Biden: Clinton might have been the better running mate

At a town hall, Joe Biden -- famous for not quite knowing when to keep quiet -- said, "Hillary Clinton is as qualified or more qualified than I am."

Published September 10, 2008 9:15PM (EDT)

Even with all the advantages Joe Biden brought to the Democratic ticket, he also came with one major disadvantage: Sometimes the guy just doesn't know when to stop talking. So political observers -- not to mention, surely, a few worried Democrats -- have been watching and waiting for him to make one of his patented gaffes.

Boy, did Biden come up with a whopper today. If you listen closely enough, you can almost hear the telltale intake of breath coming from Obama-Biden headquarters. It's the sound of a whole bunch of people getting punched in the solar plexus at once.

CNN's Alexander Marquardt reports that at a town hall meeting on Wednesday, one person in attendance said he was glad that Biden had been chosen as Barack Obama's running mate over Hillary Clinton. Biden responded "testily," according to Marquardt, saying:

Make no mistake about this, Hillary Clinton is as qualified or more qualified than I am to be vice president of the United States of America. Let's get that straight.

She's a truly close personal friend and she is qualified to be president of the United States of America; she's easily qualified to be vice president of the United States of America and quite frankly [she] might have been a better pick than me.

Still, there is a bright side. At least he didn't call anyone "clean" or "articulate."


By Alex Koppelman

Alex Koppelman is a staff writer for Salon.

MORE FROM Alex Koppelman


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2008 Elections Hillary Rodham Clinton Joe Biden War Room