Barack Obama did what he usually does; he made the smart decision in tapping Delaware Senator Joe Biden to be his vice presidential running mate. Biden will not only help Obama's chances for election, he will be a help in governing if the ticket wins. And Biden's addition makes that more likely.
An acknowledged expert on foreign affairs with long service on the Foreign Relations Committee, Biden knows the issues and most of the world's movers and shakers from first hand experience. His acumen there and on related defense matters enables him to go toe to toe with John McCain-particularly since McCain's principal claim seems to be that even the Bush administration hasn't been belligerent enough to suit him.
With the Bushites themselves acknowledging the failure of the neoconservative approach by talking to Iran and North Korea and negotiating withdrawal dates from Iraq, the sharp-tongued Biden will mince no words in revealing McCain's reliance on warmongering and saber-rattling to an electorate desperately weary of Iraq and concerned about the prospect of new military adventures in Iran. The policy of bluster, threaten or invade is not only expensive but stupid. If I know Biden he will be able to get that message across in a memorable way.
Biden is rarely at a loss for words and isn't afraid to throw a punch. He ought to fill the role of countering Republican charges and launching counterstrikes with effectiveness. Since that is the path the McCain campaign has chosen to travel, Obama had little choice but to choose a running mate who could fight on that terrain.
Biden, born in Scranton and residing in northern Delaware, is often referred to as "Pennsylvania's third senator." He ought to help Obama nail down the Keystone State and should help with New Jersey as well. He comes from genuine working class roots and retains good rapport with blue-collar voters, another group of concern to Obama. He went through the tragic death of his first wife and has ridden the train home from Washington every night. He reportedly knows all the conductors and engineers by name. He's fully supportive of Obama's pro-average-American positions on health care, eduction, energy and taxes. He may thus help garner some of the primary voters who went for Hillary Clinton.
Lastly, Biden is a 65-year-old white man. Being realistic about American politics, that is exactly the profile a youngish, half-black nominee ought to be running with. An older, experienced "regular Joe" ought to allay part of the unease some whites feel about the candidacy of an exciting fellow of "exotic" background. Biden's 30 years in the Senate and the relationships he has built up in Congress and the federal agencies could prove an invaluable asset to moving Obama's agenda forward.
Obama has made the smartest overall choice available to him, considering both the needs of the campaign and those of the Administration to follow, should he take the oath on January 20, 2009. The next week of joint appearances and at the Democratic convention will tell how well the choice plays throughout the nation. This needs to work, since then it will be the Republicans' turn at their convention the following week. We are about to enter the home stretch, and Obama has positioned himself as well as he can. Biden is an excellent pick.
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