posted October 03, 2008 02:30 PM            

This is not a ceremonial title. The Vice President is the permanent President of the Senate and when the VP is not in the Senate a "President pro tempore" is the highest ranking member in the Chamber. But, when the Vice President is in the Senate...and that's any damned time he/she chooses to be present, they are the highest ranking official in the Senate of the United States.

Joe Gaffe O'Biden doesn't know that. The question is...how could O'Biden, attorney and Senator not know that?

So much for O'Biden's experience and knowledge. O'Biden thinks the only time the VP has any function in the Senate is when there's a tie vote. Then, the VP can come and break the tie.

The truth is that the VP "presides over the Senate".

posted October 03, 2008 02:48 PM            

You saved me the trouble of investigating it myself. I didn`t know that and was curious but, then again, I am not running for V.P.

juni

------------------
~
What we do for ourselves dies with us. What we do for others and the world is immortal"~

posted October 03, 2008 03:04 PM            

Apparently, the moderator didn't know that either and let Biden gaffe on for a while.

posted October 03, 2008 03:44 PM            

quote:

---

O'Biden thinks the only time the VP has any function in the Senate is when there's a tie vote. Then, the VP can come and break the tie.

---

posted October 03, 2008 03:52 PM            

He said what he said and I reported what he said accurately.

posted October 03, 2008 04:13 PM            

"And the primary role of the vice president of the United States of America is to support the president of the United States of America, give that president his or her best judgment when sought, and as vice president, to preside over the Senate, only in a time when in fact there's a tie vote. The Constitution is explicit.

The only authority the vice president has from the legislative standpoint is the vote, only when there is a tie vote." - Joe Biden

Why don't you line out for us what the President Pro Tempore does, and list for us the reasons why the Vice President would want to show up for that duty? And then why don't you go ahead and tell us exactly how friendly Senators are to hearing from the Vice President on legislation.

posted October 03, 2008 04:49 PM            

O'Biden:
"and as vice president, to preside over the Senate, only in a time when in fact there's a tie vote. The Constitution is explicit."

The Vice President of the United States can preside over the Senate of the United States any damned time the VP chooses to do so...tie vote or not. The VP can walk into the Senate chamber any time, take the gavel and preside over debate, over votes, over Senate speeches or any damned thing else going on in the Senate chamber...any time. The VP can rule on "points of order", keep track of speakers time and end debate when time allocated by the majority party/Majority Leader has expired.

Just because the VP in recent times has not routinely exercised those rights doesn't mean the VP doesn't have them. O'Biden is a disgrace as a 38 year Senator to make such a mistake or tell such a whopping lie.

Biden gets veep role wrong
Stephen Dinan
Friday, October 3, 2008

Democratic vice presidential nominee Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. appeared to incorrectly outline the constitutional role of the job he's seeking in Thursday's debate.

In attacking Vice President Dick Cheney, Mr. Biden said the vice president's only role is to support the president and to preside over the Senate "only in a time when in fact there's a tie vote. The Constitution is explicit."

The Constitution, though, actually says the vice president is always president of the Senate and legal scholars say he has the right to preside at any time. Early vice presidents, such as Thomas Jefferson, actively exercised that role, the vice president still keeps offices at the Capitol, and scholars say it wasn't until the middle of the 20th century that the vice president had an office at the executive office building.

The president pro tempore, usually the senior senator from the majority party, takes over only when the vice president is absent. In recent practice, as the vice president has taken a bigger role in the executive, that's meant the Senate operates almost all of the time without the vice president in the chair.

The Obama campaign didn't return a message for comment left late Thursday, after the debate.

For her part Republican vice presidential nominee Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin said she plans to take the vice president's role of president of the Senate seriously.

"I'm thankful the Constitution would allow a bit more authority given to the vice president if that vice president so chose to exert it in working with the Senate and making sure that we are supportive of the president's policies and making sure too that our president understands what our strengths are," she said.

Mr. Biden, who's been in the Senate for three decades, also mistakenly stated that the executive branch is defined in Article I of the Constitution. In fact, Article I describes the legislature, while Article II lays out the executive.
http://washingtontimes.com/news/2008/oct/03/biden-gets-veep-role-wrong/

posted October 03, 2008 05:35 PM              

I can't remember who made the Dolores Umbridge connection, but it was a good call.

posted October 03, 2008 05:36 PM            

quote:

---

The Vice President of the United States can preside over the Senate of the United States any damned time the VP chooses to do so...tie vote or not.

---

That's true. However, its a perfect waste of time for a Vice President to do so. The likelihood of a tie is what? 1 in 100? So, as that's the only time the VP's opinion comes into play, what is the practical use of being there?

quote:

---

O'Biden is a disgrace as a 38 year Senator to make such a mistake or tell such a whopping lie.

---

posted October 03, 2008 06:01 PM            

"Cheney is the most dangerous VP in US history...."

blah blah...

I think where he was going with that "preside" thing was that he does not need the senate and vice versa, he will rather be around the inexperienced ,backbencher , former junior senator Obama and helping him...

posted October 03, 2008 06:11 PM            

We ain't stupid Biden. Good try.

The guy entered congress when he was 30....No 29.5 (illegally) ... He is full of bull. Just another, hard core disfunctional congressman who succumbs to fear mongering and herd mentality rather than standing for people.

posted October 03, 2008 06:51 PM            

Oh do try to concentrate acoustic. The issue here is O'Biden's remark which was either made in total ignorance of the Constitutional duties of the Vice President or...it was a whopping lie. Either/or..or both and I really don't give a flip which.

posted October 03, 2008 07:14 PM            

Obama's supporters/media friends are now ready to drink the bath water in which even Biden bathes LOL

quote:

---

First of all, Biden gets wrong one of the most basic facts about the Constitution: Article 1 establishes the legislative branch, not, as Biden said, the executive branch. The Vice President is mentioned in Article II as part of the executive branch, but he is also given legislative powers by Section 3 of Article 1, which establishes the Senate: The Vice President of the United States shall be President of the Senate, but shall have no Vote, unless they be equally divided. Vice President Cheney's "bizarre notion" is in keeping with the plain text of the Constitution.

A rather odd statement coming from someone who has served in Congress for three decades and since 1991 has taught a seminar on constitutional law at Widener University Law School in Wilmington. For his students’ sake, I hope that question isn’t on their law boards.

Come to think of it, Aaron Burr not Dick Cheney was “the most dangerous Vice President in history” – Burr actually killed the person he shot at.

---

Blogged from here

posted October 09, 2008 05:41 PM            

This involves the security of the United States and the security of Europe at a time when the Soviet Union still existed.

We get a glimpse of Biden's mindset as well as his nature which is consistent with talking out of both sides of his mouth at the same time...and pretending to adhere to the wishes of US citizens, while actually selling them out.

I can already hear the defenses raised for Biden. "That's old news".

October 09, 2008
Shocking revelations about Biden in Soviet-era documents
Rick Moran

If John McCain had done something like this, it would be front page news and doom his candidacy:

From Hot Air:

According to internal Soviet Union documents from the SALT-2 negotiations in 1979, Joe Biden effectively told Soviet negotiators not to worry about American rhetoric about human-rights concerns. In fact, Biden also told the Soviets that the Senate didn't really care about European security, but only in giving the appearance of caring about it. Vladimir Bukovsky and Pavel Stroilov parse the dispatch from the deputy head of the International Department of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union for Front Page Magazine.
http://www.frontpagemag.com/Articles/Read.aspx?GUID=FAFBC6E1-E810-4A0B-9011-C6825DCCCB45

The quote is absolutely devastating. From the Frontpage article linked above:

The delegation did not officially raise the issue of human rights during the negotiations. Biden said they did not want ‘to spoil the atmosphere with problems which are bound to cause distrust in our relations.' However, during the breaks between the sessions the senators passed to us several letters concerning these or those ‘refuseniks'. ...

Unofficially, Biden and [Senator Richard] Lugar said that, in the end of the day, they were not so much concerned with having a problem of this or that citizen solved as with showing to the American public that they do care for ‘human rights'. They must prove to their voters that they are ‘effective in fulfilling their wishes'. In other words, the collocutors directly admitted that what is happening is a kind of a show, that they absolutely do not care for the fate of most so-called dissidents.

In the same conversation, Biden asked us to ensure that senators' appeals on those issues are not left unanswered - even if we just reply that the letter is received but we cannot do anything.

At a time when Democrats were insisting that Human Rights be a primary issue in the Salt II negotiations, Biden throws the dissidents and refuseniks under the bus, not to mention downplaying our security relationship with Europe - almost inviting the Soviets to invade.

And as Ed Morrissey points out:

If Biden sold out the refuseniks while he and his party screeched about their plight, then he has already demonstrated a lack of resolve and character for higher office. Biden needs to explain himself.

Biden will only have to explain himself if the media picks up the story. What do you think the chances of that happening are?

posted October 16, 2008 01:59 PM            

Now, O'Biden says "J O B S" is a 3 letter word. No kidding.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bq-eeWow_WU

posted October 16, 2008 02:03 PM            

I don't take any democrats seriously. I donated to Hillary's campaign to keep Obama out.

posted October 21, 2008 04:05 PM            

So now, O'Biden is predicting an international crisis...to test O'Bomber..within 6 months. He says the actions he and O'Bomber will take will seem to be the wrong actions and unpopular...but just bear with us folks cause we'll be right.

He further says O'Bomber supporters will need to go out into their communities to show their support for O'Bomber/O'Biden policy...in that very difficult situation.

Shades of Hitler's Brown Shirt army...which O'Bomber has already proposed...along with a Hitler like O'Bomber youth corps.

How about this boys and girls. Let's avoid all that and elect a President the rest of the world already knows not to try to screw with in the first place? Let's elect an American who will not send Americans out into their communities "to get in the faces of other citizens"...which O'Bomber has already done.

O'Biden is the gaffe machine gift which keeps on giving.

Biden to Supporters: "Gird Your Loins", For the Next President "It's Like Cleaning Augean Stables"
October 20, 2008 7:35 AM
ABC News' Matthew Jaffe Reports

Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del., on Sunday guaranteed that if elected, Sen. Barack Obama., D-Ill., will be tested by an international crisis within his first six months in power and he will need supporters to stand by him as he makes tough, and possibly unpopular, decisions."Mark my words," the Democratic vice presidential nominee warned at the second of his two Seattle fundraisers Sunday. "It will not be six months before the world tests Barack Obama like they did John Kennedy. The world is looking. We're about to elect a brilliant 47-year-old senator president of the United States of America. Remember I said it standing here if you don't remember anything else I said. Watch, we're gonna have an international crisis, a generated crisis, to test the mettle of this guy." "I can give you at least four or five scenarios from where it might originate," Biden said to Emerald City supporters, mentioning the Middle East and Russia as possibilities. "And he's gonna need help. And the kind of help he's gonna need is, he's gonna need you - not financially to help him - we're gonna need you to use your influence, your influence within the community, to stand with him. Because it's not gonna be apparent initially, it's not gonna be apparent that we're right."Not only will the next administration have to deal with foreign affairs issues, Biden warned, but also with the current economic crisis. "Gird your loins," Biden told the crowd. "We're gonna win with your help, God willing, we're gonna win, but this is not gonna be an easy ride. This president, the next president, is gonna be left with the most significant task. It's like cleaning the Augean stables, man. This is more than just, this is more than – think about it, literally, think about it – this is more than just a capital crisis, this is more than just markets. This is a systemic problem we have with this economy." The Delaware lawmaker managed to rake in an estimated $1 million total from his two money hauls at the downtown Sheraton, the same hotel where four years ago Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., clinched the Democratic nomination. Despite warning about the difficulties the next administration will face, Biden said the Democratic ticket is equipped to meet the challenges head on."I've forgotten more about foreign policy than most of my colleagues know, so I'm not being falsely humble with you. I think I can be value added, but this guy has it," the Senate Foreign Relations chairman said of Obama. "This guy has it. But he's gonna need your help. Because I promise you, you all are gonna be sitting here a year from now going, 'Oh my God, why are they there in the polls? Why is the polling so down? Why is this thing so tough?' We're gonna have to make some incredibly tough decisions in the first two years. So I'm asking you now, I'm asking you now, be prepared to stick with us. Remember the faith you had at this point because you're going to have to reinforce us." "There are gonna be a lot of you who want to go, 'Whoa, wait a minute, yo, whoa, whoa, I don't know about that decision'," Biden continued. "Because if you think the decision is sound when they're made, which I believe you will when they're made, they're not likely to be as popular as they are sound. Because if they're popular, they're probably not sound."

Biden emphasized that the mountainous Afghanistan-Pakistan border is of particular concern, with Osama bin Laden "alive and well" and Pakistan "bristling with nuclear weapons.""You literally can see what these kids are up against, our kids in that region," Biden said in recalling when his helicopter was forced down due to a snowstorm there. "The place is crawling with al Qaeda. And it's real." "We do not have the military capacity, nor have we ever, quite frankly, in the last 20 years, to dictate outcomes," he cautioned. "It's so much more important than that. It's so much more complicated than that. And Barack gets it."After speaking for just over a quarter of an hour, Biden noticed the media presence in the back of the small ballroom. "I probably shouldn't have said all this because it dawned on me that the press is here," he joked."All kidding aside, these guys have left us in a God-awful place," he then said of the Bush regime, promptly wrapping up his remarks. "We have the ability to straighten it out. It's gonna take a little bit of time, so I ask you to stay with us. Stay with us." http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalradar/2008/10/biden-to-suppor.html

posted October 21, 2008 11:26 PM            

It's not that there's anything off limits in discussions here...except for those subjects Randall decides are unfit topics.

The fact is that dressing Bush up in a Nazi uniform and attempting to tie George W Bush to Hitler is a non starter...a lie.

Fact, Prescott Bush was Fritz Thyssen's banker..Brown and Harriman I believe. Thyssen broke with Hitler well before WWII and Thyssen paid a heavy price for doing so...and I don't mean the loss of a house or a car or a bank account. Hitler confiscated the entire array of Thyssen's industrial empire...lock, stock and barrel.

Now, if someone wants to play that kind of game, then I'm up for connecting Franklin Delano Roosevelt to Al Capone and I can make a much tighter connection between Roosevelt and Capone than can be made between George W Bush and Hitler.

posted October 21, 2008 11:52 PM            

quote:

---

Newly released medical records from vice presidential candidate Joe Biden do not include the results of any recent brain scans, which some experts consider necessary to assess whether the senator is at risk for a repeat of the brain aneurysms that nearly killed him 20 years ago.

Biden's most recent physical exam in July showed him to be in good health, according to a letter from Dr. John Eisold that the campaign released Monday. The letter from Eisold, who is the attending physician for Congress, described Biden's cardiac capacity as excellent.

But the 49 pages of records the campaign released gave no indication that Biden's doctors sought follow-up tests after the serious aneurysms he suffered in 1988. Medical experts are divided over the need for such precautionary brain scans, but many feel it is the only way to be sure a patient is out of danger.

"If this was my patient, I would re-image every three to five years to make sure no new aneurysm had cropped up," said Dr. Mark Alberts, a professor of neurology at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine.

---

This explains his auto gaffes.

I heard Obama is suffering from sickle cell anaemia, and hence his lips are purple

Dumb and Dumber, what a comedy team.

posted October 22, 2008 10:12 AM            

O'Bomber has also released a statement from his doctor saying all is well.

posted October 22, 2008 06:04 PM            

If the prospect of Joe Biden sitting a heartbeat away from the presidency doesn’t give you palpitations, you are not paying attention.

Hysterical Sarah Palin-bashers on the unhinged Left and Elitist right have dominated campaign press coverage and pop culture. They’ve ridiculed her family, her appearance, and her speech patterns. They’ve derided her character, her parenting skills, her readiness, and her intellect.

Meanwhile, the increasingly erratic, super-gaffetastic Joe Biden gets a pass. What does the guy have to do to earn the relentless scrutiny and merciless mockery he deserves? Answer: wear high heels, shoot caribou and change the “D” next to his name to an “R.”

Team Obama is hammering John McCain as “erratic” in the closing days of the election campaign. There are now 615,000 Google hits and counting using the search terms “erratic McCain.” Last week, the New York Times devoted an entire article to the Obama-Biden line of attack, titled “In Friendly Region, Biden Cites McCain as Erratic.”

Who’s erratic? Throughout the primary and general election cycles, Biden has lurched from attacking Obama as not ready for prime time (“The presidency is not something that lends itself to on-the-job training.” — September 2007) to ready to lead (“Barack Obama is ready. This is his time.” — August 2008) and back again.

This week, Biden warned America that an Obama victory would invite a dangerous global showdown between tyrants and the naif Obama. “Mark my words,” Biden said Sunday at a Democratic fundraiser. “It will not be six months [after the inauguration] before the world tests Barack Obama like they did John Kennedy.” In a follow-up appearance, he told supporters to brace for the worst and “gird your loins.”

Out of Biden’s mouth, this is called candor. Out of anyone else’s mouth, it would be “fear-mongering,” “negative campaigning” and a “distraction.”

Tooting his own horn while vandalizing his running mate’s, Biden bragged: “I’ve forgotten more about foreign policy than most of my colleagues know.” Yeah. Colleagues like that guy who had a mere 143 days of Senate experience before launching his presidential bid and choosing you to shore up his meager credibility, Joe.

In fact, Biden has spent the entire campaign questioning his running mate’s judgment. Last month, he mused out loud: “Hillary Clinton is as qualified or more than I am to be vice president of the United States of America. … She is easily qualified to be vice president of the United States of America, and quite frankly it might have been a better pick than me.” Biden assailed the campaign’s position on clean coal, openly criticized the campaign’s idiotic ad attacking McCain for not using e-mail and warned the pro-gun control Obama that “if he tries to fool with my Beretta, he’s got a problem.”

Dan Quayle will have “POTATOE” etched on his gravestone. But how many times have late-night comedians and cable shows replayed the video of senior statesman and six-term Sen. Biden’s own spelling mishap last week while attacking McCain’s economic plan?

“Look, John’s last-minute economic plan does nothing to tackle the No. 1 job facing the middle class, and it happens to be, as Barack says, a three-letter word: jobs. J-O-B-S.”

No, Joe. “D’-O-H” is a three-letter word.

Nightly news shows still haven’t tired of replaying Palin’s infamous interview with Katie Couric. But how many times have they replayed Biden’s botched interview with Couric last month — in which he cluelessly claimed: “When the stock market crashed, Franklin D. Roosevelt got on the television and didn’t just talk about the, you know, the princes of greed. He said, ‘Look, here’s what happened.’”

Er, here’s what really happened: Roosevelt wasn’t president when the market crashed in 1929. As for appearing on TV, it was still in its infant stages and wasn’t available to the general public until at least ten years later.

During the lone VP debate earlier this month, the increasingly erratic, super-gaffetastic Biden demonstrated more historical ignorance that Palin would never be allowed to get away with: “Vice President Cheney’s been the most dangerous vice president we’ve had probably in American history,” he said. “He has the idea he doesn’t realize that Article I of the Constitution defines the role of the vice president of the United States, that’s the executive — he works in the executive branch. He should understand that. Everyone should understand that.”

Article 1 of the Constitution defines the role of the legislative branch, not the executive branch. You would think someone who has served 36 years in government — the same someone who is quick to remind others of his high IQ and longtime Senate Judiciary Committee chairmanship — would know better.

Biden’s erratic and gaffetastic behavior is the least of America’s worries. He’s worse than a blunderbuss. He’s an incurable narcissist with chronic diarrhea of the mouth. He’s a phony and a pretender who fashions himself a foreign-policy expert, constitutional scholar, and worldly wise man. He’s a man who can’t control his impulses.

And he could be a heartbeat away.