Humor And Charm
DENVER -- The conventional reasoning is that Sen. Joe Biden (D-DE) -- the current chair of the Foreign Relations Committee -- was tapped as Dem VP because of his in-depth of knowledge of Iraq and his penchant for being an attack dog — one who could take on McCain in issues of international policy. But a few other factors may have tilted the scales in Biden’s favor:
Age. While Biden’s age and experience help compensate for Barack Obama’s youth, Biden also reminds voters of what a young face can bring to the Senate. Recall that Biden was elected to the Senate in 1972, a few weeks shy of his 30th birthday. Unlike many people, Biden can speak with authority on what a young person can bring to the table — a young person during a time of extreme adversity, no less.
He’s got that funny bone. A slew of recent articles, including a pretty scathing column by the NYT’s Maureen Dowd, have harshly brought to light Obama’s humor deficit. Biden, however, tends to shoot from the hip, and while some consider his off-the-cuff remarks a handicap, it can pay off for him at times, During the first Democratic debate in April 2007, Biden famously scored the night’s best laugh line when answering a question about whether he could assure the public that despite his reputation for being too verbose, he could be disciplined in the WH. He answered simply: “Yes.”
Charm. A small enclave on the Mason Dixon line, Delaware is hardly Southern. Still, Biden has that Southern charm thing down. During his WH run, he spent a great deal of time in South Carolina and developed a loyal following there, headlining events like the SC Democratic Party's Jefferson Jackson dinner in 2006 and making headlines at Jim Clyburn’s fish-fry in 2007. He was the only candidate at Clyburn’s event to linger after the required speeches, mingling with the crowd till almost midnight.
Demographics. No, not all those already Democrat-inclined Delaware voters. But Biden is a Catholic-white man who could potentially help Obama win over those voters, who disproportionately supported Hillary Clinton in the primary. He’s also likely to help Obama with white-working class voters -- another group that has remained reluctant to embrace Obama -- in Rust Belt battlegrounds PA and OH.
His neutrality. Unlike the other Democrats who attempted a bid for the WH, Biden never weighed in when the race came down to Hillary and Obama. Chris Dodd, John Edwards and Bill Richardson all eventually lent their support to Obama, but Biden remained firmly on the sidelines. While many were convinced Obama needed to pick a VP who supported HRC in the primary in order to mollify her supporters and unify the Dems, by choosing Biden, Obama snagged the one thing better than a Clinton loyalist: a diplomat.
(NORA McALVANAH)
