Biden gets the nod

[xoxoxoBruce]

Will it help or hurt Obama?

[lookout123]

I don't see how Biden could be seen as a strengthening move in any way. I can see this pushing a few of the more conservative leaning independents who liked Obama's change message firmly back towards McCain. Not his best choice IMO.

[Pie]

Biden has a huge history of running his mouth off. I'm worried.

[TheMercenary]

I am not sure it helped or hurt him. Biden is a commanding figure. I bet he gave Obama a feeling like he was around greatness and got the most support from him and his experience. Time will tell. Now it is time for McCain to put up.

[sweetwater]

I wish candidates chose running mates once they accepted the nominations. It's an important component and now we all have to research the proposed Veep and evaluate how they'll work together. So I have no opinion on Biden yet. I do wonder if "OBAMA BIDEN" on a ballot is going to look too much like "OSAMA BIN LADEN" to some folk, but I may just be too pessimistic about the average voter's intelligence.
(I'll try to change.)

[Undertoad]

I wanted Richardson but this is a decent choice. I like it when pols shoot from the hip.

[TheMercenary]

I thought Richardson would have made a good pic for President. He sure would have straigntened the the illegal immigration issue.

[classicman]

Biden is a well respected man in his state - unfortunately his state is the second smallest in the nation. Sure he holds some important positions in DC, but I think he isn't going to help as much as some of his other options that could have carried much more important states. We'll see.

[lookout123]

I don't know about this. It just feels like Biden is the guy they would pick if they were worried about grabbing the old white guy vote. I don't think that was really an issue, but... I don't know it just doesn't feel right.

[TheMercenary]

A view:

Its Biden! Now Let’s Look At His Record

When Joe Biden accepts the invitation to become the Democratic Party’s vice-presidential nominee in Springfield, Illinois, later today, will he write the speech himself or borrow the words from Neil Kinnock?

Don’t feel bad if you don’t get the reference. The talking heads are saying everything about Biden–”safe choice,” tragic car accident that took the life of his first wife, working-class upbringing, foreign policy expertise — but are not mentioning the one thing that makes Biden memorable. Yes, during his 1988 presidential run, he plagiarized paragraphs from British Labour Party Leader Neil Kinnock.

It is one of the few things in Biden’s dreary career in the U.S. Senate, which began in 1972 and stretches to right now, that makes him stand out. It gives him a kind of cosmopolitan flair. I mean, who else was reading, let alone admiring, the words of a failed hard-left Labour Party leader? It suggests at least a thimble-full of intellectual curiosity — and a gallon of gall that he thought he could get away with it.

By the way, both Fox and MSNBC are wrong when they report he was elected to the Senate at age 29. He ran for the office at that age, but was 30 when he was sworn in. Thirty is the legal minimum age for service in the U.S. Senate.

What do his decades in the Senate tell us about him? He has served on two key committees, both as chairman and ranking-minority member. One dealt with judges and constitutional law and the other with foreign policy.

(continues)
http://pajamasmedia.com/richardminiter/

[xoxoxoBruce]

What do his decades in the Senate tell us about him?

They tell us he's a scumbag politician, like the rest. You were expecting Spiderman? I've been around long enough to know every election, on every level, is about trying to pick the lesser evil. Will McCain find a lesser evil VP choice?

I look at the Prez as the CEO, and the Veep as the COO.
The Prez, being Executive, is the idea man in front of the cameras.
The Veep, being Operational, is the guy that's got to get it done.
So until the day comes when America smartens up and makes Congress work for them, the Veep has to be a Washington "insider" that knows his way around Congress and can bring the Prez's ideas to fruition.
I don't think a Governor can do that as effectively or efficiently.

[deadbeater]

As I said before, McCain has to pick a woman as VP candidate. That shows everybody, even me, that he's a maverick.

That being said, Biden is not really an overenthusiastic and inspired pick.

[deadbeater]

Originally Posted by TheMercenary

By the way, both Fox and MSNBC are wrong when they report he was elected to the Senate at age 29. He ran for the office at that age, but was 30 when he was sworn in. Thirty is the legal minimum age for service in the U.S. Senate.
(continues)
http://pajamasmedia.com/richardminiter/

He was elected before his 30th birthday on November 7, 1972, (his b-day is November 20), and was 30 on January 3rd, 1973, when he was sworn in; so Fox for once, as well as MSNBC, are correct.

[classicman]

Originally Posted by deadbeater

As I said before, McCain has to pick a woman as VP candidate. That shows everybody, even me, that he's a maverick.

Thats the last thing he'll do.

[richlevy]

The Republicans are already trying to divide the Democrats by telling pro-Hillary supporters that they should be pissed.

So women would make a pro-feminist statement by supporting directly or through inaction a Republican candidate who has promised to elect possibly 2 or 3 Supreme Court justices in the mold of GWB's appointees.

Now I know that GWB was able to get blue collar conservatives to vote against their interests in electing him, but would educated Hillary supporters be that stupid?

Biden has already brought up the Supreme Court as an issue. I don't think many moderates believe that guys like Scalia and Thomas are strict constructionists.