Democratic Primaries
In reply to the discussion: Here's a question: what does anyone remember about Biden's campaign in 2008? [View all]karynnj
(59,502 posts)However, he seems not to gain traction.
Personally, I really wanted to support John Kerry, but he was not running. I had hoped that Dodd or Biden would impress me. I had ruled out Edwards, because he was awful in the 2004 general election. I did not want a return to the Clinton drama. I ruled out Richardson for various reasons. I liked Obama, but thought he might do better in a later year after gaining more experience. Dodd was immediately seen as too conflicted with Countrywide to even run for re-election to the Senate.
It was hard to put a finger on why Biden did not gain much traction. Biden was a good guy and he had experience. I really disliked how he ran the SFRC. Unlike Lugar, who usually allowed Senators to continue if they were involved in a productive line of inquiry when their time ended, Biden was pretty rigid. He also annoying thought he had to summarize everything each Senator brought out after his/her turn. Not to mention, he was awful on the Alito hearing including a 26 minute monologue that was almost more Biden than Alito! However, very few people watch Senate hearings for fun. Maybe he just could not convey a compelling reason to prefer him over Clinton or Obama.
So, I tentatively moved to support Obama, but was still concerned. When Kerry and Kennedy both endorsed Obama and made the case that he would be a great President, I was convinced.
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden