Reflecting on Biden's Selection as VP

I have long been critical of Joe Biden, way before his time as president. In 2008 I was interviewed about his nomination as vice presidential candidate and the implications this may have for the race for the White House….

Barack Obama had talking about change from the first day of his campaign. A year later, when pressed to make his first, most defining decision, he chose a white, male senator from Delaware. In that moment it should have become clear about what ‘change’ would mean under Obama’s presidency. The selection revealed the extent to which Obama would playing it safe, both as a candidate, and subsequently as president.

Presidential candidates have historically sought to balance the ticket, in terms of age or geography. In 1960, Senator John F. Kennedy, who Obama supporters constantly sought to compare their candidate to, chose Lyndon Johnson from Texas, which split the ticket geographically and regarding age and experience. Kennedy was from the north, Johnston from the South.  But with Johnson here was the bonus that if he could carry his state of Texas then Kennedy’s chances of winning were greatly improved. Joe Biden is from Delaware, a tiny state with only 3 Electoral College votes that historically votes Democrat, so even if he does succeed in carrying his home state, it doesn't really help an awful lot

Joe Biden has always presented himself as having a lot of experience in foreign affairs, due to his time on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He has never shrunk from the U.S. engagement on a global scale and believed that he would bring credibility to the democratic ticket on foreign policy. This was an example of Barack Obama seeking to inoculate himself against claims of inexperience in a vital policy area heading into the election. He was weak on foreign affairs and international relations and believed that this could be alleviated by bringing in Senator Biden.

However, a very quick search on YouTube reveals the challenges involved in selecting Joe Biden. A vice president candidate should ideally not to put a foot wrong for risk of damaging the campaign. Indeed, a vital question to be addressed before selecting a candidate is the extent to which a vice-presidential candidate can help or hinder the top of the ticket.

Joe Biden’s inability to stay on message has defined his careers to date. His capacity to quote liberally from Neil Kinnock’s speeches exemplify the challenges he faces and the potential for his words and deeds to come back to haunt him as the election approaches.

This gives John McCain the luxury of going second, of being able to see the reaction that Senator Biden’s selection generates and to potentially do something different and groundbreaking, such as placing a woman on the ticket in an attempt to prove that Obama is no longer the change candidate.