Photo: AP

If Hillary Clinton secures the Democratic nomination, who will be her vice president? I have no idea. Some people think: Tom Perez.

As you are no doubt aware because you follow labor issues and cabinet appointments closely, Tom Perez is the current Secretary of Labor of these United States. Earlier this week, Politico ran a long, gossipy story speculating that Perez could be Hillary’s VP pick, based largely on chatter from White House aides and circumstantial evidence from various Perez fans. It is true that Perez has endorsed Clinton and campaigned with her. Asked about the speculation on CNN this morning, he gave a vague answer that did not rule anything out, which will no doubt fuel the rumors even more. And he would probably be a pick that would make the following constituencies happy:

  • Labor people
  • Latinos (he is Dominican)
  • People in Maryland (he lives in Maryland)
  • Progressives (more or less, though he’s no Bernie Sanders)

On the other hand: nobody ever knows who the fuck the Labor Secretary is, Maryland isn’t a key state Hillary needs help in, and she very well might choose a moderate, establishment white guy to appeal to centrists rather than a somewhat progressive labor guy to appeal to lefties who will probably suck it up and vote for her anyhow.

And is America ready for a vice president who voluntarily came to Gawker Media’s office? That is potentially disqualifying on its own.

[If you know/ are Tom Perez and have good gossip on this issue, email me.]