I am going to suggest something outrageous.  Many of you will probably balk before I can even get the words out.  So instead, let's make it a totally hypothetical question.  Why would Condoleeza Rice accept an offer to be Bernie Sanders running mate?  Ok.  Bonkers.  I get it.  Aside from the fact that she has appeared to put political office aside for the time being, or possibly forever, why on God's green earth would she ever consider a Vice-Presidential position from a “socialist” Democrat when she could have the pick of the litter from her own political party?  Just for argument’s sake, play along . 
     First, maybe we ought to consider if the GOP is really her party anymore.  Secretary Rice started out as a Democrat, don't forget, and switched parties partly due to disenfranchisement with then President Carter's foreign policies.  Moreover, during her tenure as Secretary of State, she seemed to run afoul, much like Colin Powell, with the Cheney-Rumsfield political machine.  If she wanted to become a VP candidate under a Republican, she could have done so during the last election cycle.  But Condi's rejection of the VP seat may not be so clear cut.  When she was asked to run for  the California congressional seat (which polls suggested she could have handily won), she rebuffed it, asking why she would want to be “just another one of a hundred”. Maybe she aspires for more. “But she is a conservative Republican”, you scream. But is she really?  Like another famous female Republican, Justice Sandra Day O'Conner, she actually may be more of a pragmatist. For instance, she has fallen under criticism for her more left leaning views on abortion.  It may be very likely that after her stint as S.O.S., that she has come to realize that politics has been throughly corrupted by special interests and SuperPacs, and only change can come from the top down.  If she has left a party before for foreign policy, her area of expertise, to say that she may have a lot of influence in those matters in a Sanders' White House may be something of an understatement.  While we are on the subject of political parties, I'm not quite sure Sanders truly qualifies as a Democrat, his record seems to indicate he would rather be an Independent candidate, although he is surely smart enough to realize the futility of fighting the two party system.  But more on him in a minute.  So what would Condi get out of all this?  Well, she is still fairly young, from a political viewpoint.  Although it would be extremely unlikely to see Democrats hold the Presidency for many terms consecutively, and without considering all the possibilities of her moving on eventually to Commander-in-Chief, becoming the first African-American as well as the first female VP certainly has a nice ring.  Especially one where she may have real power, not just towing the party line.
   “Ok, what about the most obvious problem?”, you say. She certainly could be a great running mate for whomever offered, “Why him”.  Well Bernie Sanders may not be polished, but that in a nutshell may be his appeal.  He doesn't seem to be the usual candidate. As someone who refuses negative campaigning, has an excellent track record, and has avoided scandal, those things alone should set him apart.  But there are others as well.  Look at his philosophies on gun control.  Are there other moderates on this issue in either party?  More importantly, look at his ideology on other domestic issues, such as increasing Medicare, student loan reform, and job creation as a partial solution to the racial and other civil tensions.  What?  Someone who looks from the viewpoint of economic class struggles and the importance of the middle class and upward mobility?  Nuts, right? If Secretary Rice truly is looking for something different, this would be it.
 Here is the kicker.  Right now most of the media and political strategists write Sanders off.  But on the grassroots front, he is taking names.  People identify with him.  Sure he may not be refined politically, but he has that personality that reminds you of that professor you had back in college that was always going on about inequality and green energy.  The guy you always though was probably right, but figured he was to eccentric to ever be taken seriously.  Not only that, but the kind of guy if he had ever showed up at the bar, would probably have half the guys wanting to share a beer and ask him a question or two.  What Bernie Sanders lacks is star power.  HRC has that in spades.  But does anyone really like her?  Yes, some Democrats may, but most Americans would probably check the “other” box given the chance. Considering the usual mess of candidates from the right, who else would everyone vote for?  How about Elizabeth Warren as a running mate?  Again, Democratic base sure, but probably not sway the rest of the American voters. Secretary Rice has name recognition that may nullify anything HRC or any other candidate can produce.  Plus she can turn out the minority and women's vote like no one else running.  Can you think of a ticket that may actually get the attention of the public more than a Sanders/Rice campaign? 
Fine, maybe all this was academic anyway.  But I would venture that a serious conversation between these two would be interesting to say the least.  Crazier things have happened, and if you believe the media is always right about what happens in politics, then just think back to when President Dewey defeated that Truman guy.