Joe Biden for President

Days Until Bush Leaves Office = 413

One month from today, when I go to my precinct caucus, I will be casting my vote for Joe Biden.

Back in May of this year, I wrote a post which was somewhat tongue-in-cheek at the time, but which I revisit now in earnest:

Since starting this blog this past January, I’ve had the opportunity to meet, or at least shake hands with, every candidate in the Democratic field who has made a visit to Iowa. I’ve heard their ideas, or at least their rhetoric. I’ve had a chance to see how they perform in front of crowds large and small. I’m as star-struck by Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, as moved by the personal story of John Edwards, as impressed by the résumé of Bill Richardson, and appreciative of the Senate careers of Joe Biden and Chris Dodd, as anybody. I’ve heard the policy speeches on Iraq and health care, climate change and energy. I’ve been on the conference calls with the candidates, and heard them make the case about why they are uniquely qualified to lead the United States at this critical moment in history. I’ve watched the debates. I’ve sized them up, weighed the pros and cons, scrutinized their records. I’ve looked them in the eye, and taken the temperature of the fire in their bellies.

I now have to face the question of whether the time has come to declare support for one candidate above the others.

I’m happy to say this is not an easy choice to make. The Democratic roster this cycle is arguably the most impressive ever fielded by the party. Any one of the candidates I mention above could legitimately serve as president, and would do a better job of it than any Republican candidate this cycle, and, I need hardly say, the current incumbent. And, to an unusual degree, they all will have a future in national politics and running for the White House again after the 2008 election is over.

Those words remain true to this day. Democrats have an oustanding field of candidates to choose from in this campaign and choosing among them has taken far longer than I had anticipated. But over the last month, the case to be made in favor of Joe Biden above the others has become increasingly compelling. To continue quoting from the earlier post:

In my view, however, one stands above the rest on experience, on leadership, on political courage, on character and integrity, and the strength of the ideas they have brought to this campaign.

Joe Biden possesses all of these attributes, and then some. For nearly two years, and for far longer than he has been running for president, Joe Biden has distinguished himself as the voice that matters on Iraq; on delivering real homeland security without sacrificing our civil liberties on the alter of fear; on energy and climate change, healthcare, education, crime, jobs, reproductive freedom and workplace equality for women, ending the genocide in Darfur, and most recently, the upheaval in Pakistan, Joe Biden shows again and again that when it comes to bold ideas, policy proposals that are not only specific, but workable, and proven leadership, he towers above the other candidates like a colossus.

Crucially, Joe Biden also has the ability not just to articulate his proposals, but to take the fight to the Republicans and win. For all the back and forth there's been about which of the Democratic candidates would be the most electable next November, no one else has shown the agility and just plain muscle of Joe Biden in bringing heat to the Republicans. Need convincing? Go ask Rudy's campaign how they feel about Biden's renowned "a noun, a verb and 9/11" barb.

The 2008 presidential contest comes at a time of testing for our country, when our values, our character and our leadership are being challenged around the globe. This is a time not for big names, but for big ideas; not for poll-tested slogans, but for time-proven leadership; not for image, but for vision. Above all, this is a time for American renewal, to restore justice and humanity to the use of our power abroad, reason and civility to the conduct of our politics at home, and, most of all, peace and hope to a world that cannot achieve it without a rebirth of American leadership. This is a time for American greatness. This is the time for Joe Biden.