's ticket in 2000.
Similarly, the Obama aide said, Al Gore's state of Tennessee was not a vital battleground for the Democrats in 1992 but he was eminently qualified to be vice president under Bill Clinton.
"I don't think that's going to be a factor in this election," Plouffe said of the swing-state considerations.
Senate foreign relations committee chairman Joseph Biden, the focus of a lot of chatter in the media VP stakes, said Sunday he would run on Barack Obama's ticket if asked, but insisted he was not angling for the job.
"Unlike most other people, I'm being straight with you. If asked, I will do it. I've made it clear I do not want to be asked," the Delaware senator, 65, told NBC.
Others tipped to be Obama's running mate include Virginia Senator Jim Webb, Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius and Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell.
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