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March 30, 2004

Comments

Bustear

Now, if Biden would just talk tough to his hairdresser we might get somewhere.

Marduk

Just a bald-faced attempt to take another plank out from under W. Anyone with a memory that goes back beyond the last news cycle knows that Biden is full of it.

Schroeder pulled the same stunt, going suddenly anti-American when the polls said it was a good gamble. Paid off for him. Guess a war on terror can make even a Democrat pretend like he's tough on our rivals.

Besides, isn't Kerry French? He looks French, and I hear he served in Vietnam.

Michael Hiteshew

Actually, Biden almost never fails to impress me. He's got a realistic view of diplomacy. In short, he says, the US shouldn't be afraid to do the easy, symbolic things, but also shouldn't apoligize for doing what we think is right.

He also understands the Teddy Roosevelt quip, "Talk softly, but carry a big stick". When you're the biggest power on the planet, there's no need to say it. Everyone is keenly aware of it. It just needlessly rankles people and ruffles feathers to point it out. It's counterproductive. They know you're the strongest. When you shout it at them, it tends to scare the hell out of them actually. If you live in the US, I don't think you can understand how immensely powerful we seem to others.

Just Some Guy

Biden is all over the map. He speaks well and comes across as smart and informed, but he's terribly inconsistent. And his repetition of the lie that the Iraq war was a unlateral action is shameful.

ed

Europeans should be happy that we haven't abandoned the NATO treaty ...

YET.

RonG

Still, it sounds to me like Bush has changed the US foreign policy strategy ( which the Democrats were unwilling to do ) and now the Democrats are going to follow it ( now that Bush has done the dirty work and taken the heat for it - from the Democrats ).

ic

"we haven't abandoned the NATO treaty ..."
Of course not, we've just added, I believe, 11 members there, to dilute the chocolate makers' voice.

ic

There are 7 new members. They are Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia.

Moonbat_One

The most aggravating thing about the Europeans is that they expect the US to put its interests behind Europe's, and to seek their guidance and approval so their sense of importance and pride is maintained. Could you possibly imagine how they'd respond if our positions in the world were somehow reversed?

CJ

Senator Joe Hairplugs Biden serves as a stark reminder of the tragedy that can ensue when the hairplugs are drilled too deep.

grayson

Michael, When has the U.S. ever talked loudly? Yes, we've come out and said, "If you're a terrorist, you're going to die. If you're a government that supports them, you're going to die." Yeah, that's loud (it's also fair warning), but it's not like we're pounding our shoes on the table yelling, "We will bury France!"

MEC2

If there is to be a resuscitation of the Democrats as a serious national party, it will be because men like Joe Biden helped anchor the foundation while the wave of apoligism, pacifism, and socialism washes back out to sea. He is one of the few serious men left in the Democrat party, and one of the few I would trust with the grown up chair and big red button if I stepped out of the room...

J_Crater

If Europe is going to be dissapointed, just think about half of the "hate Bush" folks who expect everything Bush did (or would do) will be rolled back. There are come realities that are great too painful to face.
Is it my imagination or is most (if not all) of article above duplicated (as a more exact copy).
This isn't an attempt to lean to Senator Biden plageristic proprensities, or is it.

TM

Is it my imagination or is most (if not all) of article above duplicated (as a more exact copy).

It was so good I thought you would want to read it twice. And since I have no idea how well links to the International Herald Tribune hold up, I figured, better safe than sorry.

The subtle Biden/Kinnock tribute is a bonus.

Andrew X

I’ve always thought Biden was a fairly straight-up guy, but he gave a very prominent speech about a year ago that I cannot let pass.

The gist of it was that Bush screwed up the pre-war diplomacy, and specifically that if Bush had only gone about it slower, the allies would have come around during the summer of 2003, and by fall we all woulda been marching to Baghdad arm-in-arm.

Well, I was horrified that an ostensibly intelligent Senator versed in these matters could say something so astonishingly obtuse. Anyone going back in time to February 2003 can tell that the longer it went on, the more the protesters and their allied governments, and Saddam, were going to dig in their heels, thinking they would prevail in the end. Simple psychology can tell you that.

Not to mention what we now know about palms being greased big time by Sadddam.
Further not to mention the military ramifications of sitting out there in the desert for another six months.

It was just so patently absurd that I have had trouble taking Biden seriously since.

Pat Curley

Don't forget, Biden's also playing to the home audience when he says that a Kerry administration isn't going to make things a whole lot easier on Europe. It works for Kerry in two ways; gets the Euro-lefties to stop talking about how they're rooting for Bush to lose, and it reassures moderates over here that Nuancy Boy isn't going to be a pushover for Chirac & Co.

ralph phelan

If only the Dems had nominated Lantos or Biden, they might have a chance.

Doesn't Care for Kerry

This kind of sentiment from Joe Biden is all well and good, but it isn't Joe Biden who would be president, it's John Kerry; a man who had no clue that bragging about his support from foreign leaders would actually hurt him with regular Americans. The man is a complete throwback to the Clinton days of kissing Euro ass. [Deleted] John Kerry. Seriously, [delete] him.

JB

Let me cut to the chase: Biden is a spinner extraordinaire. He hasn't a candid bone in his body. This is another example.

This is part of an effort to convince the US electorate the it won't really matter if Kerry is in office insofar as the war on terror. Excuse me, but bullshit. Wishful thinking, the kind guys like Andrew Sullivan are forced to engage in because of issues like gay marriage.

The argument usually goes that Kerry will be forced to continue American policy vis-a-vis Iraq and North Korea. Well, what about emerging threats? What about unforeseen situations that may require bold and decisive action? What about his record of undermining US national security at every turn? History has a way of repeating itself -- he can inflict a thousand small cuts on us, till we bleed to death.

Paul

Rather dumb concept, waiting until the summer of 2003 rather than going in the spring. Our troops were just getting out of their MOPP suits in late April and the temps were already above 100F. Lots of politicians blather about supporting the troops and then completely ignore their well-being. Many would have left them sitting there all summer while Hans Blix found nothing. What would we do then? How many more countries would come on board given that no WMD were being found? Giving the inspectors more time would probably have worked the other way - the pressure to lift sanctions would have increased.

Patrick R. Sullivan

I've had a difficult time taking Biden seriously since I learned he graduated in the bottom 10% of his law school class.

He also has a long history of talking one way--and letting Republicans think he's being so verrrry reasonable about all this--before voting exactly the opposite. The Clarence Thomas confirmation hearings being a good example.

TM

The Wit and Wisdom of Joe Biden.

rebmiami

I remember the Clarence Thomas confirmation hearings. However, it's convincing and you can find yourself falling for it. Biden has a refreshingly candid and direct public demeanor that makes one think of a high echelon member of corporate America or the military or some other sector where things actually get done and not emoted about. However good he sounds though, he votes LLL, doesn't he?

I have the same problem with Graham and Lieberman. With the latter, after his heart rending speech about Clinton's moral failing, he voted with the "it's just sex" crowd.

All that said, I agree that he is one of the very few remaining serious Democrats in this country.

Howard Cornell

Did someone say that signing off on Kyoto would be a symbolic gesture and an appropriate thing to do in a Kerry administration? The next thing Biden and the rest of these nannies will want to do is turn over the Internet to UN governance.

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