Poor Joe Biden

I actually feel sorry for the guy. When Vice President Joe Biden appeared at the University of Louisville's McConnell Center recently, he looked around the Brown & Williamson room at Cardinal Stadium and, mistaking it as part of the McConnell Center, expressed awe and envy to Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell. Biden quipped that he couldn't even get his high school gym named after himself.

Biden was speaking the truth. A Delaware school district has voted to not name a new elementary school after Biden.

Biden and McConnell at U of L

V.P. Biden Speaks at McConnell Center

Vice President Joe Biden just finished speaking at the McConnell Center at University of Louisville, at the invitation of Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell

It was an outstanding speech in all respects: beautifully written, substantive and eloquently delivered. It was so shockingly good that many of us had no idea that Biden could give such a speech.

Not even Mubarek's departure from Egypt (which caused a quick revision to Biden's speech) could alter the grace of its delivery.

The thought that Biden obviously put into the speech was a real testament to his friendship with McConnell and desire to work together. McConnell has always maintained that divided government offers the best opportunity to address the most difficult issues with bipartisan compromises. Plainly, Biden shares this view.

McConnell's introduction of Biden was quite poignant, particularly in discussing Biden's efforts to overcome a bad stutter as a child and adolescent. At first, it reminded me of the Oscar-nominated movie, The King's Speech.

Upon further reflection, however, Biden's challenges overcome his speech impediment -- which took years of disciplined practice -- reminded me of McConnell's childhood battle with polio. The politics of these men could not be more different and yet so much of their character was similarly forged by the adversity they faced as children.

I will add photos and links later. Suffice to say that in all the talk of civility and bipartisanship, the genuineness of Biden's and McConnell's friendship was gratifying to see. The Vice President honored McConnell and the University of Louisville today, and I, for one, have a much different, much more favorable opinion of our Vice President as a result.

Joe Biden is Literally Dangerous

Now this, from an administration that relies on a metaphor of Republicans driving the car into the ditch and wanting the keys back to go in reverse. It turns out that Vice President Joe Biden's motorcade has been in five (5) car accidents, according to Forbes.

One accident killed a pedestrian. Wonder how that decedent's family feels every time Team Obama trots out the car accident metaphor.

The other accidents are more along the lines of what one would expect from Biden. For example, 1960s figure skating gold medalist Peggy Flemming (and some bob sledder I've never heard of) were injured while riding with Biden in Vancouver. In another, Biden's motorcade hit a cab as Biden was en route to appear on the Daily Show with Jon Stewart.

Let's hope Biden isn't going to watch his alma mater play U of L this weekend. If he does go, at least it's an away game.

H/t: Instapundit

Joe The Gaffer Speaks!

Sen. Joe Biden made two gaffes in as many minutes. Fox, via Hotair with gaffe number one:
Biden called his sister a "girl-boy," meaning a tomboy, and then explained that girl-boys are softer than "girl-girls."

"You know why I think Jill likes Claire McCaskill so well, Senator McCaskill? Jill is one of five sisters, Claire is one of three sisters. And I tell you what, you women raised with sisters are different than women raised with brothers," Biden said as both women joined him on stage.

"My sister is smart, runs every one of my campaigns; is beautiful; graduated with honors from college; is homecoming queen. But she's a ... she is what I call a 'girl-boy' growing up, you know what I mean?"

"And I tell you what? Girl-girls are tougher than girl-boys," he said. "But there's one important thing I noticed.The great thing about marrying into a family with five sisters, there's always one that loves you. 'Cause you can count on splitting them a bit. You know what I mean?

No, Joe, we have no idea what you mean. Do you?

Gaffe number two:

"In the most recent debate between John McCain and Barack Obama, John McCain felt the need to say to Barack, to the commentator and to all America that he was not John McCain," Biden said in the slip-up. "I mean, he was not President Bush."

To Spread Or Not To Spread The Wealth Around: That is The Question

In a hard-hitting satellite interview conducted by WFTV-Channel 9's Barbara West on Thursday, Senator Joe Biden flatly denied that Obama's economic philosophy is akin to Karl Marx's ideas because Obama "is not spreading the wealth around." But that is exactly what Obama told Joe the Plumber should happen. So who are we suppose to believe: Biden or Obama?
Please note: The postings of "G. Morris", written by John K. Bush and which end in 2016, stated his views as of the dates of posting and should not be understood as current assertions of his views. The postings, which have not been altered since they came to an end, remain on this blog to preserve the historical record. In 2017, Mr. Bush took a position that precludes further public political comments or endorsements. He will no longer be contributing to this blog.

Palinizing The Democratic Pair

Sarah Palin today gave a speech that absolutely skewers Biden and Obama for their "world testing" and "rhetorical flourish" remarks. Hotair.com has a video of her speech posted here. Watching her barbeque the Democratic pair leaves no doubt that Palin is head and shoulders above both of them in her abilities as a campaigner.
Please note: The postings of "G. Morris", written by John K. Bush and which end in 2016, stated his views as of the dates of posting and should not be understood as current assertions of his views. The postings, which have not been altered since they came to an end, remain on this blog to preserve the historical record. In 2017, Mr. Bush took a position that precludes further public political comments or endorsements. He will no longer be contributing to this blog.

Joe Biden's "World Testing" Comment May Be The October Surprise

The more one considers Biden's statement that Obama will be subject to "world testing" within the first six months if he is elected president, the scarier the comment seems, particularly in light of what Biden said next:

"I can give you at least four or five scenarios from where it might originate," Biden said to Emerald City supporters, mentioning the Middle East and Russia as possibilities. "And he's gonna need help. And the kind of help he's gonna need is, he's gonna need you - not financially to help him - we're gonna need you to use your influence, your influence within the community, to stand with him. Because it's not gonna be apparent initially, it's not gonna be apparent that we're right."

"It's not gonna be apparent that we're right" -- Wow! As in, when Iran attacks Israel and the Obama-Biden administration has no military response but instead wants to sit at the negotiation table and make peace (ala Munich Agreement of 1938) with Ahmadinejad?

Today, Madeleine Albright agreed with Biden's observation, saying that "[i]t's just a statement of fact, frankly" that Obama will be tested.

So why should American run the risk of the potentially dire consequences from such a test?

Is it time for McCain-Palin to run a Daisy Girl commercial against Obama?

Joe Biden's words may be the October surprise that gets McCain elected.

Please note: The postings of "G. Morris", written by John K. Bush and which end in 2016, stated his views as of the dates of posting and should not be understood as current assertions of his views. The postings, which have not been altered since they came to an end, remain on this blog to preserve the historical record. In 2017, Mr. Bush took a position that precludes further public political comments or endorsements. He will no longer be contributing to this blog.

Biden Is "Ready To Be President From Day One": Colin Powell, What Are You Thinking?

One of the more curious statements made by retired General Colin Powell during his "Meet the Press" interview yesterday, in which he endorsed the Obama-Biden ticket, was that Senator Joe Biden "is ready to be president on Day One." Well, maybe in comparison to Obama, Biden is, but that's not saying much.

Has Powell forgotten from his days of service in Vietnam how Biden voted to cut off all funding for the troops, effectively leading to the Communist victory?

Has Powell forgotten from his days of service as National Security Advisor to President Ronald Reagan how Biden opposed all of Reagan's major foreign policy decisions that led to the end of the Cold War?

Has Powell forgotten from his days of service as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under President George H.W. Bush how Biden opposed the liberation of Kuwait from Saddam Hussein?

Perhaps Powell thinks Biden is competent because he, along with most of the Senate and Powell (and unlike Obama), supported President George W. Bush's liberation of Iraq from Saddam. Perhaps Powell thinks that this decision makes up for three decades of poor foreign policy judgment from Biden.

Who knows?

Please note: The postings of "G. Morris", written by John K. Bush and which end in 2016, stated his views as of the dates of posting and should not be understood as current assertions of his views. The postings, which have not been altered since they came to an end, remain on this blog to preserve the historical record. In 2017, Mr. Bush took a position that precludes further public political comments or endorsements. He will no longer be contributing to this blog.

Ayers On The Agenda

It is almost a certainty that William Ayers will be a topic of conversation at tomorrow night's debate. The Boston Globe reports McCain will "take that dare" of Biden to bring up Ayers to Obama's face. It should be entertaining television to watch Obama parse the meaning of the word "pal" and see if he denies that he knew of Ayers terrorist past when he worked with him to dish out $50 million in grants to leftist causes. Oh, and there's also that question of who ghostwrote Obama's first book . . .

Please note: The postings of "G. Morris", written by John K. Bush and which end in 2016, stated his views as of the dates of posting and should not be understood as current assertions of his views. The postings, which have not been altered since they came to an end, remain on this blog to preserve the historical record. In 2017, Mr. Bush took a position that precludes further public political comments or endorsements. He will no longer be contributing to this blog.

Biden Extols Obama's "White" Grandparents, And No One In The Mainstream Media Cares

ABC News reports that yesterday Joe Biden was his vintage self on the campaign stump, which isn't always so good. For example, he described his running mate this way:

“For those of you who wonder about Barack Obama, don't wonder, don’t wonder,” Biden urged the crowd. “I guarantee you, he feels as passionately about this as I do. He has the same measure, the same respect. Look folks, this is a guy who is the American dream, raised by a white grandmom and grandpop from Kansas, a grandfather who fought in Patton's Army, a grandmother who was the equivalent of Rosie the Riveter, building aircraft, a single mother.”
“Look folks, I'm getting tired of this stuff about Barack Obama," Biden said of what he called the "negative," "scurrilous," and "vicious" ads against the Illinois lawmaker. "But I guarantee you I know the guy and I know his family. And let me tell you something, this guy knows how much he owes this great country. And he knows it couldn't have happened anywhere else but the United States of America, so I don't want to hear about how different he is.

“I don't want to hear it,” Biden continued, pounding his chest for emphasis. “He's like me. He's like me! And all of you!”

(emphasis added)

What exactly was Biden trying to prove through his reference to the race of Obama's grandparents? Is Biden implying that Obama is more palatable -- as in, "He's like me!" -- because his grandparents were white? As in, it's okay to vote for Obama because he really isn't all that black?

If anyone in the McCain-Palin campaign had made such a statement, he or she would have excoriated by Obama supporters as a racist dullard. If Palin had said as much, you can bet Tina Fey would have been ready to pounce on it in her next SNL skit. But Biden, well Biden gets a yawn (assuming his remarks are even noticed) because, well . . . he's like Biden.

Please note: The postings of "G. Morris", written by John K. Bush and which end in 2016, stated his views as of the dates of posting and should not be understood as current assertions of his views. The postings, which have not been altered since they came to an end, remain on this blog to preserve the historical record. In 2017, Mr. Bush took a position that precludes further public political comments or endorsements. He will no longer be contributing to this blog.

A Botox Administration?

Apropos for our focus on Joe Biden, The Washington Post speculates as to whether he's had any work done:

Joe Biden looks . . . different.

Something about his eyes, which seem smaller, and his forehead, which seems smoother. Compared with images from last year, he seems better rested -- yet also, strangely, a little sleepier.
. . . .
Karen Bradley, a University of Maryland professor who studies politicians' body movement and what it conveys to voters, says it's "a little strange that nothing moves from his eyes on up" -- since she otherwise finds Biden a compelling communicator who powerfully telegraphs his conviction on a topic via other body language.
Barry Cohen, a Rockville plastic surgeon, is more blunt. "He clearly has had Botox," the doctor, a Republican, told us. "The lines are gone on his forehead. There is no way makeup or surgery could do that." Georgetown spa owner Erwin Gomez, who knows his way around some of D.C.'s most scrupulously groomed faces, agrees: "On the right and the left temple, you can see the lines, but he has no wrinkles in the forehead." He suspects the senator had a shot of Botox in his brow to disable his scowl muscle -- which can also bring an unwanted heaviness to the eyelids.

Please note: The postings of "G. Morris", written by John K. Bush and which end in 2016, stated his views as of the dates of posting and should not be understood as current assertions of his views. The postings, which have not been altered since they came to an end, remain on this blog to preserve the historical record. In 2017, Mr. Bush took a position that precludes further public political comments or endorsements. He will no longer be contributing to this blog.

Did Obama Have His Fingers Crossed Off Camera?

According to the New York Daily News, Obama expressed admiration for Senator Hillary Clinton in an NBC interview but added that "Joe Biden is also an outstanding public servant, and I am very proud of the choice that I made."

Please note: The postings of "G. Morris", written by John K. Bush and which end in 2016, stated his views as of the dates of posting and should not be understood as current assertions of his views. The postings, which have not been altered since they came to an end, remain on this blog to preserve the historical record. In 2017, Mr. Bush took a position that precludes further public political comments or endorsements. He will no longer be contributing to this blog.

Obama Calls Off The Savage Attacks

According to Breitbart.com, the Obama-Biden campaign has promised to cool it in the wake of Hurricane Ike:

With Ike coming ashore on Galveston Island in Texas and threatening Houston, a major oil processing center, the Democrat appeared likely to tone down a fearsome offensive against what he calls Republican John McCain's "lies."

Obama canceled a planned appearance on the cult comedy program "Saturday Night Live" as he anxiously followed the enormous storm's destructive path through the Gulf of Mexico, aides said.

In a telephone call to Houston Mayor Bill White, "Obama offered to do whatever he can to help, including using the Obama website to raise funds for relief efforts," campaign spokeswoman Linda Douglass said late Friday.

Obama had already appealed to his base of more than two million donors to contribute funds to help victims of Hurricane Gustav, which forced McCain to curtail the first day of the Republican convention on September 1.

The Democrat had been scheduled to hold a joint rally in Manchester, New Hampshire with his vice presidential running mate, Joseph Biden, on Saturday.

But aides said Biden was no longer coming, and it was probable that Obama would scale back his savage attacks on McCain of recent days to avoid a show of overt partisanship in Ike's potentially tragic trail.

Here's hoping that Obama and Biden will make the respite from their "savage attacks" a permanent change for their campaign.

Please note: The postings of "G. Morris", written by John K. Bush and which end in 2016, stated his views as of the dates of posting and should not be understood as current assertions of his views. The postings, which have not been altered since they came to an end, remain on this blog to preserve the historical record. In 2017, Mr. Bush took a position that precludes further public political comments or endorsements. He will no longer be contributing to this blog.

Poor Joe: The VP Candidate No Reporter Wants To Cover

Rachel Streitfeld of CNN comments on Senator Joe Biden, the candidate who went "from hot to not since Palin came along." Streitfeld notes that "[t]here's plenty of room on Biden's plane. At one point this week, only six reporters climbed aboard." That actually is good for the Obama-Biden campaign -- there have been no reported gaffes from Joe in the past forty-eight hours.

Please note: The postings of "G. Morris", written by John K. Bush and which end in 2016, stated his views as of the dates of posting and should not be understood as current assertions of his views. The postings, which have not been altered since they came to an end, remain on this blog to preserve the historical record. In 2017, Mr. Bush took a position that precludes further public political comments or endorsements. He will no longer be contributing to this blog.

Biden's S.O.S. For Hillary

Senator Biden made this admission today, as reported by CNN, emphasis added:

Make no mistake about this, Hillary Clinton is as qualified or more qualified than I am to be vice president of the United States of America. Let's get that straight.

She's a truly close personal friend and she is qualified to be president of the United States of America; she's easily qualified to be vice president of the United States of America and quite frankly [she] might have been a better pick than me.

Could it be that Biden is about to walk the plank so that Hillary can be commissioned the new first mate on the U.S.S. Barack OTitanic?

Please note: The postings of "G. Morris", written by John K. Bush and which end in 2016, stated his views as of the dates of posting and should not be understood as current assertions of his views. The postings, which have not been altered since they came to an end, remain on this blog to preserve the historical record. In 2017, Mr. Bush took a position that precludes further public political comments or endorsements. He will no longer be contributing to this blog.

Thanks To Palin, Forty-somethings Feel Young Again

Governor Sarah Palin has made all forty-somethings feel good about their age again. They were all feeling quite old, having witnessed Senator Barack Obama's rise to claim the Democratic presidential nomination. What once seemed a rashly premature age for the Presidency -- 47 -- had been transformed last Thursday night into enough years to give Obama the gravitas of a Greek sage as he delivered his speech from the Invesco Parthenon. What a relief, therefore, it was to learn on Friday from various left leaning journalists that Palin, at 43, is a "young mother."
The Democrats, caught completely off guard by Palin's outstanding presentation on Friday, now argue that Palin lacks the years to be President. Their question: Is America prepared for a forty-something to be a heartbeat away from being President? The Republicans' response: Is America prepared for the forty-something to be President now?

And what do the Democrats know? They were the long-haired ones in the 1960s -- when Obama and Palin were in diapers -- who claimed we shouldn't trust anyone over thirty.

Please note: The postings of "G. Morris", written by John K. Bush and which end in 2016, stated his views as of the dates of posting and should not be understood as current assertions of his views. The postings, which have not been altered since they came to an end, remain on this blog to preserve the historical record. In 2017, Mr. Bush took a position that precludes further public political comments or endorsements. He will no longer be contributing to this blog.

Justice Thomas's Indictment Of Senator Biden

Despite serving for eons in the U.S. Senate and running for President, Senator Joe Biden remains a relative unknown to most Americans. Undoubtedly we will all get to know him better in the coming days.

To get things started, here's an assessment from Justice Clarence Thomas, Senator Barack Obama's favorite jurist (not), who wrote in his book My Grandfather's Son about the slimey questioning conducted by Obama's future running mate at Thomas's confirmation hearing:

Senator Biden was the first questioner. Instead of the softball questions he'd promised to ask, he threw a beanball straight at my head, quoting from a speech that I'd given four years earlier at the Pacific Legal Foundation ad challenging me to defend what I'd said: "I find attractive the arguments of scholars such as Stephen Macedo, who defend an activist Supreme Court that would . . . strike down laws restricting property rights." That caught me off guard, and I had no recollection of making so atypical a statement, which shook me up even more. "Now, it would seem to me what you were talking about, Senator Biden went on to say, "is you find attractive the fact that they are activists and they wold like to strike down existing laws that impact on restricting the use of property rights, because you know, that is what they write about."

Since I didn't remember making the statement in the first place, I didn't know how to respond to it. All I could say in reply was that "it has been quite some time since I have read Professor Macedo . . . But I don't believe that in my writings I have indicated that we should have an activist Supreme Court or that we should have any form of activism on the Supreme Court. It was, I knew, a weak answer. Fortunately, though, the young lawyers who had helped prepare me for the hearings had loaded all of my speeches into a computer, and at the first break in the proceedings they looked this one up. The senator, they found, had wrenched my words out of context. I looked at the text of my speech and saw that the passage he'd read out loud had been immediately followed by two other sentences: "But the libertarian argument overlooks the place of the Supreme Court in a scheme of separation of powers. One does not strengthen self-government and the rule of law by having the non-democratic branch of the government make policy." The point I'd been making was the opposite of the one that Senator Biden claimed I had made.

Throughout my life I've often found truth embedded in the lyrics of my favorite records. At Yale, for example, I'd listened often to "Smiling Faces Sometimes," a song by the Undisputed Truth that warns of the dangers of trusting the hypocrites who "pretend to be your friend" while secretly planning to do you wrong. Now I knew I'd met one of the them: Senator Biden's smooth, insincere promises that he would treat me fairly were nothing but talk. . . . .

Please note: The postings of "G. Morris", written by John K. Bush and which end in 2016, stated his views as of the dates of posting and should not be understood as current assertions of his views. The postings, which have not been altered since they came to an end, remain on this blog to preserve the historical record. In 2017, Mr. Bush took a position that precludes further public political comments or endorsements. He will no longer be contributing to this blog.

McCain Should Do The Math And Pick Romney

There are many reasons why Senator Joe Biden was a dumb pick. One is that he is not a Southerner. As Senator Barack Obama should know, for over fifty years this maxim has held true: no Democrat has won the presidency without a Southerner on the ticket.

Neither Delaware (where Biden now resides) nor Pennsylvania (where he was born) qualifies as part of the South. Granted, a portion of southern Pennsylvania was once controlled by the South, but that ended badly for the invaders in 1863.

Rather than choose a running mate from a blue State that he was already likely to win, Obama should have plucked someone from the red zone -- the Governor of Virginia, for example.

Obama's goof is a gift for Senator John McCain. McCain should choose a running mate with Northern roots who has a decent chance of turning a marginal blue State into a red one. Mitt Romney would provide that opportunity.

To be sure, it would be nothing short of a Massachusetts miracle were Romney to bring the Commonwealth where he served as governor into the Republican fold. But Romney might be able to swing another Northern, heretofore, blue, State McCain's way: Michigan -- where Romney grew up and his father was governor.

According to a poll released today by Detroit Free Press:

From his opposition to the Iraq war to the perception that he's an agent of change, Barack Obama goes into the Democratic National Convention this week with a lot of pluses for Michigan voters.

And one very noticeable challenge -- himself.
Because tucked in among questions from last week's Detroit Free Press-Local 4 Michigan Poll was one asking likely voters if they agreed with the statement, "There are some things about Barack Obama that I'm not that comfortable with."
Nearly two-thirds of the 600 people surveyed last week said they agreed with that statement -- perhaps suggesting that Obama's seven-point lead in the state over Republican John McCain rests on the support of many voters who aren't entirely sure about Obama.

The current projected Electoral College result is Obama 273, McCain 265, according to RealClearPolitics.com. As we know, it takes 270 to win. Romney's Michigan, which is in Obama's column by a slender two percent according the latest poll, has 17 electoral votes.

Unlike Obama, who appears challenged by the subject (law school graduates typically are), McCain should understand the importance of mathematics in choosing a running mate. That's just one of many reasons why Romney would be a great pick.

Please note: The postings of "G. Morris", written by John K. Bush and which end in 2016, stated his views as of the dates of posting and should not be understood as current assertions of his views. The postings, which have not been altered since they came to an end, remain on this blog to preserve the historical record. In 2017, Mr. Bush took a position that precludes further public political comments or endorsements. He will no longer be contributing to this blog.