Iowa’s Governor is now back from vacation and has started revealing some of the behind-the-scenes details about being considered as a potential runningmate for Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry. Governor Tom Vilsack says he snuck out of Iowa late last month for a private meeting with Kerry.Vilsack flew to San Jose, California for a two-hour meeting over a late dinner, then flew back to Iowa in time to make his first appearance the next day in Mason City — and Vilsack says no one knew what he’s been doing the night before. But Vilsack says after that face-to-face meeting with Kerry, it became clear to him the John Edwards had the inside track by talking to people around the campaign. Vilsack says he “just got the sense that there was a significant amount of inside-the-beltway support for John Edwards.” Vilsack says Edwards deserved the V.P. slot because he “worked hard for it.” Vilsack says the scrutiny of the Kerry campaign and the press showed him who his friends were. Vilsack says the whole ordeal was probably more difficult for his friends than it was for him. Vilsack says he likes his current job as governor and “had no illusions” about becoming Kerry’s runningmate. Vilsack revealed these details at a statehouse news conference, but when a reporter asked if he’d like to be a top federal official if Kerry wins the presidency, Vilsack said he was focused on resolving key state issues and that’s what he wanted to talk about.
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