Sebelius — a blue star in red state

Democrats see in Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius (D) an effective leader, not afraid to throw a punch or shake hands with her Republican opponents, all while being elected by sizable margins in a bright red state — twice.

Because of that she’s considered a rising star in the Democratic Party and said to be on the short list of potential running mates for Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama (Ill.).

{mosads}Her critics, however, dispute what they see as the Sebelius “myth” — that she is a post-partisan hero willing to cross party lines to get things done.

And while others acknowledge that Sebelius could help Obama shore up any lagging support from female voters following the prolonged and at times bitter nomination fight against Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.), they also acknowledge that the governor would do little to help Obama bolster his national security credentials.

Despite her weaknesses, Obama is clearly a fan, telling a Missouri television station this week that he loves Sebelius.

“I love Kathleen Sebelius,” Obama said, according to the Huffington Post. “I think she is as talented a public official as there is right now. Integrity. Competence. She can work with all people of all walks of life, but I promised that I am not going to say anything about my vice president until I actually introduce my vice president.”

In an interview with The Hill, Sebelius offered the right mix of interest and disinterestedness in questions about running with Obama, saying that, like others, she will “do anything I can to help [get] Sen. Obama elected president.”

Sebelius has been elected twice in a solidly Republican state, running with former Republicans on her ticket both times.

Observers and Sebelius acknowledge that one of the big reasons she continues to be mentioned as a possible vice presidential candidate is because she has a reputation for being an effective Democratic governor in a Republican state.

Sebelius said that talk “reflects well on the work I’ve been trying to do over the last years.”

She added that the reason she endorsed Obama so early, even as he ran against a candidate who could have been the first female nominee, is “his ability and willingness to reach across party lines.”

“He believes as I do that good ideas don’t come with party labels,” Sebelius said.

Statements like those, coupled with her wins in Kansas, have led several Democrats to believe that Sebelius could help Obama form a ticket that appeals to moderate Republicans and independent voters in search of a new kind of politics.

Mark Kornblau, a former spokesman for ex-Sen. John Edwards (D-N.C.) both in his 2008 presidential bid and in his 2004 vice presidential run, said Sebelius brings a lot to the table.

“She’s an extremely popular Democratic governor who has proven she can win, and govern effectively, in a traditionally Republican state,” Kornblau said. “She complements Obama well because she’s worked hard to be a public servant first and a politician second, and she’s been able to break down old partisan lines.”

Analysts in the state agree that Sebelius has proven she can win over Republicans and independents.

{mospagebreak}Joe Aistrup, a political science professor at Kansas State University, noted that Sebelius won her second term with 58 percent of the vote.

Aistrup said Sebelius has been effective at reaching a broad base of voters, and she could appeal to women.

But, he cautioned, Sebelius lacks the kind of foreign policy heft that Obama might need as he battles Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain (Ariz.), a veteran and former prisoner of war, in a post-Sept. 11 political environment with the country at war.

{mosads}“I think when Obama’s making a list of pros and cons on Kathleen Sebelius, that will be one of the drawbacks,” Aistrup said. “Whether or not that’s disqualifying, I don’t know. That’s Obama’s call.”

Kansas Republicans, however, say that’s just the tip of the iceberg when looking at Sebelius’s shortcomings.

Kris Kobach, chairman of the Kansas Republican Party, said Sebelius has failed to take any centrist or conservative positions on key issues.

“She simply can’t point to a single place where she took a position that was even moderate in nature,” Kobach said.

Kobach, who said the state party has been supplying background information on Sebelius to the Republican National Committee, said Sebelius’s vetoes of bills that would expand clean coal plants in Western Kansas are at odds with the state’s voters.

“That’s a pretty radical view for any state, but particularly in Kansas,” Kobach said.

Kobach also said the governor angered many independent voters and Republicans in the state by vetoing legislation that would tighten abortion laws.

“Again she was playing to the hard left of the Democratic Party, probably to gain national attention and get herself on [Obama’s] list,” he said.

And while the latter issue doesn’t play well in Kansas, it almost certainly would appeal to Democratic female voters who supported Clinton and might still be angry.

But Sebelius disputes the idea that Obama needs to pick a woman in order to shore up that key Democratic constituency, saying that the contrast between McCain and Obama on “economic and privacy policies” is such that female voters will see that McCain’s policies “would set us back years.”

“I think that once women focus clearly on the choice at hand … it will be very clear to women across America,” Sebelius said.