Clinton eyeing Biden as her secretary of state, source says
Politico reports that Democratic nominee, who is leading in polls, is ‘strategizing’ on how to get popular VP on board
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Hillary Clinton is reportedly aiming to make Vice President Joe Biden her secretary of state if she wins the presidential election on November 8, as is widely predicted.
According to the Politico website, Biden tops “the internal short list” for the post currently being compiled by the former secretary’s transition team, who are “strategizing about how to make the approach to the vice president.” The report said Biden was unaware of the push to keep him in the upper echelons of government when his term as vice president ends.
A source familiar with the Clinton campaign told Politico that the transition team “are spending a lot of time figuring out the best way to try to persuade him to do it if she wins.”
The 73-year-old Biden spent 36 years as a senator for Delaware before becoming vice president, during which time he headed the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He is also the Obama administration figure considered closest to Israel and the pro-Israel community. Earlier this month, he spoke at a memorial for Shimon Peres at a Washington, DC synagogue.
The vice president, who at one point considered his own run for the Oval Office, has been a strong presence in Clinton’s campaign, along with the president, First Lady Michelle Obama and other Democratic leading lights.
Last week, he expressed outrage at Republican nominee Donald Trump’s now infamous comments about grabbing women without consent, saying he wished they “were in high school,” so that he “could take [Trump] behind the gym.”
Trump — as he has repeatedly done — hit back at the slight, saying he “would love that,” and mocking Biden “Mr. Tough Guy.”
Biden has also assailed Trump’s ability to lead the US at home and abroad, branding him as indifferent to the needs of Americans.
The Times of Israel Community.