Summer CE Week #6: “Biden is right for the job”
DENVER – I cannot believe that it has been more than 20 years since I interviewed Sen. Joe Biden about his reflections on his first presidential race, but the date on the column is irrefutable: Jan. 6, 1988.
The man chosen Saturday by Barack Obama as his running mate was as self-critical as any politician can be – as tough on himself as John McCain was about his involvement with a savings-and-loan operator in the 1980s that made him one of the “Keating Five.”
Biden’s campaign was cut short in 1987 when an operative for the eventual nominee, Michael Dukakis, leaked word to Maureen Dowd of the New York Times that a seemingly autobiographical passage in Biden’s campaign speech had been cribbed word-for-word from British Labor Party leader Neil Kinnock. A C-SPAN video of the speech was played endlessly, and while Biden explained that he had usually been careful to attribute the language to Kinnock, the embarrassment was so great that he was forced out of the race.
Four months later, when I sat down with him, Biden was making no excuses. As I reported, he “acknowledges responsibility for most of the mistakes and misjudgments that led to his early departure from the race, saying he was ‘cocky,’ ‘immature’ and ‘naive’ about the demands of a presidential campaign.”
Already the chairman of the Judiciary Committee and a senior member of Foreign Relations, Biden said he was coming back to the Senate determined “to demonstrate the staying power and the seriousness a lot of you (reporters) doubted that I have.”
Twenty years later, few of his colleagues in either party would dispute that he has done that. With his Republican partner, Richard Lugar, of Indiana, he has rehabilitated the reputation of the Foreign Relations Committee and made it a vehicle for exceptionally thoughtful examinations of U.S. foreign policy.
A consistent critic of Bush administration policy in Iraq and Pakistan, Biden has had more impact on the thinking of other decision-makers than he ever did on voters when he returned to the campaign trail as a presidential candidate last winter. He did well in the Democratic debates, but with Obama, Hillary Clinton and John Edwards soaking up all the media attention and the votes, there was simply no running room left for Biden.
A month ago, I sat down with him again, mainly to hear how he and Lugar hoped to revive bipartisan support for the foreign policy of the next president – whether McCain or Obama. Inevitably, the conversation turned to politics, and while Biden insisted that his sometimes critical comments on the course of Obama’s campaign be placed off the record, I think I can say this without violating our agreement:
If Obama is honest in saying he wants a vice president who will be direct in stating his views and not worry about offending the president, he has found the right man.
Biden brings a blue-collar sensibility that has been lacking in Obama’s campaign, reflecting his own background in Scranton, Pa., and Wilmington, Del. I know of Democratic governors who fear that Biden’s prolix rhetoric will go right over the heads of their constituents. But he has worked hard at shortening his answers to TV questions, and – as David Brooks noted in his New York Times column urging Biden’s selection – this is a guy whose authenticity and heart-on-the-sleeve passions are real.
The message he has brought to Obama is: Your background looks elitist to many of the people I represent. The way to overcome that impression is to be in their neighborhoods, talk directly to them in small groups, and show them you really understand the struggles in their lives.
Biden surely does that.
For a foreign policy maven who has mingled for years with the leaders of allied nations, Biden has an unpublicized side as an urban politician.
His imprint has been heavy on all the anti-crime legislation passed in the past two decades, and his civil rights credentials are impeccable.
His personal relationship with McCain is close enough that even in recent months they have been able to talk politics and policy with each other on a basis of mutual trust. But as Biden demonstrated in his first appearance with Obama on Saturday, he will not be inhibited about taking the Democratic case straight at the Republican ticket.
In picking Biden, Obama has raised the bar for the choice McCain will soon make.
I must say, I think Joe Biden was a very good choice for Barack Obama. By picking on of the most experienced senators for his vice presidential candidate, Barack Obama has buffered his campaign with someone who not only can help his vision of change, but provide vital experience in foreign policy and judiciary policy. Biden is chairman of the Judiciary Committee and a senior member of Foreign Relations in the Senate. He has also been a senator for over twenty years. Barack Obama really has got, in my opinion, the experience and the willpower to carry out his ideas and the change he is talking about. Biden’s experience in Washington will not only lend more credibility to his message, but will also allow for it to be passed a lot easier. An Obama-Biden ticket will also allow Obama to reach more voters than before; particularly among those who think he doesn’t have enough experience. It seems that Barack Obama took a look at where he was weak and found the perfect candidate to strengthen his campaign. While some may mope about Obama not picking a female running mate, or not pick someone else, I think Obama made the perfect choice. I am looking forward to seeing what this Obama-Biden ticket can accomplish.
Well as the author basically stated, Biden is a stud muffin. Biden has many things going for him: years of foreign policy experience, he appeals to blue-collar voters, and has an even head. He even has a good relationship with the Republican Party, which is key for Obama because he wants to bridge the gap between the parties. It is always important to pick a strong vice president, they can advise you, and provide help in many situations. Or as in the case of the Bush administration they can get drunk and shoot guys in the face with no consequences except for the man they shot apologizing to them. All in all however, the vice president does not really matter to the voters. You vote for the president, not the man who will replace him if he dies in office. I doubt that a vice president choice has ever really boosted a campaign other than carrying a state or two, as was the case with LBJ for instance. Certainly it is not a bad thing that Obama has chosen a great number two, it definitely won’t hurt his campaign. McCain would do well to also appoint a good number two, because as said before it would not hurt his campaign. Unless of course he chooses Joe Lieberman as his running mate, I feel like that would hurt his campaign.
Obama, Bidden 08’
Obama made a great move by picking Joe Biden as his running mate. It seems as though Obama picked Biden to cancel out most, if not all, of his weaknesses. One of the biggest arguments the Republicans have against Obama is his lack of foreign policy experience. As stated in the article, Joe Biden is a senior member of Foreign Relations. So, foreign policy is obviously Biden’s game. Theoretically, with Biden on the same ticket, Obama will win back all the votes he lost due to his lack of experience overseas.
Aside from foreign policy issues, Obama is also criticized for lack of experience in Washington. However, Biden brings more than 20 years of political experience to the Obama ticket. This will reassure the many Americans who did not trust Obama to run the country.
Joe Biden’s speech during the Democratic National Convention proved that he is the right man for the job. His whole speech was based on how McCain’s ideas are almost identical to the Bush Administration’s. As he repeated over and over again, “That’s not change, that’s more of the same.” This is a key argument for the Democrats against McCain, and he laid it out perfectly.
In response to Jonathan Dyer:
I agree that Biden was a very smart choice for Obama. Not only is Biden experienced, which gives Obama more credibility, but he will also support Obama’s mantra of “change”. One of Obama’s main “flaws” was that he was not experienced enough, an issue that worried many voters and put him in a precarious position – Obama will not have to worry about that anymore. He will now, perhaps, receive the votes of those who were apprehensive. I think that it is also beneficial that Biden is quite experienced with international matters when the U.S. is involved in so many foreign affairs.
Biden political failures of the 1988 presidential election race has made him a stronger man and had a great understanding of the politics that he is playing with. The choice of Biden as a running mate is a great choice for Obama who will need someone with great political experience that can help guide him to the right choice and by pass his political inexperience. “If Obama is honest in saying he wants a vice president who will be direct in stating his views and not worry about offending the president, he has found the right man.:” For a president to man up enough and pick a vice president that will not care about his feels and will not worry about offending the president while still standing up and stating his views. Obama has shown me through this move that it’s not about what is best for the top American, the elite and the rich but its what is best for the rest of nation. By picking a vice president who will be stubborn and will not sway from his views will help Obama stay on track with helping the rest of the nation. Biden is the right and best choice for Obama.
In Response to Jon Dyer:
I completely agree with you. Obama not only looked at where he was weak in his political campaign but evaluated each of the potential running mates and picked not only the best fit for him but the most experienced that only benefited his chances at winning the election in October. Obama silenced many critics that were very critical of his inexperience as a senator with probably the most experienced senator, with over 20 years of experience, in the whole group of democratic senators. Obama truly made the right choice that will give me the best chance to change the government and potentially with greater ease because of the influence that Biden has that anticipated.