How should we interpret those remarks by Jill Biden ?

[kentuck]

Some folks are quick to call it a "gaffe". However, sometimes, people say exactly what they mean to say. I think it may be the latter with Jill Biden. But why?

Does Joe feel threatened by Hillary? Why the need to tell anyone that Joe had the choice, VP or SOS, and he chose the VP position? Who in the world would be so stupid as to want the Secretary of State's job at this dangerous time? Just how dangerous is it to fly into Islamabad, or Kabul, or Baghdad, or Amman, or Syria, or Riyahd, or even, North Korea? That is not a job any sane person would relish.

One thing that President Obama does not need are personal turf wars that might arise from time to time. He needs his Cabinet to help lead this nation. We may be in a celebratory mood at the moment, but we must reflect on serious problems just ahead. I do believe that we have a President that will do his very best to lead our nation thru these troubled times...

[bertman]

1. Interpret them as honesty from someone who is not schooled in the art of evasion.

She's an educator, not a politician.

[SmileyRose]

2. I know this

if there is any hint that this was a deliberate leak - and a woman married to a career politician for so long would know better IMHO - then Barack will put the smackdown on this and fast. He has to get control of Biden's mouth. Don't misunderstand, I like Biden, a lot, but this CAN'T be tolerated.

[Muttocracy]

3. have you read the New Yorker interview from October?

or did you hear the months of speculation that Biden was "really running for Secretary of State"? Maybe noone was paying attention to the news stories then, and maybe noone would have paid attention if Joe hadn't hushed her today (either to try to be modest, or not to make it seem like a slap at Clinton - which of course the media pounced on - when Jill was trying to explain she wanted her husband in the country).

http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2008/10/20/081020fa_fact_lizza?currentPage=all

On August 6th, Biden said, the Obama campaign “smuggled” him into Minneapolis, where Obama was campaigning, and the two senators stayed up late in a suite at the Graves 601 Hotel working out the details of a potential deal. Obama told Biden that the vetting had gone well—Biden assured me that it was “very complimentary.” Biden happens to be one of the least wealthy members of the Senate, although his family’s joint income was more than three hundred thousand dollars last year. (His wife, Jill, has a doctorate* in education and teaches at Delaware Technical & Community College.) His relatively straightforward tax returns and uncomplicated financial situation made the process easier. “All these years and you still have no money,” Obama said to Biden, teasingly.

The conversation in Minneapolis ranged from foreign policy and possible appointments to the federal courts to the legislative strategy that would be needed to pass an Obama agenda. Obama wanted to know how Biden had managed his signature achievements—such as the 1994 crime bill, which added a hundred thousand federally funded police officers to city streets. He also tested Biden’s understanding of how broad his role would be, as opposed to that of another contender—apparently, Kathleen Sebelius, the governor of Kansas and the only woman known to be on Obama’s short list. “He said, ‘Well, you know, if I offered this to somebody’—he named her, a person—he said, ‘That person would be very happy if I assigned them to reorganize the government.’ And he said, ‘They’d be very happy doing that. How about you?’ ” That didn’t sound like much of a job to Biden. “No,” he told Obama. “That’s not what I want to do.”

Obama also asked Biden whether he thought that he was more suited to a different position. “He said, ‘You have a great interest in national-security policy, foreign policy,’ ” Biden told me. “He wasn’t offering me this, but he said, ‘Would you rather be Secretary of State instead of Vice-President?’ And I thought a lot about that.”

Biden consulted with his closest political advisers, including Ted Kaufman, Mike Donilon, and John Marttila, all of whom have been with him since the early days of his career. “They convinced me that I could have more influence on policy as a Vice-President with Barack,” Biden said. “And so the bottom line of all of this is that I said, ‘Barack, look, if you’re going to ask me to do this, please don’t ask me for any reason other than that you respect my judgment. If you’re asking me to join you to help govern, and not just help you get elected, then I’m interested. If you’re asking me to help you get elected, I can do that other ways, but I don’t want to be a Vice-President who is not part of the major decisions you make.’ ”

[ErinBerin84]

20. thank you.

In addition to this, I had heard this reported dozens of times....Newsweek, Washington post, etc. No one cared when he said it then because it did not involve Hillary. Then, it is perceived as "involving Hillary", and the MSM jumps. It's a non-issue. It's going to be a long four years if everyone believes everything that the MSM tells us about a faux Obama/Biden/Clinton chasm.

[Muttocracy]

23. the same media who when Biden was running for Pres kept asking him about Sec of State

conveniently forgot that. I agree with you - they're scandal junkies, and so are many on DU.

[Bobbieo]

4. Think you just insulted our Secretary of State!!!

[stillcool]

9. Why? I don't get it..

What's wrong with Joe being considered for either position? How does that insult Hillary?

[Bobbieo]

15. C'mon - "This is not a job any sane person would relish!"

[stillcool]

18. yeah..and so?

it's a difficult job, requires lots of traveling, and Joe isn't up to it. Man...it's amazing what people get in a dither over. No wonder no one in D.C. tells the truth.

[Muttocracy]

21. so how on earth did Joe survive all those foreign trips like the one he just took?nt

[stillcool]

24. how did he survive?

He's been doing the shit for years and years. Is it a problem for his wife to say she would prefer him not be gone so much? Why is everything a frigging outrage?

[Muttocracy]

26. you said "it's a difficult job, requires lots of traveling, and Joe isn't up to it."

[stillcool]

28. I mis-spoke... Jill would prefer he not travel..

so much. Frigging shoot her now and get it over with.

[pnwmom]

16. The insult was to say that no sane person would consider the position of SoS. n/t

[stillcool]

22. and no sane person would consider..

the Presidency either..in my opinion. Ah well..get out the pitch forks.

[pnwmom]

31. I don't have a pitchfork.

Will a needle do?

:)

[Bobbieo]

25. "Who would be so stupid to want to be Secretary of State at this

dangerous time" Apparently Hilary was!!!!

[stillcool]

5. as they were said..

what's to interpret other than the hoopla caused over the audacity of Jill saying her husband considered both positions.

[Horse with no Name]

6. I think it was as she said

Obama gave Biden first choice and he took the position which suited him and his family best.
I don't find why this should even be an issue.:shrug:

[TTUBatfan2008]

7. Joe and Hillary are good friends...

I think they'll get along pretty well. I'm sure Hillary will joke around with Joe about the gaffe though. Pretty funny moment.

[babylonsister]

8. Who cares? I'd rather listen to Maya Angelou on PBS. nt

[Muttocracy]

10. "Does Joe feel threatened by Hillary?" - you do know Biden helped convince Clinton to take it? nt

[Occam Bandage]

11. What's there to interpret?

Biden was offered the VP slot, or the SoS slot if he didn't want to be the VP. He chose the VP role, as I would imagine most people would. What's there to discuss?

[Dogmudgeon]

12. Charitably

--p!

[road2000]

29. What is ---p?

Not meant to be challenging; I just can't figure it out.

[Dogmudgeon]

37. A kind of a sig: "--p" for "--Pigwidgeon"

A very old habit from circa 1988. Back then, people tried to make e-mail look like regular correspondence, but a full "Yours Very Truly, Hieronymus T. Lumpenfreser" was a little long. So punctuation and initials were used, like "--htl" or "~htl" or "::htl".

Some people even used "yvt, --htl" for "Yours Very Truly, Hieronymus T. Lumpenfreser". And many businesses who used e-mail early on "strongly suggested" the practice.

It's kind of like saying "I'm done". And it's such an ingrained behavior that stopping it isn't worth the trouble.

I am going to be changing my DU name in a few days, but I will probably still type "--p" for a while until I get used to the new initials.

--p!

[ColbertWatcher]

13. I bet Joe probably exaggerated how his conversation went!

Personally, I don't care, but the GOP-controlled media are having a field day with it.

It's like they've been conditioned to say "Clinton" everyday.

[BlooInBloo]

14. Of course. Everybody feels threatened by the oh-so-powerful Clinton...

Um, not.

[anonymous171]

17. I would pick the VP position because it's less work.

But hey, that's just me.

[Horse with no Name]

19. I'd rather be the Secretary of Wealth

since there isn't any wealth left to watch over...easy job...margaritas and ding dongs all day long!

[John Q. Citizen]

27. She just told it like it is i think. She just spoke from the heart. She wanted VP so Joe would be

local, which is what she said. Family values. She's the real deal and I've always had a soft spot for educators.

Actually, I could see Obama offering either or. He wanted Biden, and he got him.

[EmeraldCityGrl]

30. Refreshingly honest comments from a DC outsider. Thank the Goddess.

She made Hillary flinch no doubt.

[sohndrsmith]

33. yours is my favorite comment : ) And I agree. n'/t

[kentuck]

32. The Secretary of State is the glamour position...

if you have the courage to tackle the biggest problems in the world and to put your name in the history books for your efforts. It's a big job for a big person. Hillary would not have taken the job if she thought it was too much or if she thought she could not do it. She chose to be the Secretary of State.

[Beregond2]

34. Much ado about nothing.

HRC knows how these things happen, and I'm sure she is neither surprised nor insulted. The media is trying to make a mountain out of a molehill as usual.

[kentuck]

35. I think you may be right.

Anyway, with the mess we have in the world today, we need a strong SoS.

[yurbud]

36. it's a dangerous time for us not them

[seabeyond]

38. i saw it.... she saw no reason for "secret". and there wasn't any. she had a point

and started talking. and people made an oooops out of it. i can easily see obama saying to biden sos or vp. he is qualified and good and asset for either position. he talked to wife, they chose vp.

the sensitive hillary thing.... no need to say anything. then it is said. made into a deal

hillary was involved at the point with biden/obama and i dont see it as any big deal at all. or relevant.