Obama's VP Pick? Joe "Big Mouth" Biden
It's finally over.
As most of planet Earth now knows, presumptive Democratic nominee Barack Obama has chosen US Sen. Joe Biden to be his presidential running mate.
Which is beyond me.
First and foremost, Obama has been preaching "change" on the campaign trail over and over, yet his choice for vice president shows a "politics-as-usual" mentality. Biden is a six-term incumbent Senator from Wilmington, Del. who is as entrenched in the political machine as any Washington insider. Biden has a number of big negatives, but the worst is undoubtedly his proneness to verbal diarrhea -- especially when it comes to race.
Biden kicked off his presidential campaign in January 2007 by offending African Americans everywhere when he described Obama as "the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy."
Later, in December 2007, Biden extended an olive branch to Obama by making him an offer: "I would be happy to make you the head of the civil rights division of my administration."
Clearly, Biden's heart was in the right place. Unfortunately, his head wasn't.
Biden's history of racially insensitive comments isn't isolated to Obama. In June 2006, he outraged the Indian American community by stereotyping it.
"In Delaware, the largest growth in population is Indian-Americans moving from India. You cannot go to a 7-Eleven or a Dunkin' Donuts unless you have a slight Indian accent. I'm not joking ..."
Biden puts a huge target on the backs of the entire Democratic presidential campaign, and the McCain campaign has already taken notice. The Republicans immediately released an ad with several quotes from Biden. When asked about Obama's readiness to run the country during a debate in 2007, Biden said, "I think he can be ready, but right now I don't think he is." When asked about John McCain, Biden said, "I would be honored to run with ... John McCain ... I think the country would be better off."
It's going to be difficult for Biden to escape any of these comments. It's also going to be difficult for him to shake the allegations of plagiarism, which forced him to abandon his presidential run 20 years ago. Biden was accused of delivering a speech by a British Labour Party law student without attribution. To be fair, Biden did credit the original author in several previous deliveries of the speech, but when he didn't, it was caught on tape.
Biden is a Democrat in the mold of Lyndon Johnson, only he's not as smart. He appears to be a cross between LBJ and Dan Quayle. Obama's choice seems to be grounded in the idea that Biden has name recognition and experience. Unfortunately, Biden's name is recognized for all the wrong things and his experience on legislative issues and foreign affairs only serves to amplify Obama's lack of experience on these topics.
Obama's running-mate decision, his unending tangles with the Clintons and the publicity surrounding his recent slide in national polling suddenly puts him in a bad position heading into Monday's Democratic National Convention. Hillary Clinton supporters will no doubt show up and cause problems, and their bitterness over her loss to Obama in the primary and his unwillingness to consider her as a running-mate could spell BIG problems for him as the election draws closer. Even Democrats are calling Biden "a risky choice."
By not putting Hillary Clinton on the Democratic ticket, Obama's first executive-level decision is a blunder of presidential proportions.
More on Biden at About.com:
Comments
I am just sick. I cannot imagine what Obama was thinking. Obama just handed the election to the Republicans. Joe Biden is a loose cannon and a total arrogant big mouth. On this final haul of the campaign trail all Democrats will be cringing every time he opens his yap. A lot of moderates and independents will now vote McCain or abstain from voting all together. In a close election as this is likely to be……it will be the final nail in the coffin.
The Real Issue is that Senator Obama made a great choice by selecting Senator Biden.
Senator Obama understands what is needed to win and he selected the person who will help him get there. And for those who think Senator McCain is in their corner, the Real Issues are his votes 95% of the time for the Bush Administration policies….that caused a 5 day delayed response to Katrina…that caused the illegal invasion of Iraq…that caused more government instead of so-called less Republican government–government bailouts of IndyMac Bank-Freddie Mac-Fannie Mae-Bears/Stearns…that has caused higher and higher oil prices that has caused higher food, equipment, and material pricing which has eliminated jobs…So if you do not believe in Change, then vote for McCain who will demonstrate what he will do with your tax money…..give you $300 back and spend the rest for military prowess!!! Concluding, a vote for McCain, means get ready for the draft…….
What? McCain and his camp say anything and everything they want about Obama. If Biden comes out and attacks McCain all well and good in my opinion. He is now going to get a taste of his own medicine. Biden brings everything Obama needs to the table: If McCain is going to get the sympathy vote because of his cancer, Biden brings his brain illness. If the people are looking for age and experience that McCain possesses, Biden brings that too. He also brings foreign policy experience, economic expertise and he knows what the Washington group is all about. Also, McCain proved he is out of touch with most Americans because he has 7 houses. McCain could have a whole other wife and family in one of those houses and Cindy wouldn’t even know it!
Where is my comment?
It’s my very first vote as an American Citizen and I was almost convinced I’d vote for Barack Obama ever since Hillary lost, but not any more. I’d take Mckain over Biden any day. What on Gods lovely Earth was Obama thinking? This guy is a Racist, Xenophobic a**hole who single handedly managed to antagonize blacks, indian americans (india), hispanics and asians. Cant believe a worse choice is even possible.
*Shame*
Most of Hillary’s supporters have moved on.
But a small faction are acting exactly like little girls with hurt feelings.
As a feminist, it disgusts me, the bad name they give women.
This election is not about Hillary– please get over it.
The 3 am text-message was from OBAMA about BIDEN!!
Oh, happy day! What a thrill to wake up to that inspiring news.
Rhonda from Pa
The problem with Obama picking Biden is that
he doesn’t have 18 million votes in his pocket. Obama and his supporters can ignore
the 18 million voters who supported Hillary
all they want. But when the general election
comes, they will need every one of those votes. But, they will not get them by ignoring
them.
The only thing wrong with Obama picking Joe Biden is that he doesn’t have 18 million votes in his pocket. Obama and his supporters
can ignore the Hillary supporters all they want. But, they are going to need every single one of their votes come November. And
most of them are angry and alienated.
Barack Obama was right in not selecting, or even considering, Hillary Clinton as his running mate. The so called “dream ticket” would have been his worse nightmare.
Recall the Ludacris incident.. The rapper knew full well that his lyrics about confining John McCain to a wheelchair and painting the White House black would only hurt Barack Obama. So why did he write those lyrics?
Obviously, because someone bent on destroying Obama put him up to it. And who might that someone be? Certainly not John McCain or any of his handlers. For all their negative ads, such deviousness would be beneath them.
Clearly, the ones who got the rapper to pen those venomous lyrics were none other than the wife-husband team whose presumptive claim to the White House throne Obama had thwarted–Hillary and Bill Clinton. And before that, were the ones got the controversial Louis Farrakhan to endorse Obama, the Left-leaning Leslie Clark to cast doubt on the relevance of McCain’s war record, and the various Right-wing TV and radio entertainers—Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Laura Ingraham, Ann Coulter, et. al. — to persist in dredging up connections between Barack “Hussein” Obama and shady, unpatriotic types.
Recall also Hillary’s false concession speeches. The first was one-hundred percent about herself, her alleged superior qualifications, her indomitable fighting spirit, her 18 million followers, her formidable political heft. The second was eighty percent the same, and the other twenty percent a backhanded put-down of Obama, reminiscent of Mark Antony’s thinly-veiled condemnation of Brutus in his funeral oration in Julius Cesar.
Recall further the IRS audits, the dirt-digging and other intimidation tactics employed by the Clintons during their reign in Washington and Arkansas to silence their critics. (Not to mention the 30+ mysterious deaths by suicide and accidents.)
The Clinton duo, it is common knowledge, will stop at nothing to regain their power. Their message to Barack Obama was clear enough: Name me, Hillary, your running mate, or promise us, Bill and me, a prominent position in your cabinet, or we will crush you. Obama, of course, realized that if gave in to the Clintons, they would try to crush him, usurp the Presidency, anyway. He also realized that by not kowtowing to them he might be alienating many of their diehard followers, but he had to take the risk.
If Barack Obama manages to maintain a lead in the polls despite McCain’s overt negative ads and the Clintons’ covert dirty tricks, he will have proven that he has the shrewdness and grit to serve as Commander in Chief.
I Totally agree. I have been supportive of Obama and excited and refreshed by his campaign until now. Biden? What a loser. I cannot vote for him. I am a teacher and Biden spoke during a debate in 07 that he believes teachers should be given raises based on furthering their education. I’m sorry, but I work very hard and my kids do well on yearly tests (NCLB) but I do not have advanced degrees past my B.S.Ed. Does that mean that I’m not good enough and I don’t deserve a raise…all because I choose to be a parent at the end of the day instead of going to night school and getting my masters and a PhD? No, Biden…it does not. Your wife may have extra degrees, but that does not make her a better teacher…what is in your heart, and your passion to teach children (ALL children) is what makes you a good teacher. Yes, I’m sure people like Biden think NCLB is a wonderful idea…but would it be funded.
You know other countries do not allow students with learning disabilities go to school, or students with severe disabilities…no wonder they “seem” smarter. In America, ALL CHILDREN get to go to school…so you cannot expect ALL children to fit into a NCLB mold!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I’m sorry, but Obama just lost my vote. My father will be rolling over in his grave to know his child will be voting republican for the first time EVER.
I truly never understood why Joe Biden dropped out of the presidential race years ago. I admire him and I would like to know the true story. I totally dislike Obama but I do admire Joe Biden.
WHAT DID he do so terribly that he was immediately removed from the race?
Please, tell me the truth!!!mcngi2@verizon.net
WHY did Joe Biden drop out of the presidential race sooooo early? I admire Joe — but I want to know what he was afraid of before.
RESPOND to my question!!!
Joe Biden being made the vie presidential candidate makes John McCain actually have a chance in this election. Curious choice by Obama, someone from a southern state that was a little more conservative would have been a much better choice!
http://myteamrivals.typepad.com/conservative
I am an independent voter, and my key concern in this election is that if we have 4 years with Obama as our president it will be much worse than 8 years with George W. Bush.