Joe Biden: Vice President of the United States

[33kaitykaity]

Thank you, Joe, for distracting the Cheeto Jesus into wasting 1/14th or more of the remaining time in this race.  Way to go, Joe!!!!!

Quote

 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/donald-trump-joe-biden-gym_us_580fe461e4b02b1d9e63961e

You know when he’s Mr. Tough Guy, when he’s standing behind a microphone by himself,” Trump continued, standing behind a microphone by himself.

“Some things in life you really love doing,” Trump added.

Biden issued the challenge last week in response to a recently disclosed 2005 tape in which Trump brags about sexual predatory behavior. “I wish we were in high school, and I could take him behind the gym,” Biden said. “That’s what I wish.” 

Biden on Tuesday expounded on his remarks in an interview on MSNBC’s “Hardball,” criticizing Trump for dismissing talk of sexual assault as “locker room talk.” 

“The point I was making is he is trying to dumb down, he’s insulting everybody in the neighborhoods I come from and the people who played ball,” Biden told Chris Matthews. “And that was the point I was trying to make. This is just absolutely unacceptable behavior, period.”

 

 

 

(I was surprised Joe didn't have his own thread.)  

[Spartan Girl]

Joe Biden is awesome.

I love how the fembot Kellyanne Conway accused Biden of being the bully for speaking his mind against Trump.  Like he was the one that's been picking on Muslims, Mexicans, women, and pretty much anyone that won't vote for him.  Twit.

[MulletorHater]

I also appreciate that VP Biden recognizes that the Democratic Party abandoned certain voters a while ago and that they should work to get them back.  He's still that guy from Scranton and he knows how to take it to the people.  Not only that, he has never shied away from the administration's accomplishments and actually has that thing seen all too rarely in Democrats--a backbone.

[atomationage]

2 hours ago, Spartan Girl said:

Kellyanne Conway accused Biden of being the bully for speaking his mind against Trump.  Like he was the one that's been picking on Muslims, Mexicans, women,

She learned from her current boss to project his flaws onto others. 

1 hour ago, MulletorHater said:

VP Biden recognizes that the Democratic Party abandoned certain voters a while ago

I think that what the party has abandoned is the past, and is looking to the future.  The process has come full circle in Virginia, and is getting close in North Carolina, which will soon be followed by Georgia and Texas, as the older generation dies out, more immigrants move in, and people from other parts of the country move there.  The places where there is stagnation are more susceptible to the kind of demagoguery that the right wing has been promoting since Reagan or before.   In years past, the old confederate states were in that position, and many still are, but some are coming out of it. 

[Ohwell]

Wow.  Waiting for the "older generation" to die out?  smh 

[Moose135]

I have a very good friend back in New York who used to be a senior staffer for Al D'Amato.  He started working for him when D'Amato was a local official and followed him to DC when he was elected to the Senate.  In describing the conditions in Washington these days, he told me a story about working for the senator.  He said back in the day, D'Amato and Ted Kennedy, as far apart politically as you can imagine, would fight tooth and nail on the floor of the Senate for their respective side of an issue, then on Friday night, they would get together at Joe Biden's place and work out a compromise over a game of cards.  The problem today is the two sides won't even talk to one another.

[starri]

Joe may have his next gig lined up already.  I don't doubt he'd be great at it.  I'm sure he might have ended up in the same job under Obama had he not been Veep.

[zxy556575]

Unpopular opinion, I guess, but I think Biden is a sleaze and have never understood what people see in him. He's overly handsy with women and comes off as avuncular only if you mean the sniggering, insincere type.

[clb1016]

5 hours ago, lordonia said:

Unpopular opinion, I guess, but I think Biden is a sleaze and have never understood what people see in him. He's overly handsy with women and comes off as avuncular only if you mean the sniggering, insincere type.

I might not go so far as to call him a sleaze, but he certainly didn't cover himself in glory during the Clarence Thomas confirmation hearings.  He was chairman of the Committee and instead of showing some support for Anita Hill by taking her at her word, he threw her to the wolves (i.e., the Reps on the Committee).  There was an article earlier this year in Salon--really a review of the HBO film about the confirmation hearings starring Kerry Washington and Wendell Pierce--which references Hill's remarks that there were several other women who were willing and prepared to testify about Thomas' behavior, but Biden didn't call them.

[InDueTime]

We may hear Joe Biden's name again when it comes around to the 2020 election.

http://www.cnbc.com/2016/12/05/joe-biden-predicts-he-will-run-for-president-in-2020-adds-that-he-is-not-yet-committed.html

Edited December 6, 2016 by InDueTime
I left some words out by mistake.

[Ohwell]

I hope he's joking about 2020.  Too late.  He should have run this time!  

[Guest]

31 minutes ago, stewedsquash said:

You and I finally found common ground on the political front!  He is a gropey skeevey put my mouth in your ear and whisper pervert.

Not sure how Trump escapes being lumped into that category. 

3 hours ago, Ohwell said:

I hope he's joking about 2020.  Too late.  He should have run this time!  

Totally agree and I think we would have had a far different outcome. But I think the deal in 2008 was Hillary was to be the only marquee Democrat who would run in 2012. 

[sistermagpie]

19 minutes ago, stewedsquash said:

I put Trump in the makes passes and stops when rebuffed category. I put Biden in the scares the hell out of me even as a grown woman category. 

You know he's been accused of rape more than once, including by his ex-wife under oath. (The then 13-year-old victim recently withdrew her legal complaint stating it was because of death threats.)

I know that doesn't affect how anyone is going to instinctively respond to the two men personally--Biden might still remind you more of your assailants. But the facts suggest that you've absolutely put Trump in the wrong category. He's certainly capable of not stopping when rebuffed.

 

ETA: Trump pretty much courted the gropey skeevy vote. He is their voice.

Edited December 6, 2016 by sistermagpie

[slf]

Biden might, might, do well if the goal is to court back blue collar whites who are centrists and voted for Trump but he's not going to bring out the poc voters who stayed home this election, I'd wager anything, and he'll likely not do well with older black voters. Biden sponsored more drug war laws than any other Democrat since the early '80s...which is almost the beginning of the drug war.

Biden co-sponsored the Comprehensive Control Act in '84 which, among other things, expanded civil asset forfeiture and gave police departments the right to a share of seized assets. Yep. As you can imagine this really gave cops an incentive to make all kinds of "busts" that often didn't produce drugs or guns but resulted in the departments making off with a lot of cash. Police departments all over the country have abused that law with poc being disproportionately affected.

In '86 he co-sponsored the Anti-Drug Abuse Act which was god-awful. It provided mandatory minimum sentences for drugs, mostly famously the crack versus cocaine sentencing disparity. If you were found with 5 grams of crack cocaine you were given five years (without parole) but someone found with powder cocaine had to have 500 grams of it to get the same sentence. Again, as you'd imagine, poc (especially black men) were disproportionately affected and many still consider that law to have been race (and class) biased. That law has put non-violent offenders in prison longer than many murderers and most rapists. He strengthened minimum sentencing and other measures of the '86 bill in the '88 Anti-Drug Bill which also created the "Drug Czar" position.

And then, of course, there's the crime bill. The crime bill. The one HRC's been dragged for even though she didn't write it, didn't (couldn't) vote for it, and was known (and dragged in the press) for opposing it behind closed doors (as per the internal WH memos) but did give a speech in '96 supporting it as she was asked to do for unity. The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act was written by Biden. He didn't co-sponsor it, or 'just' sign it, he actually wrote the damn thing. It provided tens of billions to create new prisons which led to a massive expansion of the federal prison population, to increase border protection, and fund crime prevention programs. It eliminated Pell Grants for prison inmates, criminalized gang membership, increased the number of death penalty crimes, and established the infamous three-strikes provision which mandated life sentences for people with two or more prior convictions who committed a violent felony. Since that bill was passed the prison population has doubled. It also poured funds into police departments which was used to buy military equipment such as armored vehicles and grenade launchers. AKA it led to the militarization of the police. It did have a few good things such as the Violence Against Women Act and a ban on some assault weapons. But it did more bad than good. The militarization of the police has especially proven disastrous. (I still remember veterans on Twitter commenting that the police were rolling on the Ferguson protestors with equipment even soldiers didn't use when in Iraq and Afghanistan.)

Even though crime rates kept dropping going into the '00s he kept voting for harsh anti-drug laws such as wanting a federal crackdown on raves. Because of ecstasy. Zoikes.

I find it hard to believe these bills won't come up, especially given the push to de-escalate the war on drugs (even Republicans have tried to get rid of mandatory minimum sentences) and, again, how disastrous the militarization of police has been. HRC was repeatedly confronted about her involvement which was minimal; she's since repeatedly come out against it and expressed her remorse. Unless people are going to be really sexist about this, well, it's gonna come up. The fact that he's never apologized for the damage done is going to come up. The fact that he's repeatedly bragged about this, even calling the crime bill "The Biden Crime Bill" just last spring, is going to come up. The fact that Joe Biden's son was kicked out of the Navy for testing positive for, you guessed it, cocaine but was given no prison sentence is going to come up.

Now, Obama tapped him and that's going to maybe work to his benefit, especially among millennials who only really know him as Obama's bro in the funny memes. And he did, in '07, introduce legislation that was meant to equalize the penalties for crack and powder cocaine though it didn't pass. He was able to get passed the Second Chance Act which is meant to provide resources to ease a former offender's re-entry into society. But he still defends his crime bills even as almost everyone else associated with them admits they went way too far and ultimately didn't have much of an effect in terms of reducing crime. As experts, especially the Government Accountability Office, have repeatedly noted, increased police presence doesn't generally translate into a decrease in crime. The GAO pointed out that increased employment, growth in income, and an aging of the population were more likely to have contributed. 

I would assume, I would hope, he's come to regret the effects of his bills. That working with Obama for eight years has enlightened him. But he's never expressed any such thing and he'll have to if he wants a second bid for the presidency to be more successful than his first was.

Edited December 6, 2016 by slf

[shok]

Quote

if he wants a second bid for the presidency

Third. He's already run twice before. The first time his bid was hijacked by that phony plagiarism controversy and the second time was the year of Obama.

[Pollock]

4 hours ago, sistermagpie said:

You know he's been accused of rape more than once, including by his ex-wife under oath. (The then 13-year-old victim recently withdrew her legal complaint stating it was because of death threats.)

I know that doesn't affect how anyone is going to instinctively respond to the two men personally--Biden might still remind you more of your assailants. But the facts suggest that you've absolutely put Trump in the wrong category. He's certainly capable of not stopping when rebuffed.

 

ETA: Trump pretty much courted the gropey skeevy vote. He is their voice.

Not only that but Biden is now fiercely engaged in the fight against rape and for the right of the victims to be heard.
I believe personally without any proof of that, really just a belief, that somebody in the White House showed him videos of his behaviour with women and he went to some seminar about harassement, he saw the light and now he's a born-again non gropper. So I forgive him for having lose hands in the past because he's making it right in the present.

Trump blaimed and shamed his victims. Not exactly the same in my opinion. 

[fishcakes]

11 hours ago, sistermagpie said:

You know he's been accused of rape more than once, including by his ex-wife under oath. (The then 13-year-old victim recently withdrew her legal complaint stating it was because of death threats.)

And we have all heard the tape where he not only admits but BRAGS about being a serial sexual predator. We've all heard the tape of him telling Howard Stern that it's fine to refer to his daughter as a "hot piece of ass." We've all seen the video where he says that it would be fine if his daughter posed nude because she's beautiful and if he weren't married, he would date her. We've all seen the video where he speculates about what his infant daughter's breasts might look like when she's older. The only question is how much more of this is there that we haven't heard because there were no recording devices. Trump is a dangerous pervert and there's no defense for him.

By contrast, Joe Biden has a long history and a strong record of working to end violence and sexual assault against women.

Edited December 6, 2016 by fishcakes

[callmebetty]

23 minutes ago, stewedsquash said:

 Biden is a sexual predator, of children and women. He is not reformed, nor has there been an intervention. He is like the Woody Allen of the political world. 

Shit is this true? Where can I find an article on this? I didn't know this. It makes me sad I thought Joe was one of the good ones.

[Ohwell]

I certainly understood Biden not wanting to run in 2016 because he was grieving over the death of his son.  However, my issue with him was that he waited too late to decide not to run.  He waited just long enough for some people like myself who were excited to have him in the race--only for him to let the air out of the balloon.  I don't know if he was joking or not about 2020, but if he is serious, then I won't be voting for him.   Someone else deserves a shot.  Plus, he'd be 77.   

[sistermagpie]

40 minutes ago, stewedsquash said:

Nah, I have them in the correct categories. Trump is a walking talking moron who has no game in the dating and pursuing of women.

Wow. What does having game or dating have to do with anything? Even if you interpret his bus comments as saying that some women just let him do it or would let him do it, that obviously doesn't apply to the women who describe him as raping them or groping them or kissing them without any consent. Or his peeping at women naked and getting away with it because he ran the beauty pageant.  He can commit sexual assault *and* get women to sleep with him because he's on TV or he has money. That one woman's tee-shirt isn't a blanket invitation from every woman everywhere. (Not that Trump would necessarily take her up on that invitation anyway if she's not pretty enough for him.)

40 minutes ago, stewedsquash said:

I am very informed, more so than the average person, about Trump as well as Biden. Trump is not a man without errors but he is not a sexual abuser.  Biden is a sexual predator, of children and women. He is not reformed, nor has there been an intervention. He is like the Woody Allen of the political world. 

Sorry, but this paragraph is bizarre. Trump has multiple women who have accused him of sexual abuse (just as you have described your own abuse). You've never met the man, weren't there, yet claim that you're well-informed about him to say that he's not a sexual abuser? It seems like you're basing your opinion of Biden on your interpretation on what you've at least actually seen him doing, but with Trump you seem to be vouching for his character based on nothing. 

33 minutes ago, fishcakes said:

Trump is a dangerous pervert and there's no defense for him.

He seems literally incapable of evaluating a woman not based on her sexual appeal, even his infant daughter. I don't actually think he's that into sex. I think for him it's more about just the power and getting to judge women. It's like I believe the woman who was fingered by him in the club said--he seemed to just randomly do it because he could. 

More importantly, his campaign and the defense of it is all about normalizing exactly that, defending it as the way men should be and suggesting that women who complain about it (as opposed taking it as a compliment) are "weak." The campaign was all about putting people in their place--women making babies in the kitchen, black people getting frisked, Mexicans behind a wall... Pro-rape is part of the platform.

14 minutes ago, callmebetty said:

Shit is this true? Where can I find an article on this? I didn't know this. It makes me sad I thought Joe was one of the good ones.

I thought they were talking about the stuff on the video linked like where he has his hands on the little girl's shoulders or his huggy and kissy with children--and referencing other moments like that. (He's not famous enough for this to prompt children to start wearing "touch me inappropriately" tee-shirts in response.)

Edited December 6, 2016 by sistermagpie

[Toomuchsoap]

Quote

The problem today is the two sides won't even talk to one another.

That's not the problem. The real issue is this: the fact the rethugs don't want to see progress in the Federal government. They are hell bent for leather to destroy the system. They want to do away with anything that restrains corporate capitalism, and they would be content to abolish the system altogether with the possible exception of the Defense Department - and mostly because continuous war lines the pockets of the likes of Halliburton, GE, Boeing, etc. Anything that benefits the common man, i.e., anyone below the 1%ers, is of no use to them. They want a serf society. And belly-crawlers like Paul Ryan would very happily see your grandmother or my grandfather or me die if it means doing away with Medicare, Social Security, the ACA. They'd just as soon see the entire public education system replaced by private schools, which means, of course, that millions of children will never be educated because their parents will be too poor to pay for those school *vouchers*. But that works to their advantage: a permanent ignorant poor class that will be glad to work those eighteen to 20-hour day coal mining jobs or in an unregulated chicken rendering facility, or picking up garbage in the alleys behind the rich, white folks - who will be the only people who'll have their garbage picked up because those kinds of services won't be available to working poor underbelly of the country. The rethugs plan to live large on the virtually free  labor of the poor. But they've always felt this way. It's nothing new. It's just that since about 1994, they've never been so obvious about it before.

As for Joe Biden, I love the guy, but he needs to quit thinking ridiculously. If he seriously wanted a run at the White House, he should have done it this year. I don't believe he possibly could have defeated tRump. I honestly don't. I think the selection was rigged anyway. Yup. It was rigged all along and the fat Cheeto, ferret-wearing, shitgibbon knew it all along because HE DID IT.

[fishcakes]

19 minutes ago, callmebetty said:

Shit is this true? Where can I find an article on this? I didn't know this. It makes me sad I thought Joe was one of the good ones.

It is not true, although I'm sure if you look around you could find a story on a fake news/propaganda site to "prove" it.

Edited December 6, 2016 by fishcakes

[callmebetty]

1 minute ago, fishcakes said:

It is not true, although I'm sure if you look around you could find a story on a fake news/propaganda site to "prove" it.

Oh good. Whew .  That's why I didn't want to Google. I thought if someone knew of any exact article I could read it. Thanks fishcakes.

[stillshimpy]

Quote

Shit is this true? Where can I find an article on this? I didn't know this. It makes me sad I thought Joe was one of the good ones.

It's not only untrue, it's eye-roll worthy levels of untrue.   He's long been a friend to causes that are empowering for and protective of women.    

Edited December 6, 2016 by stillshimpy

[callmebetty]

23 minutes ago, stillshimpy said:

It's not only untrue, it's eye-roll worthy levels of untrue.   He's long been a friend to causes that are empowering for and protective of women.    

Just so you know, I really didn't believe it was true.  If there was even a whiff of him being Woody Allen like, the media would have been all over it because he's a democrat.  I think it is harmful to inject an opinion as word it as fact, that is very dangerous territory and results in things like what happened at the Pizzeria in DC.  Because I'm a critical thinker and don't just believe everything written on the internet, I wanted further proof, because saying someone is a sexual predator is a serious accusation.  Doesn't mean Joe hasn't had some inappropriate handsy moments, but unless there was a look in his eyes and a history of preying on kids or women I was taking that comment as an opinion.  I almost thought I had missed something in all these years, that I didn't know.

My heart goes out to those who are victims of sexual predators and it is despicable and horrible and nobody should have to go through any harassment or assault, ever.

But you can't just brush away comments from an actual person admitting certain behaviors (i.e. leering at young nude contestants because you can as the boss) and then jump to other conclusions about someone else because of a video or picture.  They both have to be taken to task. 

This is why we have gotten to this point with the BS misnomer of Post-Truth, fuck you it's called a Lie, stop making up fucking words.  We have to start looking at all the lies and truths and dig deeper, not just face value.

Sorry, rant over.

[stillshimpy]

I think Joe Biden can accurately be dinged for having a truly antiquated view of whether or not it is appropriate to hug someone, or physically express warmth and affection for someone, without first asking, "May I give you hug?"  and that's essentially it.   So that is what the otherwise spurious claim is based in.  Dude shouldn't feel as free to hug people, massage their shoulders or in anyway touch someone without their consent first.  However, seeking to sexualize that is a giant, and baseless, accusation. 

 I almost thought I had missed something in all these years, that I didn't know.

No.  You didn't miss anything :-)  

[slf]

12 hours ago, shok said:

Third. He's already run twice before. The first time his bid was hijacked by that phony plagiarism controversy and the second time was the year of Obama.

Which begs the question: has anyone ever lost two previous presidential bids and gone on to win? Lost once before, yes, something like a quarter of presidents. But twice? I'm pretty sure there hasn't been. I mean he's not in Harold Stassen territory or anything, he ran nine or ten times, but a third bid isn't going to be fun.

[stillshimpy]

Reagan ran twice unsuccessfully before winning on his third try.  He ran unsuccessfully in 68 and 76. 

Also, technically  Biden was on the winning presidential ticket twice.  

Edited December 6, 2016 by stillshimpy

[slf]

2 hours ago, stillshimpy said:

Reagan ran twice unsuccessfully before winning on his third try.  He ran unsuccessfully in 68 and 76. 

Ah, I stand corrected. Reagan did win on his third try. Still, I'd reckon he's an exception. 

I don't have strong feelings about him personally either way, though I do think you have to be either callous or so insecure you can't admit you were wrong to continue to defend the drug and crime bills long after their horrible effects have become known. 

Edited December 7, 2016 by slf

[SoSueMe]

Nice to see Biden getting some kudos for work on the cancer moonshot bill. The president speaking on it now.

[film noire]

Never liked Biden, something hinky about the man; the repeated acts of plagiarism, groping women, his slightly off attitude during the Hill/Thomas  hearing -- and now this shit he's spewing about HRC not knowing why she ran - sour grapes from a sour little man. Can't wait for him to exit stage right.