Obama chooses veteran Biden as running mate

Published on Saturday 23 August 2008 22:07

US DEMOCRATIC presidential candidate Barack Obama has chosen veteran Delaware Senator Joseph Biden, a leading voice on international affairs, as his vice presidential running mate.

Biden, 65, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, is one of the most knowledgeable Democrats on foreign policy – an area where Obama, a first-term senator from Illinois, has been criticised as inexperienced.

Ending days of speculation, Obama announced the decision on his website, while his campaign office sent a text message and e-mail to supporters.

"Barack has chosen Joe Biden to be his running mate," the announcement said. "Joe Biden brings extensive foreign policy experience, an impressive record of collaborating across party lines, and a direct approach to getting the job done."

Biden, a Roman Catholic originally from the battleground state of Pennsylvania, will bring not only foreign policy expertise to the ticket but strong working-class roots.

That could help Obama connect with the blue-collar voters he has failed to attract in the run-up to the November 4 election against Republican John McCain. Obama and McCain are neck and neck in opinion polls.

Biden's 2008 presidential bid fell flat but he proved a forceful and aggressive debater, fending off some of the toughest criticisms of Republican President George Bush.

The choice of Biden, who was first elected to the Senate in 1972, indicates Obama was more interested in filling gaps in his foreign policy experience than in finding someone who could reinforce his message of bringing change to Washington.

Hillary Clinton, narrowly beaten by Obama in a bitter struggle for the Democratic nomination, welcomed the selection of Biden, who she described as "an exceptionally strong, experienced leader and devoted public servant".

"Senator Biden will be a purposeful and dynamic vice president who will help Senator Obama both win the presidency and govern this great country," she said.

Before he named his No 2, Obama said last week he had chosen someone who would be able to help him govern and who would offer him independent advice. The choice of a running mate can reflect on a candidate's judgment and offer hints of the qualities valued in a crucial adviser, although history has shown it is unlikely to have a major impact on the election between Obama and McCain.

McCain, 71, a Vietnam veteran and long-time senator from Arizona, has yet to name a running mate. The McCain campaign quickly launched an a television ad using a clip from a Democratic presidential candidates' debate earlier this year in which Biden said he did not believe Obama was ready to be president and praised McCain.

Stretching out the suspense for maximum political impact, Obama and a very small circle of advisers kept the decision under wraps all week.

On Thursday, Obama will formally accept the nomination as presidential candidate at the Democratic Party convention that opens tomorrow in Denver, making history as the first black American to do so.