Brief: Gretchen Whitmer and the VP-watch

Just a quick comment here.  You might have missed this, but the Democrats have tapped Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer to give a State of the Union response.  A while back, I did a very-early Veepstakes prediction post, and my assessment of the smart pick was... Whitmer!  Whoever the nominee is, it is absurdly unlikely that the nominee will pick a white male, especially if the nominee is a white male (and that probability has gone up with Warren's decline).  A nominee will usually pick a statewide official from an important swing state.  I scanned the field, and came up with Whitmer.

What does it mean that Whitmer is giving the SOTU response?  It means that her star is on the rise among Democrats at the national level.*  Betting as of today favors... Harris.  Why?  Biden is back in the game, and he and Harris are patching things up.  Harris gets him nothing, though.  Biden would win California automatically.  Whitmer?  Michigan.  Might he pick Harris?  He could, but it would be strategically pointless.

Things are in flux, but keep an eye on Whitmer.  Also, Lujan Grisham.  Watch the electoral college map, not just names from states whose outcomes we already know.