PENETRATING INSIGHTS: Obama Says Joe Biden Is Ready To Be President*
Obama Says Joe Biden Is Ready To Be President
- The Associated Press, August 23, 2008
* He’s so ready, in fact, that at the rally in Springfield, IL, on Saturday, Obama introduced Biden as “the next president - the next vice president of the US” (video) - the Freudian-slip reinforcing voters’ perception that the ticket needed a grown-up. Natch, the McCain campaign seized upon the revealing misstatement:
“Barack Obama sounded as though he turned over the top spot on the ticket today to his new mentor … The reality is that nothing has changed since Joe Biden first made his assessment that Barack Obama is not ready to lead. He wasn’t ready then and he isn’t ready now,” McCain spokesman Ben Porrit said.
For her part, Hillary Clinton subtly reminded voters that Obama is an opportunistic wet-behind-the-ears wuss who doesn’t have the résumé to get elected on his own merits when she extolled his choice of Biden:
“In naming my colleague and friend Sen. Joe Biden to be the vice presidential nominee, Sen. Obama has continued in the best traditions for the vice presidency by selecting an exceptionally strong, experienced leader and devoted public servant. Sen. Biden will be a purposeful and dynamic vice president who will help Sen. Obama both win the presidency and govern this great country.” [Emphasis, The Stiletto.]
Time was when a veep wasn’t expected to govern – or do much beyond attending funerals of B List foreign dignitaries and act as the president’s attack dog.
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