Is it a dream ticket? Probably not, because such things often turn into nightmares for Democrats. But the addition of Sen. Joe Biden to the Barack Obama presidential ticket is a smart move–for Obama, and for the country. The political reason to choo
Is it a dream ticket? Probably not because such things often turn into nightmares for Democrats. But the addition of Sen. Joe Biden to the Barack Obama presidential ticket is a smart move–for Obama and for the country.
The political reason to choose a vice president is to have someone who will augment and bolster the presidential candidate. That second person on the ticket should hit some demographics and appeal to voters in some states that support the entire ticket. It doesn’t hurt if that second person brings some diversity–whether it is gender, age, race–to the ticket.
The overriding reason, however, is to make sure that the vice president is someone who is qualified to sit in that Oval Office themselves. It has to be someone of sufficient gravitas and experience that if the president is incapacitated, the vice president can step in and handle what is the most powerful office in the land.
Joe Biden fits the bill on both levels.
A seven-term senator, Biden has been part of the leadership of the Senate for years and has been tireless in his battles with the current president over prosecution of the war, and even the reasons for undertaking the war in the first place. His foreign relations experience (as chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee) is above reproach.
He has not forgotten his middle-class roots, growing up in Scranton, Pa., and even after 36 years in the Senate, he is not regarded as a Beltway denizen since he catches the train home every night to Delaware to be with his family.
While some suggest that Obama chose Biden to shore up his own foreign policy resume, we think it is a sign of great leadership that Obama is surrounding himself with experts. We wonder just how much more of a mess George Bush would have made if he didn’t have Condoleezza Rice and Colin Powell in the room when he made foreign policy decisions. Even presumptive Republican nominee John McCain has lauded Biden’s choice.
Biden is not without his own baggage. He has a tendency to shoot from the lip, and he was criticized early in the campaign, when, as a candidate, he described Obama as, “I mean, you got the first mainstream African American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy.” Biden apologized and said his comments were taken out of context. Obama accepted the apology, and they have moved on.
Obama said one of his criteria for choosing a vice president was to have someone who would challenge him, give him good advice. Of course, it was also desirable to have someone who was a good friend.
The Obama-Biden ticket creates a formidable team and presents Democrats, Republicans and Independents with a viable voting choice.
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