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Biden's Office: No, He Was Not Offered Secretary of State!
Joe Biden's office just put out this statement, doing some quick messaging/damage-control on Jill Biden's declaration today on the Oprah Winfrey show about how Joe was offered either the Vice Presidency or Secretary of State:
"Like anyone who followed the presidential campaign this summer, Dr. Jill Biden knew there was a chance that President-elect Obama might ask her husband to serve in some capacity and that, given his background, the positions of Vice President and Secretary of State were possibilities. Dr. Biden's point to Oprah today was that being Vice President would be a better fit for their family because they would get to see him more and get to participate in serving more. To be clear, President-elect Obama offered Vice President-elect Biden one job only -- to be his running mate. And the Vice President-elect was thrilled to accept the offer."
This sort of statement does seem curious. As ABC News pointed out, Joe Biden himself seemed to imply in a pre-election interview with the New Yorker that he was offered either of the two posts, a statement that hardly seemed controversial before the election -- and before Hillary Clinton's name was thrown into the mix for State.
Hmmm...
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Josh
Matt
Eric
Brian
Does anyone care? Other than the MSM newsmodels?
January 19, 2009 4:57 PM | Reply | Permalink
Excessive contemplation of the tea leaves has given Eric hallucinations. Trippy.
January 19, 2009 6:55 PM | Reply | Permalink
Bidens- it seems- need a crash course on enthusiasm mngmt. Otherwise, no big deal.
I think its true- but why is it so shocking?
Biden- very rightly was a first choice for VP, so why is it so surprising to know he was also the first choice for SoS?
January 19, 2009 5:01 PM | Reply | Permalink
this is the sort of inside politics that most people don't care about. it is also the sort of thing that I find fascinating.
My guess is that it boils down to what the meaning of "offer" is. Some Obama person probably asked a Biden person during the campaign if he was interested in joining the Obama administration and, if so, in which position or positions was he interested. Remember at the time Obama was looking for a VP so when Biden said he was interested in VP Obama eventually offered it to him.
He probably had similar discussions with Hillary and the others. What do you want? What would you accept? etc. Richardson is case in point. He was probably on the short list for SOS but Clinton said yes so he got Commerce before he got shown the door until he figures out his legal situation.
January 19, 2009 5:09 PM | Reply | Permalink
This "sort of inside politics" is important to practitioners of politics, even if it seems silly to us on the outside. Same as Hollywood, where deals are often made on friendship basis and a small slight can derail a big project. Biden and his ol' lady need to learn to keep their yaps shut a little tighter.
January 19, 2009 5:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
As a Hillary lover, I felt a little twinge over the idea that Biden got first choice over which position he wanted and Hill got the leftovers. Would she have been offered VP if Biden turned it down? Would she have been knocked down a notch to Sec of Health or something?
But at this point, I don't care. Obama has assembled one of the best teams in American history. Here's hoping they all adjust to their roles without too many elbow jabs.
January 19, 2009 6:03 PM | Reply | Permalink
I doubt she was seriously considered for vice president --not that anything like that ever came out of the Obama campaign. In my opinion she would have been an ok vice president but I'm much more positive about her ability as SoS. Her style of politics which I see as tough, pragmatic and partisan is a much better match for foreign policy in the Obama administration. I is just my opinion but I think she would be much better than Biden as SoS.
January 20, 2009 3:57 AM | Reply | Permalink
Totally agree about that. I love Joe but he has a habit of walking around with his foot in his mouth. Not that Hillary never makes a mistake, but she's generally much more careful about what she says.
Biden will make a very charming VP and I think Obama will be more likely to listen to his advice on all things than he would Hillary's.
January 20, 2009 12:22 PM | Reply | Permalink
This all took place when a SOS position in an Obama administration would have been completely theoretical. My guess is that Obama might have discussed it as a possibility but at that point in the game, the SOS wasn't the Obama's position to offer.
I agree this is insider, who cares stuff. Chris Mathews was gleefully pushing it on HardBall as his top story.
January 19, 2009 6:07 PM | Reply | Permalink
Is this that big of a deal? It is more about the MSM trying to re-create the supposed Hillary vs Barack fight.
At the time Obama was choosing his VP, it was obvious that he wasn't thinking about Hillary. Also, he may not have been thinking about Hillary for the SOS job at that time. Obama knew that Biden was suppose to be Kerry's SOS if he had won in 2004 so Obama probably asked Biden if VP is an option or would SOS be a better fit if Obama was to win since Biden's forte is foreign policy.
Biden thought about it and said VP would be better for him.
I don't think Obama thought about Hillary for SOS until he and Hillary started campaigning together and started to bond. When that happened he probably thought Hillary is incredibly smart and would be a fantastic SOS. Once Obama won the presidency he seriously thought about it and then asked her.
I really don't see the controversy at all.
January 19, 2009 6:52 PM | Reply | Permalink
I watched the segment on Opra. If Biden wasn't offered his choice of the two positions at the time he was offered VP, not some earlier time, then either he told his wife he was or Jill Biden fabricated the conversation she said they had. This makes the Biden's as desirable as the Palin's to inherit the presidency doesn't it.
January 19, 2009 7:18 PM | Reply | Permalink
>>>This makes the Biden's as desirable as the Palin's to inherit the presidency doesn't it.
Um, no -- actually it doesn't. I wonder which of the several hundreds, if not thousands, of very good reasons you statement is NOT true should be listed first.....?
What I wind up wondering is how long it will take me to stop thinking everytime I see Joe Biden how profoundly, deeply, and overwhelmingly grateful I am that Sarah Palin is not in that position. I still get shaky and a bit nauseous when I think that we came to close to having something like that happen.
January 19, 2009 7:37 PM | Reply | Permalink
"This makes the Biden's as desirable as the Palin's to inherit the presidency doesn't it."
Like Biden and Obama, I am a lawyer. Lawyers think differently from other people. If I asked you, "Which of my cars would you like to buy?" I have not actually offered to sell you a car. You, like Jill Biden, are not a lawyer, and you both might misinterpret that as an offer.
But I am side-stepping the issue - your apparent sour grapes; willing to jump on the slightest hint of an idea of an issue. Get real. People are rarely precise.
Because your comment annoyed me so much, as there is no evidence you thought this through, I am compelled to inform you that it is Oprah, Bidens, and Palins. Take to more time to be thoughtful, in both grammar and content.
January 19, 2009 9:12 PM | Reply | Permalink
Again this is small potatoes in the grand scheme of things.
Does Hillary even care? Nope. For the SOS job it was Kerry vs Richardson and Obama wasn't happy about either one of them so he started really thinking about Hillary.
I actually think that it has worked out for the best. I think that Hillary will be a better SOS than Biden.
January 19, 2009 7:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
YAWN ... Who friggin' cares who was offered what who where or when? Can't you people all just start worrying about solving the country's problems from a new progressive point of view instead of playing these silly games that so entice FoxNews, Politico and Drudge? It would be nice to TPM to stay with the meaty stuff instead.
January 19, 2009 8:57 PM | Reply | Permalink
It was definitely a gaffe on Dr. Biden's part and she was very clear that he "had the choice of whether to be Secretary of State or VP" and then Joe shushed her. I was really suprised when I saw the clip. It's not like there is anything wrong with him being given that choice, but I do think those kinds of inner workings are best kept "inner". It's more curious that his office issued that statement really. What are they worried about? Might Hillary see it as a slight?
Here is the clip from Oprah:
http://www.youtube.com/watchv=6TEzHMhuXyI
at around 1:44 Jill is asked the question then responds with the comment then momentarily looks like a scolded puppy. Personally I find the whole thing rather intriquing.
January 19, 2009 9:25 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yes, I think they are concerned that Hillary -- or, more likely, her supporters -- might take the information amiss. Yes, it wasn't something to be said out loud ..... but on the scale of 'mistakes' it really doesn't count for much, I thought it was rather endearing to see Biden's reaction ... and to note that the first thing he did was give Jill a hug.
Like the poster above, I suspect the conversation was along the line of "I would like you to consider being VP but only if you truly want it - you should know that if you don't accept and I win, I will most likely be offering you SOS" Only difference is, I think Obama would have meant it and followed through. ---- It's evident, and actually been confirmed, that Obama and his team were very impressed by Biden throughout the campaign and wanted him in the administration in a central role. In fact, I assumed that Biden's remaining neutral until after the end of primaries was a recognition that whoever won the nomination, they would have a central role (VP or SOS) for Biden. To Jill Biden, this would certainly have sounded like a "choice" between the two positions. But, it also could not have been an "offer" of SOS because Obama was not in a position to offer it. So the statement is accurate also.
As I've said in a post elsewhere, I believe that the SOS spot is much, much, MUCH better for Hillary herself than VP would have been, and that it is much better for the Obama administration as well, primarily because of Bill since Obama doesn't need to be seen with a former President over his shoulder.
Ah, that something like this was the only "problem" facing the new administration........ I just hope Jill Biden doesn't feel too badly. That would be a shame.
January 19, 2009 10:59 PM | Reply | Permalink
The offer itself is illogical. How can you offer someone VP or SoS? Until you choose a VP and win election you don't need an SoS.
Assuming the question was posed to Biden, it boils down to a different choice: do you want to campaign with me, do the hard work now, and maybe lose, or do you want to wait until I win and get picked as SoS?
Given the keen awareness that most people, including politicians, have about when their supporters jumped on their bandwagon, this seems like a no-brainer to me.
If Joe had said SoS, he would not even have gotten that post. This is poker.
January 19, 2009 10:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
It makes sense if you are offering the job of VP to suggest it is NOT an all or nothing proposal. Certainly, if someone was offered the VP job, he or she would be qualified for a lesser position.
A prospective VP candidate who turned down the job would rightly assume, or perhaps ask, if something like a SOS would also be a possibility. Obama probably had no set cabinet choices in place until the VP choice narrowed the field by one person. I'm sure Joe was weighing this alternative and perhaps Jill took it as an explicit rather than an implicit choice.
Unless Hillary has a very, very, thin skin, I see no controversy here.
January 19, 2009 11:02 PM | Reply | Permalink
You know, somebody's wife spoke out of turn and in her enthusiasm misstated the actual order of things, in ways which could be a little embarassing. Doesn't this happen at most cocktail parties at least once during the evening?
The fact that she did it on Oprah ultimately just provides a lesson to her that she's now going to have to train her tongue a bit more than most people do.
January 20, 2009 12:06 AM | Reply | Permalink
Yes, professors of English composition, like Jill Biden, are quite prone to speaking out of turn at cocktail parties and other events. {insert eye roll here}
Did it ever occur to you that Biden himself may have been the one who 'misstated the actual order of things'? After all, on Oprah Biden went on to say yes, his wife's comments were true.
January 20, 2009 10:18 AM | Reply | Permalink
Three of my best friends - members of my writing group - are professors of English composition. You wouldn't believe some of the stuff that pops out of their mouths sometimes. But they always get their grammar right.
January 20, 2009 12:26 PM | Reply | Permalink
Nice one! Ha-ha!
January 20, 2009 12:45 PM | Reply | Permalink
LOL! That they do.
Maybe Jill was just following Joe's lead with his 'untrained tongue'.
January 20, 2009 2:01 PM | Reply | Permalink
"Did it ever occur to you that Biden himself may have been the one who 'misstated the actual order of things'? After all, on Oprah Biden went on to say yes, his wife's comments were true."
Well, I agree I was shocked that he handled it that way. As I think about it, he didn't even have to lie. He didn't have to say "That's not true," if it is true. He could have said that "Oh now, it's a whole lot more complicated than that I'm afraid, and let's please not go there." And further (I didn't see the clip, but), if it was about actually offering Joe the job, he could have truthfully denied that, too.
I don't retreat from my comment in any way, though. I would say that they both seem to have screwed up, and yes, him worse. And I'd add, "Don't sweat the small stuff." He's gaffe-prone in a big way, and today's no day to be fretting over that.
January 20, 2009 12:43 PM | Reply | Permalink
I imagine Joe was taking a little literary license in telling his wife the story, and she believed it. It's no big deal.
January 20, 2009 9:24 AM | Reply | Permalink
Sounds about right. Plus he didn't properly coach her not to repeat. And no biggie, like you say.
It is the sort of thing that can happen between couples and it requires a lot of discipline to avoid. I wish them both the very best on this magnificent day.
January 20, 2009 12:48 PM | Reply | Permalink