Biden Time
Senator Joseph Biden of Delaware will be announced today as Barack Obama's vice presidential nominee.
Obama sent word of the selection of Biden, a six-term Senator and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, in an email at 6:55 this morning after the decision was first reported by Association Press around midnight.
"Joe and I will appear for the first time as running mates this afternoon in Springfield, Illinois -- the same place this campaign began more than 19 months ago," Obama told supporters.
Biden is known for his international expertise and his talkative--some say longwinded--style which has occasionally gotten him in political trouble. Last year he described Obama "the first mainstream African American [presidential candidate] who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy," a remark he spent days trying to explain away.
In the end, the gaffe didn't hurt Biden, as the Illinois Senator yesterday told Virgnia Governor Tim Kaine, Indiana Senator Evan Bayh and defeated rival New York Senator Hillary Clinton that they would not be on the ticket.
Biden differed from Obama on the key issue of Iraq, voting in late 2002 to authorize the Bush administration to use military force against the government of Saddam Hussein. While Biden became a fierce critic of the Bush policy after the 2003 invasion, he still defends that vote, a stance that may rankle anti-war Democrats.
Biden provides no obvious electoral advantage to Obama. Delaware's three electoral votes are all but certain to go for the Democrats.
The youngest person ever elected to the Senate, Biden was just 29 when first took office in 1972.
As Iowa Independent has reported, his wife Jill teaches at a community college. His son Beau was deployed to Iraq earlier this year as a member of the National Guard.
Comments:
Posted 08/23/2008 09:57pm with
Excellent choice. Seems Obama is not one bit afraid of haveing some one just as intelligent, or even maybe more intelligent or least with more experience on his team. This speaks volumes on how his administration will be made up! Biden can step into the President roll if a time ever comes that it is necessary. This team I am not scared of. I don’t care who mccain choose’s. Mccain is to stuborn to listen to any one who objects to his own views. His views are to much in line with WAR for my likeing. His track records on womens rights alone is enough to scare any woman away. I’m sure Biden at least knows he own only one house. Also I like his wife can give the men a out look on the teachers view of matters to. Obama’s wife is a hospital administrator and I think these two women will certainly add to their husbands Intelligence volumes of information they will need to succeed. Two very strong educatated, intelligent women, behind two strong, intelligent well educated men can an will take this country far!