Senate Judiciary Committee

Osama Bin Laden’s Delusions About Joe Biden

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The Washington Post reports that Osama Bin Laden had conspired to kill President Barack Obama and General David Petraeus before having the plot cut short by his being killed by Navy Seals last May.

The concept that this was being plotted is certainly conceivable, but it is astounding that Osama Bin Laden had such delusions that he could accomplish this in real time, and also his statement that Joe Biden was “totally unprepared” to be President, so that it would set back the American government if Obama was assassinated.

It is obvious that Osama Bin Laden had no clue as to the depth of experience and knowledge that Vice President Joe Biden represents.

It is a fact that Joe Biden has had more years of experience and leadership in Congress than any Vice President who served before him!

Joe BIden was one of the longest serving US Senators with his six terms and 36 years in office, and he was Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the Senate Judiciary Committee at different points of his tenure in the Senate.

Joe Biden was involved in every major issue and controversy of his three and a half decades in the national spotlight.

What other Vice President can claim this breadth and depth of experience? Again, the answer is NONE!

Most Vice Presidents historically have been nonentities in their significance in the office and in their experiences before the Vice Presidency. Very few stand out historically before their term or terms as Vice President.

The Vice Presidency was an office of insignificance until Richard Nixon made it an important office under President Dwight D. Eisenhower in the 1950s, due to Nixon’s own ambition and intelligence, and Eisenhower’s willingness to allow Nixon a major role in government affairs.

Since Nixon, we had Lyndon B. Johnson, Hubert Humphrey, Gerald Ford, Nelson Rockefeller, Walter Mondale, George H. W. Bush, Al Gore, and Dick Cheney as major figures in the Vice Presidency, although only Rockefeller, Mondale, Bush, Gore and Cheney really added to the office and its influence. And Spiro Agnew and Dan Quayle actually subtracted from the office with their mediocre performance in the Vice Presidency.

Earlier Vice Presidents who were influential included John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, John C. Calhoun, Martin Van Buren, and Henry A. Wallace, with Calhoun and Wallace the only ones who never made the Presidency.

But NONE of these Vice Presidents listed above had the total combination of years of influence and significance of Biden, although certainly one would not argue the importance of Adams, Jefferson and Calhoun.

The point that is being made is that Joe Biden is perfectly qualified and prepared to take over the Presidency in an emergency, is a real asset to the nation and President Barack Obama, and should not be dismissed as a possible candidate for President in 2016, even though he would be 74 in that year.

Unlikely that Biden would run for or become President, but he has often been taken too lightly, and that is a mistake on the part of his skeptics, as well as the LATE Osama Bin Laden!

Republicans, Women, And Domestic Violence: Beyond Belief!

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In 1994, the Congress passed and President Bill Clinton signed into law the Violence Against Women Act, a measure designed to combat domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking of women. It was a totally bipartisan effort, widely hailed as an important step in protection of women.

In 2000 and in 2005, the law was renewed with bipartisan support again. It was not a political issue based on party.

But now in 2012, not a single Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee voted to reauthorize the legislation, an absolutely unbelievable development.

Those Republicans on the Judiciary Committee include: Chick Grassley of Iowa, the ranking member; Orrin Hatch of Utah; Jon Kyl of Arizona; Jeff Sessions of Alabama; Lindsey Graham of South Carolina; John Cornyn of Texas; Mike Lee of Utah; and Tom Coburn of Oklahoma.

How in the world can any of these senators justify this refusal to support a renewal? What is wrong with these people that they do not think women need continued protection from abusive fathers, brothers, boyfriends, and husbands, as well as stalkers? Why is it that whenever women are the issue, Republicans, both men and women as well, do not think women should be protected by federal law?

Apparently, the Republicans disagree on the provisions to protect gay and transgender people, and also to protect undocumented immigrant women who are victims of violence. It is part of their anti gay and anti immigrant agenda, but really, this is simply an issue of human rights, and in the 21st century, to have such a narrow minded and intolerant view of women’s rights, because some might be from certain groups rejected by some, is unconscionable!

Apparently, there are no limits to the refusal of Republicans to promote any bipartisanship on anything! How any self respecting woman can support the Republican Party after this insult, as well as others recently on birth control, contraception, and other issues of women’s health, is beyond understanding.

Vice President Joe Biden Suggests A Possible Candidacy For President In 2016

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To the surprise of many observers, Vice President Joe Biden has suggested on a CNN interview with Candy Crowley that he might run for President in 2016, to succeed his boss, President Barack Obama.

Why is this surprising? It is because after two failed Presidential candidacies in 1988 and 2008, it was figured that Biden was just happy to be Vice President, play a crucial role in the Obama Administration, and then retire after two terms as Vice President at the age of 74.

But instead, Biden makes it clear that he is feeling good, enjoying his work, and will consider another run for the top spot.

How should one react to this? The author wishes to leave no doubt of his great admiration for Joe Biden, thrilled that he is playing a major role under Barack Obama, and convinced that he is adding to the stature and growth of the Vice Presidency. And Joe Biden has a winning personality–warm, gregarious, friendly, reachable–and has tremendous contacts and links to people on Capitol Hill. He is, in many ways, a more charming and charismatic Lyndon Johnson without the rough edges of the 36th President. He has tremendous experience, and in fact, would be by far the most experienced ever of any Presidential candidate, even surpassing Johnson, Bob Dole, and Henry Clay, among others. He would literally have 44 years of service in government by 2016, 36 in the Senate, making him one of the longest serving in that body’s history, plus eight active years as Vice President.

Having been Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the Senate Judiciary Committee at different times, Biden would have a background that could not be matched by any Democratic or Republican opponent. He has the distinction of being the sixth youngest US Senator upon taking the oath, but the second youngest of all when one considers direct popular vote of the people after 1913, under the 17th Amendment.

His lifetime of service would be capped by four to eight years as President, but he would also be the oldest first term President at 74, and if he had two terms, would leave office as the oldest President in history. Only Ronald Reagan was elected in his 70s, and served two terms to just short by a few weeks of his 78th birthday, with Bob Dole being 73 when he ran, and John McCain being 72 when he was nominated.

The question is whether his health would hold up for the next five years and through a theoretical four to eight years after that. He would certainly be challenged by a new generation of leadership in his party, and his age might be a detriment. And since he is prone to gaffes and misstatements after so many years in office, and being extremely conversational by nature, he could have major problems in succeeding toward his goal.

One thing is certain–that if Joe Biden chose to run for President in 2016, it would be a fascinating run, whether he succeeded in his goal to be nominated and elected, or was retired after 44 years of distinguished service.