Obama Vp on The Huffington Post

Obama Ad Uses Winking Palin (VIDEO)

2008-10-29T08:38:53Z

John McCain is out with his own attack ad Wednesday morning. Watch it here.

The Obama campaign is directing reporters to an ad it released Wednesday morning that goes at both John McCain's understanding of the economy and (somewhat unusually) his selection of Sarah Palin for V.P.

Titled "His Choice," the spot begins with quotes from McCain admitting his lack of economic know-how. The last one has McCain declaring, "I might have to rely on a vice president that I select" for expertise on economic issues.

"His choice?" the script (no narration) asks -- before cutting to footage of Palin winking at the vice presidential debate. "On November 4th, You Get to Make Yours."

It is considered politically taboo for a presidential candidate to go after a vice presidential candidate. To be sure, much of the ad focuses on McCain's record on the economy. But the inclusion of Palin is indicative of just how large a liability the Obama folks -- indeed, the political community at large -- thinks she has become for the GOP ticket.

Erik Ose: Obama-Biden Trumps McCain-Rove

2008-08-28T13:11:00Z

Illustration by Ethan Wenberg

John Kerry stood up on Wednesday night and showed some of the fire he should have displayed four years ago. He did what many Democrats had been calling for all week, delivering a blistering attack on John McCain's misguided policies and the failures of George W. Bush. Commentators including NBC anchor Brian Williams immediately labeled it the Democratic Convention's hardest hitting speech.

Condemning the Republicans for opening the tired playbook of Karl Rove and daring to question Barack Obama's patriotism, Kerry highlighted McCain's only plan to win this election. With Steve Schmidt at the helm, the same Rove disciple who ran the 2004 Bush war room, the McCain campaign has a simple strategy -- to trash Obama by any means necessary.

But by picking Joe Biden as his running mate, Obama has made it much harder for McCain to Swiftboat, Paris Hilton, and Willie Horton his way into the White House. Biden's acceptance speech proved what the citizens of Delaware have known for a long time. Biden is a regular Joe with all-American family values who also happens to be a Senator.

Biden has been on the national stage since he led the fight against Robert Bork's extreme right wing Supreme Court nomination in 1987, and campaigned twice for president. Yet as he stepped into the spotlight Wednesday night, it was his first introduction for many voters. And Biden knocked it out of the park. Like Obama, the man has the gift of the tongue, which makes the fact that he overcame a childhood stutter all the more remarkable.

He stressed the values he learned from his parents growing up in Scranton, Pennsylvania. His father "fell on hard economic times," but told him, "Champ, when you get knocked down, get up. Get up." In one of the speech's many emotional moments, he introduced his elderly mother, Catherine Eugenia Finnegan Biden, who was sitting in the audience. And Biden reminded us that "My mother's creed is the American creed: No one is better than you. You are everyone's equal, and everyone is equal to you."

Unlike McCain, Biden doesn't own a house or condo in Washington, let alone seven of them spread around the country. He takes an Amtrak train most nights on his regular commute back to Wilmington, Delaware. Biden has a middle class bankroll, ranked 99th in net worth out of 100 Senators in 2005. His wife Jill, who briefly took the mike to introduce Barack Obama's surprise appearance following Biden's speech, is a full-time teacher at Delaware Technical and Community College.

And Biden painted a powerful picture of the imagined conversations around kitchen tables in all the houses he passes while riding home on the train:

"Winter's coming. How we gonna pay the heating bills? Another year and no raise? Did you hear the company may be cutting our health care? Now, we owe more on the house than it's worth. How are we going to send the kids to college? How are we gonna be able to retire?"

These are anxieties most Americans share at a moment when our economy is in shambles. Having Joe Biden voice them on the campaign trail from now until November will do more than help the Obama-Biden ticket appeal to working class voters in critical states like Pennsylvania, Ohio and Michigan. It will keep the focus on how Republicans have screwed things up. George W. Bush spent two terms driving the country into a ditch, and McCain offers more of the same.

It's hard to distract from a historic foreclosure crisis that severely threatens the value of working and middle-class families' homes. Or a broken health care system, falling wages, and inflation that has pushed up the cost of nearly everything. Or sky-high gas prices. And the war in Iraq, pushed off the front pages as U.S. casualty levels drop, is a steady drip in the back of voters' minds, a constant reminder that we are wasting billions of dollars a month while needs at home remain crying out to be met.

Even reporters for Pat Robertson's Christian Broadcasting Network are calling the Obama-Biden ticket "authentic and real," saying "Joe Biden is a genuine working class guy." John McCain and his team are in trouble unless they wake up and smell the economic realities confronting the country, then start re-thinking the Rove formula for victory. With the economy in the tank and Obama-Biden not afraid to say it, the GOP slime machine may soon be out of gas.

Erik Ose is a veteran of Democratic campaigns in North Carolina and blogs at The Latest Outrage.

For more Huffington Post coverage of the Democratic National Convention, visit our Politics @ the DNC page, our Democratic Convention Big News Page, and our HuffPost bloggers' Twitter feed, live from Denver.

Arianna Huffington: McCain vs Biden: Not All "Foreign Policy Experience" Is Created Equal

2008-08-25T14:08:54Z

Denver -- Here at the Democratic Convention there are two conversations going on. One is about the Clintons and their supporters (did Bill really insist that his speech be about the economy and his legacy instead of national security? What stage of the grieving process are Hillary's supporters at? And will that process be complete before or after November 4th?).

The other conversation is about Joe Biden: "He'll really have Barack's back." "The labor unions are giddy about the choice." "He's a foreign policy homerun."

But all foreign policy experience is not created equal.

Of course, the pick adds foreign policy heft to the ticket. Three decades on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, including a pair of stints as chairman, will do that. But Biden's value to an Obama administration in this crucial arena extends well beyond time-served.

The past seven-plus years have shown us that "foreign policy experience," in and of itself, isn't all it's cracked up to be. For Exhibit A of this look no further than George Bush's most "experienced" foreign policy advisor: Dick Cheney. How's that working out? And Don Rumsfeld had spent lots of time on foreign policy practice field too.

What's great about the Biden pick isn't just that he has "foreign policy expertise," it's what kind of expertise he has, how he uses it, and how useful his expertise is for the unique challenges we currently face around the world. His approach favors diplomacy and engagement - backed up by a toughness that allowed him to confront Milosevic face-to-face.

Contrast that with the approach of John McCain, who also has "foreign policy experience": looking at his track record, McCain's experience has apparently taught him that pretty much every problem in the world has a military solution.

Back in 2000, during a GOP debate, McCain was asked by Larry King, "What area of American international policy would you change immediately as president?"

McCain's reply? "I'd institute a policy that I call 'rogue state rollback.' I would arm, train, equip, both from without and from within, forces that would eventually overthrow the governments and install free and democratically-elected governments.... As long as Saddam Hussein is in power, I am convinced that he will pose a threat to our security."

In other words, he was a believer in democracy at the end of a loaded gun even before Bush was.

But as the subsequent years have proven, there is a limit to what the military -- even one as skilled and powerful as ours -- can achieve on its own. Just this past week, the New York Times reported how Iraq's Shiite-controlled government is now going after the American-backed Sunni leaders of the "Anbar Awakening," the movement of tribal sheikhs that banded together to fight Al Qaeda and bring security to the Anbar region. The Awakening began to bring levels of violence down in Iraq months before Bush even announced his plans for the surge - a fact that McCain, despite his experience, failed to grasp.

As the Times puts it, the move against the Awakening by the government "is causing a rift with the American military, which contends that any significant diminution of the Awakening could result in renewed violence, jeopardizing the substantial security gains in the past year."

"If it is not handled properly, we could have a security issue," said Brigadier Gen. David Perkins.

These kinds of sectarian hatreds -- many of them hundreds of years old -- will not be fixed by military means, particularly a military that has as its commander in chief a man who's a bit shaky on the whole Sunni/Shia thing.

Yes, he voted for the war (a decision he says he regrets), but he made it clear that our goal in Iraq should be limited to ending Iraq's weapons programs -- not achieving "rogue state rollback."

What's more, right before the war vote, Biden reached across the aisle and, with the help of Dick Lugar and Chuck Hagel, two of his Republican colleagues on the Foreign Relations committee, helped craft a proposal that would limit the president's ability to wage war on Iraq, forcing him to seek UN approval. And, if the UN had said no, Bush would have had to return to Congress and prove that the Iraqi WMD threat was so "grave" that only military action could eliminate it.

That bipartisan effort was torpedoed by Bush (with an assist from Trent Lott and Dick Gephardt) -- the last thing he and his administration wanted was diplomacy. We can expect more of the same from McCain.

So, by all means, let's use the occasion of the Biden selection to have a foreign policy debate. But let's start by acknowledging that all "foreign policy experience" is not created equal. And let's have the election be a referendum on which kind of experience the American people think will make the United States safer.

For more Huffington Post coverage from the Democratic National Convention, visit our Politics @ the DNC page, our Democratic Convention Big News Page, and our HuffPost bloggers' Twitter feed, live from Denver.

Biden Camp Pressed Hard For VP Slot

2008-08-25T11:03:37Z

Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama's selection of Sen. Joe Biden to be his running mate reached a pivotal point in a secret meeting on the night of Aug. 6. Sen. Biden was whisked into a Minneapolis hotel room through a back entrance before Sen. Obama left for his Hawaii vacation. They talked one-on-one for 90 minutes. "It was spirited and pragmatic," says one adviser who was briefed.

The rendezvous capped weeks of pitching by Biden advisers. It culminated in Sen. Obama's formal announcement by text message around 3 a.m. Saturday that Sen. Biden was the choice, and led to the big question that now looms over the choice: Will a 35-year veteran of Washington help or hurt a political newcomer running on a message of "change"?

...

When the Obama campaign's vice-presidential vetters sought financial statements, political speeches and medical records, Sen. Biden's team turned the grueling task into an opportunity to sell their man. Their most obvious pitch was his strong experience in foreign policy at a time of crisis, one of Sen. Obama's biggest weak spots with voters. Sen. Biden's foreign-policy director traveled with Sen. Obama to Iraq and Afghanistan during his overseas tour in late July, giving the presidential contender a close-up sense of the expertise the Biden circle could provide.

Joseph Romm: Why Biden is Such an Important Pick for the Climate

2008-08-25T08:49:43Z

Catastrophic climate change is the primary preventable threat to the health and well-being of all Americans -- as readers of this blog already understand and as pretty much everyone else will figure out in the coming years. Keeping total planetary warming as low as possible -- ideally below 2°C, which it turn requires keeping atmospheric concentrations of CO2 below 450 ppm -- will become the central organizing principle for all US energy, environmental, economic, and international policy over the next two decades, and will almost certainly remain so for the next two centuries.

While this is a long-term problem, "What we do in the next two to three years will determine our future. This is the defining moment," as IPCC head Rajendra Pachauri warned last fall. Beating 450 ppm is certainly not politically possible now, as I have argued in a long ongoing series (see "Is 450 ppm politically possible? Part 2: The Solution" for all the links). Indeed, the recent climate debate in the Senate makes it painfully clear that conservatives are prepared to go down with the climate ship (see "Part 6: What the Boxer-Lieberman-Warner bill debate tells us"). The current oil drilling 'debate' only underscores how hopeless the climate situation is until progressives occupy the White House (see "Will the GOP's cynical lies destroy the chance for serious energy and climate policy?"

That said, the next president is almost certainly going to pass some sort of climate legislation establishing a cap on greenhouse gas emissions that kicks in around 2015. Again, it won't be easy to pass a serious bill -- certainly McCain can't possibly do it (see "No climate for old men: Why John McCain isn't the candidate to stop global warming"). But if we had a president who was capable of truly inspiring people and who actually believes in government-led clean energy policies, then I think it will happen.

But -- and this is where Biden comes in -- even if that legislation is strong enough to put this country on the path towards rapid and deep reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, the entire U.S. effort will certainly fall apart if the next president is not able to negotiate a serious international treaty that encompasses all major emitters. Yet it has become increasingly clear in recent months that achieving a serious, binding international treaty is even more politically implausible a task than passing serious, binding domestic legislation. And that is because Russia has emerged as a country that is likely to be every bit as much an obstacle as China and the United States currently are.

The Chinese Challenge

I have written about China extensively already, and no one should underestimate the difficulty of getting them to embrace the necessary reductions in projected emissions and then in absolute emissions [see "The immorality of China's coal policy is breathtaking (literally)" and "China sells its soul for liquid coal" and "The U.S.-China Suicide Pact on Climate"]

But everyone I know who knows the country tells me that the Chinese leaders understand that global warming will be catastrophic for them -- even if those leaders mistakenly believe they can "go back and solve climate change after they get rich," which has been the standard procedure for how Western countries dealt with traditional environmental problems. Sadly, that approach won't work with climate because the climate system almost certainly has tipping points (see, for instance, "Tundra, Part 2: The point of no return").

Also, the Chinese are capitalists and are already poised to become the leading producer of both solar PV and wind turbines. And they could run their entire country on baseload solar, if they figure out fast enough that it is the renewable with the biggest potential as a primary power source (see "Concentrated solar thermal power -- a core climate solution") and if they return to their strong energy efficiency policies from decades past (see "China's immoral energy policy -- Part II: The efficient alternative").

I cling to the view that Chinese could be brought around if their customers all applied enough pressure to them -- assuming of course that those customers, including us, are all prepared to take the necessary measures themselves, which is far from obvious (see Hansen's trip report finds "sobering degree of self-deception" in Germany, UK, Japan).

Russian Recalcitrance

But Russia may be even more problematic, and not just because they are more self-destructively nationalistic than China (or us). Russia does not have a good solar resource. But they do have a lot of coal and oil -- and they very much want to stake a claim to the rich oil resources in the Arctic.

Moreover, they may (mistakenly) think global warming is good for them. Since it will create a navigable Arctic and open up "currently inaccessible energy resources," no less an authority than The Economist has written, "warming is likely to make Russia richer rather than poorer." Sad -- but quite untrue, especially since we are on path to far overshoot any degree of warming that could possibly be beneficial to Russia (see "Is 450 ppm politically possible? Part 0: The alternative is humanity's self-destruction").

Perhaps the most important climatic tipping point is in Russia -- the Siberian tundra. If that defrosts, then avoiding the equivalent of 1000 ppm atmospheric concentrations of CO2 will be all but impossible. After all the tundra contains more carbon than the atmosphere does, and much of it would likely be released as methane, a far more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. Indeed, we have some evidence that may have already started.

Russia does have a staggering amount of wind potential, but it tends to be in the sparsely populated areas. Russia will need to be convinced that some combination of nuclear, wind, and natural gas can provide all the power it needs -- but the even harder task will be convincing them not to use all that oil and coal they have.

Indeed, the great challenge for the world in the next three decades is not so much aggressively deploying low carbon technology -- although that would not be easy it would certainly be straightforward both technologically and economically. The great challenge for the world is political -- convincing countries (and states) to leave a lot of the cheap fossil fuel resources they have, especially coal, in the ground, and to agree to import low-carbon electricity from other countries (or states).

That will require not merely strong domestic action by the world's richest country, the one that has admitted by far the most cumulative amount of carbon dioxide. It will also require global leadership by us, the ability to negotiate one-on-one and collectively with every major country in the world. The Democratic team now has onboard someone who not only gets global warming, but who is certainly one of the most qualified people in the country to help lead that effort from the White House, which is where it must be lead from.

And that makes Biden a great Vice Presidential choice for Obama, the nation, and the world -- that and the fact that picking him signals the Democrats might finally put up a strong fight in the face of the hailstorm of lies and disinformation they face every four years.

Pawlenty: Obama Should Have Picked Petraeus

2008-08-24T11:20:07Z

Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, who is on Sen. John McCain's (R-AZ) vice presidential short list, criticized Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) yesterday for his selection of Sen. Joe Biden (D-DE) as his running mate. Instead, Pawlenty said that Obama should have picked Gen. David Petraeus, who he considers "an outstanding leader and somebody who would better represent the mainstream of the country." Petraeus is the right-wing's dream candidate. Earlier this week, the McCain campaign floated Petraeus as a VP choice, despite the general's previous declaration that he has no desire to ever run for public office.

Caroline Kennedy Discusses Biden, Being Part Of The VP Search Team (VIDEO)

2008-08-24T11:19:44Z

Caroline Kennedy praised Joe Biden in an interview with Tom Brokaw on "Meet the Press," and also discussed how excited she was to be on the team that vetted the VP nominees.

[WATCH]

Obama VP Speech Introducing Biden: Read Full Text

2008-08-23T15:30:55Z

Remarks of Senator Barack Obama--as prepared for delivery

Vice President Announcement

Springfield, Illinois

August 23, 2008

Nineteen months ago, on a cold February day right here on the steps of the Old State Capitol, I stood before you to announce my candidacy for President of the United States of America.

We started this journey with a simple belief: that the American people were better than their government in Washington - a government that has fallen prey to special interests and policies that have left working people behind. As I've travelled to towns and cities, farms and factories, front porches and fairgrounds in almost all fifty states - that belief has been strengthened. Because at this defining moment in our history - with our nation at war, and our economy in recession - we know that the American people cannot afford four more years of the same failed policies and the same old politics in Washington. We know that the time for change has come.

For months, I've searched for a leader to finish this journey alongside me, and to join in me in making Washington work for the American people. I searched for a leader who understands the rising costs confronting working people, and who will always put their dreams first. A leader who sees clearly the challenges facing America in a changing world, with our security and standing set back by eight years of a failed foreign policy. A leader who shares my vision of an open government that calls all citizens - Democrats, Republicans and Independents - to a common purpose. Above all, I searched for a leader who is ready to step in and be President.

Today, I have come back to Springfield to tell you that I've found that leader - a man with a distinguished record and a fundamental decency - Joe Biden.

Joe Biden is that rare mix - for decades, he has brought change to Washington, but Washington hasn't changed him. He's an expert on foreign policy whose heart and values are rooted firmly in the middle class. He has stared down dictators and spoken out for America's cops and firefighters. He is uniquely suited to be my partner as we work to put our country back on track.

Now I could stand here and recite a list of Senator Biden's achievements, because he is one of the finest public servants of our time. But first I want to talk to you about the character of the man standing next to me.

Joe Biden's many triumphs have only come after great trial.

He was born in Scranton, Pennsylvania. His family didn't have much money. Joe Sr. worked different jobs, from cleaning boilers to selling cars, sometimes moving in with the in-laws or working weekends to make ends meet. But he raised his family with a strong commitment to work and to family; to the Catholic faith and to the belief that in America, you can make it if you try. Those are the core values that Joe Biden has carried with him to this day. And even though Joe Sr. is not with us, I know that he is proud of Joe today.

It might be hard to believe when you hear him talk now, but as a child he had a terrible stutter. They called him "Bu-bu-Biden." But he picked himself up, worked harder than the other guy, and got elected to the Senate - a young man with a family and a seemingly limitless future.

Then tragedy struck. Joe's wife Neilia and their little girl Naomi were killed in a car accident, and their two boys were badly hurt. When Joe was sworn in as a Senator, there was no ceremony in the Capitol - instead, he was standing by his sons in the hospital room where they were recovering. He was 30 years old.

Tragedy tests us - it tests our fortitude and it tests our faith. Here's how Joe Biden responded. He never moved to Washington. Instead, night after night, week after week, year after year, he returned home to Wilmington on a lonely Amtrak train when his Senate business was done. He raised his boys - first as a single dad, then alongside his wonderful wife Jill, who works as a teacher. He had a beautiful daughter. Now his children are grown and Joe is blessed with 5grandchildren. He instilled in them such a sense of public service that his son, Beau, who is now Delaware's Attorney General, is getting ready to deploy to Iraq. And he still takes that train back to Wilmington every night. Out of the heartbreak of that unspeakable accident, he did more than become a Senator - he raised a family. That is the measure of the man standing next to me. That is the character of Joe Biden.

Years later, Senator Biden would face another brush with death when he had a brain aneurysm. On the way to the hospital, they didn't think he was going to make it. They gave him slim odds to recover. But he did. He beat it. And he came back stronger than before.

Maybe it's this resilience - this insistence on overcoming adversity - that accounts for Joe Biden's work in the Senate. Time and again, he has made a difference for the people across this country who work long hours and face long odds. This working class kid from Scranton and Wilmington has always been a friend to the underdog, and all who seek a safer and more prosperous America to live their dreams and raise their families.

Fifteen years ago, too many American communities were plagued by violence and insecurity. So Joe Biden brought Democrats and Republicans together to pass the 1994 Crime Bill, putting 100,000 cops on the streets, and starting an eight year drop in crime across the country.

For far too long, millions of women suffered abuse in the shadows. So Joe Biden wrote the Violence Against Women Act, so every woman would have a place to turn for support. The rate of domestic violence went down dramatically, and countless women got a second chance at life.

Year after year, he has been at the forefront of the fight for judges who respect the fundamental rights and liberties of the American people; college tuition that is affordable for all; equal pay for women and a rising minimum wage for all; and family leave policies that value work and family. Those are the priorities of a man whose work reflects his life and his values.

That same strength of character is at the core of his rise to become one of America's leading voices on national security.

He looked Slobodan Milosevic in the eye and called him a war criminal, and then helped shape policies that would end the killing in the Balkans and bring him to justice. He passed laws to lock down chemical weapons, and led the push to bring Europe's newest democracies into NATO. Over the last eight years, he has been a powerful critic of the catastrophic Bush-McCain foreign policy, and a voice for a new direction that takes the fight to the terrorists and ends the war in Iraq responsibly. He recently went to Georgia, where he met quietly with the President and came back with a call for aid and a tough message for Russia.

Joe Biden is what so many others pretend to be - a statesman with sound judgment who doesn't have to hide behind bluster to keep America strong.

Joe won't just make a good Vice President - he will make a great one. After decades of steady work across the aisle, I know he'll be able to help me turn the page on the ugly partisanship in Washington, so we can bring Democrats and Republicans together to pass an agenda that works for the American people. And instead of secret task energy task forces stacked with Big Oil and a Vice President that twists the facts and shuts the American people out, I know that Joe Biden will give us some real straight talk.

I have seen this man work. I have sat with him as he chairs the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and been by his side on the campaign trail. And I can tell you that Joe Biden gets it. He's that unique public servant who is at home in a bar in Cedar Rapids and the corridors of the Capitol; in the VFW hall in Concord, and at the center of an international crisis.

That's because he is still that scrappy kid from Scranton who beat the odds; the dedicated family man and committed Catholic who knows every conductor on that Amtrak train to Wilmington. That's the kind of fighter who I want by my side in the months and years to come.

That's what it's going to take to win the fight for good jobs that let people live their dreams, a tax code that rewards work instead of wealth, and health care that is affordable and accessible for every American family. That's what it's going to take to forge a new energy policy that frees us from our dependence on foreign oil and $4 gasoline at the pump, while creating new jobs and new industry. That's what it's going to take to put an end to a failed foreign policy that's based on bluster and bad judgment, so that we renew America's security and standing in the world.

We know what we're going to get from the other side. Four more years of the same out-of-touch policies that created an economic disaster at home, and a disastrous foreign policy abroad. Four more years of the same divisive politics that is all about tearing people down instead of lifting this country up.

We can't afford more of the same. I am running for President because that's a future that I don't accept for my daughters and I don't accept it for your children. It's time for the change that the American people need.

Now, with Joe Biden at my side, I am confident that we can take this country in a new direction; that we are ready to overcome the adversity of the last eight years; that we won't just win this election in November, we'll restore that fair shot at your dreams that is at the core of who Joe Biden and I are as people, and what America is as a nation. So let me introduce you to the next Vice President of the United States of America...

James P. Rubin: Senator Biden is the Right Man at the Right Time

2008-08-23T13:15:06Z

Senator Joe Biden's foreign policy experience and wisdom are unmatched in American politics. There is no one in Congress who has been around as long, who understands the international realities better, or whose judgment has proven sounder than Joe Biden's.

Having worked with him for five years and remained in close touch ever since, I am convinced he is the kind of leader America needs right now. A quick look at his record proves the point.

In the early part of his career, he was a Senate leader in the fight for nuclear arms control with the Soviet Union. What could be more relevant -- and prescient -- than that in an era where the threat of nuclear terrorism has grown and meanwhile Russia has become more dangerous under Vladimir Putin?

After the fall of communism, Senator Biden focused on two crucial issues. First, he led Senate efforts to provide assistance to the new democracies of the former Soviet Union. Second, he was the leading Democrat calling for confronting Slobodan Milosevic. During the crises in Bosnia in 1992 and Kosovo six years later, he was an early advocate of using military force to stop the mass murder of Muslims. Indeed, on a trip to Belgrade as his staff adviser, I saw him confront Slobodan Milosevic with a combination of ferocity and tact. His leadership during that period made it possible for President Clinton to act despite nearly overwhelming opposition from Senate Republicans.

More recently, in 2002 Senator Biden understood the dangers and the folly of using military force against Iraq without the support of the world. It was his resolution, co-authored by Senator Richard Lugar, that the Bush administration knew could affect their rush to war. That Biden-Lugar resolution wisely linked the confrontation of Saddam Hussein to a careful diplomatic plan. Iraq and the United States would have been much better off had President Bush followed Senator Biden's advice.

Knowing that the Senate had little leverage, he at least consistently pushed the administration to adopt the kind of Iraq strategy that was sadly missing for five years. He was an early advocate of more troops -- what later became known as the surge -- and a focus on a political solution among the competing ethnic groups in Iraq.

Most important of all, though, Senator Biden was aware of the threat from terrorism before 9/11 and urged the administration to focus less on extremely unlikely attacks from ballistic missiles (the missile defense program) and far more on terrorists attacking our country through ships or planes.

Since 9/11, Senator Biden has also sought to focus American national security policy on the real threats from al-Qaeda. He never accepted the Bush administration's false claims of a link between Saddam Hussein and Osama Bin Ladin. Instead, he advocated the kind of counterterrorism plan that the experts know would have worked much better. That is, winning the war of ideas in the Muslim world, using military and law enforcement against the al-Qaeda group, and maintaining international solidarity. Unfortunately, again, the Bush administration didn't listen to him.

All in all, Senator Biden has his priorities in the right place. He knows there is a time for diplomacy and there is a time for the use of military force. He knows that our military power should only be used as a last resort. He knows that America will be stronger when we have the support and respect of our friends and allies around the world. He knows that America is not just a military power but also a peacemaker. And he knows that American ideals must be tempered by a hard-headed realism about the way the world really works.

That is why I believe Senator Biden will make a great Vice President. He is the right man at the right time to help a future President Obama restore American prestige. Whatever happens in the election, I know he will be fighting to protect America's interests for years to come.

James P. Rubin served as Senior Foreign Policy Adviser to Senator Joseph Biden (D-DE) from 1989-1993 and Assistant Secretary of State under President Clinton.

David Weinberger: McCain on Biden: Should have, didn't

2008-08-23T12:34:00Z

If McCain hadn't become Karl Rove's sockpuppet, this is what he might have said in response to the selection of Joe Biden as OBama's running mate:

I congratulate my friend and colleague Joe Biden on his being selected as a vice presidential candidate. Joe and I have disagreed frequently over the years, and we disagree now on many of the important issues facing this country. But I've also worked with him, count him as a friend, and respect him as a capable man who loves the country he's served for so many years.

That said, I remain convinced that the solutions Joe and his running mate are proposing are dangerous, and dangerously out of step with the American people. We're going to keep on making that case up and down this great land, offering our own practical, down-to-earth solutions that will make a real difference in the lives of hard-working Americans.

McCain's actual response, in full, from his Web site:

ARLINGTON, VA -- Today, McCain spokesman Ben Porritt issued the following statement on Barack Obama's selection of Joe Biden as his running mate:
"There has been no harsher critic of Barack Obama's lack of experience than Joe Biden. Biden has denounced Barack Obama's poor foreign policy judgment and has strongly argued in his own words what Americans are quickly realizing -- that Barack Obama is not ready to be President."

Classy.

Steve Clemons: Why Joe Biden is Vital and the Right Choice

2008-08-23T12:33:40Z

Associated Press Washington Bureau Chief Ron Fournier has a tough critique out on Barack Obama's choice of Joe Biden as his running mate.

A lot of folks are upset with Fournier. Some went as far to suggest that "FireFournier.com" is available for purchase.

This is going to be a long campaign and we should not be looking for orthodoxy among political pundits about what we are seeing evolve -- but we should be hoping for healthy back and forth debate about political choices and policy.

So my response to Ron Fournier is that he misreads what the Biden selection means in this race. Fournier writes that:

In picking Sen. Joe Biden to be his running mate, Barack Obama sought to shore up his weakness -- inexperience in office and on foreign policy -- rather than underscore his strength as a new-generation candidate defying political conventions.

He picked a 35-year veteran of the Senate -- the ultimate insider -- rather than a candidate from outside Washington, such as Govs. Tim Kaine of Virginia or Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas; or from outside his party, such as Sen. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska; or from outside the mostly white male club of vice presidential candidates. Hillary Rodham Clinton didn't even make his short list.

Taking Fournier at face value -- Obama's decision to get someone to bolster his foreign policy/national security credentials seems like a darned smart move to me. We are entering a period of enormous national security challenges abroad and economic challenges at home. It's much easier for Obama to requisition the econ experience needed to promote health care, infrastructure, education, support for those hit hard by the real estate sub prime crisis, and the like.

National security advice is much more tough. It takes years of absorption of what the world has been doing to itself to understand how to organize an effective, disciplined strategic course for the United States -- particularly at a time when the Bush administration has wrecked whatever global equilibrium previously existed.

So, I applaud Obama for recognizing this. Fournier doesn't even mention the candidate who was neck and neck with Biden, Evan Bayh. While Bayh has many strengths, he seems to be someone who felt that conflicts and crises are great moments to seize as ways to define America's power and define the presidency. Bad call as far as I'm concerned. That's more "tough" than "smart" -- and Biden in contrast is a hybrid of both. Perhaps Fournier thought the same. . .he just doesn't say.

On the issue of supporting Sebelius or Kaine -- both impressive governors. They are nearly as new at all this as Obama. The only reason that either would have made sense is for a combination of regional, red-state oriented outreach combined with the intention that withdrawing form the international scene and focusing more exclusively on development at home was going to be the Obama package. I just think that would have been a mistake to forfeit to McCain the entire national security portfolio debate -- which picking Kaine or Sebelius might have done.

On Hagel, I love Chuck Hagel and would have loved to have seen him as Obama's vice presidential pick.

But Ron -- you are a smart analyst. How can you seriously suggest Hagel as Obama's choice when you know very well that Barack Obama has not "technically" won the nomination? Obama's nomination depends upon the continued support of "super delegates" whose loyalties and support will be declared at the Democratic Convention next week. Had Obama selected Hagel, a sliver perhaps just large enough of irritated super delegates might have abandoned Obama in favor of Hillary Clinton.

Had Obama won the nomination outright, I would have loved more serious consideration of Hagel.

And on Hillary Rodham Clinton, I have always thought that that a ticket with them both on it would be unbeatable. But at the same time, I think Obama and Clinton would have a dysfunctional relationship and dysfunctional presidency. I think that the Obama people failed to reach out as well as they might have to HillaryLand, and this was unfortunate. But I also know that the Clinton team had a lot of attitude issues that they didn't get over until perhaps too late to encourage serious consideration of Hillary.

But back to Joe Biden.

The fact of the matter is that Biden polls well with many groups of Americans -- particularly elder Americans, white working class Americans, African Americans, Juggler Moms, Hispanics, and Jewish-Americans.

Insider or not, Biden is liked by the country -- and he's smart.

And Fournier himself should remember what happened to Jimmy Carter when he tried to be the total outsider who was going to wreck Washington's ways and do it differently. He had no insider to help him maintain the success of looking like an outsider.

Barack Obama has just hired the guy who can not only continue to help Obama look fresh by helping to get the inside game into the right supportive patterns, he has hired someone who is not a knee-jerk, young study on national security issues who knows what poor shape America's global position is today.

There are many reasons why Joe Biden was exactly the right guy for Obama, but the biggest reason is that Biden's competence will help Obama be able to remain Obama.

None of the other candidates, from my perspective, would be able to deliver that as well.

-- Steve Clemons publishes the popular political blog, The Washington Note

Previously:

Joe Biden Gets Call (Maybe. . .) and Yells: "Where is Blinken?"

Wait 'Til America Gets to Know Jill Biden

Joe Biden Won't Forget the Number of Houses He Owns

Why "Radio Silence" Can be a Good Thing in VP Selection

Scott Swenson: Pro-Choice Catholic Biden Fits with New Poll of Catholic Voters

2008-08-23T12:31:29Z

Sen. Barack Obama selected Senator Joe Biden to be his running mate today, in part as an effort to shore up Obama's support among Catholic voters who make up 25 percent of the electorate. While the selection is already being assailed by extremist social conservative Catholic organizations, Biden will have strong appeal to the vast majority of Catholics according to a major new poll released Thursday about Catholic voters.

Steve Waldman, Editor of Beliefnet.com wrote, "he's Catholic enough to appeal to Catholics, pro-life enough to avoid
some Church attacks, and pro-choice enough to satisfy Hillary voters."

Biden understands the American value of separating personal faith from public duty in our democracy, and his positions on sexual and reproductive health issues demonstrate that clearly.

Biden is a strong supporter of efforts to increase education and prevention services, including contraception, to prevent unintended pregnancies. While he supports Roe v. Wade, he has taken some heat from pro-choice advocates for his support of a federal ban on late-term abortions, but in doing so, also recognized the judicial activism of the conservatives on the Supreme Court in their decisions in the Gonzales v. Carhart and Gonzales v. Planned Parenthood cases. Biden said on Meet the Press;

They upheld the ban, and then they engaged in what we
lawyers call dicta that is frightening. You had an intellectually
dishonest rationale for an honest justification for upholding the ban.
I know this is going to sound arcane--they blurred the distinction
between the government's role in being involved
in the first day and the ninth month. They became paternalistic,
talking about the court could consider the impact on the mother and
keeping her from making a mistake. This is all code for saying, "Here
we come to undo Roe v. Wade." What they did is not
so much the decision, the actual outcome of the decision, it's what
attended the decision that portends for a real hard move on the court
to undo the right of privacy. That's what I'm criticizing about the
court's decision.

RH Reality Check's Election 2008 page has a detailed primer on Biden's Reproductive Health views, as well as information on the other candidates, including top Senate and House races and Ballot Initiatives.

New Poll on Catholic Voters

Biden's moderate views on reproductive health and his Catholic faith could appeal to many Catholic voters, according to a new poll from Catholics for Choice. According to the report;

Seven in ten (70%) of those polled say that the views of Catholic
bishops are unimportant to them in deciding for whom to vote and a similarly
large proportion (73%) says they believe Catholic politicians are under no religious
obligation to vote on issues the way the bishops recommend. Catholic voters show little interest in so-called values issues to help
them decide who should be the next president. Instead, they want the next
president to focus on improving the economy, ending the war in Iraq
and keeping the country safe from terrorism.

"Catholics are listening
carefully to what the candidates have to say, but very few are following the
dictates of the Catholic bishops when it comes to politics," said Jon
O'Brien, president of Catholics for Choice. "While Catholic
Republicans and Democrats and McCain and Obama voters may disagree on national
priorities, majorities of all of these voters strongly agree that Catholics are
not obligated to heed the bishops' recommendations," adding that,
"Sixty-nine percent of Catholics do not feel obligated to vote against
candidates who support abortion. Despite what the US bishops promote, the majority of
Catholics disagree with the bishops about a wide range of sexual and
reproductive health issues."

The poll went on to say;

On many issues, Catholics tend to mirror the electorate at large. In
particular, Catholic voters do not approve of schools teaching abstinence-only
programs in schools. Six in ten (64%) oppose requiring high school sex education
programs to only teach abstinence. They also believe insurance companies should
be required to cover and pharmacists required to sell birth control pills.
Three-quarters of Catholics support requiring health insurance plans to cover
birth control pills (75%). Nearly eight in ten (78%) oppose allowing
pharmacists to refuse to fill birth control prescriptions.

This poll further demonstrates just how far outside the mainstream of American politics -- and even the views of Catholics in the pews -- anti-choice lobbyists and the far-right fringe social conservatives really are.

The horse-race aspect of the poll showed breakdowns among Catholic voters, prior to the Biden announcement, as follows;

Obama 42%, McCain 40%, Undecided 17%

Among White Catholics McCain leads 47% to 37%

Among Hispanic Catholics, (one-in-six Catholics are Hispanic) Obama leads 61% to 23%

Catholics 18-34 prefer Obama 47% to 41%

Women under 45 favor Obama 48% to 37%

Men under 45 favor McCain 46% to 41%

Upping the Ante for Tom Ridge

McCain made it clear he was going to force Obama's hand to select his Veep first. Biden's strong reach into Pennsylvania (born in Scranton, often referred to as the state's third Senator owing to Delaware's proximity and his prominence in the Philadelphia media market), could push McCain one step closer to selecting pro-choice former Governor Tom Ridge. Social conservatives have made it clear that they consider the selection of a pro-choice Republican as a significant slap in the face, but for a McCain campaign trying to assert his long lost maverick image, Obama's move toward Biden may force the Ridge pick. The screams and cries you will hear from social conservatives, if that happens, should be considered the death rattle of any influence by extremist social conservatives in the GOP.

The only other high-powered choice that could satisfy some social conservatives is former Mass. Gov. Mitt Romney, who will not satisfy all of them.

Note on Poll

Because some people will question a poll commissioned by Catholics for Choice, I'm including the methodology description below and will note that during 20 years of working in DC and reading polls on a range of issues from various firms, I have tremendous confidence in the integrity of the firm that conducted this poll.

Poll Methodology: Catholics for Choice commissioned this non-partisan and wide-ranging national
survey dealing with both international and domestic issues. From July 8 to
July 15, the prominent DC polling firm Belden Russonello & Stewart surveyed
1,033 Catholics who are likely voters in the 2008 presidential election. The
survey included an oversample of 200 Latino Catholic likely voters for a total
of 295 Latino interviews. The survey has a ±3.1 percentage-point margin of sampling error for a
random sample of this size. The margin of error for results of the Hispanic
subsample is ±5.7 percentage points. The demographic characteristics of the
sample have been weighted statistically to bring age, race and region into
their proper proportions for likely Catholic voters based on 2004 exit poll
data.

Jonathan Spalter: Obama's Mobile Moment

2008-08-23T12:20:59Z

If your cell phone was on silent early this morning, you just might have missed an alert for history in the making.

When Barack Obama announced Joe Biden as his choice for Vice President in a text message to supporters, it was a landmark moment not just in politics, but also in America's embrace of innovative technology.

The campaign's decision to use text messaging demonstrates our emerging technology climate -- one where Americans are increasingly likely to ditch their home landlines and rely solely on their mobile phones.

Subscribers to Obama's email list were sent a message inviting them to text "VP" to the campaign's short code -- a special five-digit telephone number. After sending their text message, they immediately received a confirmation and an assurance that they'd be the first to know when Obama's vice presidential nominee was named.

In an election cycle where Hillary Clinton announced her candidacy in a video shown only on her website, where BarackObama.com offers a dozen different free cell phone ring tones, John McCain's daughter Megan has her own blog from the campaign trail and where popular websites MySpace and YouTube each co-sponsored presidential debates, campaigns are finding that the medium itself is often the message.

But using mobile technology is more than just a trendy gimmick for a news headline. By going around the news media and even bypassing its own massive email list, the Obama campaign is attempting to build a direct, personal, and immediate connection with voters. And it looks like they're responding. Technology is becoming more personal and vital to day-to-day activities, historic moments and social banter.

The campaign may be on to something. A 2006 study by the non-partisan Public Interest Research Group found young voters were more than 4 percent more likely to vote if they received a text message reminder the day before.

Text messaging directly from a candidate offers voters a more special, personal experience and is a clear sign of what's ahead -- more direct contact with elected officials.

Members of the House of Representatives are using a variety of mobile technologies to get word out during the August recess. With the C-SPAN cameras turned off, Republican Congressman John Culberson used the video camera on his mobile phone and a website called Qik to broadcast live video on the Internet from the floor of the House chamber.

Congress also seems to like to "tweet." Representatives are sending text messages to their accounts on Twitter.com, a micro-blog that allows people to share short messages about what they are doing, to report on the latest action on the House floor. Twitter instantly disperses the text messages to their supporters and posts them live on their websites.

And members of Congress are not just communicating with constituents, they're communicating with each other. Reps. Culberson and Tim Ryan got into a well-publicized "twitter debate" back in June - trading 140 character-or-less public jabs at one another about gas prices, oil drilling, and unemployment benefits.

The accessibility, speed, and relatively low cost of mobile communication have been slowly changing the way the way candidates and officials communicate with their supporters. But the Obama campaign's innovative use of mobile technology is a watershed moment that foreshadows a bright mobile future.

Michael Shaw: Reading The Pictures: He's Got Obama's Back

2008-08-23T11:42:41Z

(click for full size)

1a. You immediately get the picture (from the diplomacy section of Biden's website) that Biden can do for Obama what the guy in the backpack is doing for him. Too bad American politics -- especially under GOP rules -- is so much about manhood, but that's how it's played.

1b. Biden is one of the few liberals that could pull off a scene like this.

2. He's been to Iraq eight times. In February, he was in Pakistan and Afghanistan (above). And he just returned from Georgia where he met with Saakashvili. Biden is so deep in foreign policy, a shot like this seems more generalized than specific.

3. Biden also looks like the senior statesman, especially in contrast to the skinny kid with the glasses. Offers some real contrast to McCain in that Navy hat.

For more of the visual, including our extended Denver coverage as a credentialed Democratic Convention blog, visit BAGnewsNotes.com.

(image: unattributed. http://biden.senate.gov. caption: Sen. Biden at a Forward Operating Base (FOB) in Kunar Province, Afghanistan)

Hillary Clinton, GOP Senators Cheer Biden VP Pick

2008-08-23T11:13:39Z

Obama spokesman Bill Burton sends around warm statements about the Biden VP pick from three GOP Senators (who, it should be noted, buck the party's rhetorical line on a relatively regular basis).

Sen. Chuck Hagel: U.S. Senator Chuck Hagel issued the following statement today following Senator Barack Obama's selection of Senator Joe Biden as the presumptive Democratic Vice Presidential nominee: "Joe Biden is the right partner for Barack Obama. His many years of distinguished service to America, his seasoned judgment and his vast experience in foreign policy and national security will match up well with the unique challenges of the 21st Century. An Obama-Biden ticket is a very impressive and strong team. Biden's selection is good news for Obama and America," Hagel said.

Sen. Richard Lugar: Tbilisi, Georgia - U.S. Sen. Dick Lugar made the following statement today en route to Tbilisi. "I congratulate Senator Barack Obama on his selection of my friend, Senator Joe Biden, to be his vice-presidential running mate. I have enjoyed for many years the opportunity to work with Joe Biden to bring strong bipartisan support to United States foreign policy..." LINK

Sen. Arlen Specter: Pennsylvania's Arlen Specter, a Republican who serves on the Judiciary Committee with Biden and often rides Amtrak with him to Washington, also offered praise. "No one on the Democratic side knows more about foreign policy than Sen. Biden," Specter said. "He's been an articulate spokesman on the subject. He also knows about domestic policy. He's been a leader on crime control." LINK

Also, from Sen. Hillary Clinton:

"In naming my colleague and friend Senator Joe Biden to be the Vice Presidential nominee, Senator Obama has continued in the best traditions for the Vice Presidency by selecting an exceptionally strong, experienced leader and devoted public servant. Senator Biden will be a purposeful and dynamic Vice President who will help Senator Obama both win the Presidency and govern this great country."

Jonathan Tasini: Is Joe Biden Good For Labor? Mostly, Yes.

2008-08-23T11:09:59Z

As a whole, Joe Biden is considered a friend of labor. But, he doesn't have a perfect voting record as far as labor is concerned. Lifetime, he has an 85 percent voting record on votes the AFL-CIO considers crucial over the past 12 years (that is the time period available on-line...and that's the best you are going to get on a Saturday morning). You have to keep in mind that the AFL-CIO usually creates its scorecard, like many other organizations, based on specific votes deemed particularly crucial, not the hundreds of votes a Senator might cast in a given term.

If you want the specifics below, go for it -- I mostly highlighted votes below where he and labor parted company, or where there are votes that indicate positions that are relevant to issues coming up in the future. But, for the lazy, and more sane people who want to have a life on Saturday morning, here's what I would say generally. Throughout his career, Biden has been a strong supporter of labor rights here in the U.S., from union organizing rights to protecting prevailing wage laws. He is a co-sponsor of the number one priority for labor, the Employee Free Choice Act.

Where are the disagreements? Mostly over trade and immigration. Biden, initially, was a strong support of so-called "free trade" but he seems to have shifted his position a bit in the past few years. That could have been partly partisan -- his votes for so-called "free trade" came during the Clinton administration, but he tended to vote more against so-called "free trade" during the Bush administration. But, it also may be a shift in overall philosophy -- and his votes seem to indicate that he shares a similar view on trade with his potential boss. That is, that trade deals have to include enforceable labor and environment provisions (I've written repeatedly that this is not sufficient but I'll not digress here). It is also worth noting that so-called "free trade" bills have, generally, received more Democratic votes, proportionally, in the Senate than in the House.

On immigration, he has, on occasion, voted for increasing caps for certain immigration visas that the AFL-CIO has opposed. So, that will be something to keep an eye on since immigration will be back on the policy agenda in the new administration.

Okay, for some specifics:

In 1996, out of a total of 7 key pieces of legislation, Biden voted "right" on 6 and wrong on 1. He was a strong labor supporter when it came to basic legislation such as defeating "right to work" legislation and protecting prevailing wage laws. The one "wrong" vote was Bill Clinton's "welfare reform" bill which the AFL-CIO said: "The bill's cuts in food stamp and assistance to legal immigrants were projected to push 1 million children of working parents into poverty and deprive hard-working families help in times of need. It also creates the potential for large-scale job displacement in the public and private sectors. The "workfare" provisions could penalize low-wage unskilled workers by forcing them to compete for jobs with welfare recipients earning sub-minimum wages".

In 1997, he scored a relatively poor voting record for labor, clocking in at just 57 percent based on seven votes. He voted "wrong" by helping to kill a filibuster that would have blocked "fast track" authority, one of the most insidious powers the president has had for a number of years (though it finally expired and has not been renewed): it allows the president to submit a trade deal to Congress for a straight up-or-down vote, with no amendments allowed. He also voted for the balanced budget amendment, thought it failed by just one vote to get the two-thirds needed to pass it on to the states for ratification.

In 1998, he voted "right" 7 out of 8 times. His one "wrong" vote was a "yes" vote on an immigration bill that would allow, as the AFL-CIO explained it, "agriculture employers an almost unlimited number of foreign workers under the immigration law's H2A program, and to gut existing worker protections."

In 1999, his one "wrong" vote out of nine votes measured came on a trade bill that expanded the failed so-called "free trade" NAFTA model to sub-Sahara Africa. The AFL-CIO's view: "Trade polices should include worker and environmental protections and provide economic benefits to workers. But H.R. 434, which the Senate amended to include Caribbean Basin Initiative nations, authorized a new trade and investment policy for sub-Sahara Africa without enforceable worker protections and extended NAFTA to CBI countries. It also allowed transshipments of foreign textiles and apparels through African countries, giving other nations the trade benefits intended for African nations. It also did nothing to address one of the major problems the sub-Saharan countries face, a crushing debt burden to developed nations. The Senate passed its version of H.R.434 76-13, Nov. 3, 1999.The bill was sent to conference and no further action was taken in 1999"

In 2000 record, Biden really annoyed labor, voting wrong on 3 out of the 8 votes measured. In my view, the worst vote was his "yes" vote to allow China into the World Trade Organization, a move that came without any attempt to try to enforce basic labor standards as a condition of WTO admission. And we know how that worked out for this country and the world. Biden also voted for school vouchers, which certainly did not endear him to teachers' unions (though it is not clear where he stands now on school vouchers). Finally, he voted "wrong" on an immigration bill again to raise the number of H1B visas (visas that are supposed to be for higher-skilled workers where there is an alleged shortage in the U.S. ) from 115,000 to 195,000.

In 2001, during George W. Bush's first term, Biden had a 100 percent voting "right" record, abstaining on one vote out of 16 measured. Interestingly, he did vote with the winning majority to ban trucks from Mexico, which was seen as a somewhat trade-related vote but was mostly couched as a safety standards issue.

In 2002: here again, Biden had a 100 percent voting record. Interestingly, he voted right on several trade-related pieces of legislation He voted against a "fast track" conference report that, as the AFL-CIO viewed it, "contained weak and flawed provisions on workers' rights and environmental protections, essentially ruling out enforceable standards in future Fast Track trade agreements." He also voted for an amendment (it failed) that would have required U.S. trade negotiators to "seek enforcement provisions that would equal those negotiated in the U.S.-Jordan Free Trade Agreement. That agreement, negotiated under the Clinton administration, contained meaningful enforceable workers' rights provisions." As part of the "fast track" legislation, he voted for an amendment that would have protected health insurance for steel industry retirees whose companies had gone bankrupt. The amendment was blocked by a filibuster. He also voted to kill a Republican amendment that would have required new onerous union reporting rules.

In 2003, Biden batted 100 percent again based on 13 votes. And, here we find a more pronounced shift on his votes on trade. He voted no on both the U.S.-Singapore and U.S. Chile so-called "free trade" deals. I have not gone to look at his floor statements (c'mon, it is after all Saturday morning) but the main argument against these deals was that they failed to include strong, enforceable labor rights standards. Both of the deals passed.

Biden continued his perfect labor record in 2004, voting "right" on 11 votes. The two interesting votes in 2004 had to do with exporting jobs and immigration. He voted for a bill that would have required multi-national companies to pay federal taxes on income from foreign factories where goods are shipped back to the U.S. The bill would also have required companies to give notification when jobs were being off-shored. What makes this interesting is that Barack Obama has pledged to change federal tax laws that benefit companies who off-shore jobs.

He also voted "right" on a bill that, as the AFL-CIO described it, "was a bipartisan immigration reform proposal that would provide an avenue for 500,000 undocumented farm workers to qualify for permanent residency status through an earned legalization program." The bill failed to pass for complicated procedural fights that blocked an actual vote (Biden's right vote was on the filibuster fight).

In 2005, Biden slipped a bit, only getting 13 out of 14 votes "right". The one vote where he was "wrong" was an energy bill, where the Democratic caucus was split; frankly, I didn't have time to look into the details of this vote but it was considered a job-creation bill by the AFL-CIO; Biden voted "no". More important, he did vote no on the Dominican Republic-Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA). The bill passed.

In 2006, Biden's only "wrong vote out of 15 measured was on an amendment in the comprehensive immigration reform bill that sought to strike a new program to admit 500,000 guest workers per year on H-2C visas in a variety of occupations. The AFL-CIO's view: "The new visa program lacked sufficient protections for existing wages and benefits. The H-2C visa program would allow employers to petition for temporary workers without a requirement that the work be seasonal or truly temporary, essentially granting employers the ability to turn long-term, skilled work into temporary jobs filled with an easily exploitable workforce, resulting in lower pay and benefits for all." Biden voted to table the amendment and it was killed. But, he continued his newly-found opposition to so-called "free trade" by voting against the Oman Free Trade Agreement. The deal passed.

In 2007, he was all good, voting 14 out of 14 times "right", including amendments to two immigration guest-worker bills that the AFL-CIO opposed.

So, there you have it.

Greg Mitchell: Joe Biden Explains His 'Clean' Obama Comment -- to Jon Stewart

2008-08-23T09:45:16Z

Who can forget -- even John McCain surely remembers -- that day in January 2007 when Sen. Joseph Biden offered his infamous quip about "the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy." He was referring to the man who is now his new boss, Barack Obama. But by now, you have surely forgotten that this took place on the very day Biden announced his race for president -- and that he happened to appear that night on "The Daily Show" with Jon Stewart.

There he said (as I reported at the time) that he was simply trying to be "complimentary" toward Obama, but wasn't "artful" in doing so. He told Stewart that the "word that really got me in trouble" was calling Obama "clean....I should have said fresh. What I meant was he's got new ideas."

He said he had already called Obama, to which Stewart quipped, "I bet you did." Biden then said he also called former candidates Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, to which Stewart added: "And Michael Jordan?"

When Biden first appeared on stage, Stewart teased, "How's your day been?" Biden said, "It's a tough game," and crossed himself (he is Catholic).

Stewart asked if wanted to talk about his comments that day and Biden replied, "No, I don't want to talk about it," but it was hard to tell if he was joking. In any case, he had no choice.

He also stood by his comments that were harshly critical of Sen. Hillary Clinton on her Iraq politics.

Stewart reminded him that just yesterday he had told the Philadelphia Inquirer that he had learned from previous campaigns to be careful, since "words matter." Stewart said, "And then you came out with this one," quoting the lines about Obama.

Biden said the whole day was a "reminder -- 'welcome back to presidential politics.'"

Stewart advised in a whisper, "When you are about to say one of those things, take a deep breath and count to 10."

Earlier Biden had said he meant "clean as a whistle"--a phrase often used by his mother, he added.

Below, video finds Obama defending Biden on civil rights later.
*
Greg Mitchell's new book is So Wrong for So Long: How the Press, the Pundits -- and the President -- Failed on Iraq.

Richard Silverstein: It's Biden -- Ho-Hum

2008-08-23T08:08:20Z

The N.Y. Times reports that Barack Obama has picked Joe Biden as his running mate. And all I can say is ho-hum. He's playing it safe. Telling the world he's afraid it will notice his weaknesses and hence the attempt to stick a finger in the dyke of his inexperience. This is reactive and not proactive politics. One of the things I've admired about Obama's campaign thus far has been his willingness to make daring moves, to do the unexpected. It allowed him to break out of the mold. It set him apart from Hillary Clinton, the candidate who seemingly tried to do everything the same old, boring, old-fashioned way.

Biden is a consensus builder. He's not an especially bright bulb. In fact, he comes across as a bit of a buffoon due to his shoot from the lip style. I expect we'll be seeing Jay Leno and David Letterman dredging up every stupid, silly comment Biden has made in 35 years of Senate service.

Yes, Biden is a steady hand--I was going to say in the Cheney mold though I immediately realized how ridiculous it was for anyone to believe Cheney was being added to the 2000 Republican ticket to add a note of rigor and stability. Biden will certainly add more gravitas to the ticket than Cheney did. But man is he ever old and tired. And I never trust a politician from Delaware who has a perpetual suntan. He also looks like he just had his face "enhanced" by a surgeon's knife. Biden's smile, while a mile-wide, somehow always reminds me of Mack the Knife or a gameshow host. And does he ever love to hear the sound of his own voice!

I have to say I wasn't thrilled by any of Obama's VP choices. There was the white guy from the Midwest, Evan Bayh; the Catholic guy from the near South, Tim Kaine; and Biden. I thought Kathleen Sebelius would've been a groundbreaking pick, though perhaps it wouldn't bring much politically to the ticket other than a breath of fresh air. And Chuck Hagel--now that would've been a groundbreaking candidate who would've stolen some Republican thunder.

When I think of the boring prospect of adding Joe Biden to the ticket, I look back fondly on the vice presidential candidacy of Lloyd Bentsen. Now, that was a politician who really had the goods. Only someone of Bentsen's character could've sliced and diced Dan Quayle as he did in that famous debate. Obama needed a Bentsen and I'm afraid he chose an Edsall.

Christina Bellantoni: Obama-Biden logo revealed

2008-08-23T03:51:04Z

So it's official, Barack Obama picked Joe Biden, one of the most colorful characters out there.

BarackObama.com got the transformation right at 3 a.m. when Team Obama sent out the text messages. (Mine came in at 3:05.)

Barack has chosen Senator Joe Biden to be our VP nominee. Watch the first Obama-Biden rally live at 3 p.m. ET at BarackObama.com. Spread the word!

JoeBiden.com hasn't changed, and the Obama YouTube page still has the regular Obama logo.

This slightly bigger version is on the home page, which encourages supporters to send Biden a "welcome note."

The site reveals little into Obama's thinking for the decision, and I'm sure he'll outline it in depth during the Springfield event later.

When asking for donations, it states simply:

Barack has chosen Joe Biden to be his running mate.
Barack Obama and Joe Biden are the leaders who will bring the change our country needs. But they can't do it alone.
Show your support for the Obama-Biden ticket by making a donation today.

At 3:40, Team Obama sent over the text of an email that is winding through the series of tubes to supporters:

I have some important news that I want to make official.

I've chosen Joe Biden to be my running mate.

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.

I'm excited about hitting the campaign trail with Joe, but the two of us can't do this alone. We need your help to keep building this movement for change.

Please let Joe know that you're glad he's part of our team. Share your personal welcome note and we'll make sure he gets it:

http://my.barackobama.com/welcomejoe

— Christina Bellantoni, national political reporter,
The Washington Times

Bookmark my blog at http://www.washingtontimes.com/weblogs/bellantoni

Find my latest stories here and visit my YouTube page.

Christina Bellantoni: 'The best Biden I can be'

2008-08-23T03:48:44Z

That's what Sen. Joe Biden told us would be his political strategy when he announced his presidential bid in January 2007. A year later, he finished fifth in the Iowa caucus and ended his bid.

Tonight, he has been chosen as Sen. Barack Obama's running mate. The AP has confirmed with a Democratic source. Team Obama is silent, preferring to send their planned text message.

(Read my recent profile of Biden here.)

From the beginning, Biden was the one who did not play coy with his intentions. Instead of "exploring," or testing the waters, he told people directly that he wanted to run. As I noted last night, Biden told me this summer instead of being "considered" for the running mate race, he would prefer a "direct discussion face-to-face."

He said he would ask: "Am I likely to be picked" if I "pass all those tests in terms of my not having skeletons."

"If you can't look me in the eye and tell me that then ... don't put me through the audition," he said.

But if that offer is made, "You'd have to say yes. I don't know how the hell you'd say no at this historic moment."

Biden's announcement last year did not go off as planned - a New York Observer article came out that day where he was quoted saying Obama was "the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy."

When doing damage control, he said he meant Obama was an inspiring politician, adding the flowery: "This is a very special guy. This is like catching lightning in a jar. That was the point of everything I was saying."

Back then, Kos declared Biden's career should be over. Now he's about to be the No. 2 on the fall ticket.

Here's some video that reminds me of the good 'ol days in Iowa, and shows a bit of the enthusiam for the candidate with "ears" of experience.

There also was his use of vivid descriptions on the trail, and his bizarre habits when talking to voters, such as sometimes touching them forehead to forehead.

Last night I told BBlog readers my gut told me Biden was the guy, and the conventional wisdom focused on him all day long.

Biden also told me earlier this summer that Obama had asked him to play a "prominent" role in the campaign.

Team McCain is out with a response:

"There has been no harsher critic of Barack Obama's lack of experience than Joe Biden. Biden has denounced Barack Obama’s poor foreign policy judgment and has strongly argued in his own words what Americans are quickly realizing -- that Barack Obama is not ready to be President," said spokesman Ben Porritt.

In reality, that's not exactly how Biden operated during his campaing.

Instead of really bashing the others, he lavished praise on himself, saying in Iowa, "I've initiated more change than all the Democratic candidates combined," and putting out this ad:

— Christina Bellantoni, national political reporter,
The Washington Times

Bookmark my blog at http://www.washingtontimes.com/weblogs/bellantoni

Find my latest stories here and visit my YouTube page.

Jackson Williams: Joe Biden: No True Friend of Working Men and Women

2008-08-23T02:21:31Z

(Update added below)

Last August, the Democrats held a presidential debate in Chicago. Seven hopefuls participated, with former sportscaster Keith Olbermann moderating the televised event on MSNBC. It was sponsored by the AFL-CIO and took place before 15,000 union activists at Soldier Field.

You'd think the candidates at a Democratic debate dealing with issues relevant to working men and women would be asked about the infamous bankruptcy bill signed two years earlier by President George W. Bush. Oddly, you'd be wrong. Olbermann never mentioned it.

This wasn't the first time Congress had passed this shameful act. Bill Clinton vetoed it in the 90's, so we know where he stands. The credit industry, ever relentless, kept coming back, confidant they had the number of elected officials necessary to do their bidding. They did, and Joe Biden was always one of them.

The final version of the bill was cleverly titled the "Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005," but it wasn't aimed at preventing abuse or protecting consumers, and everyone knew it.

Arianna Huffington wrote on salon.com in March 2005 that this legislation was "so hostile to ordinary American families that it could only have come about in a place as corrupt, cynical and unmoored from reality as Washington, D.C." She concluded: "The bankruptcy bill is morally bankrupt. And so is any senator who votes for it." She defined the problem:

"So what does the bill do? It makes it harder for average people to file for bankruptcy protection; it makes it easier for landlords to evict a bankrupt tenant; it endangers child-support payments by giving a wider array of creditors a shot at post-bankruptcy income; it allows millionaires to shield an unlimited amount of equity in homes and asset-protection trusts; it makes it more difficult for small businesses to reorganize while opening new loopholes for the Enrons of the world; it allows creditors to provide misleading information; and it does nothing to rein in lending abuses...."

It turns out the average annual income of Americans who file bankruptcy is less than $30K, not the loose affiliation of millionaires and billionaires gigging the system that we all heard about when this bill was debated. Also, the vast majority of people who file bankruptcy don't do so to strategically hang on to their mansion on the hill, but because of medical bills, a job layoff, or both. Real people, real lives.

I've never filed bankruptcy, but like Bill Clinton I'm moved by those demographics. Not so our Joe. Of all the presidential contenders lined up on the stage in Chicago, he was the only one who had voted for the bill. Not senators Dodd, Clinton and Obama (Edwards was no longer in the senate in '05), and not House member Dennis Kucinich. Only Joe Biden.

And he didn't just vote for it, he helped carry the water on it. Some Democrats tried to soften the bill with a series of amendments; for example, exempting military personnel at war in Iraq. Biden joined the majority of his colleagues -- all the Republicans and too many Democrats -- in knocking down every possible change that was offered.

For the record, Biden's home state holds the incorporation papers of large credit card and financial services companies. He obviously knows how his bread is buttered in Delaware, which means a "profile in courage" by 'ol Joe on the bankruptcy bill was out of the question.

Sure, Biden has a certain rogue charisma combined with what he's developed over the years as serious experience on the senate foreign relations committee. He's no idiot, and I support the Democratic ticket. But if part of the calculation in picking him is that he'll sell economic populism in the heartland, from Perkiomen to Peoria, that's a cynical joke -- whether it succeeds or not.

(By the way, this is an issue Republicans probably won't hit Biden on because they're as much in the same industry's pocket as he is, and McCain always loved the bankruptcy bill, too.)

Still, anyone who cares about progressive politics, or the salt of the earth, knows that the bankruptcy bill is a disaster for average folks. Joe Biden is a big reason why this is so. He supported it and voted for it, many times over many years.

That speaks volumes about how a longtime Beltway insider views the rest of the country.

UPDATE: I raised an eyebrow, and then my wine glass, when I heard Barack Obama drop the following little morsel into his acceptance speech Thursday night at the Democratic National Convention in Denver: "Now is the time to change our bankruptcy laws..."

Nothing is in a politician's prepared text by accident. Not the 16 words in Bush's State of the Union speech about Iraq buying yellow cake from Niger, and not this bankruptcy item on Barack's economic wish list. One can presume there's been sufficient chatter on the subject, both inside and outside the campaign. Clearly it demanded a shout-out, and got one....from the 50 yard line at Mile High!

It takes a village.

VP Joe Biden: Watch Video Highlights

2008-08-23T02:06:28Z

Now that Joe Biden has officially been tapped as Barack Obama's vice presidential nominee, it's worth looking back on some key video highlights from Biden's career.

1) Biden dramatically rips into the Bush administration's policy on Iraq on the Senate floor, shouting, "Mr. President, you're leading us off a cliff. Stop."

2) Biden blasts Rudy Giuliani: "Noun, verb, 9/11"

More Giuliani mocking

3) Biden talks foreign policy, rails at Iran legislation, at a debate last October in Philadelphia:

4) The lighter side: Biden on Real Time with Bill Maher, February 2007:

Late Night with David Letterman, August 2007:

5) Some of Biden's 2008 campaign ads:

"Cathedral":

"Security":

"January Night":

"Office":

Erin Kotecki Vest: Joe, Let's talk

2008-08-23T01:45:29Z

Hi.

I'm Erin. I'm no one really, just another voter with a blog.

Seems you're going to be our next Vice President.

Good job.

I need you to do something for me though, ok? It's something I'm pretty terrible at -- but I'm guessing with all your experience you'll be ok.

Don't say anything stupid.

I know, mistakes happen. And your record and years of service make you more than worthy for this position.

But Dude...between you and I....you say some crazy shit every once in a while.

I say some crazy shit sometimes too, so I understand. But I'm also not a Senator, or Vice President of the United States.

Your resume is outstanding, you're said to be a helluva guy. I hear I'm going to LOVE your wife.

But if you have another oratory oopsie with racial overtones, I think your boss might kick your ass.

Oh, and I will too.

I've been working on my rhetoric, and keeping things non-offensive and sane and fair...so how about you try too?

Maybe we can work on it together.

See you in Denver, Senator.

xoxoxo,

Erin Kotecki Vest

Steve Clemons: Joe Biden Gets Call (Maybe. . .) and Yells: " Where is Blinken ?"

2008-08-22T17:47:30Z

From my point of view, Senator Joe Biden is an inspiring, experienced, over-the-top smart, fast-running boss who is a handful. He wrestles with ideas. He wrestles with his team. They knock him back. He knocks them back. He gives great zinger speeches and occasionally zinger gaffes. And they all laugh it off and move forward.

Risk averse politicians and risk averse staff are under-performers in Washington. Biden and his team work hard on solutions -- and they take risks. Some times they belly-flop, and that is the kind of political hand we need to see in the Vice President's office and close to the next President of the United States at such a historically pivotal time for the nation.

Biden has a few people he's had around forever and some new additions to his insider crowd. Three of the best -- though there are more I won't mention -- are Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chief of Staff Antony Blinken, Senate Foreign Relations General Counsel Brian McKeon, and Senate Office Chief of Staff and former Biden presidential campaign director Luis Navarro.

Working Mother magazine -- the journal of record for juggling moms -- just commended Joe Biden and his staff with its "Best of Congress Award". And along with Biden's "family friendly" disposition with his office staff, he said "get out of here" to Foreign Relations Committee Chief of Staff Tony Blinken who went off to Hawaii to vacation with his family.

Blinken enjoyed the surf and sun for about two days -- and then guess what, he's back in D.C. I know that he would not be thrilled by my reporting this.

And some in the Foreign Relations Committee office in the Senate have said that I should not read anything in to his being back in Washington.

Right. . .

Something is up -- and it's very good.

The next thing I need to find out is whether Luis, Tony & Co. are heading to Springfield to show off that two day tan.

-- Steve Clemons publishes the popular political blog, The Washington Note

Previously:

Wait 'Til America Gets to Know Jill Biden

Joe Biden Won't Forget the Number of Houses He Owns

Why "Radio Silence" Can be a Good Thing in VP Selection

Steve Clemons: Wait 'Til America Gets to Know Jill Biden

2008-08-22T16:19:12Z

I had the opportunity a few years ago to enjoy a rolling set of events with Senator Joe Biden, Wes Clark and other national notables.

My partner was with me and normally hates these kinds of things. But he bonded with Jill Biden. They are both educators -- Jill in Delaware and my partner in Maryland.

It was such a pleasure getting to know folks without the pressure of deadlines and press frenzies and the need to maintain a certain "posture." Joe Biden was awesome. . .and his wife Jill was even more impressive, for reasons I'll share more down the road.

But we all had some pics together -- and the next time I saw Joe Biden, he walked up to me at the Capitol Hilton and stuffed some photos of us together in my pocket. "These are from Jill to Andrew," he said. Biden and I agree a lot on policy issues, but we also disagree here and there.

But on the personal front -- he had me hooked.

WAIT, strike that. She had me hooked.

I can't wait until America gets to know Jill Biden. As down to earth and serious about education as they come. She's a working mom like many others around the country.

Joe Biden is going to be Obama's vice presidential running mate.

-- Steve Clemons publishes the popular political blog, The Washington Note

Related:

Joe Biden Gets Call (Maybe. . .) and Yells: "Where is Blinken?"

Joe Biden Won't Forget the Number of Houses He Owns

Why "Radio Silence" Can be a Good Thing in VP Selection