Saturday, August 23, 2008

In the Sweet Biden, Bayh

I'm really glad Joe Biden was the VP selection and not that empty suit, empty head Evan Bayh.


Biden was already a veteran senator at 34 years of age when I first covered the Senate, and I found him hard to dislike. The somewhat phony-looking muscular twitch that produced a smile on demand, I have since learned, was a device he used to overcome stuttering.


And boy did he overcome it. During hearings, floor debate or press gallery schmoozing, Biden was theatrical, verbose, garrulous and also he talked a whole lot longer than necessary. But he also was usually right on target. He was one of those who exemplifies the axiom that covering Congress is like covering no other public agency; the compulsion of sources to talk means you spend most of your time batting them away.


Anyway, not much more to add about this well-known orator and legislator except that I have been around so long I remember when Arlen Specter had hair ... and Joe Biden didn't.

1 comment:

  1. For once we disagree, Ira.
    I'll vote for the Big O anyway, but think little of Biden. He's too gaffe-prone, full of himself and has a nasty attitude toward women--aside from being a plagiarist and having the world's worst hair transplant.
    -df

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