Here's Why I Am With Joe Biden

Karl Miller -- a terrific blogger and thinker who I've been fortunate enough to get to know through my extracurricular activities -- has got a post up about Delaware Senator and vice presidential nominee Joe Biden, that's worth a long look in advance of his speech tonight at the Democratic National Convention. In it, Miller reflects on a key moment in Biden's recent past that deserves highlighting.

Enter Joe Biden. I remember feeling instant admiration for the man when, channel-surfing four years ago, I saw him in a C-SPAN clip (is there any better way to catch C-SPAN?). It was during one of his Judiciary Committee hearings and he was smacking around John Ashcroft for defending Abu Ghraib. At the time, there wasn't much of a formal debate about torture. This was well before Cheney attempted publicly to codify torture and toss out the Geneva Conventions. The theatrical sadists of Abu Ghraib were defended and dismissed as bad-apple frat house kids. And unlike Cheney's subsequent row with Congress, there was no specific policy at stake and therefore no focal point for sustained discussion. We swallowed the shame and re-elected Bush. But for a brief moment, our cruelty and hypocrisy were held in lyric suspension by the most powerful image to cross the national Imaginary since the panoramic hellscape of 9/11...

Joe Biden was one of a few people to correctly intuit and loudly decry the basic moral failure of Abu Ghraib. Instead of making it another pissy bullet point for Bush's managerial incompetence, he made it a deeply personal issue of right and wrong. As the father of a soldier, he knew that the horrors of Abu Ghraib now gave the enemy license to practice the same indignity on his son. Held to this fatherly imperative, the Bushies didn't look tough or confident anymore -- they looked like pube-less bullies playing dress-up with dad's clothing.

The clip that Miller is referring to was one I don't think I'll ever forget. Biden was straight righteous that day, barely keeping his anger at the diseased reign of torturing brigands that have so sullied the name of this great nation in check. Up to that moment, I'll admit, I harbored my fair share of misgivings about the man. But against the backdrop of Abu Ghraib, and the plain truth of Biden's words, I couldn't hold those misgivings anymore. They seemed extremely petty. And you know what? Compared to the grievous sin of torture -- committed in our name, endangering our fighting men and women -- they were.

Jon Stewart knew that attention must be paid:

That's the man that you'll see speaking tonight on the convention floor. He's the guy Barack Obama picked for the campaign against the man who never lets you forget how he got tortured, all the while hoping you'll not remember how he punked out when his moment came to say: "No way, no how, no torture." For all the talk that he's the sort of guy who might say the wrong thing, on this regard, Joe Biden is speaking very loud and clear. Tell your friends.

Comments

[Marty1035]

If you want another example to prove that Biden is the right choice, take a few minutes and listen to the eulogy Biden gave for Congressman Tom Lantos earlier this year.
http://www.c-spanarchives.org/library/index.php?main_page=product_video_info&products_id=204060-1&showVid=true&clipStart=3016.61&clipStop=3733.72
Lantos, the only Holocaust survivor ever elected to Congress, died in Feb. and a memorial was held in the Capitol, with speakers including Bono, Speaker Pelosi, Elie Weisel, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, and U.N. Secretary Ban Ki-moon, but it was Senator Biden who gave one of the most moving tributes ever given, and, in doing so, showed himself to be an amazingly passionate and unbelievably caring human being.

[mot1own]

God you people are pitiful. But you are Americans and the ones that haven't yet been slaughtered by mindless terrorists. Speak your minds but for the love of everything fair and good, stay away from the ballot boxes.

[LittleTart]

WTF?

[Havnagudtim]

I recall clearly the very moment referred to in this article. I too was deeply impressed with Sen Bidens suppressed anger, he was speaking through clenched teeth, I FELT his anguish for his precious son bravely serving his country, now in a MUCH more dangerous environment; and it was at that moment I decided we needed this man in the White House. If not as President, thank God as VP! We have a great champion here, to fight for HIs son, and Your son, and all of the sons and daughters who are dying and frying in the hellhole TGDSOBGWB and friends have created in the once-beautiful country of Iraq.
LORD DELIVER US FROM THE WARMONGERS BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE.

[joebhed]

For you and any other readers who think Biden is the dude to stop the warmongers, please have a read of this from Steve Zunes at antiwar.com:

http://www.antiwar.com/zunes/?articleid=13361

Joe Biden - first American to want to invade Iraq.
First Democrat to support the Bush-Cheney invasion.

Yeah, that's more change we can believe in.

[TheProverbialMan]

The problem is EVERYONE of the other VP candidates did the same damn thing. We're stuck with this problem. That is why Barack is on top of the ticket.

[LizM]

Joe,

Did you actually read the Meet the Press interview in your link? If you had, you would know that everything you have been saying about Joe Biden is wrong.

And, what do you know about Steve Zunes? You might want to check into that before you do any more linking to his articles. Just sayin'...

[siney]

and don't forget his line about rumsfeld ..."don't listen to rumsfeld! he doesn't know anything!"

[okayigive]

Biden is surely this right pick with his knowledge and wit. He also has a human interest story that rivals Mcc POW dialog having lost a wife and child in the beginning of his career.

[condieshoes]

I'm sooooo thrilled that we get to hear Joe Biden on the campaign trail and tonight at the convention. Joe, is gonna rip their faces off WITH THE TRUTH!!!!!!!

[SensibleAmerican]

Joe Biden can get really nasty when he wants to, like he pulverized Mr. 9/11 Julie-ani or when he stuck to his guns on his belief that Obama is not fit to be President!!! LOL

[SensibleAmerican]

What a great guy!!! Joe Biden can get really nasty when he wants to, like he pulverized Mr. 9/11 Julie-ani or when he stuck to his guns on his belief that Obama is not fit to be President!!! LOL

[elan4444]

Too bad more did not join him in the credit card Graslee-supported bankruptcy giveaway. The fact is that most Americans who delcare bankruptcy do so because of their inability to pay health care costs. My only issue with Biden was his support of Justice Thomas in the confirmation hearings. Biden totally bought into the black-man-as sacrificial lamb thing, never saying one word about how difficult it must have been for Anita Faye Hill, a black woman, to acutally challenge a black man at such a high level. Biden's questioning of Hill was sarcastic and left no doubt where he stood on the issue of Thomas' confirmation. As a result we have the weakest link on the Supreme Court ever, one who has written few opinions and rarely speaks out . Obama recently said he would not have put Thomas name forward. Just wanted to revisit history, to set the record straight.

[marymansour]

Joe Biden was a very smart pick for Obama. I have always admired Biden and his candid take on varying situations.

[Researchguy66]

I admire his candid take on bankruptcy. Thank goodness he stood up against the credit card companies, as he always does!

[chitown8]

To be fair when people take loans on banks and don't pay it back it hurts all not just the rich. The bankruptcy bill was fair yet It can be changed. At least Obama will be able to change that.

[morefromLA]

If you're looking for perfection politics is not the place. It's all about compromise. I'm going with Biden because he got it right on torture (and FISA). He missed it on credit card companies, I'll right a letter but he keeps my vote.

[vfippinger]

There is no Republican that can hold a candle to Joe Biden's knowledge of US constitution and International Affairs.
Joe is a genius with sharp wit he is going to make the VP Debate a must for your DVR to watch over and over again.

[Researchguy66]

I, too, am impressed with Biden's foreign relations credentials. Does that mean that Obama will defer to Joe's superior judgment on partitioning Iraq into three parts?

[2bad]

You need to catch-up with the rest of us Sparky! We're about to turn Iraq over to.... Iraq!
w. made John McPow look like a fool!

[GerryS]

the more is learn, the happier I am with J oe.
call the lying, cheating crooks and bullies on the carpet for their wrongdoing!

[happypup]

Wow! Ya gotta love that Joe Biden!

[Bompa]

...noun..v­erb..pow..­..........­........no­un verb pow ......NOUN, VERB, POW!!!!!!!!!

They have set themselves up for this... let's not disappoint them... SICK-EM

[maxwellinformed]

Dude Joe Rocks!

[Researchguy66]

He REALLY rocked when he exercised that superior judgment and voted to authorize the use of military force in Iraq! He's so well-respected and influential, I wonder if it would have even passed without his approval...I wonder....

[shinybear]

But Biden DIDN'T just rubberstamp that vote. If you REALLY did research you'd know that Biden along with Richard Luger worked to pass a resolution that Bush could only use military action after all diplomatic efforts had been exhausted.

Biden was one of the few at the time working to put up roadblocks against the Bush administration and he criticized the war immediately and has never stopped.

Go spread your misinformed insinuations somewhere else.

[ricitizen]

OMG, for a moment in that clip, I saw the late great George Carlin in the face of Joe Biden. Wow! Biden is a great pick! He is what we've needed. Someone who calls them out on the BS and tells the truth. And if our next president has the great good sense to pick Michelle Robinson as his wife, oppose stupid wars and pick Joe Biden as his VP, then I know we have a man with great judgment to be the next President of the United States.

[chf2go]

My friends, Joe Biden is the real deal! You will not see him using his family tragedy of losing his wife and daughter in a car accident and becoming a single dad to the 2 sons who were critically injured in the same wreck to garner sympathy. Can you imagine him using it like McCain uses his POW years to cover up any gaffes? Real heros do not dwell on their call to courage or use it to garner support.

Noun, Verb, POW