The most salient point about Indiana Gov. Mike Pence is that he has both gubernatorial and congressional experience. Not only could he help a potential President Donald Trump with that background, but as a potential vice president he stands ready to inherit the job if something were to happen to the president.
The official announcement over the weekend of the Hoosier as Trump's running mate has been praised as smart and described as safe. So be it.
Pence is likely to be the same good soldier Vice President Joe Biden has been for President Barack Obama, minus the awkward touching and gaffe-prone tongue. Obama, the messiah figure, was never going to let someone outshine him. Trump won't either.
That's why neither former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich or New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie will be beside him on the Republican National Convention dais this week. Like him or hate him, the presumptive Republican nominee has proven in more than a year of campaigning that he is not going to change who he is, what he says or who it bothers.
In a way that's a little scary. Not as scary as a Hillary Clinton presidency but a little scary. In a way, it's refreshing. It's what many voters have been waiting for in a Republican nominee.
Sure, Pence has some differences from Trump - the businessman's stances on trade and a Muslim ban among them - but remember presidential candidate George H.W. Bush's description of Ronald Reagan's plans as "voodoo economics"? In the end, that worked out pretty well for Bush and for the country.
The Indiana governor is popular in his fairly reliable Republican state, has cut its taxes and expanded school choice. He was a conservative stalwart in Congress, and allegedly has a good relationship with Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, something the administration will need if the ticket is elected.
Not surprisingly, the Democratic hate machine is already cranked up about Pence, calling him "a frozen man," "a hater" and "the most extreme" vice presidential candidate "in a generation" but also reaching beyond him to excoriate a retail business founded by Pence's wife, Karen, a 25-year teacher, that makes charms for beach towels that would distinguish one person's towel from another's.
The product, according to lefty blogger Ellie Shechet, is "the least useful item in existence" and "a solution to a problem that only exists in the mind of a lunatic."
Unfortunately, this is likely to be the tenor of the campaign - from both sides - from now through November. So, while voters continue to slog through the muck and the mud, those voting for the Republican ticket at least can take heart that its vice presidential selection could hit the ground running if necessary.