3 reasons Joe Biden should stay far way from the presidential race

[DonViejo]

He can't beat Hillary -- or Bernie Sanders, for that matter. The vice president would be wise to sit this one out

MATTHEW ROSZA, THE GOOD MEN PROJECT

This piece originally appeared on The Good Men Project.

No. Definitely not.

This article is a response to the recent rumors that Vice President Joe Biden is going to make a run for the White House in 2016. I’m not going to speculate as to the man’s intentions (I have no way of knowing them), but rather discuss in a point-by-point fashion why a Biden presidential campaign would be a bad idea. Let’s start from the top:

1. He could never beat Hillary Clinton … or Bernie Sanders, for that matter.

I’m not exactly going out on a limb when I say that Biden could never beat Clinton. The polls have consistently shown the former First Lady with more than 50 percent of the Democratic primary vote, which gives her a statistically formidable advantage over any prospective opponents. Even worse for Biden, however, is the fact that he doesn’t have any natural base to fall back upon. Just look at the candidate who usually ranks second to Clinton in the polls, Bernie Sanders. While Sanders also doesn’t have much hope when it comes to competing against Clinton, he at least has a locked in group of supporters—young, idealistic left-wingers who are turned off by Clinton’s neoliberalism. Biden, on the other hand, has nothing but his extensive Senate experience and reputation as a comparative moderate from a blue-collar background. Neither of those variables will be particularly compelling in an election cycle that seems to focus more on narratives than resumes. Certainly Biden has the qualifications to be president, but does he have a story that can match Clinton (who will possibly be our first female president) or Sanders (who is admired for his straightforward adherence to liberal values)?

2. Nobody wants to see Biden humiliated.

Check out this quote from a recent New York Times article about the Clinton campaign’s reaction to the recent Biden rumors:

The scenario of a Clinton-Biden matchup brought mixed emotions inside Mrs. Clinton’s Brooklyn campaign headquarters. Many of Mrs. Clinton’s senior staff members previously worked for Mr. Biden and hold him in high regard. They have mourned for the Biden family after his son, Beau Biden, died in May at the age of 46 after a long battle with brain cancer.

At the same time, they make no bones about Clinton’s overwhelming advantage (see previous paragraph), and I doubt the Sanders campaign feels any differently. Although Biden has caught a lot of flak during his vice presidency, there is a general feeling of goodwill toward him within the Democratic Party. I say this not only as an observer, but as a Democrat myself; I’ve written several articles praising Biden over the past few years, and I stand by every one of them. If Biden runs for president, Democrats like me—i.e., individuals who respect him but don’t think he would be the strongest candidate in 2016—would be forced to oppose him. Should he conduct a civil campaign, the chances are we’ll forget about his candidacy shortly after it ends. On the other hand, if he fights fiercely and damages either Clinton or Sanders in the process, the current goodwill could be tainted.

3. Those of us who have supported Biden in the past didn’t anticipate the specific conditions of the 2016 election.

more
http://www.salon.com/2015/08/09/should_joe_biden_run_partner/

[Hortensis]

1. Reason #4. Clarence Thomas confirmation hearings.

Like most I like and respect Mr. Biden, and I actually don't mind having him as Obama's VP. But I haven't forgotten the disgraceful role he played as chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee that approved a shockingly bad candidate. When the going required strength and probity, he completely failed to do his duty.

The 330,000,000 million Americans living today are only part of those impacted. Those who have died since Thomas's appointment and many still to be born have to live with the consequences.

[jberryhill]

2. Yeah, Justice Bork agrees with you.

[demmiblue]

3. It's his party, he can run if he wants to.

The only reason people are coming out against his potential run is that it will siphon off Clinton support. Yep.

[MBplayer]

4. The problem with these articles

Is they are written from the perception of a well-educated white guy--the liberal elite. While book smart, they usually have terrible judgement when picking 'our' nominee. They are terrible when it comes to sizing up electability, because they cannot relate to the majority of the Democratic Party voters. These types still do not understand why John Kerry lost to W in 2004.

The good news is at this point, I don't think these articles will have any effect on whether Joe runs or not. The more candidates the better--it will only make our nominee stronger.

[Nye Bevan]

5. He's a great guy. But don't do it, Joe (nt)