Rumors that Vice President Joe Biden will join the presidential race are spreading in the US. While the speculation had previously been limited to the American media, August 3 saw the Obama Administration itself not ruling out such a scenario. In particular, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest acknowledged in an interview with FOX News that Biden “has indicated that he is thinking about it.” According to him, the vice president had said he would announce his decision on running for the US presidency by summer’s end.
Asked what Barack Obama thought about it, Earnest said: “The president ultimately wants Democratic voters to decide who they believe the nominee should be. The president certainly believes that a spirited contest would be in the best interests of our party, and in the best interest of our country.”
Let us recall that currently, it is former first lady and former US secretary of state Hillary Clinton who is seen as the leading presidential candidate of the Democratic party.
Biden announced his intention to take part in the US presidential race twice before, in 1988 and 2008, but did not become the official party candidate on either occasion.
Media reports have it that Biden has long dreamed of becoming president, and, quite possibly, he will finally decide to heed the deathbed request of his recently deceased son, who appealed to his father to participate in the presidential election.
Analysts say that Clinton, despite her enormous advantages, including broad support within the party and well-staffed headquarters, cannot truly get in touch with the electorate. Therefore, her candidacy is called a “sad choice” even among Democrats.
Meanwhile, Biden is known for his passionate approach to politics, which has made him the voters’ darling, but also got him into trouble more than once because of his proclivity for making sometimes offensive comments.
“Finally Biden may jump in as Hillary slips almost daily. Biden decent, smart pol but gets in trouble as a motormouth!” media mogul Rupert Murdoch tweeted.
EXPERTS’ VIEWPOINTS
John HERBST, former US Ambassador to Ukraine, member of the Atlantic Council; Washington, D.C.:
“For many months, Hillary Clinton has been treated as the presumptive Presidential nominee of the Democratic Party. But she has been hit by the revelation that she used a private, unclassified email account at home for State Department business as Secretary of State. While the initial revelation goes back to June, the issue still plagues her. Polls show that a majority of Americans consider her untrustworthy. These developments are likely fueling the rumors that Vice President Biden is considering a presidential run. It is safe to say that Mr. Biden would not have the negatives that dog Ms. Clinton. But it is also true that he would not enjoy the intense base of support that she has. Regarding the contest for the Democratic nomination, I believe that it will not be the easy victory long expected for Ms. Clinton. In terms of policy towards Ukraine and Russia, both have a clear understanding of the dangers posed by Mr. Putin’s aggressive policies and would put in place a response much stronger than the present American position.”
Dr. Matthew ROJANSKY, Director, Kennan Institute, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars; Washington, D.C.:
“I think if you consider the polling numbers right now, Hillary is way ahead. But for Biden to run could have several advantages and disadvantages for the White House. First, there is the risk he could say something harmful to the president by accident – it’s happened before!
“Second, it is a possible distraction for his staff and for others in this administration who will be forced to choose sides now between two major insiders – Biden and Hillary. Could divide the administration personnel, some will resign, and deepen the lame duck ineffectiveness.
“Third, an advantage is that it could make the administration seem more relevant and in the mix than otherwise, especially if the president is seen to implicitly endorse Biden’s run.
“Finally, mixing up the field in the democratic primary at this point forces the republicans to spend more time and effort dealing with many potential candidates for the general election rather than spending all their negative advertising money attacking Hillary.”
