It’s Good For Hillary If Biden Runs

This week saw Vice President Joe Biden make the rounds on the talk show circuit and fuel speculation about his 2016 plans. It’s hardly a secret that he wants to be president, badly. Hillary Clinton supporters will be tempted to be upset by such a move but they shouldn’t be. A primary contest against someone — especially someone like Joe Biden– could do her campaign a lot of good.

1. It will allow Hillary to better position herself for the general election. Biden will run to the left of both her and President Obama, allowing her to run as a centrist Democrat. This will also take advantage of Bill Clinton’s centrism and Democratic Leadership Council (DLC) leanings. It will be harder to paint her as a radical liberal, as the GOP will try to do, after such a primary.

2. It puts some distance between Hillary and the Obama administration. Her presidency won’t be the “ 3rd Obama term” Republicans want to make it out to be. In 2016, she will have been out of the current administration for more than four years while Biden will still be vice president. She can more easily show highlight the differences in her ideology and plan for the country after running in a primary against someone who has been such a key participant throughout Obama’s entire presidency. This isn’t about bashing Obama. Rather, it  showcases her plans, ideas and vision and how they differ from Obama’s.

3. It will provide good practice for the general election. No pro-athlete goes into a big competition without practicing. Why should presidential politics be any different? Biden and Hill are good friends and have known each other for years. Early  in her tenure as Secretary of State, before she developed her own relationship with the president, Biden was often the go-between. There is no reason to believe a primary between these two would devolve into acrimony and bitterness. Theirs would be a contest centered on substance, not personal attacks. In that respect, it will allow her to hone her skills and sharpen her arguments making her better prepared for a fight against the Republicans in the fall of 2016.

4. It diminishes President Obama’s influence, especially in areas where he is most unpopular. Bill Clinton won states that Barack Obama lost such as Tennessee, Louisiana and Kentucky. Senator Rand Paul may think Bill Clinton is not welcome in his home state, but Arkansans seem to like him. Hillary may not win those states but she could force the GOP to spend money and time in places they’d rather not be, and give her a clearer shot in other states.

Vice President Joe Biden is clearly qualified to be president and badly wants to hold the position; he has wanted that forever and is not ready to leave the world stage. His run could help insure a Hillary Clinton win, sway voters to give the Democrats both houses of Congress and perhaps position himself for a high profile role in her administration (Secretary of State?). The 2016 nomination looks to be Hillary’s for the taking, even more so than in 2008. Her supporters should not bristle at the thought of Biden jumping in, but regard it as providing opportunities for her to become a stronger candidate for what will be a difficult general election fight.

By: Alyson Chadwick

Alyson Chadwick is a political/news junkie and New Yorker transplanted to Washington, DC and currently working in Florida. Her career has included work on five presidential cycles, both sides of Capitol Hill, the 2012 Democratic Convention, Clinton White House, United Nations and multiple local and statewide campaigns. She is also a sad Met fan, which could be the most redundant sentence ever.