Betting on Obama's VP

Not that anyone would be foolish enough to place any money on who the vice presidential nominee will be, but in case you're wondering the Intrade bets are strongly favoring Sen. Joe Biden. Based on the latest trading action, there's a 43.5 percent chance that the Delaware senator will get the nod. Nobody else is close - Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius and Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine are tied for the number two spot, but at only 13 percent. After that, it's Indiana Sen. Evan Bayh (12.7 percent), NY Sen. Hillary Clinton (8.1 percent), and retired Gen. Wesley Clark (8 percent). Al Gore is at 2.5 percent and Michael Bloomberg at 1.1 percent. Here's the entire list. Intrade has had a mixed track record during the election season because the market is very limited. That means a small group of traders can have a big effect on price. The other problem is that the market tends to react slowly to new information, which is not the way the financial markets normally operate. For what it's worth, Obama is given a 59 percent chance of winning the election, though that number is down a bit.

Meanwhile, CBS News is reporting that Obama plans to name his veep on Friday afternoon. He'll then appear with his running mate at noon the next day in Springfield, Ill.