Obama's Conservative Voice and the Biden Factor

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Biden ran for President on his Iraq plan but now barely mentions the topic of Iraq at all. That hardly makes him unique, but unfortunately it says a lot. Joe Biden gave up his ability to be an independent voice when he accepted the vice presidency. If, as the article points out, his admirers are concerned that he could be marginalized in this role, then why did he take the position in the first place?

Chris of IN 11:59PM January 03, 2009

Politicians by definition are not known for their noble good intentions. Republican or Democrat.
Ironically the ones who do have genuinely noble goals tend to not go very far in that those intentions keep them from the kind of compromises necessary to make it to either the top echelons, or the White House specifically.
In fact, it's rare that people really talk much about national level politicians in such terms. It's generally understood what kind of animal has the fortitude for a life of 24/7 politics, and we may vote for the lesser of evils, but they really are not the kind of people you'd want marrying into the family.
The party faithful - R or D - speak of how great Reagan was, or how smart Obama is, but those people are the "political base." If they represented the average voter, or even the average political follower, our campaigns would be much more interesting.

RayG01 of AZ 11:26PM January 03, 2009

Joe Biden is in this for all the right reasons. He is a consensus builder by nature. Among his biggest contributions will be bringing people together and putting out fires before they get out of hand.

Nancy Fatemi of VA 7:52PM January 03, 2009

This is the same guy that said they were going to bankrupt the American coal industry. That's the liberal voice I suppose.
As for being in on any power plays, it seems unlikely. Rahm is the knee breaker, and Obama has enough Clinton retreads that there won't be any lack of experience or decisiveness at the table. Except for Obama's of course, but I'm sure he'll prove pliable enough to the old pros he's hired.
That leaves Obama's main job as to simply keep all of the egos from fracturing.

Ray Gardner of AZ 9:08PM January 02, 2009

I am very, very glad that Joe Biden will be in there at the table when policy is being considered and decided. He is a good man with a wealth of experience and knowledge which allows him to have a more complex perspective in the global/domestic interplay of issues.

Donna Hughes of 5:45PM January 02, 2009