Opinion: Joe Biden’s ‘flourish’ remains fodder for McCain/Palin attacks
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Publicly, Barack Obama delivered only a mild rebuke to Joe Biden after his running mate delivered -- on a silver platter -- a prime talking point for the Republican presidential ticket.
But for the GOP, it’s been the gift that keeps giving. And one has to wonder what Obama and his no-drama aides really had to say to Biden behind closed doors.
The Delaware senator, as is his wont, got carried away with the sound of his own voice as he spoke at an ostensibly private fundraiser Sunday in Seattle.
Given Obama’s youth and newness on the world scene, Biden said, as president he assuredly would face some sort of international crisis within months of taking office -- in part as a test.
Just what we don’t need, John McCain and Sarah Palin have loudly proclaimed ever since a tape of Biden’s remarks surfaced (as inevitably it would).
Obama, during a brief news conference Wednesday, sought to staunch any political damage Biden might have caused by saying, ‘I think Joe sometimes engages in rhetorical flourishes.’
In the process, though, he gave his rivals more rhetorical fodder.
Speaking in Florida today, McCain mocked Obama for his ‘flourishes’ comment. ‘Really? Really?’ McCain said, his voice rising in apparent disbelief. ‘That’s another way of saying [Biden] accidentally delivered some straight talk to America.’
Campaigning in Ohio, Palin similarly scorned Obama, saying she would concede that he ‘knows a thing or two about rhetorical flourishes, but I question dismissing Joe Biden’s moment of truth-telling as nothing more than a social embarrassment.’
If the Obama-Biden team triumphs on election day, their relationship would be well worth watching ...
...as they settle into their new jobs.
Presumably, Obama’s White House crew would be as buttoned-down and leak-resistant as his campaign staff has proved to be. Also presumably, Biden would not mend his off-the-cuff ways. One can bet that his office would become a destination point for reporters trying to pin down the inner workings of the new administration.
Along with Biden’s natural inclination to spout off, it is unlikely the constraints that typically apply to vice presidents would come into play with him.
Before Dick Cheney, vice presidents over an almost 50-year stretch were all seen as future presidential contenders. But Biden’s role in a first Obama term would focus on helping win a second one. And eight years from now, Biden will be on the cusp of turning 74 years old -- probably too old to have been part of the 2016 presidential sweepstakes.
-- Don Frederick