Obama’s Big Promise to Biden
The vice president-elect revealed Sunday that he sought and won a major promise from Barack Obama: For every major decision, "I'll get to be in the room." Even if you love the guy, that's got to be tiresome -- not to mention impractical.
The vice president-elect revealed Sunday that he sought and won a major promise from Barack Obama: For every major decision, “I’ll get to be in the room.” Even if you love the guy, that’s got to be tiresome — not to mention impractical.
Can you imagine? “Sir, Pakistan is arming its nukes. We need a decision.”
“Well, what would you like me to do? I called Joe twice and he’s not responding to texts!”
What if Biden is traveling? Will Obama have to bring “the room” to him?
Thank you, Dick Cheney, for robbing the vice presidency of its healthy inferiority complex.
And then there’s the idea that Biden will have to be sold. Would you like to be vice president and, along with your party’s biggest star, make a little history? In our own little fly-on-the-wall scenario we see Biden answering: “Maybe, but I have some conditions.” Please.
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When Obama talked to him about the vice-presidential slot, Biden recalled, “I said, ‘I don’t want to be picked unless you’re picking me for my judgment. I don’t want to be the guy that goes out and has a specific assignment. … I want a commitment from you that in every important decision you’ll make, every critical decision, economic and political, as well as foreign policy, I’ll get to be in the room.'”
Biden said President-elect Obama has kept the promise, having Biden in the room for all of his decisions about who will fill key posts in the administration.
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